Post by Jaga on Sept 17, 2006 19:38:02 GMT -7
here is the fragment from the work by Mariusz Majewski which I talked about in the thread "is hell eternal"
The Mystery of Holy Saturday
One of the most interesting arguments of von Balthasar for the hope of universal salvation is his examination of the mystery of Holy Saturday in which Christ descended into the realm of the dead (descensus ad inferos). He understands it as essentially Trinitarian and a salvific event (Mysterium Paschale 176). It must be said that the thought of von Balthasar on that matter, developed over time, was influenced by the mystical visions of his long time friend, Adrienne von Speyr, who in her writings, described the pains of abandonment in hell. There has been much discussion and debate on von Speyr’s influence on von Balthasar on this subject; needless to say, he was influenced by her, developed her thought and accepted her theories as his own. Von Balthasar, speaking of the mystery of Holy Saturday, put it in the context of kenotic love of God. Philippians 2:6-7 speaks about the self-emptying Christ “who though was in the form of God did not deem equality with God… but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave.” Christ’s descent into the realm of the dead becomes the natural consequence of his salvific mission and identification with sinners. Peter Casarella, commenting on von Balthasar in his article, The Descent, Divine Self-Enrichment, and the Universality of Salvation, states that “the experience of Christ when he descended on Holy Saturday is the perfect, visible form of God’s incarnate, kenotic love” (“The Descent” 4). The mystery is presented in the core of the Apostle’s creed that says that “Christ was crucified, died and was buried and descended into hell.” The main scriptural passage on which the truth of Christ’s descent is based may be found in 1 Peter 3:19. The problem is how this mystery is to be understood because there have been different interpretations throughout the centuries.
Casarella, in his already mentioned presentation, quotes Hans Kung, who stated that there have been four main ways in which the mystery of hell was interpreted in the Christian tradition. I will not go into the great detail here to explore this position; it will be enough to state that there has not been just one understanding of the mystery of descensus ad infernos, and some of them differed significantly from the one proposed by von Balthasar. The question may be stated like this: is it possible that Christ’s descent might have had any salvific significance? Is it possible that Christ descended into hell to end the punishment of sinners? Von Balthasar clearly understands it as a salvific event and thus stands in opposition to Saint Augustine who argued that the descent was not literal but figurative. For Saint Augustine, Christ’s descent did not have a salvific purpose at all. Moreover, for Saint Augustine it is impossible that the punishment of hell may come to an end and those who are in hell will be there for ever (City 433).
Scholastic theology, influenced by Saint Augustine, tended to limit the salvific effects of the descent into hell and debated how far Jesus really descended, and to what point his redemptive power extended. Von Balthasar says that “the most frequent reply was that he showed himself to the damned in order to demonstrate his power even in Hell; that in the Hell of infants he had nothing to achieve; that in purgatory and amnesty could be promulgated, its precise scope a matter of discussion” (Mysterium Paschale 176-177). In my opinion, the scholastic mystery presents itself with inconsistency. It does not explain why Jesus descended into the realm of hell to show his power to the sinners, and not showing his power earlier on the cross. Hence, John O’Donnell notes that “the principal difference between von Balthasar’s interpretation of Jesus’ descent among the dead and the more classical approach is that for von Balthasar Jesus’ descent is not a triumphal journey into the underworld” (87). As it was already mentioned, for von Balthasar Jesus’ descensus ad infernos is the natural continuation of his salvific work, which did not end on Holy Saturday. It is essentially an expression of “the radical unwillingness of God to abandon sinners, even, where by definition, God cannot be, insofar as hell means the utter and obstinate rejection of God” (Sachs, “Current”, 244). God does not abandon sinners but in his love and fidelity “wants all men to be saved and come to know the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4). Von Balthasar thinks that the mystery of kenosis is further expressed in descensus ad infernos because Christ’s soul is emptied and actually suffers with the dead in solidarity with them. Consequently, “von Balthasar’s rendering of Christ’s descent into hell reveals a “theo-dramatic” event, one in which the Trinitarian action of the self-transcending, kenotic love” (Casarella 21).
The Mystery of Holy Saturday, as expressed by von Balthasar, certainly supports his hope of universal salvation. Jesus Christ, in coming to the world, united himself completely with the human race. Even people in hell are not abandoned by God as the mystery of descensus ad infernos reveals. Christ did not descend into hell to preach his victory but to suffer with the sinners. God’s love is greater than anything that can be perceived and understood. Is it to say, that, because of Christ’s descent into hell all people, indeed, will be saved? Hell certainly remains a real possibility and von Balthasar never says that this universal restoration will be the necessary outcome of Christ’s descent into hell (Casarella 24). He clearly stands at the side of hope, and only hope and not certainty. Nonetheless there has been a wide and sometimes harsh critique of von Balthasar’s understanding of the mystery of descensus ad infernos. The critique concerns the possibility of conversion after death, von Bathasar’s ambivalent language of hell and the reality of abandonment of the Son by the Father.
The Mystery of Holy Saturday
One of the most interesting arguments of von Balthasar for the hope of universal salvation is his examination of the mystery of Holy Saturday in which Christ descended into the realm of the dead (descensus ad inferos). He understands it as essentially Trinitarian and a salvific event (Mysterium Paschale 176). It must be said that the thought of von Balthasar on that matter, developed over time, was influenced by the mystical visions of his long time friend, Adrienne von Speyr, who in her writings, described the pains of abandonment in hell. There has been much discussion and debate on von Speyr’s influence on von Balthasar on this subject; needless to say, he was influenced by her, developed her thought and accepted her theories as his own. Von Balthasar, speaking of the mystery of Holy Saturday, put it in the context of kenotic love of God. Philippians 2:6-7 speaks about the self-emptying Christ “who though was in the form of God did not deem equality with God… but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave.” Christ’s descent into the realm of the dead becomes the natural consequence of his salvific mission and identification with sinners. Peter Casarella, commenting on von Balthasar in his article, The Descent, Divine Self-Enrichment, and the Universality of Salvation, states that “the experience of Christ when he descended on Holy Saturday is the perfect, visible form of God’s incarnate, kenotic love” (“The Descent” 4). The mystery is presented in the core of the Apostle’s creed that says that “Christ was crucified, died and was buried and descended into hell.” The main scriptural passage on which the truth of Christ’s descent is based may be found in 1 Peter 3:19. The problem is how this mystery is to be understood because there have been different interpretations throughout the centuries.
Casarella, in his already mentioned presentation, quotes Hans Kung, who stated that there have been four main ways in which the mystery of hell was interpreted in the Christian tradition. I will not go into the great detail here to explore this position; it will be enough to state that there has not been just one understanding of the mystery of descensus ad infernos, and some of them differed significantly from the one proposed by von Balthasar. The question may be stated like this: is it possible that Christ’s descent might have had any salvific significance? Is it possible that Christ descended into hell to end the punishment of sinners? Von Balthasar clearly understands it as a salvific event and thus stands in opposition to Saint Augustine who argued that the descent was not literal but figurative. For Saint Augustine, Christ’s descent did not have a salvific purpose at all. Moreover, for Saint Augustine it is impossible that the punishment of hell may come to an end and those who are in hell will be there for ever (City 433).
Scholastic theology, influenced by Saint Augustine, tended to limit the salvific effects of the descent into hell and debated how far Jesus really descended, and to what point his redemptive power extended. Von Balthasar says that “the most frequent reply was that he showed himself to the damned in order to demonstrate his power even in Hell; that in the Hell of infants he had nothing to achieve; that in purgatory and amnesty could be promulgated, its precise scope a matter of discussion” (Mysterium Paschale 176-177). In my opinion, the scholastic mystery presents itself with inconsistency. It does not explain why Jesus descended into the realm of hell to show his power to the sinners, and not showing his power earlier on the cross. Hence, John O’Donnell notes that “the principal difference between von Balthasar’s interpretation of Jesus’ descent among the dead and the more classical approach is that for von Balthasar Jesus’ descent is not a triumphal journey into the underworld” (87). As it was already mentioned, for von Balthasar Jesus’ descensus ad infernos is the natural continuation of his salvific work, which did not end on Holy Saturday. It is essentially an expression of “the radical unwillingness of God to abandon sinners, even, where by definition, God cannot be, insofar as hell means the utter and obstinate rejection of God” (Sachs, “Current”, 244). God does not abandon sinners but in his love and fidelity “wants all men to be saved and come to know the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4). Von Balthasar thinks that the mystery of kenosis is further expressed in descensus ad infernos because Christ’s soul is emptied and actually suffers with the dead in solidarity with them. Consequently, “von Balthasar’s rendering of Christ’s descent into hell reveals a “theo-dramatic” event, one in which the Trinitarian action of the self-transcending, kenotic love” (Casarella 21).
The Mystery of Holy Saturday, as expressed by von Balthasar, certainly supports his hope of universal salvation. Jesus Christ, in coming to the world, united himself completely with the human race. Even people in hell are not abandoned by God as the mystery of descensus ad infernos reveals. Christ did not descend into hell to preach his victory but to suffer with the sinners. God’s love is greater than anything that can be perceived and understood. Is it to say, that, because of Christ’s descent into hell all people, indeed, will be saved? Hell certainly remains a real possibility and von Balthasar never says that this universal restoration will be the necessary outcome of Christ’s descent into hell (Casarella 24). He clearly stands at the side of hope, and only hope and not certainty. Nonetheless there has been a wide and sometimes harsh critique of von Balthasar’s understanding of the mystery of descensus ad infernos. The critique concerns the possibility of conversion after death, von Bathasar’s ambivalent language of hell and the reality of abandonment of the Son by the Father.