John Polkinghorne on the Doctrine of Creation

After outlining Polkinghorne’s scientific understanding of the way the world is, this paper notes his commitments to critical realism and natural theology before giving an account of his theological understanding of creation. It notes the influence of two seminal figures—Jürgen Moltmann and W. H. Vanstone—with particular emphasis on their role in the formation of Polkinghorne’s central idea of creation as kenosis. The exposition draws on a range of his work with particular reference to the first and second editions of Science and Creation and The Work of Love. In conclusion, it raises critical questions on the role of science in theological construction.

Biography

Stephen N. Williams (PhD Yale University) is Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Theological College in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He has written Revelation and Reconciliation (Cambridge University Press, 1996), The Shadow of the Antichrist (Baker Academic, 2006), and delivered the 2009 Kantzer Lectures, published as The Election of Grace: A Riddle without a Resolution? (Eerdmans, 2015).