“THE GOD WITH CLAY”: THE IDEA OF DEEP INCARNATION AND THE INFORMATIONAL UNIVERSE
Zygon December 3, 2025 DOI: 10.1111/zygo.12881 via DOAJ
Summary
Deep incarnation, the idea that the divine became fully embodied in Jesus, can be enriched by modern information science. Early cosmic Christologies, such as those of the Cappadocian fathers and Bonaventure, already blended form and matter in ways that anticipate an informational worldview. Three hypotheses link deep incarnation with information: mass, energy, and information are equally fundamental causes; transformation requires communication, which requires information; and informational structures enable information capture, communication, and transformation, which illuminate the organismic depth of incarnation. At the level of life, embodied cognition and emotion become relevant for understanding the concrete incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Communication Stoicism Cosmic christology Organicism Transformation |
| Citations | 5 |
| Key finding | Cosmic Christologies from Cappadocian theology and Bonaventure can be seen as precursors to an informational worldview, and contemporary information science can expand the concept of deep incarnation. |
Abstract
This article explores the relations between the idea of deep incarnation and scientific ideas of an informational universe, in which mass, energy, and information belong together. It is argued that the cosmic Christologies developed in the vein of Cappadocian theology (fourth century) and the Franciscan theologian Bonaventure (thirteenth century) can be interpreted as precursors of an informational worldview by consistently blending “formative” and “material” aspects of creativity. Reversely, contemporary sciences of information can enlarge the scope of the contemporary view of deep incarnation. I propose three hypotheses for showing how and why. First, mass, energy, and information have an equal causal importance for explaining reality. Second, just as transformation presupposes communication, so communication presupposes information. Third, contemporary science can elucidate seminal concerns of the idea of deep incarnation, insofar as informational structures pave the way for information capture, communication, and transformation. At the level of organismic life, new features of embodied cognition and emotion come up, important for understanding the organismic depth of the concrete incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth.