Grace in Our Place? The Concept of Representation in the Theology of Karl Rahner
How does Jesus bring about human salvation? Throughout his career, Karl Rahner expressed deep suspicion of answers that portray Christ as “stepping in” for us (Stellvertretung) and performing a great redemptive act in our stead: grace ought to capacitate rather than displace, he argued. Rahner’s ass...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Sage Publ.
[2020]
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| In: |
Theological studies
Year: 2020, Volume: 81, Issue: 2, Pages: 438-452 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | How does Jesus bring about human salvation? Throughout his career, Karl Rahner expressed deep suspicion of answers that portray Christ as “stepping in” for us (Stellvertretung) and performing a great redemptive act in our stead: grace ought to capacitate rather than displace, he argued. Rahner’s assessment provoked great protest from Hans Urs von Balthasar, for whom Stellvertretung was indispensable. This article considers their exchange by examining (1) Rahner’s distinction between mere “signs” (Vertretungssymbole) and real symbols as well as (2) his favored alternative for Stellvertretung, the notion of Repräsentation, an underappreciated dimension of his soteriology adopted from his early patristic studies. |
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| ISSN: | 2169-1304 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Theological studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/0040563920930390 |