Trinity by Andrei Rublev, 1425-1427

Earlier this week I posted the first part of my reflections from the 2009 Emergent Theological Conversation with Jürgen Moltmann in Libertyville, IL.  Here’s the second part:

On Doing Theology:

1. “Truth is found in unhindered dialogue.”
According to Moltmann, Karl Barth wasn’t good at dialogue with people who didn’t share his presuppositions. The professor saw this as a weakness in Barth’s theology. Instead, Moltmann tried to develop his theology through dialogue with people on the outside. We are not just doing theology for Christians, we are doing theology for everyone, he told us (I’m paraphrasing). I wonder, how open I am to “unhindered” dialogue as a pastor? Where are my theological conversations taking place? Who am I in dialogue with right now? Am I always talking to people who think like me?

2. “Which statement is closest to Jesus Christ?”
When we get to statements in Scripture that seem contradictory, such as Paul talking about women remaining silent in worship, vs. there is no longer male or female, we are all one in Christ (Gal. 3:28). Moltmann says, I ask “which statement is closer to Jesus Christ?” I wonder if this hermeneutic could open up a new way of dealing with these challenges, even when it may seem to some of us that Scripture is clear, e.g. ordaining women or homosexuality? I am just wondering …

On the Trinity:

1. “Christian community is an icon of the Trinity.”
Unlike most western theologians, eastern theologians spent more time developing the relationship of the trinity, often illustrated as a family seated around a table (see Andrei Rublev’s 15th century painting). Moltmann calls this a social doctrine of the Trinity, and really a theology of Trinitarian love. The church is called to live this social doctrine as one heart, one body, one soul, a living witness to the Trinity. This is the essence of being the church, yet a daunting challenge. I’m thinking here of Bonhoeffer’s ideas in Life Together, true Christian community being the place where people I really don’t like seem to always show up.

2. “We believe in the Trinity, but we also live in the Trinity.”
It’s probably one of my favorite statements from the professor during the conversation. He was talking about the early Christians using the Abba prayer, referring to God as “Daddy” like Jesus does in the Gospels. Moltmann claims this eventually changed to “our Father.” However it looses the sense of intimacy we have with the Trinity. The Abba prayer moves us directly into the Trinity. He described them as three rooms—each giving room to the other. When we except other people we offer them room, we offer them space. That will preach!

In my next post I’ll share some reflections on Jürgen Moltmann and God’s pathos, God’s self-limitations, and eschatology. If you’d like to check out some other reflections from people at the Moltmann conversation, check out these blogs:

Ryan Bell who blogs over at Intersections has a good synopsis of the conversation  for the Spectrum blog. There’s reflections by Julie Clawson, Blake Huggins, and Joe Bumbulis on their blogs. Matt Kelley also has a good list of people blogging reflections at The Truth the Best I know It.

Tony Jones talks with Professor Jürgen Moltman

I thought I’d share some reflections from the 2009 Emergent Theological Conversation with Jürgen Moltmann last week—one of the best Emergent gatherings I’ve attended. Props to JoPa Productions and the First Presbyterian Church of Libertyville, IL., for making this happen. Our two days with Professor Moltmann gave me a deeper appreciation for this man … and he made me proud of my German heritage too!

Our time with the professor was sweet, as was the time we had in conversation with others. I made some new friends, also found some new friends to follow on Twitter. Speaking of Twittering, I thoroughly enjoyed the Moltmann Twub that was set up to micro-blog the event. You can still go back and read through all the Twubs, but I thought I’d take a few posts to share some of my favorite Moltmann Tweets and my own thoughts from the conversation. So here it goes …

On His Autobiography:

1. My theology begins in testimony:
I am currently reading Jürgen Moltmann’s autobiography, A Broad Place. It’s a good example of an idea Moltmann expressed at the beginning of our conversation—our theology begins in testimony, i.e., our stories shape our theology. Theology doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Anyone who attempts to do theology, must step back and ask, “How does my story influence the way I see God?”

2. The blooms of a cherry tree changed my life:
Moltmann’s experiences as a P.O.W. in post-war Great Britain opened up a new world to him. It was during this time that he became a Christian and developed a passion for theology. A large part of this was due to the hospitality Moltmann received from other Christians.  The blooms on a cherry tree in his P.O.W. camp expressed the new life he was experiencing, and it freed his soul from imprisonment. Till this day he feels weakness in his knees thinking about it.

Getting "A Broad Place" signed by the Professor

3. God is someone who understands me.
The professor experienced unimaginable horrors during the war. There were no words to describe what he was feeling.  As Moltmann studied Scripture in the his P.O.W. camp, it was Psalm 39 and Jesus’ final words on the cross, “My God why have you forsaken me?”, that gave him the words he needed. The God forsaken Christ, comforted Moltmann. “Here is someone who understands me”, he said, “Jesus freed me from the dark pit of my soul.”

4. What would the people think about it?
The development of Moltmann’s theology eventually led him to Latin America to study the liberation movements. During his time there he made a profound discovery that influenced his theology—theologians need to listen to the people! When a theological thought occurs, one should ask, “What would the people think about it?” Professional theologians must go down to the people to do their theology, ask their questions, and look for their answers.

In my next post I’ll reflect on Moltmann’s thoughts on doing theology and the relationship of the Trinity.