Christus Victor theory of atonement

E6764

Christian theology concept atonement theory theological doctrine

The Christus Victor theory of atonement is a Christian theological view that portrays Jesus’ death and resurrection primarily as a cosmic victory over the powers of sin, death, and the devil, liberating humanity from their bondage.

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All labels observed (9)

Label	Occurrences
Christus Victor	11
"Christus Victor"	1
Christ as Redeemer of humanity	1
Christus Victor (book)	1
Christus Victor model of atonement	1
Christus Victor theory of atonement canonical	1
Christus Victor theory of the atonement	1
Christ’s eschatological victory	1
Gustaf Aulén’s work "Christus Victor"	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T62559 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Christus Victor theory of atonement
Context triple: [Atonement, hasModel, Christus Victor theory of atonement]

A. Christology
Christology is the branch of Christian theology that studies the person, nature, and work of Jesus Christ.
B. Incarnation of Christ
The Incarnation of Christ is the Christian belief that the eternal Son of God assumed human nature in the person of Jesus Christ, who is both fully divine and fully human.
C. Christian theology
Christian theology is the systematic study and interpretation of Christian beliefs about God, Jesus Christ, salvation, and the nature of reality as revealed in Scripture and tradition.
D. Modalism
Modalism is a nontrinitarian Christian theological view that understands the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as different modes or manifestations of one divine person rather than as three distinct persons.
E. Holy Tradition
Holy Tradition is the living transmission of the faith, worship, and teachings of the Church, preserved and handed down through generations as a primary source of authority alongside Scripture.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: Christus Victor theory of atonement
Target entity description: The Christus Victor theory of atonement is a Christian theological view that portrays Jesus’ death and resurrection primarily as a cosmic victory over the powers of sin, death, and the devil, liberating humanity from their bondage.

A. Christology
Christology is the branch of Christian theology that studies the person, nature, and work of Jesus Christ.
B. Incarnation of Christ
The Incarnation of Christ is the Christian belief that the eternal Son of God assumed human nature in the person of Jesus Christ, who is both fully divine and fully human.
C. Christian theology
Christian theology is the systematic study and interpretation of Christian beliefs about God, Jesus Christ, salvation, and the nature of reality as revealed in Scripture and tradition.
D. Modalism
Modalism is a nontrinitarian Christian theological view that understands the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as different modes or manifestations of one divine person rather than as three distinct persons.
E. Holy Tradition
Holy Tradition is the living transmission of the faith, worship, and teachings of the Church, preserved and handed down through generations as a primary source of authority alongside Scripture.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (50)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	Christian theology concept ⓘ atonement theory ⓘ theological doctrine ⓘ
associatedWork	Christus Victor (book) ⓘ linked to: Christus Victor theory of atonement
category	Christian soteriology ⓘ Christology ⓘ
contrastsWith	moral influence theory of atonement ⓘ penal substitution theory of atonement ⓘ satisfaction theory of atonement ⓘ
coreClaim	Christ defeats the powers of sin, death, and the devil ⓘ Christ liberates humanity from spiritual bondage ⓘ the cross and resurrection are a single victory event ⓘ
datePopularized	1931 ⓘ
emphasizes	Christ’s victory over death ⓘ Christ’s victory over sin ⓘ Christ’s victory over the devil ⓘ cosmic conflict between good and evil ⓘ liberation of humanity from bondage ⓘ
focusesOn	Jesus Christ ⓘ
historicalRoots	early Christian church ⓘ patristic theology ⓘ ransom motif in early Christianity ⓘ
influenced	liberation theology ⓘ modern atonement theology ⓘ some contemporary evangelical theologians ⓘ
influencedBy	Gregory of Nyssa ⓘ Irenaeus of Lyons ⓘ Origen of Alexandria ⓘ linked to: Origen early church fathers ⓘ
interpretsEvent	crucifixion of Jesus ⓘ resurrection of Jesus ⓘ
languageOfOrigin	Latin ⓘ
literalMeaning	Christ the Victor ⓘ
popularizedBy	Gustaf Aulén ⓘ
relatedConcept	ransom theory of atonement ⓘ
religiousTradition	Christianity ⓘ
scripturalBasis	1 Corinthians 15:54–57 ⓘ Colossians 2:15 ⓘ Hebrews 2:14–15 ⓘ New Testament ⓘ
soteriologicalEmphasis	deliverance ⓘ liberation ⓘ victory ⓘ
understandsCrossAs	triumph rather than primarily legal transaction ⓘ
understandsResurrectionAs	public vindication of Christ’s victory ⓘ
viewOfDeath	tyrannical power ⓘ
viewOfDevil	hostile power defeated by Christ ⓘ
viewOfSin	enslaving power ⓘ
viewsAtonementAs	cosmic victory ⓘ divine conquest of hostile powers ⓘ

How these facts were elicited