In
1962 the Roman Catholic Church met at what was called Vatican II to address how
the Roman church was addressing issues of the modern world. The issues established by the Council of
Trent in the 16th century seemed to no longer be adequate for
meeting the needs of a modern church. One of those involved in this Council was
a theologian named Hans Küng. In his magnificent
book, The Church, he gives an outline of what it means to be the church
(Küng 19). It is rare indeed
to find a book which is still “cutting edge” thirty years after being written,
yet in The Church Küng makes relevant observations and challenges that
are appropriate for the twenty-first century church.
Küng
does not seem to be a rebel but rather is a prophet to his own tradition and fortunately,
his insight spills over to help all of the Church develop its identity and
mission. An important primary focus for Küng
is his use of the Biblical text as the foundation for a proper ecclesiology. Using
all of scripture but leaning heavily on the perspective of the New Testament, Küng
seeks to develop a vision of what the Church ought to be. Scripture is his primary source, at every
point letting the Gospel and the Letters frame the discussion and thereby letting
Scripture critique and guide how the book proceeds. His basic concept throughout is that the
church is not a stagnant entity, established at a certain point in history,
then demanding that surrounding culture respond to it. He writes, “All too easily the Church can
become a prisoner for the image it has made for itself at one particular period
in history” (Ibid).
He
says, “Every age has its own image of the Church, arising out of a particular
historical situation; in every age a particular view of the Church is expressed
by the Church in practice, and given conceptual form by the theologians of the age”
(Küng 4). In saying this he is not
discounting the value and the weight of the authority of those who have gone
before. For Kung there is a “constant factor” which underlies what the Church
is at its essence.
He
states: “The foundations of the church are part of the eschatological
expectation of the coming kingdom of God.
And there are a variety of vital images of the church, including the
church as the People of God, the church as the Creation of the Spirit, and the
church as the Body of Christ. From the great creedal statements he seeks to
understand what it means that the Church is One, Catholic, Apostolic, and Holy”
(Ibid).
In
his discussion of the Church as the Body of Christ, he begins by looking at
what is often considered the beginning of entry into the church, baptism. This act is a significant expression of faith
and a dedication to Christ, which spurs one to take an active part in the life
of the church (Küng 206). At its core,
faith then becomes more than a simple individual decision it is something that
one does as part of a community. Baptism signifies the presence and commitment
to a community of faith, a community that owes its allegiance to Jesus. Küng argues that the believer is not making
him/herself a part of the community through the sacrament of baptism, but is
rather acting in response to God’s call to be part of community.
The
community draws the new believer into what has been established by God, thus
the community and the Spirit are both active in the lives of those who become a
part of God’s family called Church. Baptism
is just a commitment of the individual to the church it is also a commitment of
the community to the person. This act of commitment guarantees a relationship
of encouragement and accountability. One
of the profound ideas that Küng provides is that even if the person chooses to
reject committing to the church, the church is still held to its commitment to
the person. The church continues to draw those who have been baptized into a
healthy and prosperous relationship.
Küng
discusses the purpose and meaning of the Lord’s Supper. He states: “The new fellowship which met to
share meals was according to the New Testament characterized by eschatological
joy (cf. especially Acts 2:46): joy in the experience of this new fellowship,
joy especially in the awareness of fellowship with the glorified Christ who
would be present in the meal of the community, joy above all in their excited
expectation of the approaching kingdom of God” (Küng 216).
This
joy derives from a threefold perspective that should characterize the People of
God: the past—recollection and thanksgiving for how God has acted, especially
in the life and death of Jesus. The
present—is the celebration of the community, and the One who draws it together
and unites the separate individuals into one church. The future—brings the joy of anticipation,
the anticipation of the future consummation of history and the eternal reign of
the Messiah. As a link to the future
this Eucharistic (joy filled) meal already anticipates in the present that
which is not yet fully known. This meal
is thus a “fellowship, koinonia, communio” (Küng 222) with the risen Christ and
his present community.
A
topic that was of great interest was heresy. Küng asks the question of what the
church is to do with heresy. He defines heresy as people or ideas which
threaten the core unity of the church.
He notes that the majority opinion does not always equal
correctness. The minority is not always
the one which needs to be reunited with the majority. In responding to heresy, the reaction should
not be simply to reject or attack.
Rather, Küng points out that there is always an element of truth in
heresy. There is something which the heresy is exaggerating or pointing out, even
if to an extreme level, that may be highlighting a church weakness that needs
to be reviewed or reexamined.
The
Church, Küng argues, while intent in preserving all Truth, may not be willing
to hear correction. Küng boldly states,
“In all ages the Church has been partly responsible for the rise of great
heresies, and nearly always by neglecting or even by obscuring and distorting
the Gospel” (Ibid). Heretics are rarely
seeking the destruction of the church for its own sake, but rather are
wrestling with their own faith. In
responding to heresy, the church must realize its commitment to the baptized,
listening and being willing to look at its own missteps, letting heresy become
constructive rather than divisive and destructive.
In
the first part of his last section on “The Offices of the Church,” Küng takes
up a rallying cry of the Protestant reformation which is the Priesthood of all
believers. Taking up again the idea of
the church as the people of God and the body of Christ, Küng maintains that
all
Christians are taught and led and supported by the Spirit directly, without
mediation, and they are all to live by the Spirit. The anointing is not just given to prophets
and kings, but to the whole community, each individual being filled with the
fullness of God. This means that all
believers have direct access to God, allowing themselves to be a spiritual
offering to God thus becoming holy in every action. All believers also are called to be
preachers, not simply with words but with actions, not simply in the church
building but in all of their lives” (Küng 377).
The
Scriptures are thus preached in every part and place of society, in a multitude
of ways, expressing through manifold ways the love which God has for the whole
world. Küng writes, “Every believer can
and must, having been taught by God, teach others; can and must, having
received the word of God, be its herald in some form or other” (Ibid). The early church was able to spread the
Christian message so quickly and thoroughly because it was proclaimed by all
through the work and power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of all believers,
not simply through the anointed message of a charismatic evangelist.
With
this comes the idea that baptizing, the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, and
the forgiving of sins does not require the presence of a particularly degreed
individual. Each person in the church,
Küng writes, has the power to baptize and teach, to administer and receive the
whole of the Eucharistic feast, to take part in the reception and forgiveness
of those who sin. This is a startling statement for a Roman Catholic
theologian/priest to make. It is no wonder that the Roman church did not
approve.
He
believes that a church filled with the Spirit should be able to effectively
mediate between God and the world, with a responsibility which goes far beyond
simply inviting someone to church. The believer, not just the clergy, is
charged to devote themselves to others, through prayer and service allowing the
light of Christ to shine even in the darkest places. The believer “lives before
God for others and is in turn supported by others” (Küng 381). Küng continues by saying, “The worship of
this priesthood thus develops from being worship within the community to being
worship within the everyday secular world” (Ibid); this worship would radically
transform the church itself, and radically impact the world it is called to
serve.
Using
the Scriptures as a whole, Hans Küng offered to the church a text which has few
parallels. Indeed it is sad that this text is now out of print, and the
thoughts of over thirty years ago really never have been properly addressed by
many church communities. The thoughts
which it contains are really as radical now, and point to how the church needs
to continue to examine itself.
Küng
believes that if the church continues solely in a structure of the past, the
church will no longer be able to discover or relate what the Spirit is doing in
the present. By acknowledging the work
of the Spirit, becoming communities which seek to celebrate rather than direct
and limit how the Spirit is moving, we can become participants in the salvific
work which is being done in our midst, with or without our assistance. Küng offers a tremendous outline for
recovering a fluidity in our structures, showing us the boundaries and
guidelines which would let us end a rigid argumentative tendency and become
truly a community led and moved by the Spirit of God.
Bibliography
Küng,
Hans. (1967). The Church. New
York: Sheed and Ward
*Dual Ravens did a good review, I have used
portions of their review but have not cited specific quotes because I have
added to, and edited their essay significantly, but I wanted to give accurate
credit. This saved me a lot of time writing my review.