Johnson, Chapter 2

Context of a Secular World

  • Insight into God in western Europe post WWII shaped by historical movements:

    • Reformation

    • Renaissance

    • Enlightenment

  • Emergence of a modern and secular culture influenced by:

    • Scientific advances leading to empirical explanations, pragmatic mentality over supernatural ones.

    • Technological developments providing control over nature while also facing the threat of nuclear weapons.

Political and Intellectual Landscape

  • Political factors after conflicts shaped values of freedom and authority:

    • Democracy's growth led to increased literacy and education for all citizens, including women.

    • New media of mass communication expanded access to information for the general populace.

  • Intellectual criticism of God:

    • Ludwig Feuerbach viewed God as a human projection.

    • Karl Marx criticized religion as a distraction from social justice.

    • Fyodor Dostoevsky’s characters grappled with faith amidst suffering, rejecting a divine setup allowing injustice.

    • Sigmund Freud dismissed God as an illusion fulfilling a paternal need in humanity.

Cultural Impact of Atheism

  • Nietzsche's proclamation of "God is dead" reflected the challenge against faith in modern European thought.

  • Modern culture presented Christians as a cognitive minority amid prevalent secular perspectives.

  • The world seemed more godless due to scientific explanations and rational control over life.

Theological Responses to Modernity

  • The crisis of faith occurred as belief systems were challenged by various secular ideologies, resulting in:

    • Skepticism regarding all truth claims.

    • Clinical apathy towards religion influenced by societal trends diverging from Christian customs.

Philosophers and Theologians in the Secular Age

  • The rise of engaged theologians willing to reinterpret Christian belief to meet pastoral needs:

    • Catholic nouvelle théologie explored fresh interpretations.

    • Protestant reformulations of revelation.

  • Focus on Karl Rahner’s contributions and his efforts to renew the understanding of God through contemporary questions.

Metaphor of Winter

  • Rahner described the current faith condition as a wintry season:

    • Faith requires personal commitment, not just cultural inheritance.

    • Believers live in a diaspora situation spread among doubts and diverse beliefs.

  • Agnosticism and positivism challenge traditional Christian beliefs by promoting evidence-based worldviews and secular values.

Dynamics of Stillness and Growth

  • Rahner emphasized that in times of doubt and coldness in faith:

    • Believers must strip away non-essential customs to return to the core issue of God.

    • Modern faith involves engaging with complexities of life.

Rahner’s View on God as Mystery

  • Rahner promotes the understanding of God as a boundless mystery:

    • This mystery transcends casual understanding, likening God to an unreachable horizon.

    • Recognizing the limitations of human comprehension leads believers towards the infinite.

Shift in Philosophical Approach

  • Unlike classical theistic approaches starting from nature, Rahner shifted focus towards human consciousness:

    • His "turn to the subject" emphasizes understanding God through human experience and desires.

Inner Drive towards Truth

  • Humans are characterized by a boundless drive for truth that continually propels inquiries:

    • This dynamic desire exhibits a perpetual quest for deeper understanding beyond immediate questions.

Rahner's Assessment of Freedom

  • For Rahner, freedom reflects self-responsibility and openness to existential questions:

    • As individuals engage in choices, they express their freedom intertwined with the pursuit of the infinite and the divine.

Theological Implications of Self-transcendence

  • Rahner claims that self-transcendence signifies humanity’s orientation toward God:

    • All inquiries reflect a restless yearning for fulfillment and connection with the divine.

God as Radical Proximity

  • In Christian belief, God moves close to humanity through:

    • The incarnation of Christ as the divine revealing human struggles.

    • Grace as an ever-present reality throughout history.

Reconceptualization of Grace

  • Rahner differentiates between created grace (remedial) and uncreated grace (innate):

    • Uncreated grace as God's Spirit inherent in every human life, offering a connection to the divine.

Avowal of Holy Mystery

  • Rahner’s radical notion of God encompasses:

    • The concept that God does not merely exist among beings but defines reality in a pluralistic manner.

  • Holy mystery articulates transcendence (God's otherness) and immanence (God's closeness), emphasizing God's active engagement with humanity.

Conclusion of Faith’s Relevance

  • Rahner’s dialog with modernity insists on engaging the complexities of faith rather than retreating into tradition, ultimately calling believers back to a personal and profound understanding of God as holy mystery.