MM Thomas - Life, Legacy and Theology

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THEOLOGY OF MADATHILPARAMPIL MAMMEN THOMAS Then was my heart grieved and I was pricked in my reins, I had almost said in my heart, Thou dost not Care, So foolish was I and ignorant, I was a beast before Thee. Ye who praise him in the sanctuary, Ye who call on him with doors all shut, Open your eyes and See your God is not Before ye, He is there in the land of desolation, Alone, In The dark Amidst the corpses, Starving with the millions that starve, Dying with the millions that Die. 208 This poem provides a powerful glimpse into the depths of Thomas’s reflections on God’s relation to suffering humanity. The title itself reflects Thomas’s angst in attempting to theologically grapple with the reality of a loving God and human suffering. In the poem he suggests that it is the very encounter of Jesus at the graves of the people that doubt is transformed, in recognition that God is present amidst the suffering, deeply concerned for those who are afflicted and dying. When this devotion is placed within M.M. Thomas’s broader theological framework of creation-fall-redemption and consummation, it becomes clear that Thomas is concerned for the struggle of the suffering and the oppressed in line with the divine purpose of God for humanity, grounded in God’s love, and redeemed through the Cross and resurrection of Christ. The recognition of God’s solidarity with the oppressed demands Christian responsibility within the context of the suffering in the contemporary world. This involves not mere charity but also involvement to struggle against the status quo power structures in order to work for justice: It is when Christians identify themselves with the struggles of the 205
THEOLOGY OF MADATHILPARAMPIL MAMMEN THOMAS poor against poverty and for conditions of true development in concrete situation, and are able to reflect with men of other faiths and no faith on the meaning and end of such struggles, that they can make their unique contribution to the new ideology of a politics of world development….If Christian ecumenism cannot become the dynamic for such a political development, what is it for? 209 4. Conclusion In this chapter a brief overview of M.M. Thomas’s theology has been articulated, located within the paradigm of creation-fall-redemption-consummation. At the heart of this paradigm is Thomas’s Christology, interpreted as the ultimate act of God within history for the reconciliation of divine-human and human-human relationship. In Christ the law of the prophets is fulfilled and a new covenant is established based upon God’s love and desire for the redemption of the world. Through the Cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Kingdom of God is inaugurated in history. Christ is victor over sin and death, and becomes the first fruits of the New Creation and guarantee of the future hope of the consummation of the Kingdom of God. 210 Humanity, for Thomas, has the creative capacity and the responsibility to transform nature and develop tools for the welfare of community life as part of the human vocation. Humanity thus has the creative responsibility to be engaged in social and political action in order to struggle against injustice in the world: “There is always a justification for social and political force in order to control human selfishness and quest for power, in order to prevent humans killing and over exploiting each other in the sinful world and to provide social welfare and justice to all humans, at least in some 206
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Dr. M.M.Ninan 5708 Rudy Dr. San Jos
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THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF MADATHILPARA
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MM Thomas - Life, Legacy and Theology

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