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From Glory to Glory: The Analogy of Being in the Thought of Karl Barth and Hans Urs von Balthasar
No full textIn response to Karl Barth’s rejection of the analogia entis as “the invention of the Antichrist,” Erich Przywara insists that the great Protestant theologian’s criticisms are essentially of no avail, “because for him this biblical Christianity came, in fact, to assume the shape of a system of ‘ever greater dissimilarity,’ which is to say it fell under the spell of the very analogy he sought to flee.”[1] Przywara further stresses that “it is precisely in the analogy, understood as the ‘analogy of ever greater dissimilarity,’ that God is mighty and declares himself – the God who, ‘if you comprehend him, is not God,’ and the God whom we ‘encounter’ solely in the ‘free hanging’ of the ‘free suspendedness’ of ‘analogy,’ which for both metaphysics and religion is what is ‘ultimate.’”[2]
In recognizing and responding to Barth’s reservations, Przywara demonstrates a significant degree of compatibility between the traditional, Thomistic understanding of the analogical relationship between created and uncreated being, and the worldview of Karl Barth, who wishes to emphasize the unrestricted majesty of the Creator, and the “infinite qualitative difference” between God and the world, even if Barth himself was highly reluctant to accept this possibility. Further, by taking both Barth’s critiques and Przywara’s insights seriously, Catholic theologians, in particular Hans Urs von Balthasar, have demonstrated the powerful renewal which such a theological orientation, firmly grounded in Scripture, and above all in the person of Jesus Christ, can bring about in the realm of Catholic theology. Building on the inspiration which Barth provides, Catholic theology is able to reengage with a classic doctrine such as the analogia entis, and draw from it new insights about beauty, ethics, and truth which enable the development of both a philosophically sound and theologically robust doctrine that keeps Christ at its center. While it would be pretentious to say that there is no ultimate contradiction between Barth’s theology of analogy, and the historic doctrine of the Catholic Church, Barth’s insights nevertheless enable the Church to act as the wise householder described by Christ, “who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old” (Mt 13:52), from the classic doctrine of the analogia entis.
[1] Erich Przywara, Analogia Entis: Original Structure and Universal Rhythm, trans. John R. Betz and David Bentley Hart (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2014), 428.
[2] Ibid., 429
APPENDIX 3: Comprehensive Energy Policy Analysis: Pennsylvania, New York & New Jersey (2015-2025) created by Claude.Ai.
No full textAPPENDIX 2: Important Energy Policy Decisions: Original Question Response Generated created by Claude.Ai
No full textDIPL 1711 Introduction to International Relations
No full textThis course aims to familiarize students with the foundational literature and theoretical frameworks that underpin the field of International Relations. We will integrate these elements by examining contemporary issues and significant historical events through the perspective of IR theory. The course starts with a basic historical review of International Relations study, progressing to the practical use of these theories to understand and interpret major occurrences in global politics.
By the end of this course, you will: Discuss the crucial events of contemporary world politics (WWI-present). Argue the main schools of international relations theory and use them to analyze and explain major issues/events in world politics. Assess competing explanations for international conflict and cooperation. Discuss the importance of nation-states, international organizations, non-state actors, colonial powers, and multinational corporations in a global perspective. Be able to discuss contemporary events throughout the world from an informed standpoint. Become familiar with and be able to properly investigate the various subfields within the discipline
Interreligious Studies and Secondary Education: Pedagogies and Practices for Living and Learning in a Religiously Plural World
No full textInterreligious Studies and Secondary Education: Pedagogies and Practices for Living and Learning in a Religiously Plural World is a groundbreaking collection of essays exploring the role of interreligious studies in public, private, and parochial secondary education. Edited by Lucinda Mosher, Axel M. Oaks Takacs, and Christine Gallagher, the volume is divided into four parts: Theory, Practice, Religiously Affiliated School Settings, and Beyond Secondary Education. Contributors—including several alumni of the ICJS Teachers and Nonprofit and Civic Professionals Fellowships—offer insights into religious literacy, the impact of Christian privilege, and the transformative power of interfaith dialogue and experiential learning. Practical chapters present strategies for integrating interreligious studies into curricula, while others reflect on the unique challenges faced by faith-based institutions. The book also highlights youth-led initiatives outside traditional classrooms.
Each chapter ends with a list of discussion questions. Our hope is that administrators, professional learning communities, teacher educators, and more can use these essays as a way to begin conversations in their own schools.https://scholarship.shu.edu/faculty-publications/1072/thumbnail.jp
The Meaning of Christian Suffering in Aquinas
No full textThis thesis investigates the theological meaning of Christian suffering in the thought of Thomas Aquinas. While much attention has been given to Aquinas’s treatment of the problem of evil, little has been written on the positive and salvific meaning of suffering as it appears in his Christology, sacramental theology, and moral theology. This study aims to demonstrate that for Aquinas, suffering—when united to Christ—acquires a redemptive value that transforms human pain into a means of configuration to the crucified and risen Lord.
The first chapter develops the Christological foundation of Christian suffering. Drawing primarily from Summa Theologiae III, q. 69, a. 3 and Aquinas’s Commentary on Colossians 1:24, it shows that Christ, as head of the mystical body, redeems human suffering through His own Passion. Because the faithful are united to Christ as members of one mystical person, they can participate in His redemptive suffering. The notions of Christ’s headship, capital grace, instrumental causality, and merit provide the theological framework that explains how Christ’s Passion continues to operate in believers. Thus, the meaning of suffering is not found in endurance alone but in the believer’s participation in the suffering of the Head, whose charity gives suffering its ultimate purpose.
The second chapter examines the sacramental dimension of this configuration. The sacraments, as instrumental causes of grace, extend the saving action of the incarnate Word throughout history. Baptism, the door to the Christian life, incorporates the believer into Christ’s death and resurrection, transforming the penalties of this life into occasions for growth and conformity to the Savior. The Eucharist, the perfect sacrament of union, deepens this participation by uniting the communicant to the sacrifice of the cross, making the faithful sharers in both the Passion and the glory of Christ. Through the sacraments, the believer’s suffering becomes an efficacious means of communion and transformation.
The third chapter explores the moral dimension of suffering within the providential order. Aquinas interprets suffering not as divine abandonment but as a pedagogical instrument of God’s providence, allowing the soul to grow in virtue, particularly in patience, hope, and charity. The trials of the present life prepare the faithful for eternal beatitude by purifying the heart and conforming it more perfectly to Christ. In this way, suffering contributes to moral and spiritual maturity, integrating human fragility into the process of sanctification.
Ultimately, the thesis concludes that, for Aquinas, the meaning of Christian suffering lies in the mystery of charity and communion. Through Christ’s Passion, suffering ceases to be an absurd evil and becomes a privileged participation in divine love. United to Christ the Head through the sacraments and animated by grace, the faithful discover that their pain can be redemptive—both for themselves and for others—within the one mystical body of Christ
SHU World Review- November 15th 2025
No full texthttps://scholarship.shu.edu/diplolab-newsletter/1005/thumbnail.jp
