Hans Schwarz, The Human Being: A Theological Anthropology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2013), xiv + 402 Pps., $35.00.
Hans Schwarz is Professor of Systematic Theology and Contemporary Theological Issues at the University of Regensburg, Germany. Schwarz notes that only humans develop something like philosophy, and only they have an awareness of something higher than them. Only humans, moreover, reflect on themselves, their origins and destiny, and the world and its origin.
Part one, covering humans special place in the world, is comprised of three chapters. The first chapter covers the biblical testimony of human origins. Chapter two covers the biological perspective of human origins. The third chapter gives a philosophico-religious perspective of humanity in the world.
Part two, addressing human freedom, is composed of three chapters. Chapter four asserts that the neurosciences challenge the existence of human freedom. The fifth chapter contends that the biblical command given to the first humans makes sense only if they were able to obey it, so this implies that they had a certain freedom of volition. Chapter six investigates whether there is anything good left in humanity or if hey are a totally corrupt entity; if the later, this would negatively impact human freedom, Schwarz notes.
Part three is comprised of two chapters, covering humanity as a community of men and women. In chapter seven, Schwarz notes that there are several differences between men and women in terms of gender role behavior, but these differences are not overwhelming. Four points become evident from a full perusal of this text: humans are something special; freedom is an important aspect of the human condition; humans have an inherent tendency toward self-interest, but no one can live by himself; and humans are acutely aware of their ow finitude.