The Doctrine of Heaven and New Heaven: coming to a doctrine of heaven and new heaven through Karl Barth and Jürgen Moltmann’s work on creation and eschatology

The doctrine of heaven is an over-looked aspect of the wider doctrines of creation and eschatology, whilst the doctrine of new heaven is underdeveloped to the point that it has barely been written on. Karl Barth and Jürgen Moltmann, however, have written on heaven in both their doctrines of creation and eschatology, showing the benefits of including heaven in theological explorations of creation and eschatology. Beyond writing on heaven Barth and Moltmann have also briefly written on the eschatological reality of new heaven and why heaven requires a new creation.
This thesis aims to highlight the doctrine of heaven and new heaven, using both Barth and Moltmann as a foundation to inform a wider systematic view of the doctrines. The two theologians conceive of four pillars to come to a doctrine of heaven: God is present in heaven, the kingdom is in heaven, heaven in creation and heaven eschatologically. These four primary points can also be seen in the wider disciplines of systematics, eschatology, and writings on heaven, which brings into consideration other theologians who have written on heaven, such as Cecilia Deane-Drummond, Paula Gooder, and Richard Middleton.
By highlighting the four foundational points above we can see more clearly what is required to come to a doctrine of heaven. This in turn demonstrates the key concepts behind new heaven. Because heaven is the abode of God and where the kingdom is present the question which then arises is why will there be a new heaven? Moltmann, along with others, would say that because heaven is created and sin is present in heaven, heaven also requires a new creation along with earth. This study tries to highlight the importance of the new heaven and the reasons behind it.