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Karl Barth and Hans Urs Von Balthasar KARL BARTH AND HANS URS VON BALTHASAR: A CRITICAL ENGAGEMENT by STEPHEN DAVID WIGLEY A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Theology and Religion School of Historical Studies The University of Birmingham January 2006 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar: a critical engagement Abstract This thesis examines the relationship between two major twentieth century theologians, Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar. It seeks to show how their meeting, resulting in von Balthasar’s seminal study The Theology of Karl Barth, goes on to influence von Balthasar’s theological development throughout his trilogy beginning with The Glory of the Lord, continuing in the Theo-Drama and concluding with the Theo-Logic. In particular it explores the significance of the debate over the ‘analogy of being’ and seeks to show that von Balthasar’s decision to structure his trilogy around the transcendentals of ‘being’, the beautiful, the good and the true, results from his re-affirmation of the role of analogy in light of his debate with Barth. It will also suggest that von Balthasar’s adoption of a ‘theo-dramatic’ approach to God’s saving action and assertion of the role of Church as a ‘theo-dramatic character’ in her own right is prompted by concern over what he alleges to be ‘christological constriction’ and an inadequate doctrine of the Church in Barth. This argument will be conducted in dialogue with other theologians and interpreters of von Balthasar and conclude with a personal reflection on how the issues raised remain relevant today. Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar: a critical engagement Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my wife Jenny who, though no great proponent of either Barth or von Balthasar, knew how much this project meant to me and encouraged me to see it through. “Greater love hath no wife than this… “ Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar: a critical engagement Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge my debt to David Ford and Iain Torrance who first pointed me in the way of Barth; to Rowan Williams who first suggested that I should also look at von Balthasar; to my church colleagues and congregations who have borne with and supported me during my studies; and above all to Karen Kilby and Frances Young who have not only supervised but encouraged me to believe that this thesis is worth undertaking. Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar: a critical engagement List of Abbreviations 1) Karl Barth FQI Anselm: Fides Quaerens Intellectum (1931) tr. Ian W. Robertson (London: SCM, 1960) CD Church Dogmatics (1932-67) tr. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 2nd edition 1975) 2) Hans Urs von Balthasar KB The Theology of Karl Barth: Exposition and Interpretation (1951) tr. Edward T. Oakes, (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1992) GL1 The Glory of the Lord, volume I: Seeing the Form (1961) tr. Erasmo Leivà- Merikakis (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1982) GL2 The Glory of the Lord, volume II: Studies in Theological Style: Clerical Styles (1962) tr. Andrew Louth, Francis McDonagh, and Brian McNeil, (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1984) GL3 The Glory of the Lord, volume III: Studies in Theological Style: Lay Styles (1962) tr. Andrew Louth, John Saward, Martin Simon, and Rowan Williams (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1986) GL4 The Glory of the Lord, volume IV: In the Realm of Metaphysics in Antiquity (1967) tr. Brian McNeil, Andrew Louth, John Saward, Rowan Williams, and Oliver Davies (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius, 1989) GL5 The Glory of the Lord, volume V: In the Realm of Metaphysics in the Modern Age (1965) tr. Oliver Davies, Andrew Louth, Brian McNeil, John Saward and Rowan Williams (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius, 1991) GL6 The Glory of the Lord, volume VI: Theology: the Old Covenant (1967) tr. Brian McNeil and Erasmo Leivà-Merikakis, (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1991) GL7 The Glory of the Lord, volume VII: Theology: the New Covenant (1969) tr. Brian McNeil, (Edinburgh: T&T Clark & San Francisco: Ignatius, 1989) TD1 Theo-Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory, volume I: Prolegomena (1973) tr. Graham Harrison (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1988) TD2 Theo-Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory, volume II: Dramatic Personae: Man in God (1976) tr. Graham Harrison (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1990) TD3 Theo-Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory, volume III: Dramatis Personae: Persons in Christ (1978) tr. Graham Harrison (San Francisco: Ignatius, 1992) TD4 Theo-Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory, volume IV: The Action (1980) tr. Graham Harrison (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994) TD5 Theo-Drama: Theological Dramatic Theory, volume V: The Final Act (1983) tr. Graham Harrison (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1998) TL1 Theo-Logic, volume I: Truth of the World (1985) tr. Adrian J. Walker (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2000) TL2 Theo-Logic, volume II: Truth of God (1985) tr. Adrian J. Walker (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2004) TL3 Theo-Logic, volume I: The Spirit of Truth (1987) tr. Adrian J. Walker (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2005) Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar: a critical engagement Table of Contents Abstract Dedication Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Introduction to the Thesis Page 1 Chapter 1) ‘No brief encounter’: the relationship between Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar Page 7 1.1) The background to their relationship Page 7 1.2) The influence of Przywara Page 14 Chapter 2) ‘From dialectic to analogy’: The Theology of Karl Barth Page 22 2.1) Introduction Page 22 2.2.1) Part I – Overture; a House Divided Page 26 2.2.2.1) Part II – The Form and Structure of Barth’s Thought: Exposition Page 31 2.2.2.2) Part II – The Form and Structure of Barth’s Thought: Interpretation Page 41 2.2.3) Part III – The Form and Structure of Catholic Thought Page 48 2.2.4) Part IV – Prospects for a Rapprochement Page 65 2.3) McCormack’s challenge to von Balthasar’s reading Page 68 2.4) Implications for von Balthasar’s theology Page 76 Chapter 3) ‘Beauty and Being’: The Glory of the Lord Page 84 3.1) Introduction – Why begin with beauty? Page 84 3.2) Allowing beauty to speak Page 90 3.3) Beauty and revelation; engaging with Chia Page 112 3.4) Beauty and Being; the ongoing debate with Barth Page 121 3.5) Summary and conclusions Page 141 Chapter 4 ‘Participating in the action’: the Theo-Drama Page 147 4.1) Introduction – Setting the stage Page 147 4.2) Getting down to the action – a theo-dramatic theory Page 151 4.2.1) Introduction – the Prolegomena Page 151 4.2.2) Anthropology – Man in God Page 156 4.2.3) Christology – Persons in Christ Page 158 4.2.4) Soteriology – The Action Page 165 4.2.5) Eschatology – The Last Act Page 172 4.3) Dramatic tension with Barth Page 177 4.4) In company with Quash Page 190 4.5) Summary and conclusions Page 206 Chapter 5) ‘Speaking the truth in love’: the Theo-Logic Page 209 5.1) Introduction Page 209 5.2) Truth of the World Page 211 5.3) Truth of God and The Spirit of Truth Page 217 5.4) With reference to Barth Page 223 5.5) Summary and Conclusions Page 225 Chapter 6) Anselm: a case study in the approaches of Barth and von Balthasar Page 228 6.1) Why Anselm? Page 229 6.2) Barth on Anselm Page 230 6.3) Anselm in von Balthasar Page 233 6.4) Summary and Conclusions Page 241 Chapter 7) Epilogue and Concluding Reflections Page 244 7.1) Epilogue Page 244 7.2) The Theology of Karl Barth Page 247 7.3) The Glory of the Lord Page 251 7.4) The Theo-Drama Page 254 7.5) The Theo-Logic Page 256 7.6) Other recent interpretations Page 258 7.7) ‘Concluding unscientific postscript’ Page 264 Bibliography Page 277 Barth and von Balthasar: a critical engagement; an Introduction to the Thesis This thesis explores the influence of Karl Barth on the theology of Hans Urs von Balthasar as it developed. It seeks to show not just what von Balthasar took positively from his study of Barth, an influence which has been widely recognised by subsequent scholars, but also how the development of his theological trilogy is shaped by his critical re-appropriation of a theme which Barth rejects in his Church Dogmatics,1 namely the analogia entis or analogy of being. It will show how von Balthasar’s response to Barth’s rejection of the analogy of being in favour of the analogy of faith, shapes the development of his own theology in The Glory of the Lord,2 the Theo-Drama,3 and the Theo-Logic.4 For in basing his work firmly on the transcendentals of being, the beautiful, the good and the true, von Balthasar is both building on Barth’s christocentric foundations and also explicitly countering his misconstrual of Catholic teaching on natural theology and the role of creation.
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