Coram relation

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Coram relation is a term found and coined by the theologian Gerhard Ebeling , who wants to characterize Martin Luther's thinking from the ground up. It is about the situation of the human being in the face of (Latin coram) God and in face of the world and at the same time a relational- ontological alternative to substance ontology .

The preposition "coram"

Ebeling justifies the choice of a preposition , which is followed by his considerations, in the fact that the preposition as a preposition is the “appropriate grammatical form” to express a relational ontology - whereas the form of the noun is decisive for substance ontology .

The Latin preposition coram is made up of con (in) and ōs (face) - hence the translation "in the face" - and expresses a "relation of closeness". The Greek and especially the Hebrew have the same structured equivalents, namely ἐναντνον or ἐνώπιος and בעיני al-pene orלפני liphne . In Hebrew, "being in the face of" is more deeply rooted in the language than in Greek and Latin. Since coram can be translated both as “in the face of” and “in the presence of”, the preposition has a spatial as well as a temporal character.

Ebeling justifies the choice of the preposition coram with the fact that on the one hand it finds a specific use in the biblical tradition and on the other hand it is only applicable to personal interrelationships.

use

Ebeling regards seeing and being seen or recognizing and being recognized as characteristic of the coram relation. So man is exposed to judgment. The occurrence of truth takes place in the coram relation.

So Ebeling refers to Luther that the sinner is not determined by the fact that he is in sin, but that he becomes a sinner if he recognizes himself as a sinner . Or: only those who recognize conjugal life can live in it without any effort - just being married is not enough.

Ebeling finds four different coram relations in Luther. These are:

  • coram deo (before God)
  • coram meipso (in front of myself)
  • coram hominibus (in front of the people)
  • coram mundo (in front of the world). This is almost identical to coram hominibus .

Ebeling also regards this coram relation as central to understanding the doctrine of the two kingdoms .

literature

  • Gerhard Ebeling: Dogmatics of the Christian Faith: Prolegomena. Part 1: Belief in God the Creator of the World . 3. Edition. Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 1987, ISBN 3-16-145293-3 .
  • Gerhard Ebeling: Luther. Introduction to his thinking . 5th edition. Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2006, ISBN 3-16-148934-9 .
  • Jan Taeke Bakker: Coram Deo. bijdrage tot het onderzoek naar de structuur van Luther's theology . Kok, Kampen 1956.
  • Gerhard Ebeling, Albrecht Beutel: Luther: Introduction to his thinking . Mohr Siebeck, 2006, ISBN 3-16-148934-9 ( limited preview in Google book search).

Web links

Wiktionary: coram  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gerhard Ebeling: Dogmatics . tape I , S. 348 f .
  2. ^ A b c Gerhard Ebeling: Dogmatics of the Christian Faith . tape I , S. 349 .
  3. ↑ Jack E. Brush: Faith as an Event: Self, Power, Time, Life . Lit Verlag, Münster 2011, p. 199 .
  4. ^ Gerhard Ebeling: Luther. Introduction to his thinking . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2006, p. 220 .
  5. ^ Gerhard Ebeling: Luther. Introduction to his thinking . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2006, p. 221 f .
  6. ^ Gerhard Ebeling: Luther. Introduction to his thinking . Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen 2006, p. 225 .
  7. ^ D. Martin Luther's works (Weimar edition) 56; 232, 34-233, 19 (1515/16).
  8. ^ D. Martin Luther's works (Weimar edition) 10, 2; 294, 21-23. 27-29 (1522).