Council theologian
A council theologian or, in ecclesiastical parlance, Peritus (from Latin: clever , knowledgeable , experienced ; plural: Periti ) is a Roman Catholic theologian who advises an ecumenical council . The council fathers , mostly bishops or religious superiors , who are also theologically educated, but in contrast to the theologians, are entitled to vote in a council, do not fall under the concept of council theologians. At the same time, the council theologians were in almost all cases priests .
Second Vatican Council
Among the Periti, the theologians who participated in the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), a distinction must be made between the Periti appointed by the Pope and the theological advisers of the Council Fathers. The “official council theologians” had a seat, but no right to vote, in the general congregations of the council. The theological advisers of individual bishops had neither a seat nor a vote in the General Congregation, but were able to exert influence through their bishops and the cooperation and advice in commissions. The involvement of theologians was an expression of a strengthening of the “role of theology”. At the beginning of the council there were about 315 periti called by the Pope. In the fourth session the number of theologians rose to around 450, representing a very broad theological spectrum.
Some episcopal theologians were later taken on as periti of the general council, such as Joseph Ratzinger , who was peritus of the Archbishop of Cologne, Josef Cardinal Frings in the first session , and then a theologian appointed by the Pope in the second session. In addition to the official commissions and meetings of the council, there were theological meetings in which theologians and council fathers discussed with one another. Many bishops only became aware of the theological change of epochs through this. Some bishops described this exchange as valuable tutoring in theological questions.
As representatives of the scientific theology of the German language, these included the Jesuit and dogmatist Karl Rahner , who worked for the Archbishop of Vienna, Franz Cardinal König and later as a peritus of the council, and the moral theologian Bernhard Häring . The Redemptorist was founded by Pope John XXIII. Appointed to the preparatory commission “for Faith and Morality” and as a peritus of the council. From the first session to the end of the council, he worked in this function and was particularly involved in the creation of Gaudium et spes .
Even theologians who have made a special contribution to the reception of the council are sometimes referred to in the figurative sense as council theologians , but not as periti. One example is the dogmatist Herbert Vorgrimler , who edited the texts of the council together with Karl Rahner.
First Vatican Council
At the First Vatican Council (1869–1870) hardly any council theologians were represented. The theological deliberations took place in commissions made up of council fathers. However, the commissions entrusted to prepare the council were also made up of theologians. The Council text Dei Filius , which declared the primacy of jurisdiction and the papal infallibility , goes back largely to the German Jesuit Josef Kleutgen . The theologian John Henry Newman , who converted from Anglicanism to Catholicism, declined to participate in the council as an advisory theologian.
Council of Trent
At the Council of Trent (1545-1547) about 50-100 theologians participated, who were appointed by the Pope, of bishops or secular rulers. They advised the Council Fathers on theological questions. In addition to the General Congregation, which was reserved for the Council Fathers and in which the votes took place, there were theological discussions and debates that were held by the theologians. The church historian Klaus Schatz SJ says: "In fact, they contributed so decisively to the theological clarification of the questions and to the elaboration of the texts."
Second Council of Lyon
The preparation of the Second Council of Lyon (1274) was entrusted to the Franciscan theologian Bonaventure , who had recently been appointed bishop. The council was conceived as a union council with the Eastern Church. Even orthodox theologians were present, but they were hardly a word. In “controversial issues, only the one-sided point of view of Western theology was reflected”. The Union endeavors were more of a political nature. Since the theological discussion did not take place on an equal footing, the use of the documents for the Union was little or nonexistent. The Dominican theologian Thomas Aquinas died while traveling to the council.
literature
- Karl Rahner, Herbert Vorgrimler: Small Council Compendium , Complete Texts of the Second Vatican Council, 35th edition, Freiburg a. a. 2008.
- Joseph Ratzinger: On the situation of faith ; 1985
- Jean d'Hospital: Three Popes ; 1971
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 284.
- ↑ a b cf. Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 290f.
- ↑ cf. Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 293.
- ↑ cf. Hanjo Sauer: "On the revelation of God and man in Jesus Christ". (No longer available online.) In: Konzilsblog.ch. November 15, 2011, archived from the original on February 22, 2014 ; Retrieved February 9, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Bernhard Häring: Geborgen und frei, Freiburg a. a. 1997, 76.
- ↑ cf. Bernhard Häring: Secure and free, Freiburg a. a. 1997, 83-90.
- ↑ cf. Christoph Strack: The council theologian Vorgrimler is 80: A mediator. In: domradio .de. January 4, 2009, accessed February 12, 2014 .
- ^ See Karl Rahner, Herbert Vorgrimler: Kleines Konzilskompendium , Complete texts of the Second Vatican Council, 35th edition, Freiburg u. a. 2008.
- ↑ cf. Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 225.
- ↑ cf. Hubert Wolf : Catholic Church History in the “Long” 19th Century from 1789 to 1918, in: Kaufmann / Kottje / Moeller / Wolf (Ed.): Ecumenical Church History, From the French Revolution to 1989, Darmstadt 2007, 91–175, 151.
- ↑ cf. Günter Biemer: Art. Newman, John Henry . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 7 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1998, Sp. 796 .
- ^ Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 179.
- ↑ Klaus Schatz: General Councils - Focal Points of Church History, Paderborn ²2008, 116.
