Doctrine and Change in Western Dogmatics: The Examples of Michael Seewald and Kevin J. Vanhoozer

This paper argues that there is some ambiguity in Western conservative dogmatics on how much change and development is conceptually possible. It hence explores the potential for change within trends of Christianity related to conservative doctrine, arguing that the authority of doctrine is not as static as often perceived. To make this case, this paper (1) argues that both dogma and doctrine refer to somewhat binding beliefs, hence representing forces that ensure continuity in Western conservative dogmatics—forces that can be assessed only with regards to the faith traditions they stem from. By way of example, this paper (2) summarizes some perspectives on those concepts, as well as the potential for change, in the recent works of two Western theologians (i.e., the work of the German Roman Catholic theologian Michael Seewald and the US-American Evangelical theologian Kevin J. Vanhoozer).