Overview

In Good Company answers a question that has confounded Christian theologians: What is the nature of the body that will enjoy resurrection at the end of time? In this exciting work of comparative theology, Bede Benjamin Bidlack derives a theory of the body from the French Jesuit, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, by putting him in dialogue with the Song Dynasty Daoist Xiao Yingsou. In addition to its contribution to comparative theology, In Good Company offers the first translation of the preface of Xiao's commentary on the Duren jing in a Western language, as well as a careful explication of the provocative mountain diagram therein. Bidlack presents an original contribution for both scholars of Christian theology and Chinese religion. An excellent example of comparative theology, Bede Bidlack's In Good Company demonstrates how certain lacunae in one tradition may be addressed by drawing on resources from another religion. Having identified a neglect of the body in the work of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, and in much of the Christian tradition of divinization, Bidlack discusses the work of Daoist scholar Xiao Yingsou as a possible source of inspiration and theological imagination. - Catherine Cornille, Newton College Alumnae Chair, Professor of Comparative Theology, Boston College In Good Company takes comparative theology to a new level: it not only places Daoism front and center, but also opens Christian spirituality to a wider dimension. Concerned with the two core themes of the body and personal divinization (or resurrection), the book centers on the work of two influential thinkers in their traditions: Teilhard de Chardin and Xiao Yingsou. Although 800 years apart, their visions of the body as the means to ultimate fulfillment, in close relation to divinity and the cosmos as a whole, powerfully enhance each other, as do their understanding of the intricate process of personal divinization. The book is challenging in its outlook, unsettling in its destabilization of terms, and brilliant in its interweaving of the two traditions. A must for anyone concerned with the new global environment of religious pluralism and the ongoing process of interreligious dialogue. - Livia Kohn, Professor Emerita of Religion & East Asian Studies, Boston University

Full Product Details

Author:   Bede Benjamin Bidlack
Publisher:   Brill
Imprint:   Brill
Volume:   5
Dimensions:   Width: 15.50cm , Height: 1.30cm , Length: 23.50cm
Weight:   0.522kg
ISBN:  

9789004288515

ISBN 10:   9004288511
Pages:   236
Publication Date:   05 February 2015
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In stock  
We have confirmation that this item is in stock with the supplier. It will be ordered in for you and dispatched immediately.

Table of Contents

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS INTRODUCTION Teilhard de Chardin The Mountain Diagram in the Inner Meaning of the Scripture of Salvation Structure of the Work CHAPTER ONE: TRYING TO HOLD TOGETHER: BODY/SOUL DUALISM IN CHRISTIAN ANTHROPOLOGY NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGIES Paul The Body in the Gospel of John PATRISTIC PERIOD Irenaeus of Lyons Augustine MEDIEVAL PERIOD: THOMAS AQUINAS Enter Aristotelian Metaphysics The Soul as Actuality The Body's Effect on the Soul MODERN FRANCE Henri Bergson Maurice Blondel CONCLUSION CHAPTER TWO: THE BODY AND DIVINIZATION IN TEILHARD PART I: THE APPEARANCE OF THE HUMAN The Stuff of the Universe Life Arises Thought Makes the Human Christ and Creation Conclusions about the Body PART II: DIVINIZATION IN THE DIVINE MILIEU Divinization of Activities Divinization of Passivities Conclusion: The Divine Milieu PART III: DIVINIZATION IS CENTRATION Centration: Microcosmic Centration: Macrocosmic The Body Beyond Matter CHAPTER THREE: DAOIST BODY AND DIVINIZATION PART I: STANDARD BODY MODELS The Mystical Body The Microcosmic Body The Bureaucratic Body The Divine Residence Body PART II: ALCHEMY Historical Background The Alchemical Body The Road to Immortality: The Alchemical Process CONCLUSION CHAPTER FOUR: THE BODY AND DIVINIZATION OF XIAO YINGSOU PART I: THE TEXT OF THE PREFACE Xiao Yingsou Numinous Treasure Daoism Scripture of Salvation Xiao's Use of Alchemy in the Preface PART II: MOUNTAINS IN CHINESE RELIGION AND ART PART III: THE MOUNTAIN DIAGRAM Comprehensive Features: The Title Other Comprehensive Features The Lower Region The Middle Region The Upper Region CONCLUSION CHAPTER FIVE: GIVING TEILHARD HIS BODY PART I: THE BODY Body as Cosmos Body as Community Body from the Inside of Things Body Conclusion: Jesus' Resurrection Body PART II: DIVINIZATION Divinization as Centration The Use of Mind Haloing Divinization Conclusion CONCLUSION APPENDIX ONE: TRANSLATION OF THE INNER MEANING OF THE SCRIPTURE OF SALVATION APPENDIX TWO: ANALYSIS OF THE MOUNTAIN DIAGRAM Other Elements GLOSSARY OF CHINESE TERMS BIBLIOGRAPHY

Reviews

In Good Company makes a constructive contribution to the theology of the (cosmic) body, beginning with the insights of the famed scientist-theologian-mystic Teilhard de Chardin, SJ (1881-1955) and ending, led by a sense of intellectual appropriateness and necessity, in the world of medieval Daoist thought. Francis X. Clooney, Harvard Divinity School, Oct. 2015 Au lecteur occidental, s'il est pret au depaysement total, cette traversee ouvre des apercus neufs sur differentes dimensions de la corporeite (individuelle, communautaire, cosmique...) et propose des outils bienvenus pour reprendre de maniere nuancee la question de la resurrection et de la divinisation. J. Scheuer s.j., Nouvelle revue theologique Vol. 138, No. 3, (2016) This book definitely contributes to Teilhard scholarship. The connections [Bidlack] makes between the Daoist body and the Teilhardian body are brilliantly mined giving a depth and richness to Teilhard's Cosmic Christ. This work encourages further activity in comparative theology and illustrates the power of constructive interfaith dialogue to broaden our theological categories. Kathleen Duffy, Chestnut Hill College, Philadelphia Theological Studies 78(1), 257-258

In Good Company makes a constructive contribution to the theology of the (cosmic) body, beginning with the insights of the famed scientist-theologian-mystic Teilhard de Chardin, SJ (1881-1955) and ending, led by a sense of intellectual appropriateness and necessity, in the world of medieval Daoist thought. Francis X. Clooney, Harvard Divinity School, Oct. 2015

Author Information

Bede Benjamin Bidlack, Ph.D. (2011), Boston College, is Assistant Professor of Theology at Saint Anselm College. He has published in the areas of systematic theology, Christian-Daoist comparative theology, and Daoist studies. This is his first monograph.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions