ABSTRACT
One of the outstanding issues that has emerged repeatedly in our discussion and yet has not been studied fully is eschatology, or eschatological consummation. This idea has obvious relevance to human destiny. Our key objective in this chapter is to determine whether it is sufficient to describe Pannenberg’s view as that which says, “human destiny is eschatological rather than ethical, though moral ramifications or consequences are not ruled out.” In other words, is there anything more to this argumentation? Is it as conclusive as it seems? In order to address this issue adequately, we have to analyse the meaning of “eschatological” and “ethical” in turn. In earlier chapters, we have already covered some aspects of eschatology, especially in relation to resurrection, time and eternity. In this chapter, we are to focus on the other aspects, in particular, the kingdom of God, which seems to be the single most important eschatological theme for Pannenberg.
