Von Balthasar and the Option for the Poor: Theodramatics in the Light of Liberation Theology

by Todd Walatka

Overview

Hans Urs von Balthasar's vast corpus of theological, philosophical, literary, and pastoral writings remains one of the most impressive achievements in 20th century thought. In light of liberation theology and now the papacy of Francis, however, a theological affirmation of the option for the poor remains dangerously weak in Balthasar's corpus. Von Balthasar and the Option for the Poor offers a sympathetic reforming of Balthasar's account of the drama of salvation—what he calls "theodramatics"— in response to this weakness.

Balthasar argues that his theodramatics intends to do justice to human existence as personal, social, and political, but his regular inattention to God's concern for and solidarity with the oppressed undercuts his own intentions. Von Balthasar and the Option for the Poor strongly affirms Balthasar's most fundamental theological commitments, but then reimagines his theodramatics in light of a strong recognition of the option for the poor within divine revelation and oppression as a force within the drama of salvation.

The first half of the book offers a clear account of Balthasar's most fundamental philosophical and theological commitments as a foundation for developing a liberating theodramatics. The second half offers a creative reworking of Balthasar's Christology, anthropology, and ecclesiology in light of the work of Gustavo Gutiérrez, Oscar Romero, and Jon Sobrino as well as seldom engaged texts in Balthasar's corpus. In so doing, Von Balthasar and the Option for the Poor provides a rich and unmatched dialogical engagement between Balthasar and Latin American liberation theology—an engagement that brings greater consistency to Balthasar's thought, increased attentiveness to the shape of divine revelation, and greater responsiveness to the challenges facing the Church in the modern age. As a liberating theodramatics, Balthasar's theological vision is opened to and reformed by a robust affirmation of God's merciful partiality towards the poor and oppressed, the option for the poor as an essential dimension of the Christian life, and the recognition that oppressive structures are theodramatic realities that oppose God's gift of life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813229485
Publisher:	The Catholic University of America Press
Publication date:	03/03/2017
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Todd Walatka is Assistant Chair for Graduate Studies and Assistant Professional Specialist at the University of Notre Dame

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Abbreviations xi

Introduction 1

Balthasar and the Second Vatican Council 4

Concilium, Communia, and Moving Forward 7

Engaging Liberation Theology 12

Theodramatics in the Light of Liberation Theology 17

The Task Ahead 19

1 The Human Pursuit of Truth 21

Anthropological Foundations 22

The Object of Theology as Inexhaustible Love 29

Theology, Plurality, and Unity 31

Balthasar's Theological Disposition 39

Conclusion 42

2 Balthasar's Reading of Liberation Theology 44

Christian Hope as Universal Hope 46

Eschatological Hope and Balthasar's Theology of History 51

The Fundamental Concern 59

Evaluating Balthasar 64

Naming the Weakness 73

Conclusion 77

3 Theodramatics 79

Theological Aesthetics: Perceiving the Glory of God 81

In the Footsteps of Ignatius of Loyola 85

Theodramatics 91

Conclusion 100

4 Theodramatic Christology 102

The Climactic Word of God 103

The Witness of the Life of Jesus 107

The Crucifixion as Representation and Solidarity 117

Resurrection from the Dead 126

Conclusion 130

5 The Christian Life 132

Resurrection and the Sending of the Spirit 135

Mission as Anthropological Category 137

Structures of Christian Mission 144

The Option for the Poor and Christian Mission 150

Oscar Romero: Icon of the Option, for the Poor 161

Conclusion 166

6 Liberating Theodramatics 169

An Apocalyptic Theologian 173

The Battle of the Logos 177

Expanding the Drama: Oppression and Victimization as Theodramatic 185

History and the Kingdom 194

The Church as a Sacrament of Salvation 200

Conclusion 210

Conclusion 212

Bibliography 217

Index of Biblical Citations 237

General Index 239

Editorial Reviews

"One must not underestimate the significance of this book. At first glance, one might slot it as a welcome contribution to the secondary literature on Hans Urs von Balthasar focused on one small aspect of his theology, namely his treatment of liberation theology and the poor. Certainly the book is this. But it is much more. In the age of Pope Francis, this study captures his spirit. It refuses any false dichotomy that would divide the Catholic Church by isolating obedient surrender to the revealed glory of the triune God from the evangelical work of social justice and social transformationfor scholarship on von Balthasar and liberation theology, which ought to propel research forward in new directions. It is poised to contribute to both teaching and thought. Yet, as I indicated at the outset, its significance is greater still. It represents the inseparably doxological and liberative practice of Christian life and reflection which the twenty-first Catholic Church desperately needs."—Andrew Prevot, Boston College, Journel of Jesuit Studies

"Walatka deftly and successfully extends underdeveloped pieces of Balthasar's project to articulate his aesthetics and dramatics as a kind of political theology. His proposal will thus be of great interest to readers of Balthasar concerned with possible trajectories of his thought in social ethics and political theology. More broadly, however, Walatka's book makes an important contribution to an ongoing conversation in Catholic theology concerned with complicating and overcoming long-standing divisions between dogmatic theology and theologies of liberation, and for this reason is widely commended."—Krause, Nicholas, Anglican Theological Review

"By bringing Balthasar's magisterial work into engagement with the foundational insights of liberation theology, particularly the preferential option for the poor, Walatka examines the openness to liberation theology latent in Balthasar's thought. At the same time, Walatka demonstrates how that openness can and must be more fully developed if theological aesthetics is to remain internally consistent and true to its purpose as a response to God's salvific work. This book thus represents an important, indeed crucial contribution to the development of theological aesthetics. –"—Roberto Goizueta, Boston College

"At the core of this book is the indispensable character of the preferential option for the poor for theology and the life of the Church. Walatka creates an opening for entering deeply into the theological implications of this option for the poor, and skillfully reconfigures the important work of Hans Urs von Balthasar through a fruitful dialogue with liberation theology."—Gustavo Gutiérrez, OP, author of A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation

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