Dankers, PaulWillerton, Christian2023-07-142023-07-142023Dankers, P. & Willerton, C. (2023). A teleological interpretation of Bonhoeffer's concept of “A World Come of Age” Dialog, 62(1), 1–12.http://hdl.handle.net/10566/9200This paper explores Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s concept of “the nonreligious interpretation of biblical terms in a world come of age,” best known from his Letters and Papers from Prison (LPP). As a case study of its possibilities, we will survey South African thinkers who have explored the concept in rapidly changing contexts. Our leading question is whether academic theology can develop a teleological narrative for a nation that has “come of age.” When a nation or culture becomes so secular that it “outgrows” a traditional use of biblical terms, can those terms be reinterpreted to provide a teleological narrative for the nation? Bonhoeffer can be a resource for academic theologians to address issues in public theology, especially the suffering and oppression of communities still in pain despite a democratic system.enChristologyNew theologyOther-worldlinessTeleological narrativeArticle