Love & Virtue: We Want to See Jesus - a project by Gary Michelberger

This project is an adaptation of my MA thesis, As I Loved You. The original thesis argued that the foot washing scene in John’s Farewell Discourse exemplifies Jesus’s command: “Love one another as I have loved you.” Central to this claim is the early Christian conviction that to be a Christian is to become Christlike. This idea gave rise to the doctrine of theosis—the belief that believers can participate in the divine nature. In the chapters ahead, we will explore how theosis shapes Christian ethics and the meaning of the Imago Dei. We’ll also examine why many Christians today appear so unlike Christ, and how 1st-century virtue ethics offers a path forward. Ultimately, since the Gospel of John contains rich reflections on Jesus’s nature, the journey of theosis becomes a journey into knowing Christ more deeply. -- Gary Michelberger
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Chapters:
Introduction
1. Why Christian Ethics Feels Broken
2. Human Nature Before and After the Fall
3. Ethics and the Ethical Turn
4. Moral Instruction in the Classical Period
5. Necessary and Sufficient Conditions for Flourishing
6. The Ethical Content of the Gospel of John
7. Fumbling Towards Theosis