Thoughts on Eschatology and Political Radicalism

It can be said that at the turn of the 20^th century, or thereabouts, a split began in the church. This split was not necessarily denominational, but rather it was ideological and theological (which do indeed have different nuances of meaning). The “liberal” side of the church, as a result of long term re-evaluation of Scripture and theology, began to look at the Christian mission differently. The evangelism which resulted did not deal with the “saving” of souls, but rather the “social gospel”, the saving of the human condition in the here and now. The conservative side, however, in response hardened their understanding of Christian mission as being solely concerned with “salvation”, with social causes and societal change being considered almost unbefitting, with only the “next” world worth consideration. Two great thinkers of the 20^th century, however, found themselves caught in the middle of these emphases, as well as caught in the middle of overwhelming social upheaval in general. Both Karl Barth and Jürgen Moltmann were forced, then, to interpret the situation theologically and seek to come to some conclusions about the mission and role of the church in this present world and in the world to come.

Karl Barth was an outstanding thinker during what may have been the most intellectually turbulent century ever. The intellectual and global climate at the end of his life bore almost no relation to the intellectual and global climate at the end of his life. He saw countless revolutions and warfare, which though attempting to reform the human condition in reality caused anguish without measure and indeed destroyed the notion of humanity’s moral progress. He saw, however, in Christianity a force which is “far more revolutionary than current ‘revolutionary’ programmes” [1] The “revolutionary” of his era chose hatred and insubordination, hoping to break down existing structures. Christianity, however, is a revolution of love which “makes the believer more restless than the most restless, more urgent than the most urgent revolutionaries in his immediate or more distant circle.” [2] Christianity by nature is seeking, according to Barth, to radically reform the world beginning now, and leading into the ultimate reformation of the Eschaton.

Jürgen Moltmann comes from much of the same political climate as does Barth. He served as a soldier in WWII, and spent time as a war prisoner. But the end of Barth’s life was really the beginning of Moltmann’s theological career. Affecting his theology was not only the intellectual climate of the war and post-war Europe, but also greatly the intellectual upheaval of the 1960s, with its condemnation of modernism and beginning of postmodernism. He has had three major theological developments which have aided his own understanding of Christian radicalism. [3] The first is a positive appreciation of apocalyptic, with the understanding that we must be conscious that this earth will not continue to survive, thus grounding our hope of the present with an strong understanding of the pressing dangers we are facing, especially ecologically. The second is a strong dialogue with Jewish thought, and their understanding of the Messiah who rescues humanity from history within history. And the third major concept is his great emphasis on Cosmic eschatology, understanding that it is not humanity alone that is in need of salvation, but indeed all of creation is groaning. The church is that which alone provides the real answer to these difficulties, allowing for true transformation and wholeness to develop. The radical understanding of Christian theology cannot but look at the world as being in need of great change, and the Christian ethic allows it to seek this change in a way which truly does advance humanity’s moral progress. Christianity gives us hope of something better and impetus to start this process now.

There is an argument raised in this article that both Barth and Moltmann are essentially “ivory tower” theologians with no connection to the realities of this world. While this may be true in some aspects, it is really those who are the “ivory tower” thinkers whose thoughts eventually drift down to those who can take their abstract thoughts and make them into reality. Barth and Moltmann do reach into the real church, though maybe indirectly. They have attempted to strike a balance between the liberal and conservative emphases, though in my mind they both somewhat fall short. Moltmann’s thought especially is reflected in much of modern “global” theology. [4] We find a strong resulting emphasis on the changing of structures without a corresponding emphasis on the initial changing of the individual soul. Because of the inherent universalism in both Barth, and more explicitly, in Moltmann there is a de-emphasis on the initial need for the transformation of the individual. On the surface both have very excellent point, history is full of “revolutionary” changes resulting from the influence of Christianity in this world. Yet, the most thorough changes have not been the goal of the church, but rather have been the result of the church truly communicating the Gospel. It is shocking to compare the language of Jesus and Moltmann. Jesus did not teach radical revolution, but the results of what he did teach (the kingdom and himself) resulted in global transformation. John Wesley wrote, "First, God works; therefore you can work: Secondly, God works, therefore you must work." [5] The church, to be effective, must first expose the world to our God. Universalism by understanding all will be saved, focuses on the results of God’s presence in the world without necessarily first establishing that the God we know, as revealed specifically in Jesus, must first be revealed and accepted. John Wesley preached the gospel, as conservatives understand it, but also was maybe one of the most influential social reformers of his day. Moltmann and Barth fail to adequately emphasize the need to first transform souls and thus argue for radical positions without establishing the foundations for which these radical positions actually can come to reality.

[1] Timothy Gorringe, “Eschatology and Political Radicalism”, God will be All in All, ed. Richard Bauckham (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1999), 97.

[2] Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics IV/4, 201, quoted in Gorringe, 101.

[3] Gorringe, 109ff.

[4] See for example the collection of essays in The Local Church in a Global Era: Reflections for a New Century, eds. Max Stackhouse, Tim Dearborn, Scott Paeth (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000).

[5] John Wesley; [a representative collection of his writings], Edited by Albert C. Outler (New York, Oxford University Press, 1964), 138.