Episode 249: Rick Clements speaking on Von Balthasar in his The Meaning of the World is Love (November 23, 2022)

This week (November 23rd) on The Open Door we will introduce and explore the work of Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905–1988), widely considered one of the most significant theologians of the century. His major multi-volume theological works are The Glory of the Lord, Theo-Drama and Theo-Logic. Our welcome guest is the psychologist, Richard Clements. He is the author of The Meaning of the World Is Love: Selected Texts from Hans Urs von Balthasar with Commentary (Ignatius, 2022). Dr. Larry Chapp, an earlier guest of ours, calls the book "an absolute breath of fresh air and a bracing reminder of the true genius of Balthasar as both a theologian and a master of the spiritual life. The topics are varied and yet deeply united, since Clements deftly arranges them in order to draw out Balthasar's deep Trinitarian underpinnings. And the commentaries by Clements are insightful and often illuminating in surprising ways."

To purchase the book, click here: https://www.amazon.com/Meaning-World-Love-Balthasar-Commentary/dp/1621643514

Among the questions we’ll ask are the following. Please feel free to suggest your own!

1. Richard, could you begin by telling us a bit about yourself? How does a psychologist come to write about a master theologian?

2. Could you give us a brief overview of von Balthasar’s life?

3. What impact has Balthasar had on the Catholic Church?

4. Literature, art, and music help shape his vision. What are some examples of how this works?

5. How, for von Balthasar, is the gift of self the path of love?

6. What role do the true and the good and the beautiful play in his thought? Would he agree, as some suggest, that they are the faces of being?

7. Is integral human fulfillment possible for the skeptic?

8. How would von Balthasar respond to the charge that the doctrine of hell is incompatible with the Christian’s vocation to love?

9. Does von Balthasar’s relation to Adrienne von Speyer strike you as problematic?

10. Balthasar was incredibly prolific. Which of his books would you recommend to someone just starting to read his work?