4. Theology in the Life of the Church
Theologians receive revelation from the Church and receive faith within the Church.1 At the same time, theology is extremely important for the life of the Church. Besides its scientific value, theology shares in the salvific function of Christian faith. Theologians have a special ecclesial responsibility; they must make sure that the talent they have received—the capacity to penetrate deeper into the deposit of faith with their intelligence—yields fruit for the glory of God and the benefit of souls.
In the Church, theologians are “teachers, for the equipment of the saints, for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:11–12). A good theologian should feel this responsibility and be aware that this scientific work is also a service to the Church: “Theology is an ecclesial science because it grows in the Church and works on the Church. Thus, theology is never the private affair of a specialist, cut off in a kind of ivory tower. Theology is a service of the Church; the theologian should feel himself dynamically involved in the mission of the Church, particularly in her prophetic mission.”2
“A deep ecclesial awareness,” teaches Pope John Paul II, “will be the most certain criterion to safeguard you from the risk of building on a foundation other than the one laid by God.”3 Further, he states, “Nobody can make of theology, as it were, a simple collection of his own personal ideas; everybody must be sure of being in close union with the mission of teaching the truth for which the Church is responsible.”4
A clear manifestation of this ecclesial outlook, “feeling with the Church” (sentire cum Ecclesia), is the willingness to correct any personal opinion that may break with the Magisterium of the Church.5 “The role of the theologian is geared to the building up of ecclesial communion, so that the people of God may grow in the experience of faith.”6
17. Theology and the Magisterium of the Church
The Magisterium of the Church is one of the sources of theology. The Holy Spirit guides his pastors so that, enlightened on the riches of revelation by theology, they authoritatively bring a deeper understanding of the Gospel to the life of the Church. The fruits of salvation are then more abundant. Theology provides the Magisterium with support, inspiration, and food for preaching, catechesis, missionary work, and even new definitions of faith.7
Theology and the Magisterium are complementary Church ministries. They are not opposing forces, representing contrary interests in a dialectical struggle. It would be a serious mistake about the nature of both to think of them as such.
We do not wish that a mistaken suspicion unduly take hold of your mind: that there is a rivalry between two primacies, that of science and that of authority. There is only one primacy in the field of divine doctrine: that of the revealed truth, that of the faith, to which both theology and ecclesiastical Magisterium want to give diverse, though converging, approvals.8
18. Ecclesial Dimensions of Theology
Theology has the capacity and responsibility to enlighten the pastoral activity of the Church and the apostolate and spiritual life of each Christian.
The task of the theologian is an ecclesial mission, a participation in the evangelizing mission of the Church, and a pre-eminent service to the ecclesial community. Hence the grave responsibility of the theologian, who should always have in mind that the People of God—particularly the priests and future priests who will have to educate them in the faith—have the right to have explained to them without ambiguities or reductions the fundamental truths of the Christian faith.9
18a) Spiritual Dimension
Theological knowledge facilitates dealing with God and recognizing his will. Theology should be credited, explains St. Augustine, “only with begetting, nurturing, defending, and strengthening the faith; the saving faith, which leads to true happiness.”10 Theology improves our knowledge of revelation, God in himself, and his plan of salvation.
Therefore, all Christians need to acquire a certain degree of theological culture, each according to their circumstances. Piety and apostolate are closely related to doctrinal formation.
Theology is also a practical science: “It is not a science at all if it has no value for piety; and any piety lacking the capacity of discernment of science is utterly useless.”11 Without becoming a preacher, the theologian should place his science in contact with Christian life. The Church establishes that “theological formation … is to be imparted in such a way that the students learn the whole of catholic teaching, based on divine Revelation, that they make it a nourishment of their own spiritual lives, and that in the exercise of the ministry they may be able properly to proclaim and defend it.”12
“We are to be pious then, as pious as children, but not ignorant. Insofar as possible, each of us should study the faith seriously, rigorously—all of which means theology.”13 Studying doctrine is a way of preserving the faith.
18b) Apostolic Dimension
Theological knowledge prepares for and confirms the transmission of the Christian message to other people. It is also helpful for understanding the preaching of the faith in all cultures. It defends the doctrine of faith against any doubts or attacks that may arise in each historical period.
Without the help and guidance of theology, apostolate could fall into superficiality, error, and activism. An essential part of Christian apostolate is the apostolate of doctrine: fighting religious ignorance, drowning error in an abundance of light and true doctrine. “A few are wicked, and many are ignorant: that is how the enemy of God and of the Church reigns.”14 Theology nurtures and guides the apostolate, but it is not apostolate, since it pursues a theoretical purpose. We can neither reduce theology to preaching nor understand the apostolate as mere theological information or discussion.
There is an urgent need for doctrinal, theological formation, so that the laity can face the varied problems and situations of the apostolate active in the world. “You need interior life and doctrinal formation. Be demanding on yourself! ... Your interior life and your formation include the piety and the principles a child of God must have in order to give flavor to everything by his active presence there.” 15 “There is an urgent need for spreading the doctrine of Christ. Store up your training, fill yourself with clear ideas, with the fullness of the Christian message, so that afterwards you can pass it on to others. Do not expect God to illuminate you, for he has no reason to when you have definite human means available to you: study and work.”16
18c) Pastoral Dimension
Theology offers sure guidance for preaching and spiritual direction. “The Council urges theologians to develop a theology that would be no less pastoral than scientific.”17
The differences and similarities of theology and pastoral care are those of theoretical and practical knowledge, of science and art. It is the difference between the knowledge of a biologist and the knowledge of a farmer, or a mineralogist and a construction worker. Hence, there is a responsibility of those entrusted with pastoral or apostolic activities to acquire a solid theological formation. As St. Thomas pointed out, “Men of higher degree, whose business is to teach others, must have fuller knowledge of matters of faith, and believe them more explicitly.”18
Theologians have great influence in the life of the soul. Therefore, their ecclesial responsibility should lead them to be extremely prudent in the publication and diffusion of their conclusions; they must avoid any scandal or confusion among the faithful in matters of faith or morals.
The faithful have the right not to be troubled by theories and hypotheses that they cannot judge, or that are easily reduced or manipulated by public opinion for ends that are opposed to the truth. On the day of his death, John Paul I stated: “Among the rights of the faithful, one of the greatest is the right to receive God’s word in all its entirety and purity....” (September 28, 1978). It behooves the theologian to be free, but in that freedom must be openness to the truth and to the light that comes from faith and from fidelity to the Church.19
Aware of the influence that their research and their statements have on catechetical instruction, theologians and exegetes must take great care not to pass off questions that are matters of opinion or of discussion among experts as certain.20
Those who are teachers of the faith should avoid bewildering people and using confusing language that may lead to ambiguity. Theologians and those who work with them should teach the Christian people to understand well the events and situations of doctrinal confusion in which their Christian faith and vocation are placed under practical challenge.… The treatises of theologians should render the faith more lucid; theology is not merely to be consigned to weighty volumes and Summas (however valuable), but to be lived in a simple—I dare say—“popular” fashion.21
18d) Ecumenical Dimension
Theology always has an ecumenical dimension. As it penetrates ever deeper into divine revelation, it manifests the value and appeal of the truth about God, man, and the world, which only the Catholic Church possesses completely and without error. Further, the Church desires that ways of helping our separated brethren be sought in the study and exposition of the doctrine of faith.
It is important that future pastors and priests should have mastered a theology that has been carefully elaborated in this way and not polemically, especially in what concerns the relations of separated brethren with the Catholic Church.… The manner and order in which Catholic belief is expressed should in no way become an obstacle to dialogue with our brethren.22
However, we should not compromise the purity or integrity of the faith: “It is, of course, essential that the doctrine be clearly presented in its entirety. Nothing is so foreign to the spirit of ecumenism as a false irenicism which harms the purity of Catholic doctrine and obscures its genuine and certain meaning.”23
18e) Missionary Dimension
Theology is also a most effective aid in the missionary work of the Church. Mother Church must preach the Gospel to all peoples and cultures of the world. The evangelization of peoples with very different cultures faces a serious problem: making them understand, love, and practice the immutable Gospel in a familiar language.
Transplanting the content of revelation into the mindset of a pagan culture is a delicate business. It demands clear awareness of what is essential and immutable in the faith. It requires the capacity to discern, in the light of faith, which elements of the pagan culture can be used to convey the Gospel and which must be rejected as incompatible with faith. Theology can shed light on this work of evangelization.
Footnotes:
1. Cf. John Paul II, “Homily at the Mass for the Roman Pontifical Universities”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 9, 1981; CCC, 168–169.
2. John Paul II, “Address at the Pontifical Gregorian University”: L’Osservatore Romano, Jan. 21, 1980.
3. John Paul II, “Homily to the Roman Pontifical Universities”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 9, 1981.
4. John Paul II, Enc. Redemptor Hominis, 19: L’Osservatore Romano, Mar. 19, 1979.
5. Cf. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Forge, 840.
6. Paul VI, “Letter to the Rector of the Louvain University,” Sep. 13, 1975.
7. Cf. Pius XII, Enc. Humani Generis, Aug. 12, 1950: DS 3886; Pius IX, Inter Gravissimas, Oct. 26, 1870; Paul VI, “Address to the International Congress of Theology of Vatican Council II,” Oct. 1, 1966.
8. Paul VI, “Address to the International Theological Commission,” Oct. 6, 1969.
9. John Paul II, “Address to Theology Professors in Salamanca, Spain”: L’Osservatore Romano, Dec. 20, 1982.
10. St. Augustine, De Trin., 14.1.
11. St. Gregory the Great, Moralia, 35, 45 (PL 75:547).
12. CIC, c. 252.1.
13. St. Josemaría Escrivá, Christ is Passing By, 10; cf. 81.
14. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Forge, 635.
15. Ibid., 450
16. Ibid., 841.
17. Paul VI, “Letter to the International Congress of Theology of the Second Vatican Council,” Sep. 21, 1966.
18. ST, II-II, q. 2, a. 6.
19. John Paul II, “Address at the Catholic University of America”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 5, 1979.
20. John Paul II, Ap. Ex. Catechesi Tradendae, Oct. 16, 1979, 61 (in More Post-Conciliar Documents, p. 800).
21. John Paul II, “Address to Belgian Bishops”: L’Osservatore Romano, Oct. 25, 1982.
22. UR, 10–11.
23. Ibid., 11; cf. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Way, 393–397; The Forge, 456, 580, 726, 863, 959.
In the Church, theologians are “teachers, for the equipment of the saints, for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:11–12). A good theologian should feel this responsibility and be aware that this scientific work is also a service to the Church: “Theology is an ecclesial science because it grows in the Church and works on the Church. Thus, theology is never the private affair of a specialist, cut off in a kind of ivory tower. Theology is a service of the Church; the theologian should feel himself dynamically involved in the mission of the Church, particularly in her prophetic mission.”2
“A deep ecclesial awareness,” teaches Pope John Paul II, “will be the most certain criterion to safeguard you from the risk of building on a foundation other than the one laid by God.”3 Further, he states, “Nobody can make of theology, as it were, a simple collection of his own personal ideas; everybody must be sure of being in close union with the mission of teaching the truth for which the Church is responsible.”4
A clear manifestation of this ecclesial outlook, “feeling with the Church” (sentire cum Ecclesia), is the willingness to correct any personal opinion that may break with the Magisterium of the Church.5 “The role of the theologian is geared to the building up of ecclesial communion, so that the people of God may grow in the experience of faith.”6
17. Theology and the Magisterium of the Church
The Magisterium of the Church is one of the sources of theology. The Holy Spirit guides his pastors so that, enlightened on the riches of revelation by theology, they authoritatively bring a deeper understanding of the Gospel to the life of the Church. The fruits of salvation are then more abundant. Theology provides the Magisterium with support, inspiration, and food for preaching, catechesis, missionary work, and even new definitions of faith.7
Theology and the Magisterium are complementary Church ministries. They are not opposing forces, representing contrary interests in a dialectical struggle. It would be a serious mistake about the nature of both to think of them as such.
We do not wish that a mistaken suspicion unduly take hold of your mind: that there is a rivalry between two primacies, that of science and that of authority. There is only one primacy in the field of divine doctrine: that of the revealed truth, that of the faith, to which both theology and ecclesiastical Magisterium want to give diverse, though converging, approvals.8
18. Ecclesial Dimensions of Theology
Theology has the capacity and responsibility to enlighten the pastoral activity of the Church and the apostolate and spiritual life of each Christian.
The task of the theologian is an ecclesial mission, a participation in the evangelizing mission of the Church, and a pre-eminent service to the ecclesial community. Hence the grave responsibility of the theologian, who should always have in mind that the People of God—particularly the priests and future priests who will have to educate them in the faith—have the right to have explained to them without ambiguities or reductions the fundamental truths of the Christian faith.9
18a) Spiritual Dimension
Theological knowledge facilitates dealing with God and recognizing his will. Theology should be credited, explains St. Augustine, “only with begetting, nurturing, defending, and strengthening the faith; the saving faith, which leads to true happiness.”10 Theology improves our knowledge of revelation, God in himself, and his plan of salvation.
Therefore, all Christians need to acquire a certain degree of theological culture, each according to their circumstances. Piety and apostolate are closely related to doctrinal formation.
Theology is also a practical science: “It is not a science at all if it has no value for piety; and any piety lacking the capacity of discernment of science is utterly useless.”11 Without becoming a preacher, the theologian should place his science in contact with Christian life. The Church establishes that “theological formation … is to be imparted in such a way that the students learn the whole of catholic teaching, based on divine Revelation, that they make it a nourishment of their own spiritual lives, and that in the exercise of the ministry they may be able properly to proclaim and defend it.”12
“We are to be pious then, as pious as children, but not ignorant. Insofar as possible, each of us should study the faith seriously, rigorously—all of which means theology.”13 Studying doctrine is a way of preserving the faith.
18b) Apostolic Dimension
Theological knowledge prepares for and confirms the transmission of the Christian message to other people. It is also helpful for understanding the preaching of the faith in all cultures. It defends the doctrine of faith against any doubts or attacks that may arise in each historical period.
Without the help and guidance of theology, apostolate could fall into superficiality, error, and activism. An essential part of Christian apostolate is the apostolate of doctrine: fighting religious ignorance, drowning error in an abundance of light and true doctrine. “A few are wicked, and many are ignorant: that is how the enemy of God and of the Church reigns.”14 Theology nurtures and guides the apostolate, but it is not apostolate, since it pursues a theoretical purpose. We can neither reduce theology to preaching nor understand the apostolate as mere theological information or discussion.
There is an urgent need for doctrinal, theological formation, so that the laity can face the varied problems and situations of the apostolate active in the world. “You need interior life and doctrinal formation. Be demanding on yourself! ... Your interior life and your formation include the piety and the principles a child of God must have in order to give flavor to everything by his active presence there.” 15 “There is an urgent need for spreading the doctrine of Christ. Store up your training, fill yourself with clear ideas, with the fullness of the Christian message, so that afterwards you can pass it on to others. Do not expect God to illuminate you, for he has no reason to when you have definite human means available to you: study and work.”16
18c) Pastoral Dimension
Theology offers sure guidance for preaching and spiritual direction. “The Council urges theologians to develop a theology that would be no less pastoral than scientific.”17
The differences and similarities of theology and pastoral care are those of theoretical and practical knowledge, of science and art. It is the difference between the knowledge of a biologist and the knowledge of a farmer, or a mineralogist and a construction worker. Hence, there is a responsibility of those entrusted with pastoral or apostolic activities to acquire a solid theological formation. As St. Thomas pointed out, “Men of higher degree, whose business is to teach others, must have fuller knowledge of matters of faith, and believe them more explicitly.”18
Theologians have great influence in the life of the soul. Therefore, their ecclesial responsibility should lead them to be extremely prudent in the publication and diffusion of their conclusions; they must avoid any scandal or confusion among the faithful in matters of faith or morals.
The faithful have the right not to be troubled by theories and hypotheses that they cannot judge, or that are easily reduced or manipulated by public opinion for ends that are opposed to the truth. On the day of his death, John Paul I stated: “Among the rights of the faithful, one of the greatest is the right to receive God’s word in all its entirety and purity....” (September 28, 1978). It behooves the theologian to be free, but in that freedom must be openness to the truth and to the light that comes from faith and from fidelity to the Church.19
Aware of the influence that their research and their statements have on catechetical instruction, theologians and exegetes must take great care not to pass off questions that are matters of opinion or of discussion among experts as certain.20
Those who are teachers of the faith should avoid bewildering people and using confusing language that may lead to ambiguity. Theologians and those who work with them should teach the Christian people to understand well the events and situations of doctrinal confusion in which their Christian faith and vocation are placed under practical challenge.… The treatises of theologians should render the faith more lucid; theology is not merely to be consigned to weighty volumes and Summas (however valuable), but to be lived in a simple—I dare say—“popular” fashion.21
18d) Ecumenical Dimension
Theology always has an ecumenical dimension. As it penetrates ever deeper into divine revelation, it manifests the value and appeal of the truth about God, man, and the world, which only the Catholic Church possesses completely and without error. Further, the Church desires that ways of helping our separated brethren be sought in the study and exposition of the doctrine of faith.
It is important that future pastors and priests should have mastered a theology that has been carefully elaborated in this way and not polemically, especially in what concerns the relations of separated brethren with the Catholic Church.… The manner and order in which Catholic belief is expressed should in no way become an obstacle to dialogue with our brethren.22
However, we should not compromise the purity or integrity of the faith: “It is, of course, essential that the doctrine be clearly presented in its entirety. Nothing is so foreign to the spirit of ecumenism as a false irenicism which harms the purity of Catholic doctrine and obscures its genuine and certain meaning.”23
18e) Missionary Dimension
Theology is also a most effective aid in the missionary work of the Church. Mother Church must preach the Gospel to all peoples and cultures of the world. The evangelization of peoples with very different cultures faces a serious problem: making them understand, love, and practice the immutable Gospel in a familiar language.
Transplanting the content of revelation into the mindset of a pagan culture is a delicate business. It demands clear awareness of what is essential and immutable in the faith. It requires the capacity to discern, in the light of faith, which elements of the pagan culture can be used to convey the Gospel and which must be rejected as incompatible with faith. Theology can shed light on this work of evangelization.
Footnotes:
1. Cf. John Paul II, “Homily at the Mass for the Roman Pontifical Universities”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 9, 1981; CCC, 168–169.
2. John Paul II, “Address at the Pontifical Gregorian University”: L’Osservatore Romano, Jan. 21, 1980.
3. John Paul II, “Homily to the Roman Pontifical Universities”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 9, 1981.
4. John Paul II, Enc. Redemptor Hominis, 19: L’Osservatore Romano, Mar. 19, 1979.
5. Cf. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Forge, 840.
6. Paul VI, “Letter to the Rector of the Louvain University,” Sep. 13, 1975.
7. Cf. Pius XII, Enc. Humani Generis, Aug. 12, 1950: DS 3886; Pius IX, Inter Gravissimas, Oct. 26, 1870; Paul VI, “Address to the International Congress of Theology of Vatican Council II,” Oct. 1, 1966.
8. Paul VI, “Address to the International Theological Commission,” Oct. 6, 1969.
9. John Paul II, “Address to Theology Professors in Salamanca, Spain”: L’Osservatore Romano, Dec. 20, 1982.
10. St. Augustine, De Trin., 14.1.
11. St. Gregory the Great, Moralia, 35, 45 (PL 75:547).
12. CIC, c. 252.1.
13. St. Josemaría Escrivá, Christ is Passing By, 10; cf. 81.
14. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Forge, 635.
15. Ibid., 450
16. Ibid., 841.
17. Paul VI, “Letter to the International Congress of Theology of the Second Vatican Council,” Sep. 21, 1966.
18. ST, II-II, q. 2, a. 6.
19. John Paul II, “Address at the Catholic University of America”: L’Osservatore Romano, Nov. 5, 1979.
20. John Paul II, Ap. Ex. Catechesi Tradendae, Oct. 16, 1979, 61 (in More Post-Conciliar Documents, p. 800).
21. John Paul II, “Address to Belgian Bishops”: L’Osservatore Romano, Oct. 25, 1982.
22. UR, 10–11.
23. Ibid., 11; cf. St. Josemaría Escrivá, The Way, 393–397; The Forge, 456, 580, 726, 863, 959.