To Theology Professors (18 November 1980)

In Altoetting, 18 November 1980, the Holy Father addressed German theologians, reminding them that their theological investigations, while free, must always be in accord with the Faith of the Church.

Dear professors!
Dear confreres!

It is a special pleasure for me to join you at the end of this day. It was my personal wish to have an encounter with representatives of theology in your country.

After all, theological science is one of the most important forms and tasks of church life today. I cordially greet you and in you all theological scientists. You stand in a great tradition, if only I remember St. Albert the Great, Nicholas of Kues, Möhler and Scheeben, Guardini and Przywara. I name these outstanding theologians as representative of many others who, in the past and in the present, have not only enriched the church in the German-speaking area, but also the theology and life of the entire church, and continue to do so.

So I want to thank you and everyone you represent from the bottom of my heart for this work. Scientific work is almost always a quiet and self-denying activity. This applies in particular to the provision of reliable texts and the development of theological sources. We owe many patristic, medieval and modern text editions to the selfless work of researchers in your country. The more extensive the overall knowledge of theology becomes, the more urgent the task of a synthesis becomes. In numerous encyclopedias, commentaries and handbooks you have created very helpful and successful overviews of the state of knowledge for almost all disciplines. Such basic orientations have become particularly important in the post-conciliar period,

In the process, especially in the area of ​​Bible interpretation, there has been a gratifying collaboration between the exegetical experts, which has also given ecumenical efforts a rich impetus and will no doubt continue to do so. I ask you all to continue in this solid theological research. Pay close attention to the questions and needs of today's people; but do not be swayed by random and ephemeral currents of the human spirit. Scientific and especially theological knowledge needs the courage to take risks and the patience to mature. It has its own laws, which it must not allow itself to be imposed from outside.

If theological research is one of the real treasures of the church in your country, this is certainly also made possible by the inclusion of theology in state universities.

The relationship between the freedom of scientific theology and its connection to the church, as anchored in the Concordats, has repeatedly proven itself as a model despite some conflicts. It gives you the chance to pursue philosophy and theology in the context and in cooperation with all the sciences of a modern university. This situation has also shaped the quality of the philosophical-theological colleges of the dioceses and religious orders, the comprehensive colleges and the teacher training colleges as well as church research institutes. After all, the publication of theological knowledge would not be possible without efficient Catholic publishers. In my thanks I would like to include all those who promote theological science in many different ways.

He who has received much also has great tasks. They have a great responsibility in today's theological situation, which sometimes seems like a crisis. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to remind you of three perspectives that are particularly close to my heart.

1. The abundance of tasks and questions, methods and disciplines is given with the complexity and specialization of today's knowledge. It brought valuable insights and new insights. But there is a danger that the meaning and goal of theology will occasionally be obscured by the amount of individual knowledge. Since the traces of God are already very buried in a secularized world, this focus on the Trinity as the origin and lasting basis of our life and the whole world is the most urgent task of today's theology.

All passion for theological knowledge must ultimately lead to God himself. Even during the Second Vatican Council it was believed that the answer to the question of God could be assumed.

In the meantime it has been shown that the relationship between man and God has become fragile and needs to be strengthened. I would like to ask you to work with all your strength to renew your understanding of God, whereby I would like to emphasize the Trinity of God and the idea of ​​creation.

Concentration on God and his salvation for man means an inner order of theological truths. God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are in the middle. The word of Scripture, the church and the sacraments remain the great historical foundations of salvation for the world; but the "order of truths" demanded by Vatican II does not mean a simple reduction of the comprehensive Catholic faith to a few basic truths, as some have thought. The deeper and more radically the center is grasped, the clearer and more convincing are the connecting lines from the divine center to those truths that seem to be more on the fringes. The depth of the concentration is also shown in the range of its radiation to theology as a whole.

According to Saint Thomas Aquinas, the work of the theologian in the service of teaching about God is at the same time an act of love towards man. By making him aware in the greatest possible depth and fullness that he is the You of all divine speech and the goal of all divine action, she explains and makes clear to him his own, transcending all finite limits, final and eternal dimension.

2. Every theology is based on Holy Scripture, all theological traditions are based on Holy Scripture and lead back to it. So stay true to the twofold task of every interpretation of Scripture: preserve the incomparable gospel of God, which was not made by man, and at the same time have the courage to carry it out into the world anew in this purity. The study of Sacred Scripture therefore remains, as the Constitution on Divine Revelation of the Second Vatican Council says: "The soul of theology". Time and again it nourishes and rejuvenates our theological searching. As we live by the Scriptures, whatever differences may remain, we draw closer to our separated brethren.

For the Catholic theologian, bridging the gap between Scripture and the concerns of our time does not happen without the mediation of tradition. This does not replace the word of God in the Bible, rather it testifies to it in the course of time through a new interpretation. Always keep in touch with the living tradition of the Church. Learn from their often undiscovered treasures. Show the people of the church that you are not relying on past relics, but that our great heritage from the apostles to this day also harbors great potential for answering today's questions of meaning. We can better share the gospel of God by paying attention to Scripture and its echo in the living Tradition of the Church. We then also become more critical and sensitive to our own present. It is not the only and not the ultimate measure of theological knowledge.

Striving for the great tradition of our faith is not easy. To understand them, you need foreign languages, knowledge of which is unfortunately often declining today. Everything depends on not only opening up the sources historically, but also letting them speak to our time with their factual claims. The Catholic Church, which spans all ages of cultures, believes that every age has gained a knowledge of truth that is useful for us too. Theology includes the prophetic renewal from these sources, which signify departure and continuity at the same time. Have the courage to lead the young people entrusted to you to study philosophy and theology to these treasures of our faith.

3. Theology is a science with all the possibilities of human knowledge. She is free in the application of her methods and analyses. Nevertheless, theology must pay attention to the relationship between it and the faith of the church. We do not owe our faith to ourselves, rather it is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, the keystone being Christ Jesus himself”. Theology, too, must presuppose faith. It can illuminate and promote it, but it cannot produce it. Even the theologian has always stood on the shoulders of the fathers in faith. He knows that his area of ​​expertise is not purely historical objects or objects in an artificial retort, but that it is about the living faith of the church. Not least because of this, the theologian teaches in the name and on behalf of the church community of faith. He should and must make new suggestions for understanding the faith, but these are only an offer for the whole church. Much has to be corrected and expanded in fraternal dialogue before the whole Church can accept it. Theology is deeply a very selfless service to the community of believers. That is why factual disputation, brotherly conversation, openness and willingness to change one's own opinions are essential to it. Theology is deeply a very selfless service to the community of believers. That is why factual disputation, brotherly conversation, openness and willingness to change one's own opinions are essential to it. Theology is deeply a very selfless service to the community of believers. That is why factual disputation, brotherly conversation, openness and willingness to change one's own opinions are essential to it.

The believer has a right to know what he is relying on in faith. Theology must show man where he can find a last hold. Not least because of this, the Church has been given the spirit of truth. The Magisterium exists only to establish the truth of the Word of God, especially where it is threatened by distortions and misunderstandings. The infallibility of the church's magisterium must also be seen in this context. I would like to repeat what I wrote in my letter of May 15 this year to the members of the German Bishops' Conference: "The Church must... be very humble and certain that she is in that very truth, that faith and moral doctrine remains, which it received from Christ, who endowed it with the gift of a special "infallibility" in this area". Infallibility, while less central in the hierarchy of truths, is "in a way the key to that certainty with which faith is known and proclaimed, and to the life and conduct of believers. For when this essential foundation is shaken or destroyed, the most elementary truths of our faith also begin to unravel”.

Love for the concrete church, which also includes fidelity to the testimony of faith and to the church's teaching office, does not alienate the theologian from his work and does not take away from this indispensable autonomy. Magisterium and theology each have a different task. Therefore they cannot be reduced to one another. Nevertheless, they serve the one whole. With this structure in particular, however, you must always keep in touch with each other. In the years after the Council you gave many examples of good cooperation between theology and the teaching profession. Deepen this basis and, even if conflicts arise from time to time, continue your work together in the spirit of common faith, the same hope and the love that unites everyone.

I wanted to meet you this evening to validate your work to date and to encourage further achievements. Do not forget your great mission for the Church of our day. Work diligently and tirelessly. With all your meticulousness, practice a theology not only of the mind, but also of the heart. Especially St. Albert the Great, on the occasion of the 700th anniversary of whose death I came to Germany, repeatedly pointed out the need to reconcile science and piety, spiritual insight and the whole human being. Be an example of practiced faith to many theology students in your country today. Be resourceful in your faith so that together we can use new language to bring Christ and His Church closer to the many who no longer participate in the life of the Church.

Before I want to get to know you personally, I would ask you to take my brotherly greetings and God's blessings with you to all your colleagues, employees and students. "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all".

© Copyright 1980 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Copyright © Dicastero per la Comunicazione - Libreria Editrice Vaticana