DOCSLIB.ORG

Christ and Analogy the Christocentric Metaphysics of Hans Urs Von Balthasar by Junius Johnson

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Christ and Analogy the Christocentric Metaphysics of Hans Urs Von Balthasar by Junius Johnson Christ and Analogy The Christocentric Metaphysics of Hans Urs von Balthasar by Junius Johnson This in-depth study of Hans Urs von Balthasar’s metaphysics attempts to reproduce the core philosophical commitments of the Balthasarian system as necessary for a deep understanding of von Balthasar’s theology. Focusing on the God-world relation, the author examines von Balthasar’s reasons for rejecting all views that consider this relation in terms of either identity or pure difference, and makes clear what is at stake in these fundamentally theological choices. The author then details von Balthasar’s understanding of the accepted way of parsing this relationship, analogy. The philosophical dimensions of analogy are explored in such philosophical topics as the Trinity and Christology, though these topics may be treated only in a preliminary way in a study focused on metaphysics. “Crisp writing, clear thought, insightful reflection on a seminal and influential thinker's take on one of the most fundamental themes of theology–what more would you want from a book in theology? This is in fact what you get with Johnson's Christ and Analogy. Whether you are interested in von Balthasar, in theological method, or in relationship between metaphysics and theology you should read this book.” --Miroslav Volf, Yale Divinity School Junius Johnson is a lecturer at Yale Divinity School and a research fellow at the Rivendell Institute at Yale University. Johnson earned a Ph.D. in theology at Yale University. Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction I. Theology’s Handmaid: Scope of the Project A. What is Metaphysics? B. What is Theology? C. The Relation of Metaphysics and Theology D. Sacred Metaphysics II. Never-Ceasing Fountain: von Balthasar’s Sources A. Plato and the Question of Platonism B. Aquinas C. Hegel D. Heidegger E. Bonaventure III. Point of Departure IV. The Road To Be Travelled: Methodological Comments Chapter 2: Exemplarity and Expression: Rejection of the Pure Difference Thesis I. What Is the Nature of the God-Creature Relation? A. The Analogy Thesis B. Sources II. Historical Form of the Rejection of the Pure Difference Thesis A. Establishing the Archetype 1. The Analogical Approach: The First Cause from Below 2. The Katalogical Approach: The First Cause from Above B. Bonaventure and the Synthesis of Exemplar and Exemplarity III. Ideal Form of the Rejection of the Pure Difference Thesis A. The Necessity of Imago B. Pure Difference and Christology C. Ambigua Concerning the Pure Difference Thesis 1. Objection 1: Negative Theology 2. Objection 2: God and the Subject-Object Scheme 3. Objection 3: Revisiting the Wholly Other Chapter 3: The Positivity of the Other: Rejection of the Identity Thesis I. Historical Form of the Rejection of the Identity Thesis A. Plotinus B. Fichte II. Ideal Form of the Rejection of the Identity Thesis A. The Positivity of the World B. The Presupposition of Unity Chapter 4: Analogy: A Theological and Philosophical Via Media I. Historical Form of the Analogy Thesis A. The Ontology of Participation B. Bonaventure—Exemplarity and Mediation II. Ideal Form of the Analogy Thesis A. Analogy Under the Sign of Likeness B. Analogy Under the Sign of Greater Unlikeness Chapter 5: Personhood and von Balthasar’s Two Metaphysics I. The Importance of the Unique II. The Two Metaphysics of Hans Urs von Balthasar: Ideal and Historical A. The Ideal Metaphysic B. The Historical Metaphysic III. The Relation Between the Ideal and Historical Metaphysics Excursus: von Balthasar and Supralapsarianism Chapter 6: Analogy of Being in Trinitarian and Christological Keys I. From the One to the Many: Multiplication in the Ideal Metaphysic A. Trinitarian Dimensions of the Analogy of Being 1. Grounding the Positivity of Difference in God 2. Greater Unlikeness B. Christological Dimensions of the Analogy of Being II. Proportionalitas: Multiplication in the Historical Metaphysic Chapter 7: Participation, Love, and Kenosis I. The Concept of Kenosis A. The Last Kenosis—Incarnation B. Second Kenosis—Creation C. First Kenosis–Trinitarian Processions Epilogue .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Bonaventure's Metaphysics of the Good
    Theological Studies 60 (1999) BONAVENTURE'S METAPHYSICS OF THE GOOD ILIA DELIO, O.S.F. [Bonaventure offers new insight on the role of God the Father vis-à-vis the created world and the role of the Incarnate Word as metaphysical center of all reality. The kenosis of the Father through the self-diffusion of the good inverts the notion of patriarchy and underscores the humility of God in the world. By locating universals on the level of the singular and personal, Bonaventure transforms the Neoplatonic philosophical quest into a Christian metaphysics. The author then considers the ramifications of this for the contem­ porary world.] HE HIGH MIDDLE AGES were a time of change and transition, marked by T the religious discovery of the universe and a new awareness of the position of the human person in the universe. In the 12th century, a Dio- nysian awakening coupled with the rediscovery of Plato's Timaeus gave rise to a new view of the cosmos.1 Louis Dupré has described the Platonic revival of that century as the turn to a "new self-consciousness."2 In view of the new awakening of the 12th century, the question of metaphysical principles that supported created reality, traditionally the quest of the philosophers, began to be challenged by Christian writers. Of course it was not as if any one writer set out to overturn classical metaphysics; however, the significance of the Incarnation posed a major challenge. It may seem odd that a barely educated young man could upset an established philo­ sophical tradition, but Francis of Assisi succeeded in doing so.
    [Show full text]
  • The Christological Function of Divine Impassibility: Cyril of Alexandria and Contemporary Debate
    The Christological Function of Divine Impassibility: Cyril of Alexandria and Contemporary Debate by David Andrew Graham A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Wycliffe College and the Theological Department of the Toronto School of Theology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Theology awarded by the University of St. Michael's College © Copyright by David Andrew Graham 2013 The Christological Function of Divine Impassibility: Cyril of Alexandria and Contemporary Debate David Andrew Graham Master of Arts in Theology University of St. Michael’s College 2013 Abstract This thesis contributes to the debate over the meaning and function of the doctrine of divine impassibility in theological and especially christological discourse. Seeking to establish the coherence and utility of the paradoxical language characteristic of the received christological tradition (e.g. the impassible Word became passible flesh and suffered impassibly), it argues that the doctrine of divine apatheia illuminates the apocalyptic and soteriological dimension of the incarnate Son’s passible life more effectively than recent reactions against it. The first chapter explores the Christology of Cyril of Alexandria and the meaning and place of apatheia within it. In light of the christological tradition which Cyril epitomized, the second chapter engages contemporary critiques and re-appropriations of impassibility, focusing on the particular contributions of Jürgen Moltmann, Robert W. Jenson, Bruce L. McCormack and David Bentley Hart. ii Acknowledgments If this thesis communicates any truth, beauty and goodness, credit belongs to all those who have shaped my life up to this point. In particular, I would like to thank the Toronto School of Theology and Wycliffe College for providing space to do theology from within the catholic church.
    [Show full text]
  • Pseudo-Dionysius and CG Jung
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Goldsmiths Research Online ! ∀# ∀ ∃%% &∀∋ (∀ ! % )∗+)% ! ∀# ∀ ∃%% &∀∋ % , % − . ! % / ! !00 %∋%%∀102++20 ∋ ∋ , % ∀∀/ ∀ ∋ / ∀% ∀∋ ∀ / / ∃∋ / 3% ∋ ∋ ∀ ∋ 4 5 / # / 3 ∀ 0 6∀ / ∀/ 3∀ 3 ∀% # 7∀ # / / ∋ ∀ ∋ ∀∋ 3 ∀ ∋ ∋ 3 13 ∋ ∀ ∋ % 8 ∀ 6∀ ∀ ∀ / ∀∋ ∋ ∋ % ∀ / 4 5 / ∋ ∀ ∋ ∀ ∃ 7 / ∀ / ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ % (∀ ∀ / ∀ % / 3 3 % / ∀ ∀ ∋ ∋ 6∀ / ∀/ 3∀ 13 ∋ % !00 #∋%∋ %%∀1 ∃ ! /# 9∋%%∀1 Apophatic Elements in the Theory and Practice of Psychoanalysis: Pseudo-Dionysius and C.G. Jung by David Henderson Goldsmiths, University of London Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy ! ∀! I declare that the work in this thesis is my own. David Henderson Date: ! #! Acknowledgements I am grateful for the help I have received from my supervisors over the time I have been working on this project: Robert Burns believed in the value of the original proposal and accompanied me in my exploration of the work of Dionysius and neoplatonism. Brendan Callaghan supported me when I was in the doldrums and was wondering whether I would reach port. Roderick Main gave me encouragement to finish. He read my work intelligently and sympathetically. I regret
    [Show full text]
  • El Lenguaje Teológico En Los Místicos: Éxtasis Y Kénosis*
    doi: 10.11144/javeriana.tx66-182.ltmek El lenguaje teológico en los The Theological Language in the Mystics: Ecstasy and Kenosis místicos: éxtasis y kénosis* Abstract: The present article aims to stress on the theological language used by mystics to communicate their experience of God. Mystics agree on the need to use EDITH GONZÁLEZ BERNAL** analogies in order to speak about God- even if words are not able to express what they really have experienced. Most of them describe visions in which God RECIBIDO: 12-06-16. APROBADO: 12-08-16 reveals himself to offer them knowledge and clarity about how they should conduct their lives and move others toward Resumen: En el presente artículo se busca enfatizar conversión; they also elaborate a kinotic en el lenguaje teológico que los místicos utilizan Theology as the best way to follow Jesus; para comunicar la experiencia de Dios. Ellos coin- that is, assuming obedience as annihilation ciden en que, para hablar de Dios, se tiene que or detachment of the human will in order acudir a analogías, y aun así las palabras no logran to give way to the divine will. decir lo que realmente han vivido. En su mayoría, Key words: Language, Ecstasy, Visions, los místicos relatan visiones en las que Dios se les Kenosis, Annihilation, Detachment. ha manifestado para darles conocimiento y cla- ridad sobre la manera como deben orientar sus vidas y mover a otros hacia la conversión; también hacen una teología kenótica como el mejor camino para citar este artículo: para seguir a Jesús; esto es asumir la obediencia González Bernal, Edith.
    [Show full text]
  • Sunyata and Kenosis.Qxd
    Šðnyat„ and Kenõsis JAMES W. HEISIG According to the author of the Acts of the Apostles, what prevented Christian- ity from spreading to the East in the early years of its mission was a dream. In the course of his second missionary journey, Paul’s plans to return west to Ephesus from Iconium were thwarted, and he was drawn instead to the verge of the East. The scripture speaks of the inner inspiration urging him from place to place as a Spirit pushing from behind like a driving wind. Then one night a Macedonian ³gure appeared to him in a vision and begged him to return to help the Christian community there. At once Paul and his troop pulled up stakes and headed back to the Mediterranean basin (Acts 16: 9–10). The hindsight of history, as Jacques Ellul points out, makes the turn East seem the logical thing. There Paul would have been free “to proclaim a spiritual religion in the homeland of spiritual religions.”1 Instead the ³rst Christian mission kept to the path of the Jewish diaspora, where it was to establish itself as Church and sink the cultural roots that nourish it to this day. In time, of course, Christianity in various forms and under a variety of inspira- tions was to encounter the spirituality of the East. But it was never able to face it with the youthful detachment from institutional structures and openness to doc- trinal formation that characterized those early years. Despite the universality of its claims and its perennial hope of winning all the cultures of the earth to its faith, Christianity has been shaped by a radical historicity that has been at once its great- est strength and its greatest peril.
    [Show full text]
  • Downloaded for Personal Non-Commercial Research Or Study, Without Prior Permission Or Charge
    https://theses.gla.ac.uk/ Theses Digitisation: https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/research/enlighten/theses/digitisation/ This is a digitised version of the original print thesis. Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten: Theses https://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] TOWARDS A POETICS OF JUSTICE: Mystical Theology, Kenosis, and Aporia Steven Peter Rozenski Jr A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Theology University of Glasgow Faculty of Arts September 2003 ProQuest Number: 10391029 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10391029 Published by ProQuest LLO (2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLO.
    [Show full text]
  • Phil. 2:5FF. As the Hermeneutic Key to Hans Urs Von Balthasar's Mariology Anne M
    Marian Studies Volume 61 Mary and Scripture Since Vatican II Article 6 2010 Kenosis at the Foot of the Cross: Phil. 2:5FF. As the Hermeneutic Key to Hans Urs von Balthasar's Mariology Anne M. Carpenter Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.udayton.edu/marian_studies Part of the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Carpenter, Anne M. (2010) "Kenosis at the Foot of the Cross: Phil. 2:5FF. As the Hermeneutic Key to Hans Urs von Balthasar's Mariology," Marian Studies: Vol. 61, Article 6. Available at: https://ecommons.udayton.edu/marian_studies/vol61/iss1/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Marian Library Publications at eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Marian Studies by an authorized editor of eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Carpenter: Kenosis at the Foot of the Cross KENOSIS AT THE FooT OF THE CRoss PHIL. 2:5FF. AS THE HERMENEUTIC KEY TO HANS URS VON BALTHASAR'S MARIOLOGY Anne M. Carpenter; Ph.D. cand. * I. Introduction Hans Urs von Balthasar insists: "The whole Church, insofar as she is in all seriousness (through the Eucharist) the body of Christ, must be co-crucified with her Head, and that, in the flrst place, without retrospect onto the subjective suffering of Christians but rather through the sheer fact of her existence and the logic of her faith." 1 This means, for Balthasar, that the Church's participation in redemption must be more than a retroactive affirmation of what has already been accomplished; rather, it must be a real abiding activity within the fullness of Christ's once-for-all act.
    [Show full text]
  • Estudio De La Relacion Entre Textos Mariologicos Del Magisterio Y La Devocion Mariana En: Latino America, Venezuela Y La Arquidioces!S De Barquisimeto
    Pontifical Faculty of Theology Marian urn International Marian Resarch Institute University of Dayton/Dayton Ohio, USA MAGISTERIO Y SENTIDO DE LA FE: ESTUDIO DE LA RELACION ENTRE TEXTOS MARIOLOGICOS DEL MAGISTERIO Y LA DEVOCION MARIANA EN: LATINO AMERICA, VENEZUELA Y LA ARQUIDIOCES!S DE BARQUISIMETO A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the International Marian Research Institute of the University of Dayton and the Pontifical Faculty of Theology Marian urn In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Licenciate of Sacred Theology Specialization in Marian Theology Fr. Antonio Larocca, S.M.C. Director of Thesis Reverend Johann G. Roten, S.M. November 2001 2 INDICE: Indice General ...................................................................................... PAGINAS 2 Indice de Siglas ................................................................................... 4 Introducci6n ......................................................... ................................ 5 CAPITULO A : Estudio de base general.. ........................................... 9 A 1. Marco Te6rico Referencial... ....................................................... 21 A 2. Fundamentaci6n teol6gico del trabajo .......................................... 31 A 3. La Inculturaci6n en la Mariologia.... ............................................ 43 A 4. Fundamentaci6n Metodol6gica del Trabajo ................................ 50 CAPITULO B: Documentos del CELAM y de America B 1. Introducci6n...... ...........................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Rediscovering Authentic Christian Spirituality Through Transfiguration
    CENTRE D’ÉTUDES DU RELIGIEUX CONTEMPORAIN Université de Sherbrooke REDISCOVERING AUTHENTIC CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY THROUGH TRANSFIGURATION Par Costas Stavrianeas Essai présenté au Centre d’études du religieux contemporain de l’Université de Sherbrooke dans le cadre du programme de maîtrise en études du religieux contemporain pour l’obtention du grade de Maître ès arts, M.A. Décembre 2018 © Costas Stavrianeas, 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………….…..3 INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………….………3 CHAPTER 1: THE SEARCH FOR AUTHENTIC SPIRITUALITY………….…………5 1. Mysticism and Spirituality in the Early Church……………………………….….……5 1.1 The Role of Tradition…………………………………………………….…….……..5 1.2 The Western Latin Christian Tradition…………………..…………………..…..…...7 1.3 The Eastern Christian Tradition………………………………………........................8 1.4 The Fathers of the Church………………………………………………….…............9 1.5 Ancient Eastern Traditions…………………………………………………….…….11 CHAPTER 2: THE MOTION OF GOD TOWARDS MAN………………………...……12 2.1 The Self-Emptying (Kenosis) of God…………………………………………….….12 2.2 The Incarnation………………………………………………………………….…...17 2.3 Image and Likeness…………………………………………………….……….……20 2.3.1 Uniqueness…………………………………………………………….….…...23 2.3.2 Freedom…………………………………………………………………..…...27 2.3.3 Ecclesial Relationship…………………………………………………………29 2.3.4 Growth/Education……………………………………………………………..30 2.3.5 Creativity…………………………………………………………………..….31 2.3.6 Love………………………………………………………………………..….33 CHAPTER 3: THE MOTION OF MAN TOWARDS GOD…………….………….….…34 3.1 Deification in the
    [Show full text]
  • Veiled in Flesh the Godhead See: a Study of the Kenosis of Christ1
    MSJ 30/1 (Spring 2019) 103–127 VEILED IN FLESH THE GODHEAD SEE: A STUDY OF THE KENOSIS OF CHRIST1 Mike Riccardi Faculty Associate, Theology The Master’s Seminary A tragic lack of familiarity with the historical development of classical Chris- tology has resulted in the acceptance of unbiblical views of Christ’s self-emptying. The post-Enlightenment doctrine of Kenotic Theology continues to exert its influence on contemporary evangelical models of the kenosis, seen primarily in those who would have Christ’s deity circumscribed by His humanity during His earthly minis- try. Keeping moored to the text of Scripture and to Chalcedonian orthodoxy combats this error and shows Christ’s kenosis to consist not in the shedding of His divine attributes or prerogatives but in the veiling of the rightful expression of His divine glory. The eternal Son emptied Himself not by the subtraction of divinity but by the addition of humanity, and, consistent with the Chalcedonian definition of the hypo- static union, the incarnate Son acts in and through both divine and human natures at all times. A biblical understanding of these things leads to several significant impli- cations for the Christian life. * * * * * Introduction “The incarnation of the Son of God.” For many long-time believers, that kind of theological shorthand has become so familiar that we cease to be amazed at the truth it describes. The eternal, preexistent Word—ever with God, ever God Him- self—became flesh and tabernacled among sinners (John 1:1–14). It is rightly called the miracle of all miracles. The infinite, eternal, self-existent, self-sufficient, al- mighty God made Himself nothing by taking on the nature of finite, temporal, de- pendent, mortal humanity—without shedding His divine nature (Phil.
    [Show full text]
  • Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity
    Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Bannon, R. Brad. 2015. Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard Divinity School. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:15821959 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity A dissertation presented By R. Brad Bannon To The Faculty of Harvard Divinity School In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Doctor of Theology In the Subject of Theology Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts May 2015 © 2015 Richard Bradley Bannon All rights reserved. Dissertation Advisor: Professor Francis X. Clooney, SJ R. Brad Bannon Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity Abstract Apophatic Measures: Toward a Theology of Irreducible Particularity is a work of constructive comparative theology examining select writings of akara (Eighth Century, India) and Nicholas of Cusa (Fifteenth Century, Germany). It argues that, for akara and Cusa, apophasis does not culminate in what Michael Sells calls a “semantic event,” but instead in a sensual event. For each, negation removes intellectual distractions, awakening one to a heightened state of sensual attentiveness. For akara, this is observed in the embodied encounter wherein a teacher incarnates Vednta scripture to reveal “This Self is Brahman” (Mkya Upaniad 2).
    [Show full text]
  • Hans Urs Von Balthasar and Kenosis: the Pathway to Human Agency
    Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 2013 Hans Urs Von Balthasar and Kenosis: The Pathway to Human Agency Timothy J. Yoder Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Yoder, Timothy J., "Hans Urs Von Balthasar and Kenosis: The Pathway to Human Agency" (2013). Dissertations. 918. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/918 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 2013 Timothy J Yoder LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO HANS URS VON BALTHASAR AND KENOSIS: THE PATHWAY TO HUMAN AGENCY A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY PROGRAM IN THEOLOGY BY TIMOTHY J. YODER CHICAGO, IL MAY 2014 Copyright by Timothy J. Yoder, 2014 All rights reserved. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First I want to thank my dissertation committee at Loyola University of Chicago. I want to thank my director, Mark Bosco for steering me through the ups and downs of the dissertation process with patience and wisdom. I would like to thank the rest of my committee, Mark McIntosh of Durham University and Andrew Radde-Gallwitz of Loyola University Chicago for their support as well. My first introduction to the thought of Hans Urs von Balthasar came through Dr.
    [Show full text]