A link to the preliminary programme of the conference can be found here
Three subthemes
Christology in the context of the history of the church.
Dr. Suzanne McDonald (Calvin College, Grand Rapids, USA)
Dr. Jaesung Cha (South Korea/Philippines)
Prof. Rickus Fick (NWU/Potchefstroom)
Christology in the context of contemporary world Christianity
Prof. Dirkie Smit (University of Stellenbosch, South Africa)
Dr. Robert Agyarko (Accra, Ghana)
Dr. Diana Stinton (Kenia)
Prof. James Haire (Canberra, Australia)
Dr. Bambang Subandrijo (Jakarta, Indonesia)
Christology in the context of Western systematic-theological reflection
Prof. Michael Welker (University of Heidelberg, Germany)
Dr. Oliver Crisp (University of Bristol, UK)
Prof. Callie Coetzee (NWU/Potchefstroom)
Prof. Martien Brinkman (VU University, Amsterdam-NL)
Christology has always been a fiercely contested issue in church history. We do not need to repeat here all the fiercely debated items around the ecumenical councils of Nicaea and Chalcedon and the controversies between the Alexandrines, Antiochenes, the mono- and duofysites, etc. Many of the past issues are still a matter of controversy today, but nowadays of course in another garment. Let us mention just three central items, each area of reflection linked to our three sub themes:
How can the relation between the doctrine of God, Christology and pneumatology be described in an adequate way? Does Christology absorb the doctrine of God and the doctrine of the Holy Spirit? Or does the doctrine of God absorb Christology and does pneumatology run the same risk? In this sub theme we shall try to link historical debates to current questions.
The development of Christology from the Reformation period onwards was mainly a Western concern. Nowadays we are confronted with a huge number of so-called non-western Christologies: Jesus as ancestor, healer, prophet, guru, etc. Along which lines of argument are these new Christologies developed and what is their relation to classical Christology?
Christology has to do with a divine-human person. But how can the divine and the humane of Jesus be understood? Does the definition of the humane depend upon the definition of the divine or the other way around? Or is Jesus redefining the meaning of the divine and the human?
We presume that the emphases articulated in the different approaches have always a certain setting. Either a historical controversy, either a contextual urgency or a philosophical logic. Hence we speak in all cases about ‘Christology in context’: in the context of historical debates, of current contextual settings or of philosophical and systematic reflection. So, the setting of our Christological reflections will be the main focus or our conference theme.