Death of God theology refers to a line of theological thinking that gained prominence in the 1960s, driven in large part by the Christian theologians Gabriel Vahanian, Paul Van Buren, William Hamilton, and Thomas J. J. Altizer. The basic premise of death of God theology is that the traditional Christian conception of God has “died” or ceased to be believable or relevant in the modern world.
Advocates of death of God theology argue that the idea of an all-powerful, all-knowing, transcendent God “up there” or external to the world no longer makes sense in contemporary society. They contend that the traditional symbols, doctrines, and practices used to describe and access the divine no longer work and should be radically reinterpreted or set aside altogether. Death of God theologians often claim that the traditional idea of God was always a human construct and that we have now come to a place historically where we can no longer believe in that conception of the divine in good faith.
While the broader death of God movement declined significantly by the early 1970s, theologies seeking to revise or reject traditional ideas about God continue to emerge and develop. These theologies argue that God is not a supernatural entity but rather is found within or as part of a natural or material world. They advocate moving beyond transcendent visions of God and embracing more immanent understandings, often drawing on panentheist conceptions of the divine. Some of the more prominent theologians working in this general trajectory include Mark C. Taylor, Catherine Keller, Clayton Crockett, and Philip Clayton.
The connection between the earlier death of God movement and more recent forms of radically revised theism remains contested. Critics argue there is a strong link between rejecting a transcendent God and concluding there simply is no God at all. Defenders counter that they are not negating God as such but rather proposing new ways of understanding and relating to the divine that they argue are more plausible and necessary.
At a high level, death of God theology can be seen as challenging long dominant tendencies in Western religious thought to separate God from the world and think in dualistic terms. Claiming God has died is often a way of arguing against conceptions of the divine as utterly transcendent, unmoved, unchanging, etc. It also involves questioning if our language for and understanding of God is up to the task of capturing the real nature of the divine.
Below is a more detailed summary of some of the key arguments and claims involved in death of God theology:
– The rise of modern science, critical history, biblical criticism, and secularism have undermined the plausibility of traditional religious claims and made the idea of a supernatural, all-powerful God incredible or even meaningless.
– Seeing God as a being that exists outside of or beyond the natural world does not make sense anymore. God did not really “die”—rather, this is a metaphor for the fact that conceptions of a transcendent deity are no longer believable or viable.
– Much religious language and many theological concepts no longer have meaning or relevance for many people today. Advocates argue theology needs to be demythologized and reconsidered for the contemporary age.
– Death of God theologians criticize the idea that God is an eternally unchanging being who determines everything according to divine will and knowledge. This common theological view is rejected as overly simplistic and not supported by a thoughtful reading of the Bible.
– While the metaphysical idea of God has died or is no longer believable, “God” can live on as a symbol, action, or idea within society. Theology must transition to speaking about God in secular and this-worldly terms rather than appeals to supernaturalism.
– Jesus’ statements about God in the Gospels are interpreted as showing Jesus himself did not believe in God as aliteral all-powerful entity separate from the world. His references to God are seen as reflecting the eschatological imagination of Jewish Apocalypticism, not a metaphysical being.
– Death of God theology emphasizes viewing God and Christ as operating within—rather than external to—history and the world. It seeks to construct a post-theistic theology that removes transcendent conceptions of divine power and knowledge.
– This perspective argues the church must take responsibility for tasks traditionally assigned to God: establishing justice, ushering in salvation, etc. With no supernatural God bringing redemption through cosmic actions, humans must create meaning and redemption within history.
– There are no easy answers to existential questions and difficulties. Death of God theology stresses the ambiguity, doubt, uncertainty, and agony involved in the human condition. But divine comforts and reassurances are considered illusions.
– Calls are made for radical theologies that embraceuncertainty and God’s unfolding within the world. Process theology and Hegelian-influenced views of God are proposed as alternatives to classical theism. Theologies emphasizing mystery, relativism, or the limits of language are also advocated.
– Much debate occurs over how far death of God perspectives diverge from or even contradict core claims of Christian tradition. Critics say this theology abandons basic teachings about who God is, God’s purposes, Christ’s nature and work, the church, and hope for the future. Defenders argue nearly all theologians modify or reframe traditional ideas and that Christianity has always adapted to cultural change. The meaning of Christ is spiritual not literal, and Christianity’s core revolves around how we should live, critics say.
– Death of God theology provoked strong backlash when it was first proposed, and many theologians continue to criticize it as promoting an anti-Christian program under the guise of constructive theological development. But its questioning of traditional assumptions helped open the door for greater theological flexibility and innovation from the late 1960s onward.
The groundbreaking thinker often identified with catalyzing death of God theological thought is Thomas J. J. Altizer. His book The Gospel of Christian Atheism (1967) and other writings shocked many at the time. Altizer argued that Christian faith and theology could and should be embraced while accepting the death of the idea of God as a literal being. Here is a high-level summary of his positions:
– Revelation in Christ signals the end of God’s transcendence. Altizer reads the New Testament as showing God fully emptied Godself into the world through Christ’s incarnation. Jesus’ death on the cross represents the death of God merging with history and eliminating dualism.
– God cannot be both fully immanent and fully transcendent. Altizer understands the incarnation as initiating God’s kenosis or self-emptying. He believes preserving God’s radical immanence in Christ requires accepting the death of God’s traditional transcendence and absoluteness.
– Apocalyptic expectation was central for Jesus and early Christianity. Altizer argues their anticipation of divine deliverance reflects awareness of God’s impending death. Christ ends the sovereign rule of the lawgiving God of Israel and closes an epoch in divine-human relations.
– The death of God is necessary for the renewal of both divinity and humanity. What dies is God imagined as an external, supernatural figure and sterile philosophical absolute. “Heretical” churches keep the spirit of Christ alive by courageously proclaiming God’s death and moving past antiquated religious forms.
– The absence left by the death of God opens new horizons for creative life, action, and meaning. Like Christ’s death, the death of God transforms Christian belief and practice. Radical faith accepts absolute uncertainty and insecurity, affirming them as necessary for deeper trust, commitment, and engagement with the world.
– Altizer provocatively claimed the death of God is a historical event like any other. He was deeply influenced by the Death of Christ idea in Hegel and Nietzsche’s proclamation that God remains dead. Altizer’s audacious style and claims sparked fierce controversy but helped catalyze renewed theological daring.
So in essence, death of God theology refers to the claim that traditional notions of God have become unbelievable or untenable in the modern secular age. Advocates argue God must now be understood and experienced in radically nontraditional terms if God is to remain religiously significant and believable. For major representatives like Altizer, this effectively meant accepting God’s death as a theological necessity allowing for spiritual rebirth and existential maturity. The controversial ideas of death of God theology resonated widely in the 60s and prodded new developments in theology for decades afterwards.
