The Christian vision of human persons is a source of hope and creativity in the face of growing insecurity and polarisation in today’s world.
This was the theme of the 2024 Annual Knox Lecture presenter, Rev Associate Professor Jamie Calder SJ, when he spoke recently at Catholic Theological College on the topic ‘Connecting with Hope, Reconnecting with Christian Vision of the Person.’ Fr Calder is a member of the Society of Jesus and serves in the Directorate of Mission and Identity at Australian Catholic University. He is a practicing psychologist and his academic work focuses on the intersection of theology and psychology.
Fr Calder discussed today’s context of increasing social, ecological and cultural challenges, both within and beyond the Catholic Church, and how they confront our personal wellbeing and sense of connection to those around us.
At the heart of the Christian vision of the person, he argued, are three key recognitions: first, that humans are made in the image of a relational and dynamic Triune God; second, that the divine life has entered fully into the world in the form of the human, incarnate in Jesus Christ; and third, that all living things are connected in the ecology of creation.
We need to reclaim a sense of personhood shaped by this theology of relational intimacy.
Drawing on the psychological framework of attachment theory, Fr Calder spoke of the need for human attachment, emotional regulation and resilience building. The Christian understanding of relational intimacy and incarnational dynamism between the divine and human provides a sure way to promote the integral development of human persons.
Reflecting on the Gospel scenes of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son (or perhaps better, the Prodigal Father), Assoc Professor Calder outlined a theological anthropology of vulnerability and mutuality, as care for the other and for the self, including the divine Other who becomes our neighbour and holds us in relationship.
The Christian vision of the person must be at the heart of efforts to ensure a safe church for all, and to prevent our safeguarding activities becoming empty checklists. Our safeguarding work should be an embodiment of the relational intimacy of God among us.
As Fr Jamie emphasised: ‘Love has come among us, and we will never be the same.’
Further information on the Annual Knox Lecture can be found here.
Reverend Dr Kevin Lenehan is a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Ballarat in Victoria, ordained in 1993. He holds degrees from Monash University, Melbourne College of Divinity, and the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. He is the Master of Catholic Theological College and has previously held roles at the College of Associate Dean (Postgraduate & Research) and Senior Lecturer in Systematic Theology. His academic work is in the areas of fundamental theology, theological anthropology, religious education, and Bonhoeffer studies.
Catholic Theological College
University of Divinity
Yarra Theological Union
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