Introductory notes for readers of this thesis - Theses - Flinders ...

Slightly stooped and reserved as an old field marshal, Rahner has produced some3,500 books and articles…providing the most thorough and systematic treatmentof theological topics since the famous 13 th -century Summae of Aquinas. His hasbeen a massive and intense effort to express the ancient dogmas of Catholicism inan idiom that can be spoken and understood in contemporary culture…hisintellectual influence…resembles that of a double agent in the Roman CatholicChurch…On the one hand, he has been a loyal son of the Church…On the otherhand, once Rahner has established this continuity between past and present, he isa philosophical Burbank of mutations and permutations, giving birth to blooms ofthought that appear radically transformed 75 .The article goes on to paint the picture of a quiet and physically unremarkable personwhose decades of pastoral and intellectual labour have resulted in a subtle yet profoundglobal theological revolution: Catholic educators, students and ecclesial leaders haveexperienced, through Rahner’s writings, the same sense of liberation, fascination andspiritual companionship reported by many who actually attended his classes.The concept of Rahner as a theologian of global influence is a common theme amongstthose who comment on his legacy. Grenz and Olsen describe him as ‘the most influentialRoman Catholic theologian of the twentieth century…His influence has reached intoevery Catholic seminary and university theology faculty in the world, as well as into theVatican itself’ 76 . Indeed, it is a commonly thought that Rahner was the theologicalarchitect behind the historical outcomes of Vatican II—though Rahner himself disputesthis 77 . In fact, as Vorgrimler points out, though the influence of Rahner within the councilcannot be traced in detail, 12 of the 16 texts reveal elements of his theology, and Rahnerwas described as being ‘active at the Council to the point of exhaustion’ 78 .The accounts of Rahner’s involvement in Vatican II reflect his characteristic quiet,behind the scenes, yet pervasive, influence. In the initial stages of the council, Rahnerwas merely one of a group of 190 nominated theologians who were granted access to thesessions of the council but did not necessarily have any formal role in the proceedings.75 Ibid, 2376 S.J. Grenz and R.E. Olson, 20 th Century Theology – God and the world in a transitional age, (DownersGrove, IL:Intervarsity Press, 1992), 239.77 See for example Rahner’s vigorous response to the suggestion that he was, as labelled by some Cardinals,the ‘Holy Ghost Writer’ of the Council, I Remember, 81-82.78 Vorgrimler, Understanding Karl Rahner, 96-100; Dych, Karl Rahner, 13.23