Love
and Joy
Fr.
Tony’s Midweek Message
October
10, 2018
Two
of the oldest and greatest divides in theology go back to St. Paul in the New
Testament and lie at the heart of our faith.
Paul, in Romans, says that salvation is by faith; Martin Luther added
the word “alone” to this in his translation: salvation is by faith alone. In contrast to this, the Letter of James says
that faith without works is dead. So
some argue that salvation is at least in part by works. Thus the first divide: faith vs. works. The second is related to it: Martin Luther
(again!) contrasted what he called the “theology of the cross,” with the “theology
of glory.” The cross for Luther was Jesus’
gift of grace to us unmerited by our own acts, and followed Paul’s
doctrine. The theology of glory, Luther
said, was an error shared by James and the Medieval Roman Church, an erroneous stress
on our own works and accomplishments, where merits and demerits were totaled up
and judgment was passed based on a balance in some kind of moral treasure house’s
books.
Modern
theologies have in large part turned aside from these dichotomies of faith vs.
works and cross vs. glory. Numerous
theological systems have taken their place.
The
Anglican Bishop of China at the time of the Communist takeover, Ding Guangxun
(K.H. Ting) in his writings stresses again and again not salvation by works or
salvation by faith, but rather, salvation by love. For Ding, love is the meeting place of the trust
and confidence that is the heart of faith, and the works God calls us to in the
service of others.
Yale
Divinity School professor Miroslav Volf, who began his work with in depth
reflections on reconciliation and forgiveness, has in recent years written at
length on a theology, not of the cross, nor of glory, but of joy. Joy here is not simply happiness, or pleasure
at good things. Joy is the surplus of
happiness we feel in undeserved or unexpected goodness. We may be happy with our wage at work, but
when it comes to unexpected and unearned bonuses, joy is what we feel. Thus the meeting ground between grace and
merit.
It
is important to eschew false divisions and dichotomies, regardless of how they may
be rooted in parts of the truth.
Comprehensive, complete, and inclusive belief, supported by an open and
accepting heart, is the key to balance and grounding in our approach to life
and its manifold mysteries.
Grace
and Peace,
Fr.
Tony+
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