Inquiring After God when Working

TH 291

10/14/04

Introduction:

Protestant and Catholic texts
Protestant – Calvin

vocational theme
calling to work in the world
glorify God and not us
obedience to the glory of God
prosperity is always attributed to God (not to ourselves)
Protestant work ethic – pointed out in 19^th century
Calvin - 24/7 work ethic showed seriousness and diligence, frivolity was seen as a waste of God’s time and our time
whatever happens to you is the will of God
serve wherever you are
Calvin – serving God and serving neighbor are inseparable
freedom from performance
Calvin accused of keeping a Christian stoicism or fatalism
Calvin – faith?

modern view – faith means belief that God exists
opposite of faith is fear
faith is faith and trust that God loves me and does not wish me harm
opposite – fear that God will act against sins
faith’s opposite is note disbelief (that is a modern notion)

Calvin – sanctification? God’s work or our work?
oppression – (modern notion) is not handled by Calvin, rebellion against unjust authority is not included
Luther

spoke more about a specific calling
idea of calling was developed to counteract class system before God
order of creation, people are slotted into the order

Catholic – Pope John II

Pope – understands himself as leader of the Christian world
Vatican Second Council
our work is the work of participating with God
focuses heavily on incarnation
what is more material than incarnation?

without the Holy Spirit at work -> dead ritual

Differences

Protestant view tends to keep creation and redemption separate – anxiety comes if they come too close together
keep apart creation and redemption – God’s presence is conveyed through material things causes anxieties
Catholic – co-creators AND co-redeemers
sacramental living where sacrament has the agent of the activity is the Holy Spirit

p. 88

This work of salvation came about through suffering and death on a cross. By enduring the toil of work in union with Christ crucified for us, man in a way collaborates with the son of God for the redemption of humanity. He shows himself a true disciple of Christ by carrying the cross in his turn every day in the activity that he is called upon to perform…

10/19/04 – continuation of Work

Edward Collins Vacek

Introduction

collaborators
p. 98 – co-creators
Luther and Calvin tend to write that God does all alone, they insist that we too must act
Calvin insisted that we must not give credit partially to God and partially to ourselves, but all to God
p. 100 – friendship with God leads to cooperation toward healing projects
West – redemption limited to humanity
East – redemption is restoration of the entire cosmos, not just doing away with God’s judgment
easier to get to environmental agenda in the East
we are part of God’s redeeming process
summary – we become co-redeemers of the progress

Cosmos / Individual

patristic fathers – no difference between healing cosmos and healing the individual
individual redemption is not prevalent until the middle ages
not before Augustine in the West
with Luther, it takes on a sense of anxiety
with Anselm, fear comes in (Luther takes this on)

Reformation – split on the doctrine of grace

shibbolith – slogan – goal of this course is to
Protestant faith – justification by faith vs. Catholic faith – justification by works
both believe in justification by grace (but Protestants added ‘by faith alone’)
Catholicism – grace given in other ways besides faith
once given grace, we can then do good works and play a role in healing
grace perfects nature – God gives us grace and it heals us, empowers the best that is in us to these things in the world
we experience what we used to call “cooperating grace”
justifying, cooperating, sanctifying grace

New Catechism of the Catholic Church

published in 1994
receive grace to become partakers of the divine image
received in baptism
grace is a participation in the life of God – adopted son
if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation
habitual grace – an aptitude of the soul
perfects the soul
preparation for a work of grace is a work of grace in itself
desire for grace is a gift of grace (similar to Augustinian tradition)

Returning love to God

Reformed view – impossible
we are inadequate, incapable of loving God
pivotal issue at the Reformation
p. 98 – we return love to God
love for God was an essential part of human faith – it perfects belief and understanding
Calvin rejects this in the institutes
Aquinas – formed and unformed faith

faith is formed by what? LOVE

Bernard of Clairvaux - Treatise - On Loving God –

steps of increase

Treatise of Athanasius on the Incarnation

Jesus Christ and the Cross – cosmic redemptive power
eventually it was all spiritualized and depoliticized
spiritualized – internalized, “all about me” (or at least my relatives), no longer making an impact

Individualism

very Western concept
medieval nominalism
create of the individual – Augustine
ecclesiology falls apart under Protestanism
now – individuals join a church
before – church
crisis in evangelicalism – no ecclesiology

Redemption of Cosmos

conquer of Rome
crusades