Culture, Catholicity, and Ecumenicity
Volf continues building on his thoughts in the last section, asking what can be gained from departing one's culture without leaving. To begin answering this question, he returns to the stories of Abraham and Christ. These stories show us that there is "a reality that is more important than the culture to which we belong. It is God and the new world that God is creating, a world in which people from every nation and every tribe, with their cultural goods, will gather around the triune God..." Only by creating distance from our own culture and making God's culture our center can we begin to enter into this new and exciting world.
By setting our sights on God's world, we begin to create space within ourselves to receive those who are other. "A catholic personality is a personality enriched by otherness, a personality which is what it is only because multiple others have been reflected in it in a particular way." This universal personality has room for other traditions, other viewpoints, other experiences, other people.
Volf then declares, "A catholic personality requires a catholic community." If, as an individual, there is space for those who are different from myself, I will also want to be part of a community with space for those who are different. In other words, a universal personality is going to hunger for a community that reflects that universality. As Christians, we are part of the universal church both locally, in those who make up our particular congregation, and globally, with the churches that make up the complete body of Christ. Of course, for too many of us, our local congregations do not reflect the global reality of our faith, which is a challenge that the church has faced for decades, and will continue to face for years to come.
Within this catholic community, there is still the need to be able to judge what is good and right, and what is evil and wrong. This helps ensure that the things that are life-giving from other cultures and peoples are honored, while the things that are harmful are left behind. In order to enter into this discrimination honestly, though, we must begin by examining our own culture and our own personality for the things which are harmful. Before we can presume to judge another culture or person, we must follow Jesus' direction to first "remove the log from our own eye." Then, repentant and transformed, we can seek to call for repentance from others, which Volf calls an "evangelical personality."
So a catholic personality leads to a catholic community, a catholic community leads to the discernment of the need for repentance, which leads to an evangelical personality, which in turn must lead back to the community, which Volf names "ecumenical."
The truth is that we cannot carry on this work, or rise to meet this challenge, on our own. We have to operate within a community of people who are also striving to live inclusive lives, who can help us when we begin to falter, and who will celebrate with us when we are faithful. The need for an "ecumenical community" is clear, and points to the new world that God is bringing to completion in our midst. Together, we are able to discern more completely what is God's good and perfect will, we are able to strive for true justice for all people, and we are able to extend God's mercy and love further than we can on our own.
At the end of this section, Volf identifies two possible objections against creating distance from your own culture, which he intends to address in the second chapter. That will be our focus in the next set of readings.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Chapter One, pages 43-50
...Without Leaving
This section continues Volf's train of thought, which began with "Departing..." Here he contrasts the Apostle Paul to Abraham. Abraham was called to leave his home, leave his land, leave his livelihood, leave his people, leave everything, all in order to follow God. Paul, on the other hand, was called to open up the promise of salvation to all people, by interpreting Jesus' life, death, and resurrection from within his culture, but applying it to all those outside of his culture.
This can be seen as a move from the particular--a particular people called Israel, a particular blood-line, a particular language, a particular set of rituals and laws--to the universal--salvation is for all, grace is for all, mercy is for all, Christ is for all. No longer will God's saving work be understood as applicable only to one selected people and their children, but instead is open and available to all across the whole earth.
In order to accomplish this shift in understanding who God is and who God's people are, Volf says that Paul does three things. First, "in the name of the one God Paul relativizes the Torah." This means that a man must no longer be circumcised in order to follow Christ. The kosher laws are no longer mandated for those who join the Christian community. In other words, the Torah is for Jews, but you don't have to be a Jew to be a Christian, and you don't have to follow the Torah to follow Jesus.
Second, "for the sake of equality Paul discards genealogy." John the Baptist himself did this in the Gospel accounts of his preaching in the wilderness, telling the Pharisees that God could raise up sons of Abraham from the rocks, and that the blood that flowed in their veins was no protection from God's just judgment. No longer do you have to be born of a Jewish woman in order to belong to the Jewish faith or follow the Jewish God. Because God is one, God is one for all people.
And third, "for the sake of all the families of the earth Paul embraces Christ." In Christ, all are made equal and one, all divisions are put aside, and all are effectively brought into the family of Abraham, while the name of Abraham belongs to all people.
How can Paul say that all people are made one in Christ? How can he claim this universality from the life and death of a particular person, a Jewish man born at the turn of the centuries who is arrested and wrongly condemned? Either all become the same under Christ, a boring homogenous mixture of people losing their unique identities, or the work of Christ really does not touch all peoples, everywhere and in every time.
Volf answers this by taking us to the sometimes uncomfortable heart of our faith, the cross. "The 'One' in whom Paul seeks to locate the unity of all humankind is not disincarnate transcendence, but the crucified and resurrected Jesus Christ." God, in Christ on the cross, comes into our realm of being as a fully fleshed human being and experiences the most unifying experience that humanity can know: suffering. By experiencing a particular suffering on behalf of all people, Christ is able to bring all the glorious differences of humanity into one meeting point, making us one with God and with each other.
Volf goes on to describe how the act of suffering, the language of "the body of Christ," and our understanding of baptism all lead to a new membership in this community of God where somehow we are bound together without losing our selves or our stories. If taken seriously, this challenges the foundation of how we describe ourselves as Christians, especially in America.
When we apply the notion of "departing without leaving" to our lives in the United States and our membership within the body of Christ, we begin to see the radical nature of Volf's work. In our baptism, we put all other memberships and allegiances behind us. We leave our country and our culture, no longer allowing those facets of our lives to be the foundation for our identity. But we leave without departing. We are still citizens of our country and still living within a particular culture, even as we are now first and foremost Christians and part of the body of Christ.
Volf continues to explore this theme in the following section, but a way of thinking about it is through the lens of a well-known saying of Jesus. The saying admonishes us to remove the log from our own eye before worrying about the speck in a neighbor's eye. Of course, if we have a log in our eye, we really can't see it. We may not even be aware that it's there. Departing our country and culture without leaving is like finding a mirror or a helper to be able to see the log in our own eye, stepping back and beginning to differentiate between what is truly Christ-like and what popular culture has decided is Christ-like. This is a difficult task, to say the least, and one that we must always be beginning again.
This section continues Volf's train of thought, which began with "Departing..." Here he contrasts the Apostle Paul to Abraham. Abraham was called to leave his home, leave his land, leave his livelihood, leave his people, leave everything, all in order to follow God. Paul, on the other hand, was called to open up the promise of salvation to all people, by interpreting Jesus' life, death, and resurrection from within his culture, but applying it to all those outside of his culture.
This can be seen as a move from the particular--a particular people called Israel, a particular blood-line, a particular language, a particular set of rituals and laws--to the universal--salvation is for all, grace is for all, mercy is for all, Christ is for all. No longer will God's saving work be understood as applicable only to one selected people and their children, but instead is open and available to all across the whole earth.
In order to accomplish this shift in understanding who God is and who God's people are, Volf says that Paul does three things. First, "in the name of the one God Paul relativizes the Torah." This means that a man must no longer be circumcised in order to follow Christ. The kosher laws are no longer mandated for those who join the Christian community. In other words, the Torah is for Jews, but you don't have to be a Jew to be a Christian, and you don't have to follow the Torah to follow Jesus.
Second, "for the sake of equality Paul discards genealogy." John the Baptist himself did this in the Gospel accounts of his preaching in the wilderness, telling the Pharisees that God could raise up sons of Abraham from the rocks, and that the blood that flowed in their veins was no protection from God's just judgment. No longer do you have to be born of a Jewish woman in order to belong to the Jewish faith or follow the Jewish God. Because God is one, God is one for all people.
And third, "for the sake of all the families of the earth Paul embraces Christ." In Christ, all are made equal and one, all divisions are put aside, and all are effectively brought into the family of Abraham, while the name of Abraham belongs to all people.
How can Paul say that all people are made one in Christ? How can he claim this universality from the life and death of a particular person, a Jewish man born at the turn of the centuries who is arrested and wrongly condemned? Either all become the same under Christ, a boring homogenous mixture of people losing their unique identities, or the work of Christ really does not touch all peoples, everywhere and in every time.
Volf answers this by taking us to the sometimes uncomfortable heart of our faith, the cross. "The 'One' in whom Paul seeks to locate the unity of all humankind is not disincarnate transcendence, but the crucified and resurrected Jesus Christ." God, in Christ on the cross, comes into our realm of being as a fully fleshed human being and experiences the most unifying experience that humanity can know: suffering. By experiencing a particular suffering on behalf of all people, Christ is able to bring all the glorious differences of humanity into one meeting point, making us one with God and with each other.
Volf goes on to describe how the act of suffering, the language of "the body of Christ," and our understanding of baptism all lead to a new membership in this community of God where somehow we are bound together without losing our selves or our stories. If taken seriously, this challenges the foundation of how we describe ourselves as Christians, especially in America.
When we apply the notion of "departing without leaving" to our lives in the United States and our membership within the body of Christ, we begin to see the radical nature of Volf's work. In our baptism, we put all other memberships and allegiances behind us. We leave our country and our culture, no longer allowing those facets of our lives to be the foundation for our identity. But we leave without departing. We are still citizens of our country and still living within a particular culture, even as we are now first and foremost Christians and part of the body of Christ.
Volf continues to explore this theme in the following section, but a way of thinking about it is through the lens of a well-known saying of Jesus. The saying admonishes us to remove the log from our own eye before worrying about the speck in a neighbor's eye. Of course, if we have a log in our eye, we really can't see it. We may not even be aware that it's there. Departing our country and culture without leaving is like finding a mirror or a helper to be able to see the log in our own eye, stepping back and beginning to differentiate between what is truly Christ-like and what popular culture has decided is Christ-like. This is a difficult task, to say the least, and one that we must always be beginning again.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
A Multitude of Names
You may have noticed by now that Volf uses a lot of other names as he writes, quoting from theologians and prominent thinkers in order to set a good foundation for his work. I had a conversation with someone who is reading along with the blog who found this a bit difficult and confusing, so I thought I'd share my response for everyone.
First of all, Volf is establishing that he knows his genre, he knows the works that have been published, and he knows what major theologians have said on his chosen subject. He is writing a scholarly work, and this kind of referencing is essential in order for his work to be highly regarded in the scholarly community.
Second, and most important for our process, don't worry about it. We don't need to know the major theologians, either who they are or what they've said. If they have something important to offer, Volf has brought it into these pages for us. So concentrate on what's between the quotes, not necessarily on who said what. I would recommend skimming the names, or skipping them altogether, unless you are someone who also knows who these major theologians and thinkers are.
I think that some of the quoting will diminish as we move to the meat of Volf's work. That is where he will show his own creativity and his own thinking. In the meantime, read for the content, not for the names.
First of all, Volf is establishing that he knows his genre, he knows the works that have been published, and he knows what major theologians have said on his chosen subject. He is writing a scholarly work, and this kind of referencing is essential in order for his work to be highly regarded in the scholarly community.
Second, and most important for our process, don't worry about it. We don't need to know the major theologians, either who they are or what they've said. If they have something important to offer, Volf has brought it into these pages for us. So concentrate on what's between the quotes, not necessarily on who said what. I would recommend skimming the names, or skipping them altogether, unless you are someone who also knows who these major theologians and thinkers are.
I think that some of the quoting will diminish as we move to the meat of Volf's work. That is where he will show his own creativity and his own thinking. In the meantime, read for the content, not for the names.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Part One: Chapter One, pages 35-43
Chapter 1: Distance and Belonging
Complicity
To begin his foray into the reality of exclusion, Volf looks at the complicity of the Christian church. It is a harsh truth, but a truth none-the-less, that the church has been involved in some of the worst atrocities committed during the past two thousand years. The involvement was at time direct, and at times by allowing violence to occur, but in all cases the church's involvement was incredibly damaging. As Volf says, "We have had our share of complicity in the imperial process."
One of the challenges that we, as the church, face, is that we are people of the cultures we live in. We are formed by where we live and how we live, and it is very difficult to step out of that mindset and see it as something other than absolute. For instance, missionaries from Europe and the United States often taught western culture along with the Christian story, even though Jesus was a Jew raised in a Middle Eastern culture. The missionaries were unwilling, or unable, to separate the norms of their western European culture from the message of salvation for all.
The struggle for the church to be aware of the prevailing culture but not enslaved by it is not new, but it is a struggle we often ignore and turn our backs on. It is easier to be uncritical of the culture we live in, and instead enmesh the positives of our faith and our lifestyle to suit our needs. This enmeshing leads to new lines being drawn between groups, and being reinforced with the strength of our beliefs behind them. Volf says, "The answer lies... in cultivating the proper relation between distance from the culture and belonging to it."
Departing...
Our model and mentor for the work of departing our surrounding culture is Abraham. Just remind yourself of the beginning of Abraham's story: he left family, friends, home, land, people, and everything he knew to travel to a new place, to make a new home, to start a new people, to begin without any preconditions coloring his relationship with God. "If he is to be a blessing he cannot stay; he must depart, cutting the ties that so profoundly defined him."
As our role model, Abraham teaches us that "to be a child of Abraham and Sarah and to respond to the call of their God means to make an exodus, to start a voyage, become a stranger." This is an important challenge for us today, who as American Christians tend to identify first with our country and second with our faith. This is not what God calls us to, and has never been what God calls us to. "At the very core of Christian identity lies an all-encompassing change of loyalty, from a given culture with its gods to the God of all cultures... Departure is part and parcel of Christian identity."
Complicity
To begin his foray into the reality of exclusion, Volf looks at the complicity of the Christian church. It is a harsh truth, but a truth none-the-less, that the church has been involved in some of the worst atrocities committed during the past two thousand years. The involvement was at time direct, and at times by allowing violence to occur, but in all cases the church's involvement was incredibly damaging. As Volf says, "We have had our share of complicity in the imperial process."
One of the challenges that we, as the church, face, is that we are people of the cultures we live in. We are formed by where we live and how we live, and it is very difficult to step out of that mindset and see it as something other than absolute. For instance, missionaries from Europe and the United States often taught western culture along with the Christian story, even though Jesus was a Jew raised in a Middle Eastern culture. The missionaries were unwilling, or unable, to separate the norms of their western European culture from the message of salvation for all.
The struggle for the church to be aware of the prevailing culture but not enslaved by it is not new, but it is a struggle we often ignore and turn our backs on. It is easier to be uncritical of the culture we live in, and instead enmesh the positives of our faith and our lifestyle to suit our needs. This enmeshing leads to new lines being drawn between groups, and being reinforced with the strength of our beliefs behind them. Volf says, "The answer lies... in cultivating the proper relation between distance from the culture and belonging to it."
Departing...
Our model and mentor for the work of departing our surrounding culture is Abraham. Just remind yourself of the beginning of Abraham's story: he left family, friends, home, land, people, and everything he knew to travel to a new place, to make a new home, to start a new people, to begin without any preconditions coloring his relationship with God. "If he is to be a blessing he cannot stay; he must depart, cutting the ties that so profoundly defined him."
As our role model, Abraham teaches us that "to be a child of Abraham and Sarah and to respond to the call of their God means to make an exodus, to start a voyage, become a stranger." This is an important challenge for us today, who as American Christians tend to identify first with our country and second with our faith. This is not what God calls us to, and has never been what God calls us to. "At the very core of Christian identity lies an all-encompassing change of loyalty, from a given culture with its gods to the God of all cultures... Departure is part and parcel of Christian identity."
Revised Schedule
As you may have noticed by now, I'm a bit behind schedule! For some reason, I forgot about Christmas while I was putting together our reading schedule, and there was a death in my extended family in December as well. So instead of trying to hurry up and catch up, I thought it would be best to simply revise.
That said, here is our current schedule:
Week of 1/13 pages 35-43
Week of 1/20 pages 43-50
Week of 1/27 pages 50-55
Week of 2/3 pages 57-64
Week of 2/10 pages 64-72
Week of 2/17 pages 72-79
Week of 2/24 pages 79-86
Week of 3/2 pages 86-92
Week of 3/9 pages 92-98
Also, if you have any questions or comments about the readings, please feel free to add them to the blog. This is meant to be an open space to discuss and learn, so feel free to join in!
That said, here is our current schedule:
Week of 1/13 pages 35-43
Week of 1/20 pages 43-50
Week of 1/27 pages 50-55
Week of 2/3 pages 57-64
Week of 2/10 pages 64-72
Week of 2/17 pages 72-79
Week of 2/24 pages 79-86
Week of 3/2 pages 86-92
Week of 3/9 pages 92-98
Also, if you have any questions or comments about the readings, please feel free to add them to the blog. This is meant to be an open space to discuss and learn, so feel free to join in!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Introduction, pages 22-31
The Cross at the Center
In this section, Volf states clearly that the cross, and the theology of self-donation, will be at the center of his work. It is in the work of the cross and the Crucified One that we can begin to understand how to approach the other, and how to begin true reconciliation.
Volf notes that the theology of the cross has often focused on God's identifying with the victim; with those who are weak, hurt, marginalized, and suffering. While this is, of course, true, Volf wants to redirect our attention to the other audience implied. If there are victims, there are victimizers; if there are those who are powerless and marginalized, then there are those who are powerful and are at the center of all the action. As Christians, we must affirm that God came in the person of Jesus Christ for all people, victim and victimizer alike. "As God does not abandon the godless to their evil but give the divine self for them in order to receive them into divine communion through atonement, so also should we--whoever our enemies and whoever we may be."
This reminder that the promise of atonement is for all people is a needed corrective. We are to practice Christ-like self-donation in order to bring about reconciliation and change.
The Scandal and the Promise
Of course, the theology of the cross and of divine self-donation is scandolous. As Volf points out in this section, this theology has been abused to subjugate women and minorities, calling on them to give of themselves without an equal requirement to give in return. This, though, is intrinsic in the scandal of self-donation. Christ came to give all, and the response of the disciples as well as the religious leaders showed clearly that there was no enforcing the requirement that they give all in return. Because Christ has given all, hoping for all in return but not having that hope granted, we have a true image of what our own self-donation can mean.
It is when we abandon our hopes that "reason" and "control" and "progress" will bring about healing in the world and lead us all into civilized relationships, that we can realize the truer hope that is offered in the cross and our Divine example. Then, "a new hope in self-giving love can be born," and true reconciliation may be found.
Themes and Steps
Here, Volf sets out the structure for the body of the book; what he is going to say and how he is going to say it. He begins with an exploration of welcoming, which he calls "embrace," and how we are to enter into this spirit as Christians in the 21st century. At the same time, he recognizes that blind acceptance of the other can never lead to true reconciliation, so an aspect of embrace must include truth-telling and justice-seeking. This he explores further in his work on exclusion, and what it means to embrace fully without embracing completely.
Now we are ready to begin reading Part One, which I will review shortly.
In this section, Volf states clearly that the cross, and the theology of self-donation, will be at the center of his work. It is in the work of the cross and the Crucified One that we can begin to understand how to approach the other, and how to begin true reconciliation.
Volf notes that the theology of the cross has often focused on God's identifying with the victim; with those who are weak, hurt, marginalized, and suffering. While this is, of course, true, Volf wants to redirect our attention to the other audience implied. If there are victims, there are victimizers; if there are those who are powerless and marginalized, then there are those who are powerful and are at the center of all the action. As Christians, we must affirm that God came in the person of Jesus Christ for all people, victim and victimizer alike. "As God does not abandon the godless to their evil but give the divine self for them in order to receive them into divine communion through atonement, so also should we--whoever our enemies and whoever we may be."
This reminder that the promise of atonement is for all people is a needed corrective. We are to practice Christ-like self-donation in order to bring about reconciliation and change.
The Scandal and the Promise
Of course, the theology of the cross and of divine self-donation is scandolous. As Volf points out in this section, this theology has been abused to subjugate women and minorities, calling on them to give of themselves without an equal requirement to give in return. This, though, is intrinsic in the scandal of self-donation. Christ came to give all, and the response of the disciples as well as the religious leaders showed clearly that there was no enforcing the requirement that they give all in return. Because Christ has given all, hoping for all in return but not having that hope granted, we have a true image of what our own self-donation can mean.
It is when we abandon our hopes that "reason" and "control" and "progress" will bring about healing in the world and lead us all into civilized relationships, that we can realize the truer hope that is offered in the cross and our Divine example. Then, "a new hope in self-giving love can be born," and true reconciliation may be found.
Themes and Steps
Here, Volf sets out the structure for the body of the book; what he is going to say and how he is going to say it. He begins with an exploration of welcoming, which he calls "embrace," and how we are to enter into this spirit as Christians in the 21st century. At the same time, he recognizes that blind acceptance of the other can never lead to true reconciliation, so an aspect of embrace must include truth-telling and justice-seeking. This he explores further in his work on exclusion, and what it means to embrace fully without embracing completely.
Now we are ready to begin reading Part One, which I will review shortly.
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