Modern theological engagements on deification have undergone two major paradigm shifts. First, the study of deification shifted from the periphery of theological discourse to its center. For Adolf von Harnack, deification was a pagan import that fatally corrupted and distorted the Gospel message of salvation. In response, the positive retrieval of the concept of deification belongs to the early years of the twentieth century. By the 1910s in Russian religious thought and by the 1930s in much Roman Catholic theology, deification had become a magnet concept attracting attention from many different viewpoints. The second important shift relates to how deification is characterized. Recent studies question the exclusively 'Eastern' character of deification and draw attention to the engagements of this theme in Latin patristic and later Western Christian sources. Reassessing the evidence for these two major shifts, The Oxford Handbook of Deification comprehensively explores the points of convergence and difference on the constitutive elements of deification in different traditions, and offers a foundation for ecumenical and interreligious dialogues. The Handbook's first part analyzes the cultural and scriptural roots of deification; the second part explores the most significant historical contributions to the understanding of deification in the early, medieval, and modern periods; the third part develops systematic connections. Readers will discover a surprizing breadth, depth, and diversity of theologies of deification in Christian traditions. Throughout the Handbook, leading scholars in the field of Deification Studies propose vital new insights from a variety of perspectives for this central mystery at the heart of the Christian faith.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments List of Contributors Paul L. Gavrilyuk, Andrew Hofer, O.P., and Matthew Levering: Introduction Part I: Cultural and Scriptural Roots 1: Ivana Petrovic: Ancient Greek Cultural and Philosophical Background 2: Jennie Grillo with Caitlin Joy Hubler: Hebrew Bible/Old Testament 3: Grant Macaskill: The "Non-Biblical" Writings of Early Judaism 4: Ben C. Blackwell: Deification in the Pauline and Petrine Letters 5: Edith M. Humphrey: ication in the Synoptics and the Johannine Literature Part II: Soundings in the History of Christian Theology 6: Norman Russell: Second- and Third-Century Greek Fathers 7: Paul M. Blowers: Athanasius of Alexandria and the Cappadocian Fathers 8: Marcus Plested: Deification in Macarius, Evagrius, and Dionysius 9: Adrian C. Pirtea: The Syriac Fathers 10: Jared Ortiz: The Latin Fathers and Augustine 11: Andrew Hofer, O.P.: Cyril of Alexandria 12: Maximos Constas: "Man became God to the degree that God became man": Maximus the Confessor and the Doctrine of Deification 13: Brian J. Matz: Deification in the Early Medieval Latin West 14: Norman Russell: Symeon the New Theologian and Byzantine Monasticism 15: Boyd Taylor Coolman: The Cistercians and Victorines 16: Daria Spezzano: Aquinas and Bonaventure on Deification 17: Alexis Torrance: St Gregory Palamas and Palamism 18: John Arblaster, Rob Faesen, and Louise Nelstrop: Western Vernacular Mystics 19: Antti Raunio: Martin Luther and the Early Lutherans 20: Carl Mosser: John Calvin and Early Reformed Theology 21: Wendy M. Wright: Pierre de Bérulle and François de Sales 22: Mark McInroy: Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Anglicans 23: Daniel Castelo: Pietism, the Moravian Brethren, and the Wesleys 24: Andrew Louth: Deification in St Nikodimos of the Holy Mountain, St Makarios of Corinth, and the Philokalia 25: Cyril O'Regan: Jacob Boehme, German Idealism, and Romanticism 26: Frederick D. Aquino: Nineteenth-Century Catholic and Anglican Thinkers 27: Paul L. Gavrilyuk: Nineteenth-Century Russian and Ukrainian Religious Thinkers 28: Paul L. Gavrilyuk: Twentieth-Century Russian Orthodox Theologians 29: Cambria Kaltwasser: Karl Barth's Critique of Deification 30: Jennifer Newsome Martin: Deification in Neo-Thomist and Ressourcement Theology 31: Myk Habets: Deification in Recent Anglican and Protestant Theology 32: Pantelis Kalaitzidis: Deification in Contemporary Greek Orthodox Theologians Part III: Systematic Connections 33: Andrew Davison: Deification and the Metaphysics of Participation 34: Gilles Emery, O.P.: Deification and the Trinity 35: David Luy: Deification and Christology 36: Cyril Hovorun: Deification and Ecclesiology 37: Mark K. Spencer: Deification and Theological Anthropology 38: Athanasios Despotis: Deification, Justification, and Sanctification: An Early Christian Philosophical Approach 39: Daniel Keating: Deification in Sacraments, Liturgy, and Prayer 40: Elizabeth Theokritoff: Deification and Ecology 41: Tracey Rowland: Deification and Eschatology 42: Olli-Pekka Vainio: Deification and Ecumenical Dialogues 43: Rita George-Tvrtkovic: Dialogues with Jews and Muslims 44: Thomas Cattoi: Christian Deification: Dialogues with the Dharma Religions Index