Journal of Philosophy and Theology

“Deep” Theology and the Christo-Pagan Turn
Robert Bruce Kelsey, Ph.D.

Abstract
In the last several decades, what was once an often-hostile relationship between Christian and Pagan traditions has taken a “Christo-Pagan turn,” an ideological and ritualistic shift away from traditional anthropocentric Christianity towards a more ecological and existential spiritualism. Christo-Paganism takes a non-anthropocentric view of divinity with an appreciation for, and commitment to serve, all creation in all its varied forms, while leaving room for modified versions of the Christian theological concepts of kenosis and incarnation. Primarily a popular movement, academic research has focused on cataloging practices and beliefs; the prima facie theological difficulties of combining deist and dogmatic Christian doctrine with contemporary nature-focused Pagan beliefs and perspectives have not been addressed. This paper examines the Christian panentheist “Deep” theology of Niels Henrik Gregersen and Jan-Olav Henriksen, suggesting that in Deep theology divinity, religion, dogma, and the imago Dei take a decidedly Christo-Pagan turn and may be the foundation for a Christo-Pagan “theology.”

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/ijpt.v8n1a2