... Oὐ Θέλω Δὲ Ὑμᾶς Κοινωνοὺς Τῶν Δαιμονίων Γίνεσθαι − Separative Integration as a Theological Model of Communication

Abstract

Communication theology is a relatively new field of thought at the meeting point of two disciplines, a result of an attempt to approach communication from a theological perspective. Showing the characteristics of basic researches when describing phenomena and grasping concepts which usually belongs to the field of communication studies, it vindicates the essentially theological caracter of communication. However, the established discourse is one-sided: Within its framework, communication is integration-focused in a specific way, as integration through acts of the Divine Persons or through human acts in correspondence with ontological and revealed truths. In the meantime, little light was shed both on the separative aspect of this integration and on the explication of other, negative integration processes, described in the Bible as a type of communication. In this paper, we will examine these issues postulated as weaknesses in communication theology, and trying to argue for the following propositions: First, the lack of setting up a line of demarcation between positive and negative communication in an ontological sense poses a serious problem in a proper theological understanding of communication, and second, it is necessary to differentiate between communities created through these processes.

Keywords: communication theology, communication, koinonia, integration, separation