{"title":"What Makes a Christian Life Alive? On Call and Creation in N.F.S. Grundtvig and Jean-Louis Chrétien","authors":"Anders Skou Jørgensen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70029","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70029","url":null,"abstract":"<p>According to 19th-century Danish theologian and poet N.F.S. Grundtvig, Christianity truly comes alive when it is freely expressed in the congregation through confession of faith, preaching, song, and praise. This article presents a contemporary systematic reading of Grundtvig's important essay, <i>The Christian Signs of Life</i>, alongside his hymn <i>There Sat a Fisherman Deep in Thought</i>, which depicts the conversion of Simon. It is argued that Grundtvig's hymn may be taken to show not only what it means to be called to a Christian life, but also the necessity of contemplation, as well as the movement from contemplation to action. To further elaborate on Grundtvig's insights, the article draws upon 20th-century philosopher Jean-Louis Chrétien's work concerning the call and the response. By reading Chrétien alongside Grundtvig's hymn <i>Creation</i>, it is shown how being called may be understood as a foundational moment not only in discipleship, but in Creation as such.</p>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"29-35"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/dial.70029","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683703","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Spirituality and Mercy—Or, a Crisis of Spirituality's Making","authors":"Vincent Evener","doi":"10.1111/dial.70020","DOIUrl":"10.1111/dial.70020","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"3-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683596","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Bondage Instead of Freedom? How Can Lutheran Theology Prevent the Use of Sola Scriptura as an Entrance to Pathological Theology?","authors":"Jan-Olav Henriksen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70019","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70019","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The principle of <i>Sola Scriptura</i> was originally intended to liberate the Church from external authorities, ensuring that no power other than the Word of God dictated its teachings and practices. It served a critical role over against human authorities that demanded obedience to doctrines and practices that were not grounded in Scripture. The following analysis explores the shadow side of this principle, inspired by some elements in the psychology of religion. The reason for this approach is that the meaning of theology is not found solely in its articulation but in its practical effects—how it orients life, shapes identity, and enables or constrains human flourishing. To examine this, I will also employ Hanna Reichel's concept of theology as design. Her approach addresses “bad theology,” or theology that fosters pathological dynamics, and this can also be the case with the principle in question.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"45-49"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ordinary Faith in Polarized Times: Justification and the Pursuit of Justice","authors":"David A. Brondos","doi":"10.1111/dial.70023","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70023","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"50-51"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Resonance in Theology – Theology in Resonance","authors":"Jan-Olav Henriksen, Niels Henrik Gregersen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70030","DOIUrl":"10.1111/dial.70030","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683831","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ecology in Hartmut Rosa's Theory of Resonance: A Four-Level Reconstruction","authors":"Niels Henrik Gregersen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70028","DOIUrl":"10.1111/dial.70028","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This article discusses Hartmut Rosa's sociological theory of resonance with special emphasis on religion and ecology. In Rosa, resonance experiences refer to (always) participatory and (normally) enlivening world relations. I argue that Rosa's resonance theory is multi-pronged and covers at least three interconnected levels. (1) At the phenomenological level, Rosa points to ever-fleeting experiences of resonance and more long-lived axes of resonance. (2) At the sociological level, he analyzes the structural conditions that either promote or inhibit an openness to resonance among late modern citizens. (3) At the philosophical level, Rosa argues that resonance constitutes basic and primordial ways of being-in-the-world more fundamental than alienation. Adding to Rosa's sociological theory, I propose (4) the level of a pre-cultural world of ‘natural resonance’ ubiquitously ingrained in the more-than-human world. Natural resonance is presented as a prelude to Rosa's sociological theory, which supports his constitutive view of resonance by fueling human existence below the threshold of awareness. In discussion with Bruno Latour, it is argued that Rosa's resonance theory links religion, ecology, and ethics without reducing them to one another.</p>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"36-44"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/dial.70028","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"From Recognition to Resonance: Insights for Lutheran Theology From Hartmut Rosa's Critique of Honneth","authors":"Mikkel Gabriel Christoffersen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70022","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This article engages Hartmut Rosa's critique of Axel Honneth's theory of recognition to reconsider Lutheran interpretations of the doctrine of justification. While recognition theory has offered fruitful resources for articulating justification as divine recognition, it also risks reducing faith to a form of moral validation. Drawing on Rosa's concept of resonance, the article argues that justification can also be understood as an uncontrollable, transformative event in which God addresses human beings and evokes faith as response. Through a systematic comparison of recognition and resonance, the article explores possible implications for faith, the good life, world relations, divine–human mutuality, and social struggle. It proposes that resonance expands Lutheran theology by addressing contemporary experiences of alienation and spiritual muteness, reframing justification as participation in a living, responsive relation to God with consequences for relations to the world.</p>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"16-22"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/dial.70022","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683261","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Resonance Theory as a Resource for Diakonia: A Contribution to Social Practice in the Church","authors":"Helmuth Liessem","doi":"10.1111/dial.70025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70025","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Diakonia, grounded in theological anthropology and oriented toward inclusion, justice, and care, requires sociologically attuned frameworks capable of interpreting contemporary forms of social fragmentation and vulnerability. Rosa's resonance theory provides such a framework by conceptualizing human–world relations as potentially transformative encounters characterized by mutual affectivity, self-efficacy, and openness. Crucially, resonance cannot be instrumentalized; it emerges only under conditions that allow subjects and their environments to “speak” with their own voices.</p>\u0000 <p>The article argues that diakonia can foster resonance axes—horizontal, vertical, diagonal, and intra-subjective—through practices such as community building, ritual participation, pastoral care, and advocacy work. These axes secure conditions for participatory agency while avoiding authoritarian or efficiency-driven modes that inhibit resonance. Moreover, resonance theory illuminates diakonia's longstanding engagement with vulnerability: resonant relations presuppose trust and exposure, both of which are undermined in late modern contexts marked by structural acceleration, control regimes, and competitive pressures.</p>\u0000 <p>Finally, the article highlights the potential of religious practices to cultivate “listening hearts” and counter political alienation, thereby contributing to more dialogical democratic cultures. Resonance thus offers diakonia a critical lens for evaluating social structures and a constructive framework for shaping relational, inclusive spaces.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"23-28"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147684047","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Spirituality and Mercy—Or, a Crisis of Spirituality's Making","authors":"Vincent Evener","doi":"10.1111/dial.70020","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/dial.70020","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"3-7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683597","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Bondage Instead of Freedom? How Can Lutheran Theology Prevent the Use of Sola Scriptura as an Entrance to Pathological Theology?","authors":"Jan-Olav Henriksen","doi":"10.1111/dial.70019","DOIUrl":"10.1111/dial.70019","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The principle of <i>Sola Scriptura</i> was originally intended to liberate the Church from external authorities, ensuring that no power other than the Word of God dictated its teachings and practices. It served a critical role over against human authorities that demanded obedience to doctrines and practices that were not grounded in Scripture. The following analysis explores the shadow side of this principle, inspired by some elements in the psychology of religion. The reason for this approach is that the meaning of theology is not found solely in its articulation but in its practical effects—how it orients life, shapes identity, and enables or constrains human flourishing. To examine this, I will also employ Hanna Reichel's concept of theology as design. Her approach addresses “bad theology,” or theology that fosters pathological dynamics, and this can also be the case with the principle in question.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":42769,"journal":{"name":"Dialog-A Journal of Theology","volume":"65 1","pages":"45-49"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147683674","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}