Abstract

The article questions the empty formula of the concept of life and examines its theological and ethical implications. A critical survey of various positions found in the history of philosophy and theology illustrates its ambiguity and normative use. In the light oftbis historical and systematic investigation the author inquires into a handling of the concept which would be justifiable today in theological and ethical terms. Neither moral evidence nor theological structure are cited. Instead the concept - inspired by Dietrich Bonhoeffer's distinction between the ›Letzter‹ and ›Vorletzter‹- should be made relative and placed into perspective by a critical understanding of the revelation.