The Existing Christ: An Existential Christology - Paperback

by Aldo Di Giovanni (Author)

It is not that God created or caused us; rather that God indwelling through Christ is creating or causing us. In the time we have and with what we are given in that time, it is for us to exist with ultimate existential significance, meaning and purpose. In the most simple of terms, reality for most people is not and will not be what it has been for most people for millennia. The few shreds of 'reality' that have survived the last few centuries are being disintegrated by the advances of science and philosophy and are not being credibly replaced. In our existence and existing, what is real and what is not? This question is the backdrop of personal existential significance, meaning and purpose. The answer is with God or Existence ("I AM".) Two theatres of being are before us: one experienced as the world of objects external to our person (biblically, the world after the flesh); the other experienced as the world of the things of God internal to our person (biblically, the world after the spirit). The latter is identified by Paul as the world according to Christ after the spirit. The world according to Christ after the spirit is the area of existential Christology. Existential Christology as approached in this book provides a practical framework for Christianity in the 21st century that securely stands the scrutiny of critical reflection and thought. More importantly Existential Christology establishes the ground on which Christian practice frees people from bondage and captivity. What could be more important to a Christian than scripture? The reality and accessibility of the existing Christ is more important. The former merely tells of the latter... as best it can. It is not that God created or caused us; rather that God indwelling through Christ is creating or causing us. The coming century promises that the grounding and framing of Christian living will move and shift. The challenges will cause faith to stumble, if not fall. In the infinite and eternal reality of Christ there is a Covenant --- a Christ Covenant --- that will ground and frame or form spiritual living. This book is about the reality Christ and how that presently existing reality forms our spiritual person. Drawing on some 17th Century Radical Protestant writings, as well as Quaker, Wesleyan and Reformist legacies of Light and Experimental Religion, this book delves into the pursuit and securing of salvation and holiness. It draws on the book of John and its Gospel message regarding the existing Christ, as well as the authenticated letters of Paul and the work of Spinoza. It reflects on some salient themes from the Gospel of John, presenting thought provoking and 'creative' reflections on some of those texts.

Author Biography

Mine is an early 17th Century radical protestant or rather radical Christian approach that combines with a mid-twentieth century Salvationist's understanding of the 'Living' and written Gospels. Into the mix is added a Methodist appreciation for experience and Light within, likely derived from that 17th century radical protestant legacy. My understanding is of a practical Quaker and Salvationist theology . My approach to the Gospel is direct and plain. In my experience, Salvation Army soldiers I have met, as well as many other simple souls illuminating God's light before me, had a direct and plain grasp of the Gospel of Christ, its theology and doctrine. I found in them, what God reveals to me in my heart and in my mind. No doubt my development within the Catholic Church in childhood has also influenced me. Much of what I know, I know because others before me constructed places of worship and gathering. They showed their justice, righteousness and mercy and in doing so illuminated my way. Needless to say, there has been much study and learning given over to the 'grist in the mill' of my understanding. In the end, I am a child of my age, within its traditions, speaking to the present and perhaps the future. The Gospel plain and deep has guided me in the past, it guides me now and it will guide me in the future.