Tell us about it, ok. God Bless, Memaw
Well, I was asking more than venturing to answer since it seems that there are quite a number of people on the Apologetics Forum of CAF who are studying or have studied theology and divinity in university, whereas I have never taken a course on religion in my life, neither in university nor high school (public).
In any event, I first came across Balthasar’s name in university where I often bought the monthly religious journal First Things. In one issue in the 1990s, the Catholic editor, the late Richard John Neuhaus, wrote:
"It’s chiefly a Roman Catholic phenomenon at present, this discovery of Hans Urs von Balthasar, but in time it will almost certainly engage Protestants, Jews, and everybody else interested in the possibilities of theology at the edge of the Third Millennium. It seems implausible that one man could have written so much about so much so brilliantly. At his Requiem Mass (he died in 1988 at age eighty-three), Cardinal Ratzinger declared von Balthasar the most learned man in Europe, and it would be as believable if he had said the most learned man in the world.
Shortly before he died, von Balthasar was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II-a high level imprimatur on his life’s work. This despite the fact that some thought von Balthasar stepped across the line of orthodoxy on a few subjects. For instance, his Dare We Hope that All Men Be Saved? (with a brief discourse on hell) is a daring reflection on universal redemption. His answer is yes, we dare so hope and should so hope, while maintaining the orthodox understanding that the final judgment is, of course, God’s alone. Similarly, in Mysterium Paschale, one of his more difficult books, von Balthasar contends that Christ’s descent into hell should be understood in terms not of his triumph but of his final abandonment by God. That is a break from the interpretation of the received tradition, but is considered by Catholic authorities to be a theological opinion that can legitimately be held and explored."
My curiousity peaked, I then followed articles in First Things on Balthasar with the late Avery Cardinal Dulles writing about “The Population of Hell” relying on Balthasar and the debates between Alyssa Lyra Pitstick and Fr. Edward T. Oakes on hell and Hans Urs von Balthasar’s controversial Holy Saturday theology arguing that Christ’s descent into hell was a passive suffering descent.
One blog pointed out that Pope Benedict, back in his early days as a teacher, used Balthasar to connect Jesus’ death-cry of abandonment on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" with the Descent into Hell.
In all honesty, I favoured Fulton Sheen’s interpretation of Jesus’ cry of abandonment on the Cross wherein he dealt with the Trinity and what happened at that moment on the Cross and how it pertained to each and every one of us.
It seems, however, that Balthasar left quite the legacy, and his theology on Holy Saturday and the Descent into Hell is one subject which has garnered attention. Even George Weigel makes mention of the man in his book The Truth of Catholicism.
I suppose that is why I asked if anyone here has actually read Balthasar’s works as I would be interested in hearing your views.
But then again, this whole thread is about Christ’s Descent into Hell and it has been quite an interesting read for me as it is, with everyone freely offering their views.
In the end, I suppose, what you’ve read or how much doesn’t matter. As St. Paul said what good is knowledge without Love, so I appreciate hearing everyone’s take, regardless of “expertise” if you will.
God Bless,
