Karl Rahner – författare

Karl Rahner refused to write his memoirs. He used to say that his life had been uneventful, that his bibliography -four thousand items in various languages - was his life. But he did agree in the end to a series of interviews that constitute a lengthy, sustained reflection on his life and thought.In this book he talks about his childhood in Freiburg, his family life and religious background, the terror of life under the Nazis, the war years, and all that came after. There are delightful cameo portraits of Martin Heidegger, Alfred Delp and Cardinal Ottaviani; candid comments about the church and its future, about old age and the approach of death. But what comes through strongest of all is the clear and simple expression of the faith of a spiritual master who has been called 'the mystical doctor' and 'the theologian of everyday life'.

Karl Rahner was not only one of the architects of modern Roman Catholic theology but also a master of the spiritual life — a pastor among pastors as well as a theologian among theologians. His writings on spirituality and pastoral matters nearly equal the number of his strictly theological ones.This volume is in one sense the spiritual and pastoral counterpart of Rahner's theological masterpiece, Foundations of Christian Faith, and is a distillation of his thought on spirituality which is likely to prove more accessible to readers than the forbidding volumes of Theological Explorations. Divided into three parts, Faith, Hope and Love, it deals with the sacraments, the theological virtues, the states of life, the various kinds of prayer and religious devotion, and other aspects of ascetical and mystical theology.There are contemporary themes as well: basic Christian community, worshipping communities in the home and a new asceticism for the consumer society. Last but not least there are the themes relating to basic human experience: courage, suffering, death and peace.Karl Rahner, who died in 1984, taught at the universities of Innsbruck, Munich and Munster. He was one of the greatest twentieth-century Roman Catholic theologians.

Karl Rahner is one of Catholicism’s most influential, and yet difficult to understand, theologians. This remarkably comprehensive volume gives a page by page explanation of Rahner’s great summary Foundations of Christian Faith. With an excellent introduction and helpful indices, this book is an indispensable addition to every theological library.

Great theologians are often great teachers of prayer as well. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Teresa of Avila, Martin Luther, Dietrich Bonhoeffer—and Karl Rahner. This personal book, composed over a lifetime, is the fruit of rich human experience, deep faith, and profound theological reflection.

Karl Rahner was not only one of the architects of modern Roman Catholic theology but also a master of the spiritual life - a pastor among pastors as well as a theologian among theologians. His writings on spirituality and pastoral matters nearly equal the number of his strictly theological ones. This volume is in one sense the spiritual and pastoral counterpart of Rahner's theological masterpiece, Foundations of-Christian Faith, and is a distillation of his thought on spirituality which is likely to prove more accessible to readers than the forbidding volumes of Theological Explorations. Divided into three parts, Faith, Hope and Love, it deals with the sacraments, the theological virtues, the states of life, the various kinds of prayer and religious devotion, and other aspects of ascetical and mystical theology. There are contemporary themes as well: basic Christian community, worshipping communities in the home and a new asceticism for the consumer society. Last but not least there are the themes relating to basic human experience: courage, suffering, death and peace. Karl Ramer, who died in 1984, taught at the universities of Innsbruck, Munich and Munster. He was one of the greatest twentieth-century Roman Catholic theologians.

Unlike Rahner's theological writings, which can be obscure, these sermons provide a smooth entrance for those who are just beginning to read this fine contemporary theologian and preacher.

The ground-breaking treatment of the doctrine of the Trinity by one of the most important theologians of the century is here reprinted on the 30th anniversary of its orginal publication. In this treatise, Karl Rahner analyzes the place of the doctrine of the Trinity within Catholic theology and develops his own highly original and innovative reading of the doctrine, including his now-famous dictum.

Like all the great spiritual masters, Rahner is at his best when dealing with matters of the heart like this one: suffering and the soul's journey to God.

While no single anthology could hope to capture the full scope of Karl Rahner’s thought—his publications number more than 3,500 separate works in the years between 1924 and 1979—this collection is the best that could possibly be devised, containing 174 selections that reflect the best of Rahner’s thought from the early 1950s to 1980.

One of Rahner's classic studies, this volume employs the German Jesuit theologian's deep understanding of the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas to explore the relationship between the spirit and matter, metaphysical and concrete realities.

"A contemporary classic, the best key to understanding Rahner's omnia opera, and the single best effort to show how the human spirit in the world can bear the word of the Spirit who enters human history". -- Andrew Tallon

The ground-breaking treatment of the doctrine of the Trinity by one of the most important theologians of the century is here reprinted on the 30th anniversary of its orginal publication. In this treatise, Karl Rahner analyzes the place of the doctrine of the Trinity within Catholic theology and develops his own highly original and innovative reading of the doctrine, including his now-famous dictum.

The ground-breaking treatment of the doctrine of the Trinity by one of the most important theologians of the century is here reprinted on the 30th anniversary of its orginal publication. In this treatise, Karl Rahner analyzes the place of the doctrine of the Trinity within Catholic theology and develops his own highly original and innovative reading of the doctrine, including his now-famous dictum.

“In giving these meditations, my desire was to explain the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius; I was not attempting to present pious meditations and theological considerations, no matter how useful they may be. I attempted to give these meditations on the Spiritual Exercises the kind of theological foundation that my listeners had the right to expect, without falling into the kind of theological investigations that really have nothing directly to contribute to the purpose of spiritual exercises.” These words are used by the author who is probably the greatest theologian the Catholic Church has produced in recent centuries. He brings his enormous learning and his unequaled theological acumen to bear on what is probably one of the most influential spiritual works of Roman Catholicism. The combination is as fascinating as it is important. The subject matter is, of course, very controversial. Has St. Ignatius anything to say for modern Christians? Jesuits the world over maintain that he has, others suggest that his writing is totally confined to a particular, and unfortunate, period of Church history. Karl Rahner has been compelled to write with a force and simplicity we do not usually associate with him. Here is a compelling series of meditations which take us out of the stodgy surroundings of so much Christian spirituality, and certainly one of Rahner’s greatest works.

One of the classics of modern spirituality, Encounters with Silence is one of Karl Rahner’s most lucid and powerful books. A book of meditations about man’s relation with God, it is not a work of dry theology, but rather a book of prayerful reflections on love, knowledge, and faith, obedience, everyday routines, life with our friends and neighbors, our work and vocation, and human goodness. The immense success of this moving work is a tribute to its practicality and the ability of the great theologian to speak simply and yet profoundly to ordinary men and women seeking an inspiring guide to the inner life, one that never forsakes the world of reality. The book is cast in the form of a dialogue with God that moves from humble but concerned inquiry to joyful contemplation.“You will come again because the fact that you have already come must continue to be revealed ever more clearly. It must become progressively manifest to the world that the heart of all things is already transformed, because you have taken them all to your heart. . . . The false appearance of our world, the shabby pretense that it has not been liberated . . . must be more and more thoroughly rooted out and destroyed. . . . And your coming is neither past nor future, but the present, which has only to reach its fulfillment. Now it is still the one single hour of your advent.” (from the book)