Contents
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Introduction
1. Analogies of the Trinity: St. Thomas Aquinas, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Adrienne von Speyr
The Historical Context of the “Tension” between the Theology of Balthasar and that of St. Thomas
The Analogy of Being and the Psychological Model of the Trinity: St. Thomas Aquinas
A Trinitarian Analogy of Freedom: Hans Urs von Balthasar
An Analogy of Surrender: Adrienne von Speyr
A Trinitiarian “Resolution” of Human “Tensions” or Polarities
2. The Difference-in-Unity of Faith’s Object and Act: A Speyrian Methodology of Gift Encountering Gift
Discerning the Unity of Adrienne’s Mission and Theology of Mission under Balthasar’s Regard
A “Theodramatic” Hermeneutic: The Theologian’s Openness to the Divine “Ever-More”
Faith: A Participation in the Revelatory Disposition of Christ
Adrienne, the Mystic: Balthasar’s Model “Theologian”
The Fruits of Adrienne’s Faith as a Gift for the Church
Introduction: The Question of Human Fulfillment
St. Thomas on Human Fulfillment: Human Participation in Divine Knowledge and Love
A Balthasarian Understanding of Human Fulfillment: Human Surrender within Divine Surrender
A Speyrian Understanding of the Image of God: Nature and Grace
Human Perfection in Divine Communion as Viewed by Adrienne von Speyr
The Mystery of Grace and Merit from the Perspective of the Mutual Immanence of Christ and the Christian
Breaking Boundaries from Within: The Expansion of Human Nature by Christ in the Christian
The Expansion of the Christian’s Assent to the “Proportion” of God’s Surrender
Mary-Church or Person as Response: An Anticipation of Balthasar’s “Theological Person”
Conclusion: Breaking the Boundary between Nature and Grace
Introduction to a Speyrian Theology of the Body
The Body-Spirit “Tension” in Balthasar’s Work
The Heart of Adrienne’s Theology of the Body: The Incarnation as a Revelation of Trinitarian Love
Adrienne’s Incarnational Perspective: A Corporal-Spiritual Unity
Sacraments as the Archetypal Form of Human Life: The Example of Christian Marriage
The Eucharist of the Father and the Son: Our Inclusion in Trinitarian Love
The Eucharist of Believers: A Corporal-Spiritual Participation in Christ’s Mission
Mary-Church, the Body of Christ
An Introduction to the Individual-Community Difference-in-Unity in the Works of Adrienne von Speyr and Hans Urs von Balthasar
The Trinitarian Difference-in-Unity Revealed in “Alienation”: Balthasar’s Redemption by Substitution
The Love Command at the Service of Divine Communion: Toward a More Adequate Theology of Redemption
The Redemptive Gift of Surrender
Abiding in Love: Communicating Love Received
Conclusion: Redemption as a Mystery of Reciprocal Surrender
Postscript: An Alternative Interpretation of Christological “Abandonment”
Introduction: Sexual Differentiation Viewed from the Perspective of Christ’s Assumption of Human Nature
Balthasar’s Regard from Above in His Treatment of the Difference in-Union of the Sexes
The Complementarity of the Sexes within the Sublime Order of Redemption as Viewed by Adrienne von Speyr
The Natural “Tension” between the Sexes and Their Reciprocity in View of Grace
“Masculine” and “Feminine” Forms of Surrender
The Transition between the “Feminine” and “Masculine” Qualities of Love in Christ
“Masculine” and “Feminine” Missions
Conclusion: Sexual Differentiation and Divine Differentiation
7. A Critical Appraisal of the Trinitarian Anthropology of Adrienne von Speyr as Appropriated by Hans Urs von Balthasar
The Trinitarian Dynamic Called into Question: Analogical and Metaphorical Descriptions of the Godhead
Confusion of the Divine and Human Natures in Christ?
A Distortion of the Catholic Balance between Philosophy and Theology?
A “Loss” in the Godhead?
The Center of the Whole: Descent or Surrender?
The Grounding of the Analogy between Creator and Creature: The “Distance” Implied in Surrender
Analogical and Katalogical Reasoning: Balthasar and St. Thomas
An Analogy of Reciprocal Surrender: Divine “Enrichment” or Human Fulfillment?
A Challenge for Balthasarian Scholars: Situating His Appropriation of Adrienne’s Doctrine within the Tradition
The Question of Interpreting Adrienne von Speyr’s Presumably Mystical Experiences
Bibliography
Index of Names
Subject Index
