Hermenutics of Rupture

Hermeneutic
 

a branch of theology which deals with the principles of Biblical exegesis, a critical explanation or interpretation of a Biblical text.

If you look in Webster’s Revised Dictionary for example, you will find that hermeneutic means “unfolding the signification.” So we are looking for the meaning of Vatican II. What he is getting at is that there are all kinds of social forces and philosophies intruding in our search for what something means. We have to be aware of them.

COUNCIL, ECUMENICAL

A gathering of all the bishops of the world, in the exercise of their collegial authority over the universal Church. An ecumenical council is usually called by the successor of St. Peter, the Pope, or at least confirmed or accepted by him (CCC 884)

CHURCH

an expert; specif., a skilled theologian used as a consultant
Fr Joseph Ratizinger was a Periti for Vatican II 

es·cha·tol·o·gy

 Catholic Church established by Christ as an extension and continuation of the Incarnation. The Church is called Mystical because she is a mystery, which God revealed to be true but whose inner essence must be accepted on faith and without full comprehension by the mind. "You are the Body of Christ, member for member" (I Corinthians 12:27), and of Christ: "the Head of His Body, the Church" (Colossians 1:18)

What  point  is  Benedict  trying  to  make  by  quoting  Saint  Basil  and  his  comment  

on  the  Council  of  Nicea?

There was a chaotic time after Nicea as well so we should not be surprised at what happened after Vatican II, even though some of it will sadden us. This textbook was prepared to give us a healthy “take” on Vatican II, despite the chaotic interpretations.

Identify the two hermeneutics that ―quarreled‖ with each other — to use Benedict’s word.

These were the “hermeneutic of rupture”—which supposes that Vatican II was a break with the past and the “hermeneutic of renewal”—which supposes continuity with the past even as it is reflected on in modern times. If you get these two possibilities clear in your head, then you will understand why the different authors in the textbook say what they say.

The hermeneutic of rupture has certain implications. Can you list two of them?

The “hermeneutic of rupture” suggests (i) that the past tradition was to be rejected and more insidiously, and (ii) that what the documents actually say is often a compromise where the council fathers were forced to include “old” thoughts so as to get the document passed. So these old truths are only there out of compromise and can really be discarded.

The “spirit of the council” is a grab-bag phrase that points to the supposed spirit of newness and the discarding of the past so that one should go beyond what the texts say. No, it is not correct! It is a mental trick for escaping what the teaching of the council actually is.

What does the phrase ―spirit of the council‖ imply about the meaning of a Church Council?

It implies that the council is like a political assembly where the assembly of elected officials reflects the will of the people who elected them. Of course this is not true. The Church is literally made by God so HE decides what the Church means; the council just discerns his will. Tradition is very important here. God has guided the Church up to now so there will be a real consistency between the Church in the past and the Church in the present.

John XXIII spoke of the ―work that our era demands of us.‖ According to John XXIII, how is that work connected to the truth of the past?

The work of today is to “study and present the teaching in a way that corresponds to the needs of our time.” This is not to say that the TEACHING is changed, but its mode of presentation will have to be adapted to the needs of today.

According to Benedict XVI – what was the key focus of the Council and why?

It was the meaning of man (or anthropology) and it developed as the key focus because the relationship between the Church and the world needed to be examined again. This new relationship needed to be looked at in relation to the sciences (Galileo) and politics (American Revolution and the French Revolution) and so on.

If question eight identified the main focus (and centered it on science and politics), then what other two modern areas of human interest were worthy of notice as well?

These were (i) coexistence within pluralistic societies, and (ii) religious tolerance.

List three authors who give a radical interpretation of Vatican II’s teaching on the Church.

John O’Malley, Richard McBrien, George Lindbeck

What did John Paul II say was the principle for interpreting the teaching of Vatican II?

Quoting John Paul II: Interpretations of the teaching of the Council should be “in continuity with the great tradition of the Church” (p. 26).

Dulles uses the phrase “authentic newness” when referring to the Council (p.26). What does he mean by this?

He explains that “authentic newness” is present when a council “permits every epoch to feel itself enlightened by the Word of God” (P.26). So the “newness” rests in the way that the message is presented to a particular time, not in what is presented to them.

Complete the sentence: “If it is true that the Church makes the sacraments ...................................“

“ . . . it is no less true that the sacraments make the Church.” So what he is telling us is that the simplified view that the Church makes the sacraments is not sufficient to describe the reality of the Church. A good thing to watch for in this course—which, after all, is a university course—is where the more complex way of describing things is being put forward. A lot of the popular talk about the Church uses very simplified views that just do not stand up to analysis, and this is why many of the popular conclusions about the Church are so strange.

Dulles uses the phrase “ecclesial situation” (p.28). What does he mean by these words? What distinguishes the different “ecclesial situations?”

HE—do not forget that we are learning from Dulles here—means people in different “ecclesial communities.” “Ecclesial communities” is the preferred phrase for referring to one of the Christian communities that does not have all of the elements that the Catholic Church community has. What distinguishes them? Well they have some elements such as the Scriptures; some of the sacraments, perhaps; perhaps the episcopate; but they are missing others like the Petrine Office. You get the idea!

Is the Church of Christ (in other words, the Church that HE founded) fully present in the Catholic Church? Explain.

Yes, according to the Council. The Council used the word “subsists” to specifically teach that the Church of Christ exists FULLY in the Catholic Church. You can see Ratzinger’s analysis of the history of the word on page 29.

Why is the Church necessary for salvation?

Quite simply, because GOD made it necessary (LG 14 on page 30). Now, there is a whole reasoning that works from the fact that we communicate and learn of our salvation within the community of believers, but we do not need to go into that here; but always keep in mind how human beings function—we learn and grow by interacting with other human beings. So we do need a community!

What are the two core terms that are needed to explain the Church according to Ratzinger?

The core terms are “People of God” and “sacrament”. What Ratzinger is saying is that together they give us a handle on what the Church is. The phrase “People of God” on its own is not enough—we drift off into purely social ideas of what the Church is. The term “sacrament” is not enough because this lets us think in private individual terms—we drift off into the transcendental thinking of the New England transcendentalists like Thoreau, who were big on individual private communion with God.

 Does the College of Bishops compete with the Pope for power?

Quite simply, the answer is “No!” The explanation is that LG 22-24 carefully lays out the supreme power of the Pope as well as the way in which the bishops act as a college in concert with the Pope.

What does the word “Magisterium” mean?

What are the two main divisions of Gaudium et spes?

The word “pastoral” means literally “as a shepherd would do,” so the pastoral constitution is one that expresses the pastor’s perspective on the world and man’s life in it.

What is the theological reason for the Church’s solidarity with the whole of mankind?

The theological reason is that Jesus Christ died for the whole of mankind and so the Church as the Body of Christ is concerned with the whole of mankind.

What does the Council mean by saying that the hope of the Council is that the world be “fashioned anew” (article 2)?

The Council means that the Church is working to help transform the world “according to God's design and reach its fulfillment” (article 2). So it is also making the claim that the Church actually knows what God’s plan is!

The Council means that the Church is working to help transform the world “according to God's design and reach its fulfillment” (article 2). So it is also making the claim that the Church actually knows what God’s plan is!

What does the Council say is the goal of the Church’s existence?

The only goal of the Church is “to carry forward the work of Christ under the lead of the befriending Spirit” (article 3).

Why—according to the Council—was the world at a new stage of life in the sixties?

How was man gaining more “dominion” over time?

Man apparently was beginning to have some power over time, on the one hand, through research into the past and then, on the other hand, to some extent over the future through the development of planning.

If you look at article seven, what would you say the Council means by the “new humanism”?

The “new humanism”—and here they are picking up an old term “humanism” which means “focusing on the human”—seems, from the words of the Council, to refer to an understanding of man and the world that does not take God in to account.

Explain the fractured way of thinking that the Council describes in article eight.

According to the teaching of the Council, where does the root of the imbalances in the world lie?

According to the Council: “As a weak and sinful being, he often does what he would not, and fails to do what he would” (article 10). This is a paraphrase of Paul’s words in Romans 7:14ff.

What does John Paul II mean by the “perennial search for meaning” in his speech?

 He means that man has to learn the meaning of each new situation. There is no once-and-for-all discovery. This is how man consciously responds to each situation. Choosing not to respond is to let it pass and not to bring the light of Christ to it.

Explain what John Paul II means by the “knowledge of the document” (article 4).

The “knowledge of the document” refers to what the document did to “[sound] out . . . the "mystery of man" by the light of the Word of God, they also committed, and strongly, the Christian community, which was called to offer a specific contribution to “render more human the entire family of men” (GS, 40). So this is John Paul’s summary of what the document did!

A theological concept, which refers to Mary's role

in the redemption of man. It has always been controversial and has never formed part of the dogma of the Church. The term "Co-redemptrix" refers to a subordinate but essential participation by the Blessed Virgin Mary in redemption, notably that she gave free consent to give life to the Redeemer, to share his life, to suffer with him under the cross, to offer his sacrifice to God the Father for the sake of the redemption of mankind.