Dare We Hope "That All Men Be Saved" (1 Tim 2:4)?: On von Balthasar's Trinitarian Grounds for Christian Hope

Margaret M. Turek Dare We Hope "That All Men Be Saved" (1 Tim 2:4)?: On von Balthasare Trinitarian Grounds for Christian Hope In one OF his earliest works, Hans Urs von Balthasar expresses the permanently valid concern that "all the theological tractates be given a trinitarian form."1 He himselfdevotes most of his subsequent writings to the task of illuminating the Christian mysteries against the backdrop of the Trinity. It comes as no surprise , therefore, that when von Balthasar poses the question whether we as Christians dare hope for the salvation of every human being, the perspective he adopts is tiiat of a trinitarian (or theocentric) eschatology. As he explains, "the real 'last thing' is the triune life of God disclosed in Jesus Christ." The dramatic engagement of God for us and with us, "in its final act, in its final aspect, can only be trinitarian."2 Consequently, every attempt to understand what von Balthasar is about in posing this question ought to consider his horizon of trinitarian love to be most decisive. Such is the approach we will take in the present study. We will begin with a brief examination of the legitimacy of the question at issue by Logos 1:3 1997 Dare We Hope "That All Men Be Saved" considering the testimony of Sacred Scripture, the parameters of theological speculation, and the scope of Christian hope. We will then go on to develop certain implications of von Balthasare trinitarian theology which, we think, prove to be the ultimate foundation of his hope in the prospect of universal salvation— even if he himself does not always apply these insights in an explicitly thematic fashion. We will conclude, finally, with some comments on the pastoral concerns associated with the hope that all be saved. Let it be said from the outset that we are deliberately putting to one side those elements in von Balthasar's theology that comprise a doctrine of human perdition.3 Scriptural Directives Von Balthasar identifies two series of statements in the New Testament concerning the definitive judgment of human beings. The first confronts us with the real possibility of eternal perdition; the second "throws open a seemingly unbounded prospect for our hope"4 based on the universal scope of God's saving will and action in Jesus Christ. We can regard Matthew 25:31-46 as representative of the first series of texts.5 Its portrayal of the final judgment allows for the possibility ofa twofold outcome: one will enter either the kingdom of the Father or the fire of hell. Von Balthasar agrees with Joseph Ratzinger and Karl Rahner that, properly understood, the nature of such a discourse is a summons to accept and live out the divine law of self-emptying love. Texts like this assert that every human being is "placed in the position of having to make a decision with irrevocable consequences" and warn that by refusing to conform oneself to Christ in mind and deed one can exclude oneself forever from communion with God. To read this discourse as if it were "an anticipatory report"informing us that some human beings will in fact be damned would be to step outside the boundaries ofthe biblical wit93 94 Logos ness.6 While we can say that these texts give us sure knowledge of our situation as creatures under judgment, they do not grant us to see beyond the crisis of decision to an actual negative outcome of any individual's destiny.7 The 1985 German Bishops' Conference addressed the issue as follows: Neither Holy Scripture nor the Church's Tradition of faidi asserts with certainty of any man that he is actually in hell. Hell is always held before our eyes as a real possibility, one connected with the offer of conversion and life__Holy Scripture does not tell us whedier any man has ever actually decided against God with ultimate finality.8 The second series of texts alludes to a "universalist" resolution of salvation history.9 From among these statements von Balthasar selects several for special emphasis: Titus 2:11, "For the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men"; 2 Pt 3:9, it is not...