Date of Award

5-1980

Degree Type

Master's Essay - Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Theology

Abstract

To my mind there are in the final analysis two qualities that emmanate (sic) from the work of a truly great theologian. First, there is a seminal insight, an idea that stands out as having a charisma, a vitality, and a validity all its own, Such an idea is not necessarily totally new in the history of thought; rather, a great thinker gives the idea a fresh vitality, articulating it in such a masterful way in relation to his own milieu that it truly can be called seminal. Second, when a great theologian immerses himself into the everlasting theological endeavor to mediate the two most fundamental realities--God and man, or faith and culture--there appears surrounding his seminal idea a real awareness of the subtle nuances, the paradoxical elements, the polar tensions, in a word, the ambiguities, that are inherent in the endeavor. Such an awareness is rooted in the theologian's overarching grasp of the many sides of the many issues that have been alive in history.

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