Zugl.: München, Univ., Diss., 2006.

Thesis advisor: Roberto S. Goizueta / We live in an age of globalization and exclusion. In light of this reality and context, I argue that a Christology of liberation is a critical resource that enables excluded people to resist, redeem and re-imagine globalization. The reality of globalization and exclusion is the setting and situation in which the Christology developed here takes shape. I critically analyze economic globalization, its neo-liberal ideology and the negative consequences of this type of globalization—economic and social exclusion of the poor and vulnerable. Finally, I reflect on a theological, more specifically, Christological response to this situation drawing on the Christological contributions of Jon Sobrino and Edward Schillebeeckx. Chapter one offers a descriptive and critical account of neo-liberal globalization and exclusion, and analyzes theological responses to this situation. Chapter two turns to the Christology of Jon Sobrino to describe and analyze some of the main tenets of Sobrino’s Christology. I argue that, at the heart of Jon Sobrino’s Christology is the liberating good news of the crucified and risen Jesus. The liberating good news enables people who have suffered de-humanization and have become victims of neo-liberal processes of globalization to resist, redeem, and re-imagine globalization. Chapter three focuses on Edward Schillebeeckx’s Christology. Here, as in chapter two, I offer a descriptive account of some of the main tenets of Schillebeeckx’s Christology. I argue that, according to Schillebeeckx, the story of Jesus, the living one, who in his liberating praxis reveals what it means to be human and what God is like, bears universal relevance, particularly as it relates to human suffering. Indeed the experience of salvation in Jesus empowers and requires believers to engage in a liberating praxis where there is unjust suffering and a peoples’ humanity is threatened. This story and experience enables people who suffer unjustly and whose humanity is threatened by neo-liberal processes of globalization to critique the neo-liberal ideology undergirding these processes and to resist, redeem, and re-imagine globalization. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

[pt] A práxis do Reino de Deus na vida de Jesus Cristo e de seus discípulos se constitui como categoria teológica para a constatação da antecipação escatológica do Reino de Deus na História. Partindo da Escatologia presente nas obras de Edward Schillebeeckx, este estudo demonstra como o Reino de Deus, esperado para o futuro pós-histórico, antecipa-se na história mediante as práticas de justiça e de misericórdia a favor da vida plena para todos. Inicia-se com a demonstração da práxis do Reino de Deus presente nas obras do Autor, a fim de pôr em relevo a Escatologia presente em suas obras. A seguir, faz-se uma demonstração da cristologia escatológica de Schillebeeckx destacando a tipologia adotada pelo Autor, para se chegar ao contexto teológico e eclesial latinoamericano, a fim de demonstrar nele como o Reino é antecipado historicamente pela práxis dos discípulos do Reino na América Latina. O método usado nesta pesquisa foi o da revisão bibliográfica das obras de Schillebeeckx, em diálogo com outros teólogos e teólogas que tematizam ou se interessam pela temática da práxis do Reino de Deus. Da práxis de Cristo à práxis de seus discípulos, em todos os tempos, o Reino de Deus se antecipa e se manifesta na prática do amor, da verdade e da justiça, que socorre os pobres e lhes anuncia a esperança da salvação, já experimentada na caminhada na Terra, mas que terá seu acabamento no futuro glorioso e eterno em Deus. Desta Tese, a Escatologia recebe a contribuição temática aqui aprofundada, ao mesmo tempo em que a mesma Tese abre o caminho para ulteriores desenvolvimentos, a fim de enriquecer mais ainda a produção literária na área da Teologia Sistemática. / [en] The praxis of the Kingdom of God in the life of Jesus Christ and his disciples constitutes a theological category for the confirmation of the eschatological anticipation of the Kingdom of God in History. Starting from the Eschatology present in the works of Edward Schillebeeckx, this study demonstrates how the Kingdom of God, awaited for the post-historical future, anticipates in history through the practices of justice and mercy in favor of a full life for all. It begins with the demonstration of the praxis of the Kingdom of God present in the works of the Author in order to highlight the eschatology present in his works. The following is a demonstration of the eschatological Christology of Schillebeeckx highlighting the typology adopted by the Author to reach the Latin American theological and ecclesial context in order to demonstrate in him how the Kingdom is historically anticipated by the praxis of the disciples of the Kingdom in Latin America. The method used in this research was the bibliographical review of the works of Schillebeeckx, in dialogue with other theologians and theologians who thematize or are interested in the praxis of the Kingdom of God. From the praxis of Christ to the praxis of his disciples, at all times, the Kingdom of God anticipates and manifests itself in the practice of love, truth and justice, which helps the poor and announces the hope of salvation, already experienced in walk on earth, but will have its finish in the glorious and eternal future in God. From this thesis, eschatology receives the thematic contribution here in depth, at the same time that the same thesis opens the way for further developments, in order to further enrich literary production in the area of Systematic Theology.

The aim of this thesis, Towards ajifth gospel via Schillebeeclx and Solle, is a search for God and God's gospel. It is a quest in which I combine Edward Schillebeeckx's belief that Christian life is a fifth gospel and Dorothee Solle's praxis-orientated theology into a contrapuntal theological conversation. I argue that through each theologian's vision of Christian life a theological and hermeneutical framework is established within which men and women of faith can interpret change and prepare the world and church for God's transforming newness. The scope of this thesis identifies a life-giving Christianity by investigating common theological themes in the work of Schillebeeckx and Solle. On the basis of the insights of both theologians I argue that all believers are called to critically reinterpret belief in the God of Jesus, that human experience is the horizon for reflection and interpretation. That mystics and prophets communicate God's saving love within an ethic of responsibility for this world, and that when Christian communities engage in

La présente dissertation se propose d'étudier la problématique de l'unicité et de l'universalité de Jésus-Christ dans la christologie contemporaine. Le choix de ce thème a été motivé par le fait que pendant ces dernières années la confrontation avec le pluralisme culturel et religieux a conduit la théologie chrétienne à réfléchir de manière nouvelle sur cette question. Elle porte sur le christianisme en tant qu'il a pour spécificité de rendre témoignage à un homme confessé comme le Fils unique de Dieu et le Sauveur de tous les hommes. Dans ce sens, la finalité de notre recherche est de montrer la signification et la portée de l'affirmation de Jésus-Christ comme unique Médiateur de notre salut, et ce dans le cadre de la théologie fondamentale et en particulier de la christologie. Bien que cette doctrine ait été toujours et soit encore une pierre d'achoppement pour ceux qui ne partagent pas notre foi, elle représente pour la tradition chrétienne plus qu'une croyance centrale, elle est vue comme le fondement même de la foi. Pour montrer la pertinence du sujet traité, ainsi que les chemins à suivre afin de proposer de nouvelles perspectives pour la réflexion théologique, notre point de départ est l'analyse du phénomène de la multiplication des modèles interprétatifs concernant le rapport entre le christianisme et les autres religions. Les recherches menées par Peter Schineller, Joseph Gelot, Paul Knitter, Camil Ménard et Jacques Dupuis dans ce domaine, nous ont permis de nous familiariser avec le vocabulaire utilisé dans la discussion (exclusivisme, inclusivisme, pluralisme, etc.) et de percevoir les possibles relations entre les modèles proposés. Du point de vue de notre travail, ces analyses montrent d'une part que la question christologique se trouve au cœur du débat, et d'autre part que l'enjeu de celui-ci se situe dans la manière dont les théologiens cités comme représentants de chaque modèle, chacun à partir de ses propres présupposés, traitent la question de l'unicité et de l'universalité du Christ. C'est cette double constatation qui nous a amené à choisir d'étudier la pensée de cinq théologiens contemporains: Karl Barth, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Edward Schillebeeckx, Karl Rahner et John Hick. La partie conclusive de la thèse expose les perspectives christologiques qui se dégagent de la recherche. Elle offre une esquisse élaborée avec la conviction que la christologie ne se limite pas à offrir un répertoire d'opinions sur le Christ, mais qu'elle est une réflexion dynamique et attentive aux défis qui lui sont adressés. Notre étude conduit, d'une part, à une prise de distance critique vis-à-vis des modèles ou catégories qui sont proposés aujourd'hui pour expliquer la pluralité d'opinions concernant l'unicité et l'universalité de Jésus-Christ. Ils ont certainement une pertinence pédagogique, ensemble ils constituent une sorte de carte géographique qui offre des points de repères dans un terrain devenu assez complexe. Néanmoins cette «nouvelle vulgate», selon l'expression de G. Comeau, qui a fortement marqué les esprits, perd de sa pertinence lorsqu'elle est considérée comme l'exposé d'une «évolution naturelle» dans le débat. D'autre part, l'examen de la théologie des auteurs permet d'identifier les présupposés christologiques qui doivent être pris en compte pour traiter la question de l'unicité et de l'universalité du Christ. Premièrement, l'universel concret, parce que la christologie est appelée à réfléchir sur les polarités dialectiques qui caractérisent le mystère: l'Absolu et le fini, l'Universel et le concret, l'humanité et la divinité; deuxièmement le christocentrisme, qui permet une révalorisation de l'histoire du salut comme horizon théologique propre de la place du Christ dans le projet de Dieu; enfin la relation entre personne et mission de Jésus-Christ, qui témoigne du tournant sotériologique opéré dans la christologie contemporaine et qui met en évidence la manière dont l'homme participe à la vie divine. Nous avons identifié aussi deux éléments qui caractérisent le Christ comme unique et universel: l'affirmation de Jésus-Christ comme Médiateur de la volonté salvifique universel de Dieu, et l'incarnation par laquelle s'exprime l'identité personnelle de Jésus.

The thesis focuses on the challenge of being church in the postsecular twenty-first century in an authentic way. A shift took place from modernity with concepts such as ʼnationalism‘ and ‗unity‘ to the fragmentation and diversity which are characteristic of the present-day postmodern world. After the Second World War the objective of the Ecumenical Movement was to promote and maintain the unity of the church. The unity of the church has been an issue from New Testament times up to the present day. How the relationship between unity and diversity was understood changed along with changing paradigms. During the first centuries of the church when the ecumenical creeds originated, the relationship between the unity and diversity of the church was interpreted in terms of two aspects, namely the unity of the canon which consists of a diversity of writings and the one Triune God who consists of a diversity of personae. This study argues that the great revolutions in North America and France were the breeding ground for concepts such as ʼnation‘ and ʼnationalism‘. During this period the unity of the church was interpreted in terms of the dominant ideology of nationalism and nation. The revolutions were also a force behind increasing secularisation and the church‘s loss of authority. In Germany the ideology of national-socialism compromised the integrity of the church. In South Africa apartheid had a similar effect. Secularisation, globalisation and fluidity seemingly threaten the unity of the present-day church. This study aims to contribute to an understanding of unity and diversity that could contribute to the integrity of the church in the third millennium without endorsing the hegemony of the authoritarian church. It attributes a positive meaning to plurality, diversity and the ecumenical movement. This is done after the model of the Cappadocian legacy which associated the immanence (being) of the Trinity with the economy (action) of the Trinity. This model provides the key for the solution to the problemstatement of this thesis. The thesis aims to argue for a correlation between, on the one hand Trinity (diversity in unity) and the ecclesiastical creed (confessing the catholicity of the one church), and on the other hand Christian values such as caritas (agapē) and communion (koinōnia). This study draws a correlation between these Christian values and notions from common law, namely dignitas (dignity) and fama (reputation). The epistemological model for describing a social Trinitarian ecclesiology is that of narrative theology. The ecclesiological model is that of ‗heterotopia‘, a Foucauldian conception of anti-binary space over against the 'utopia‘ as an illusioned space. Chapter 1 indicates the direction of the study: the ecclesiological challenge of the unity of the church amid diversity. The tension between unity and diversity is the crux interpretum of the ecclesiology. The Cappadocian legacy regarding the Trinity is explored as a possible solution. Epistemologically speaking, the approach of the study is a Reformed perspective on the human condition and the methodology is that of narrative. In Chapter 2 the narrative of the Cappadocian renaissance is discussed. The Cappadocian correlation between the immanence (being) of the Trinity and the economy (action) of the Trinity is described and the value thereof for a postmodern ecclesiology is explored. In Chapter 3 an alternative narrative for the church is sought by investigating the Catholic theologian, Edward Schillebeeckx‘s ecclesiology in terms of the concept of liquidity. His contribution was to replace the Catholic maxim extra ecclesiam nulla salus est with extra mundum nulla salus. Hereby he trandscends the boundaries of the church to include the whole world in God‘s salvation. From a postmodern perspective the question would be whether he was able to overcome the binary thinking of his time. The Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa is described as a case in point of a church which endorses genealogy and thereby fails to transcend the binary opposition of exclusivism and inclusivity. Nationalism and racism form the ideological underpinnings of this tendency. Theoretically the confession of unity is underscored but it does not manifest in practice. Ecclesiology should overcome binary and linear thinking in order to be relevant to postmodern culture. In Chapter 4 overcoming binary and linear thinking is illustrated by the exploring the autobiography of Protestant theologian, Jürgen Moltmann, in order to ascertain to what extent narratives of inclusivity can be of value for formulating an inclusive ecclesiology for the church in a postmodern world today. Moltmann‘s ecclesiology is investigated in terms of the concept of a social Trinity. From Moltmann‘s narrative it can been seen that he was radically inclusive in practice even before theories of radical inclusivity had been formulated. However, his emphasis on eschatology and hope tends toward apocalyptic utopian thinking. In Chapter 5 Michel Foucault‘s concept of heterotopia is used to describe reconciliatory diversity, which is characteristic of an inclusive postmodern church which is a space where unity is not threatened by diversity, where the one is not afraid of the Other. In Chapter 6 the study concludes with the finding that to be church in the third millennium entails transcending linear thinking, desacralizing time and space and bidding farewell to any notion of genealogy as constitutive for 'being‘ church. The broad space where this is possible in the 'here‘ and 'now‘ is that of heterotopia. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2013 / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

This dissertation considers the possibility that, flowing from his broader theological framework and historical background, John Calvin’s eucharistic theology ‘re-invents’ a doctrine where the ‘substance’ (meaning) of the elements becomes the body and blood of Christ, and the believer who receives them is drawn, through understanding, into participation in Christ. The study begins with the historical setting and the second chapter sketches Calvin’s life. Chapter 3 considers epistemology and the impact of classical rhetoric on Calvin’s approach to knowledge. The following chapter considers Calvin’s understanding of our relationship with the Father, and of Christ as Mediator and as means of salvation. Chapter 5 considers the work of the Spirit in nurturing faith, a ‘higher knowledge’, through preparing us for knowledge of Christ and mediating our understanding of and participation in him. In this manner the Spirit acts as an instrument of revelation to enable us to participate in Christ. Chapters 6 and 7 move to consider Calvin’s writing on the Sacraments, their nature as sign and seals of the promise made in Christ, their substance and their role in our participation in Christ and, in the light of the duplex gratia, as gateways to participation. In Chapter 8 Calvin’s teaching is examined in terms of his opposition to the doctrine of transubstantiation, and his understanding of substance is considered. The possibility that Calvin ‘re-invents’ the doctrine is proposed. This is not to suggest that there is a conscious copying of the doctrine, but that through the process of forming his doctrine, using an alternate philosophical framework, Calvin’s understanding bears significant similarities to the doctrine he so deeply opposed. His key opposition to transubstantiation can then be seen to be to the materialist interpretations that impede the ability of the believer to lift his attention beyond the physical elements to the divine offer they represent. The study concludes by briefly considering the significance of Calvin’s ‘reinvention’ for contemporary understandings.

[pt] A presente dissertação trata do anúncio e práxis do Reino de Deus, com a finalidade de perceber os elementos escatológicos da temática, presentes no pensamento de Edward Schillebeeckx, contidos na obra Jesus, a história de um vivente, além de outras obras do autor e de outros autores em diálogo com ele. A metodologia adotada é a da revisão bibliográfica, e os pontos de relevância são o anúncio, a práxis do Reino, e a percepção dos elementos escatológicos destacados por Schillebeeckx. Jesus anunciou o Reino de Deus, por meio das bem-aventuranças, parábolas e a reinterpretação da Lei mosaica a favor dos pobres, trazendo de Deus a ajuda salvadora para a humanidade. Se as bem-aventuranças são o programa de vida do Reino, as parábolas são sua ilustração vital, e todas elas se referem ao próprio Jesus, que é, em pessoa, o Reino de Deus. Consequente do anúncio, a práxis do Reino em Jesus se verifica em suas atitudes de cura e libertação do mal, revelando a compaixão e misericórdia de Deus. O anúncio e práxis do Reino geram a comunidade de discípulos, que, após a morte e ressurreição de Jesus, na força do Espírito Santo, dá continuidade à sua missão na história. Com Jesus, o Profeta escatológico, o Reino de Deus se aproxima da humanidade e realiza já o que ainda há de ser plenamente experimentado no futuro escatológico de Deus. / [en] This dissertation deals with the proclamation and praxis of the God s Kingdom, in order to realize the eschatological elements of the theme, present in the thought of Edward Schillebeeckx, contained in the book Jesus, the story of a living, and other works by the author and other authors in dialogue with him. The methodology adopted is the literature review, and the points of relevance are the announcement, the praxis of the kingdom, and the perception of the eschatological elements highlighted by Schillebeeckx. Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God, through the Beatitudes, parables and the reinterpretation of the Mosaic Law for the poor people, bringing God s saving help for Humanity. If the beatitudes are the life program of the kingdom, the parables are a vital illustration, and they all refer to Jesus himself, who is, himself, the kingdom of God. Subsequent announcement, the praxis of the kingdom in Jesus is found in their attitude healing and deliverance from evil, revealing the compassion and mercy of God. The announcement and praxis of the kingdom generate a community of disciples who, after the death and resurrection of Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit, continues His mission in history. With Jesus, the eschatological prophet, God s Kingdom is approaching humanity and accomplishes what has yet to be fully experienced in the eschatological future of God.