Kevin Vanhoozer mistakenly interposes an assumption, which he does not defend, in the following words: “Let us call this post-modern view that emphasizes relationality and restorative justice the relational restoration view.” (The Drama of Doctrine: A Canonical Linguistic Approach to Christian Theology [Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 2005] p. 382; bold emphasis and underlining added.) To the contrary, “restorative justice” first emerged as such only since the 1980’s with the actual practice, within the American and Canadian criminal justice systems, of a kind of mediation and conciliation developed by Mennonites such as Howard Zehr. This native Anabaptist practice, along with its Biblical and theological rationale, are very far indeed from anything remotely post-modern, although given the retributive impulse of modernism (which Anabaptists can hardly be alleged to have participated in or sympathized with), a post-modern climate may well be more amenable or compatible with its successful spread. [12/28/07]
The apostle Paul always “falls short” of perfectly substitutionary language (and that goes equally for every other New Testament author) because he simply will not have it! He is fully aware of the truth concerning the resurrectionary trans-valuation of culminating transformation of all the Mosaic, Levitical, Sinaitic, Old-Covenant SHADOWS. This transformation constitutes nothing less than a HERMENEUTICAL METAMORPHOSIS requiring and simultaneously facilitating the interpretive illumination of God’s fresh, unstinting gift of His own Holy Spirit. [12/28/07]
To participate in Messiah’s salvation (interpreted resurrectionarily) is to not only achieve our own individual safety (i.e., salvation from God’s wrath) but to extend it yet further into the darkness and thereby make it possible for many others to participate in it as well. Therefore,, to “not love one’s existence unto death” is to positively, happily save not only our own existences (via resurrection), but potentially many others’ too! Woo hoo! This participatory grasp of the “Atonement” goes over the top! Hereby we can effectively multiply the yield of Messiah’s “afflictions.” Paul understood this clearly (Colossians 1:24-27). [12/28/07]
The Premial Atonement 