ABSTRACT
As we look to the restoration of humanity in salvation, we see theological anthropology in a holistic framework, with the problems of humanity juxtaposed with the divine intention for humanity. The methodological diversity that marks contemporary scholarship has encouraged a new vigor for addressing these old issues. Our goal here is not to address the topic through a new lens, but rather an old one—theosis. The patristic soteriology of theosis has rightly received increasing attention because of its theologically integrative perspective, bringing together Christology and Pneumatology, protology and eschatology, soteriology and ecclesiology. 1 Our intention in this chapter is to explore how theosis informs the discussion of theological anthropology. 2 Our argument is that theosis reveals the creational intent for humanity to live in a transforming union with the Trinity, which places the emphasis on a relational ontology more than a substance ontology.
