Zugl.: Tübingen, Univ., Diss., 2007

Thomas Merton (1915-1968), the American Cistercian, wrote numerous books and essays on spirituality, including both Christian and Eastern forms of mysticism, and such social concerns as racial injustice, the war in Vietnam, and the depersonalizing tendencies within a technical society. From his position of contemplative withdrawal he spoke a prophetic word to the world in which he lived, recognizing that his monastic, and eventually his eremitic life, was not so much a withdrawal from the world as it was his own place in the world. He provides, therefore, a living example of the close interrelationship between contemplation and action. Morton understood withdrawal to be movement away from the superficial and false attitudes one has of the world and of one's own self, Withdrawal is, for him, a movement away from the sharp distinction between subject and object, and a movement toward the understanding that God is the ground of all being and that all contingent beings, rooted in Him, are united. Withdrawal is the necessary prelude to effective social action, since withdrawal opens one to the truth of man's solidarity in God, who is ultimate Reality, and therefore provides the true basis for moral action. For Morton, moral theology is dependent upon ascetical theology. The closer one is to God, the closer one is to all of God's creation. Paul Tillich, too, saw the necessity for withdrawal, for an immediate apprehension of God, and for social action. Hence, it is not surprising that Tillich and Merton have numerous points of affinity. In fact, Tillich's theology can be interpreted as a theoretical statement of Merton's experience. Tillich's use of ontological language, especially his distinction between essence and existence, provides a methodical approach to the theology behind Merton's mysticism and social ethic. The purpose for withdrawal is to allow essence to become known under the conditions of existence, and one essence is know - how ever fragmentarily - it enriches existence for all, not only for the one who has experienced essentialization. Hence, even the mysticism of a hermit has an indirect effect on the entire world, and, in the case of Marton himself, a direct and explicit effect. Tillich, therefore, helps to explain Merton, and Merton's life-long attempt to balance the poles of individuality and participation provides an experiential example of Tillich's system.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T12:21:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Elton Tada.pdf: 775867 bytes, checksum: 47ec8affedc4725e38f6f68ecd848c17 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-08-26 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present work search to do a theological reading of literature, in the specific case of the book ―The via crucis of the body of Clarice Lispector. The theological presupposition that is used to do this analysis is the one of Paul Tillich s theology, parting from his theology of culture and from his concept of courage to be. To this project was necessary to follow some steps, and the first one is retract the discussion about what is and how should be one research that include theology and literature. In the second place was exposed biographical narratives about Clarice Lispector and Paul Tillich that could bring light to the thematic. Subsequently the book ―The via crucis of the body was presented within the general work of Clarice Lispector, and the basic theoretical points of Paul Tillich s theology used in the work was discussed. In the last step, the studded theology of Paul Tillich was applied in the stories of the book ―The via crucis of the body appearing as a result a theologicalexistential reading of the book, and proposing an existential way to analysis the literature. / O presente trabalho busca fazer uma leitura teológica da literatura, no caso específico do livro ―A via crucis do corpo‖ de Clarice Lispector. O pressuposto teológico que se usa para fazer tal análise é o da teologia de Paul Tillich, tanto a partir de sua Teologia da cultura quanto de seu conceito de coragem de ser. Para tal intento foi necessário seguir vários passos, sendo que o primeiro é retratar a discussão sobre o que é e como deve ser uma pesquisa que englobe teologia e literatura. Em segundo lugar foram expostas narrativas biográficas tanto de Clarice Lispector quanto de Paul Tillich que fossem iluminadoras da temática. Subseqüentemente o livro ―A via crucis do corpo‖ foi apresentado juntamente com a obra geral de Clarice Lispector, e os pontos teóricos básicos da teologia de Paul Tillich utilizadas no trabalho foram discutidos. Por último, a teologia estudada de Tillich foi aplicada nos contos do livro ―A via crucis do corpo, surgindo assim uma leitura teológico-existencial da obra e propondo uma forma existencial de se analisar a literatura.

O tema principal deste trabalho é o estatuto teórico da teologia. A cientificidade de qualquer disciplina do conhecimento é dependente principalmente da conceituação de ciência e este conceito é dependente do processo histórico real. Os diversos conceitos de ciência ao longo da história ocidental criaram classificações de ciências que concederam cientificidade para algumas disciplinas enquanto negaram este estatuto a outras. Atualmente, por conta do reconhecimento da falta de um fundamento sólido para o conhecimento, reconhece-se também a impossibilidade de uma definição última do conceito de ciência, de verdade, etc. Reconhece-se cada vez mais que ao lado dos grandes resultados positivos, conseqüência do conceito e método científico moderno, que ainda está em vigor, existem também conseqüências negativas como o distanciamento entre as diferentes ciências e saberes. Para diminuir esta distância, busca-se a religação dos saberes para a qual este trabalho pretende contribuir, especialmente na questão de re-inclusão da teologia entre os saberes válidos. Para isto, no primeiro capítulo, busca-se conhecer a situação atual da fragmentação dos saberes e a tentativa de reverter este quadro por meio do Pensamento Complexo de Edgar Morin. No segundo e terceiro capítulos é apresentado o Sistema das Ciências de Paul Tillich. Em 1923 Tillich escreveu o texto Das System der Wissenschaften nach Gegenständen und Methoden (O Sistema das Ciências segundo objetos e métodos) com o objetivo de encontrar um lugar entre as ciências para a teologia. No Sistema de Tillich, a solução para o problema da unidade e diversidade dos saberes está na característica fundamental do ser humano enquanto espírito, a criatividade. Por fim, no quarto capítulo, são apresentados alguns aspectos relevantes para a religação dos saberes a partir do presente trabalho, como, por exemplo, uma possível conceituação de ciência. / The main theme of this dissertation is the theoretical status of theology. The scientific status of any area of knowledge depends heavily on the respective concept of science. And this concept is, in turn, dependent of the real historical process. The various concepts of science through Western history created science classifications which conceded the status of science to some disciplines and refused it to others. Today, because of the recognition that we lack a solid foundation for knowledge, there is also recognition of the impossibility of an ultimate definition of concepts like science, truth, etc. There has been a growing recognition that, besides great positive results which are consequences of the still dominant modern scientific concept and method, there are also negative consequences, like the distance between different sciences and forms of knowledge. In order to reduce this distance, there has been search for a reunion of forms of knowledge. This dissertation aims to contribute to this process, especially in regard to the re-inclusion of theology among the valid forms of knowledge. In the first chapter the focus is on recognizing the present situation of knowledge fragmentation and the attempt of Edgar Morin to revert it through Complex Thought. The second and third chapters are dedicated to a revisiting of the System of Sciences of Paul Tillich. In 1923, Tillich published his book Das System der Wissenschaften nach Gegenständen und Methoden (The System of Sciences according to Objects and Methods), with the ultimate goal of finding a place for theology among the sciences. In Tillichs System, the solution for the problem of unity and diversity in knowledge lies in the fundamental characteristic of human being as spirit, creativity. Finally, in the fourth chapter some relevant aspects for the reunion of different forms of knowledge are presented, as for example a possible concept of science.

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Uppsatsen jämför en teistisk-metafysisk och en existentiell trosförståelse när det gäller deras förklaringar till att en människa har att förhålla sig till vissa värden som objektivt givna, och vad som krävs av en människa för att få tillgång till denna kunskap. Som representant för det teistisk-metafysiska perspektivet används Francis A. Schaeffer och för det existentiella Paul Tillich.

“A Theological Paradigm – Spirituality – as a belief synthesis in a religious, dogmatic, and philosophical context,” pursues an understanding of spirituality from a theological paradigm within a religious, dogmatic, and philosophical context. Contemporary manifestations of practical and relevant day-to-day situations are taken as vantage points in order to unfold the meaning and implications of stories as metaphors for reality. Two basic statements guide the unfolding of the research process, namely firstly that a belief synthesis is shaped by religion as foundation. It entails that the belief synthesis represents a living framework that incorporates the origin, different definitions, worldwide landscapes, religious movements, as well as the epistemic understanding of spiritual and religious experiences. Secondly, that a belief synthesis incorporates spirituality as an experience. It entails that in this experience of spirituality, the following constitutive dimensions and developments can be distinguished: the relation between religion and spirituality, the revival of the academic discipline spirituality, a working definition of spirituality, which includes a general theory of spirituality and methodological aspects of spiritual development. To develop the research focus on the belief synthesis as a theological paradigm, specific theological and philosophical aspects of the palaeontologist-theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955) and the German American systematic theologian Paul Tillich (1886-1965) are investigated. With regard to Teilhard de Chardin, the emphasis falls on his development of a positive process - a new kind of spirit (Hope) – that humans can experience in their contemporary evolving worlds. With regard to Tillich, the emphasis falls on his method of correlation explaining the contents of the Christian faith through existential questions and theological answers in mutual interdependence. The research focus on mentioned theologians brings about a closer but different clarification of the term spirituality as belief synthesis in religion as well as the influence of Christian spirituality and the impact that it had on our quest to understand the Christian experience in Christian spirituality. The closer, but different clarification of the term spirituality is elaborated on and subsequently justified by a discussion of different definitions of Christian spirituality, as well as a tentative indication of the road to a new kind of Christian spirituality - which entails a transformation of Christian spirituality that includes mysticism. Finally, the terms Spirit and Hope are identified and discussed as integral parts of the belief synthesis as theological paradigm. At the same time, their significance respectively for the belief synthesis are indicated. The importance and crucial role of hermeneutics are subsequently elucidated within the theological paradigm of spirituality. The research conclusion culminates in the open statement that more than one religion, philosophy, or intuitive infinite belief can be accommodated in a person’s religious life and can satisfy humans in their expectations, experiences, hopes, and fears, in their vulnerable existence. / Dissertation (MA(Theol))--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

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[pt] O avanço da modernidade é um marco na história da teologia. Pois, com ele, também se acentua o caráter antropocêntrico moderno. O ser humano, com suas criações e descobertas, caminha para tomar o lugar de Deus e da cosmovisão cristã clássica, caracterizando um giro antropológico moderno. Naturalmente, esta situação de dualismo moderno envolvendo o ser humano e Deus acaba por exigir alguma reação por parte das teologias cristãs. Algumas acham a saída para tal problema na própria figura humana, fazendo dela um novo caminho através do qual é possível falar de Deus. Tal atitude caracteriza um giro antropológico, na teologia. Nessa dissertação, serão apontadas as atitudes básicas de uma teologia que se propõe a realizar tal giro antropológica, cujo teórico principal é o teólogo jesuíta Karl Rahner, enfatizando alguns de seus desdobramentos acerca da questão de Deus. Este caminho será feito para que, ao fim, seja possível expor a construção teológica de Paul Tillich acerca da questão de Deus em sua Teologia Sistemática, levantando a hipótese de que, nela, ele realiza o giro antropológico necessário a toda teologia que pretende reagir ao antropocentrismo moderno. Isto mostra que a possibilidade de Deus não recai, necessariamente, no desprezo ao ser humano e seus avanços. / [en] The modernity advance is a mark in the history of Theology. And because of this progress, the anthropocentric character of modernity is also accentuated. The human being, with his creations and discoveries, walks to take the place of God and the classical Christian worldview, which characterizes a modern anthropological twist. Naturally, this situation of modern dualism involving human being and God asks for some reaction of the Christian theologies. Some of them find the solution for this problem at the human figure itself, making of it a new way through what is possible to talk about god. Such attitude characterizes an anthropological twist in the theology. This dissertation will show the basic attitudes of a theology that propose itself on realizing such anthropological twist, whose the main theorist is the Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner, emphasizing some of its developments about the question of God. This way will be done in order to make the exposition of Paul Tillich s theological construction about the question of God on his Systematic Theology possible, raising the hypothesis that he realizes the anthropological twist in his work, which is necessary to any theology that aims to react to the modern anthropocentrism. Thus, it shows that the possibility of God does not necessarily end in contempt for human being and his advances.

[pt] A cultura de consumo é um dos nomes dados à complexa e poderosa estrutura presente em tantas sociedades quantas tenham sido, de algum modo, envolvidas pelo sistema capitalista global. Nessas sociedades, o consumo recebe papel central. Tal cultura articula: o sistema de produção industrial, em sua multiplicação exponencial dos objetos; os mecanismos de persuasão, que, através das novas tecnologias e das mídias, exploram as dimensões da imaginação e incidem sobre a sociedade; e a relação entre o produto, o consumidor e a sociedade em geral. Devido aos diversos fatores envolvidos no consumo, este campo, antes estudado somente por empresários e pesquisadores do marketing, se tornou um objeto aberto para os olhares de outras áreas do saber, inclusive da teologia. O teólogo e filósofo teuto-americano Paul Tillich (1886-1965) é conhecido por construir uma teologia que visa superar a separação entre religião e cultura. Para ele, toda forma cultural possui uma profundidade religiosa, a partir da qual ela pode e deve ser abordada teologicamente. Sobre esse fundamento, Tillich fez análises teológicas de contextos políticos, sociais, econômicos e religiosos. Ao longo desses esforços, foram desenvolvidos importantes conceitos que extrapolam seus contextos específicos e se tornam profícuos para a análise teológica de outros contextos culturais. Diante disso, o presente trabalho busca fazer, a partir de uma perspectiva tillichiana, tanto uma crítica fundamental da cultura de consumo quanto críticas específicas ao seu envolvimento com os conceitos de ser humano, mundo, tempo e o eschaton. / [en] The culture of consumption is one of the names given to the complex and powerful structure situated in as many societies as those which has been involved in any way by the global capitalist system. In those societies consumption is made the central character. Such culture embraces the industrial production system, in its exponential multiplication of objects; mechanisms of persuasion that through the advance of technology and medias explore imagination dimensions and affect society; and the relationship between products, consumer and all society. Due to the number of factors involving culture of consumption the consumption phenomenon that was previously studied only by managers and marketing researchers but has become an object opened to the other areas of knowledge including theology. The German-American theologian and philosopher Paul Tillich (1886-1965) is known for constructing a theology that aims overcome the gap between religion and culture. In his opinion every culture form has a religious deepness from which it can and must be theologically approached. On this ground Tillich has analyzed political, social and economic contexts from theological point of view. Along these efforts he has developed many important concepts that extrapolate their specific contexts to become fruitful to the analyses of other culture situations. Therefore, the present work aims to show from a Tillichian perspective a fundamental critique to the culture of consumption as well as to its specific involvement with the concepts of human being, world, time and eschaton.