About the Book
What role does, could or should theology play in current discussions about our political realities? Is there a place for theological worldviews in the public conversation about policy making? Should theology critically unmask the underlying theological and metaphysical sources of contemporary politics?
The contributors to this volume reflect on new questions in public and political theology, inspired by the theology of Edward Schillebeeckx. They discuss a variety of theological traditions and theories that could offer substantial contributions to current political challenges, and debate whether theology should contribute to the liberation of communities of poor and suffering people.
Table of Contents:
List of Contributors
1. Introduction: The Sacrament of Public Life
Stephan van Erp, Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven, the Netherlands
PART I: THEOLOGICAL HERMENEUTICS: ‘IF POLITICS ISN’T EVERYTHING…’
2. God Becoming Present in the World: Sacramental Foundations of a Theology of Public Life
Stephan van Erp, Katholieke Universiteit, the Netherlands
3. Towards a Hermeneutic for Public Theology: A Conversation with Schillebeeckx and Habermas
Sebastian Kim, York St John University, UK
4. Glimpses of Schillebeeckx in Asian Theological Hermeneutics
Edmund Kee-Fook Chia, Australian Catholic University, Australia
5. The Hermeneutics of Intersubjectivity: A Study of Theologies of Homelessness
Siobhán Garrigan, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
6. From Han to Mystical-Political Praxis: Intercultural Hermeneutics Schillebeeckx's Soteriology
Kevin Considine, Calumet College of St. Joseph, USA
PART II: CHRISTOLOGY: ‘THE PRAXIS OF THE REIGN OF GOD’
7. Speaking of Jesus Today: Towards an Engaged Systematic Theology
Graham Ward, University of Oxford, UK
8. Still Revealing Himself: How Jesus' Resurrection Enables US to be Public Theologians
Erik Borgman, Tilburg University, Netherlands
9. Overcoming Political Nestorianism: Towards a Chalcedonian Politics
Aristotle Papanikolaou, Fordham University, USA
10. Concentrating on Creation: Following Christ in a Context of Climate Change
Martin Poulsom, Heythrop College, UK
PART III: ESCHATOLOGY: ‘GOD, THE FUTURE OF MAN’
11. Are the Last Things Exclusively Positive? Schillebeeckx's Eschatology and Public Theology
Prof. Christoph Hübenthal, RU Nijmegen, Netherlands
12. 'Putting the Facts to Shame’: Eschatology and the Discourse of Martyrdom
Michael Kirwan, Heythrop College, UK
13. Schillebeeckx's View on Eschatology as Public Theology Today
Frederiek Depoortere, KU Leuven, Belgium
14. Afro-Pessimism and Christian Hope
Vincent Lloyd, Syracuse University, USA
PART IV: ECCLESIOLOGY: ‘THE CHURCH WITH A HUMAN FACE’
15. Enchantment, Idolatry, and Sacrament: Looking for Grace in the Secular
William Cavanaugh, De Paul University, USA
16. 'Things Which Can Be Seen Only by Eyes That Have Cried'. Towards a Political Theology of Lament
Emmanuel Katongole, Notre Dame University, USA
17. The Church and the Elusive ‘Public’
Elizabeth Phillips, University of Cambridge, UK
18. The Church in the Limelight of the Public Square: An Alternative Community?
Annemarie Mayer, KU Leuven, Belgium
CONCLUDING REFLECTIONS
About the Author :
Stephan van Erp is Professor of Fundamental Theology at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven, Belgium.
Martin G. Poulsom is Head of Theology in the Department of Philosophy and Religion, Heythrop College, London, UK.
Lieven Boeve is Professor of Fundamental Theology at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven, Belgium.
Review :
I can think of no other theologian who has addressed changes in theology, Church, ministry and society so thoroughly and thoughtfully in the period marking the second half of his long, and sometimes embattled, life. It is really good to see that the University of Leuven (to which Erp and Boeve both belong) is keeping interest in his seminal work alive.
A valuable and provocative dialogue about how to construct a social-political theology of grace in the context of globalization, suffering, violence, ecological crisis and religious pluralism. Inspired by the efforts of Edward Schillebeeckx to craft a credible Christian theology of hope in a secularized and suffering world, theologians from diverse backgrounds and fields have taken up that challenge anew in the proposals in this volume for a public theology for the third millennium. This is a conversation not to be missed - the first volume in an exciting new series.
Edward Schillebeeckx always said that he did not set out to form a "school" as so many Eutopean theologians have done. Rather, he wanted to attune his students to a deeper reflection on God's action in the world. This volume on the emerging field of public theology would have met his approval. Here the authors have taken some of his most basic insights about God, grace, suffering and following Christ and brought them ito play with issues confronting the public face of Christianity today. A fitting inaugural volume in the Studies in Schillebeeckx Series - continuing to do theology in a way (as he phrased it) that shows how salvation is happening in the world.
This book breaks new ground in Schillebeeckx studies and will grace the launch of this new series. With such a wide diversity of engagements and a shared passion, the contributors convey for the reader a strong sense of Schillebeeckx's continuing relevance and generativity for theology and public life. It is a well-crafted collection and fitting testament to the work of a leading theologian, and evidences both the richness of his theology and its promise.
