The Perfectibility of Human Nature in Eastern and Western Thought

Chapter 4 The Perfectibility of Human Nature in Christian Thought

Chapter 4 The Perfectibility of Human Nature in Christian Thought Like Jews, Christians understand perfectibility in terms of obedience to God—of being wholly turned toward God with all of one’s being. That is the meaning of the key teaching of Jesus in this regard: “Be perfect, therefore, even as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). Response to this call has been understood by Christians as requiring not just moral perfection (e.g., the love of one’s enemies) but also a religious perfection—the complete surrender of one’s heart and will to faith in God through Jesus Christ. Response to God’s call is a matter of faith. Because of the guilt and sin innate in human nature, most Christian thinkers judged that it was impossible for a human to attain moral perfection before death even with the aid of divine grace.1 Thus, the Christian philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) argued that since we cannot achieve perfection or sinlessness in this life, we must postulate an afterlife in which infinite progress toward it will be possible.2 Christian theologians dealt with this problem by emphasizing that the response to Christ’s call to be perfect is a surrender of the heart and will in the obedience of faith. Faith involves the acceptance of God’s grace that enables humans to love their enemies. It is God’s love, made available through Christ, that is the essence of perfection, and it is this love that supernaturally perfects our less than perfect attempts to follow Christ’s teachings. Within the church, as early as St. Ambrose (c. 340 CE), a distinction arose between the basic “precepts,” according to which all Christians were required to live, and the “counsels of perfection ,” which only the few (e.g., monks and nuns of the religious orders) could follow. However, this distinction was completely rejected by the Protestant Reformers, such as Martin Luther.3 For the modern Protestant theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr, it is the sin of pride that causes us to lack the faith and trust required to surrender ourselves to God. This 55 56 The Perfectibility of Human Nature pride, and the belief that we can perfect ourselves by our own efforts, is rooted in our human refusal to acknowledge our finite human nature . Humans are utterly dependent on God, and God’s grace through Christ, for any progress toward perfection.4 In our survey of Christian thought we will begin with the biblical view of human nature and its perfectibility, then move on to Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, and Niebuhr. THE BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE In the New Testament, human nature is described as having intelligence , emotions, free will, moral responsibility, and the possibility of eternal life.5 The Gospels indicate that the views of Jesus regarding human nature are essentially those of the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament (see chapter 3). The concept of the physical body, expressed by either “body” or “flesh,” represents the whole person or personality, with no sharp distinction between body and soul as in Greek thought. When Jesus says in Mark 14:38 “The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak,” it seems as if he is adopting a dualistic view of human nature. But this is not the case. Jesus fully adopts the Hebrew approach of thinking of the whole personality—mind, body, and spirit—as a psychosomatic unity.6 Jesus frequently uses the terms “flesh” and “body” to represent the whole personality, as for example in Matthew 5:29 “that your whole body be thrown into hell.” When Jesus uses the word “life” as in Mark 8:35, “Whoever would save his life will lose it,” or the word “soul” as in Mark 14:34, “My soul is sorrowful,” it is the Hebrew term nephesh (life or self including the body, its organs and blood) that is meant. In his teachings the most basic aspect of Jesus’ view of human nature is his assumption of intelligence, free will, and emotions that require discipline. Human intelligence enables one to understand God’s will, and human freedom gives one the opportunity to choose to follow it. These qualities of intelligence, freedom, and responsibility are seen in Jesus’ sayings such as Matthew 5:28, “[E]very one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committee adultery with her in his heart.” Here Jesus assumes that all moral actions are the responsibility of the self. “Heart” is used here by Jesus in the...