Paul Tillich’s Existential Philosophy of Protestantism

THE THOMIST A SPECULATIVE QUARTERLY REVIEW OF THEOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY EDITORS: THE DoMINICAN FATHERS oF THE PROVINCE OF ST. JosEPH Publishers: The Thomist Press, Washington 17, D. C.. VoL. XXVIII JANUARY, 1964 No.1 PAUL TILLICH'S EXISTENTIAL PHILOSOPHY OF PROTESTANTISM IN RECENT years the Christian community has been blessed with an increasingly urgent sense of the unity of Christ's church. This has created a special interest in Protestant theology and led to an ever increasing number of irenically oriented studies. Such work has contributed much by pointing to the authentically Christian content of Protestant theologies, from the discussion of which one might hope for an improved unity of belief. There remained, nevertheless, an important reservation to a fully sympathetic and fruitful dialogue, for it was observed that true ecumenism can be expected as a result of discussions, such as those on justification, only when the meaning attached to such terms as God, creature, sin, and new being, has been, if not agreed upon, at least understood.1 Most fundamentally, 1 Juan Alfaro, S. J., "Justificacion Barthiana y Justificacion Catolica," Gregorianum , XXXIX (1958), pp. 757-69; Henri de Lubac, S. J., " Zum katholischen Dialog mit Karl Barth," Dokumente, XIV (1958), pp. 448-54. 1 GEORGE F. MCLEAN this demanded an appreciation of the philosophical position which stood as their presuppositions or predeterminants; and there, lay a new level of divergence. Among Protestant thinkers these positions were generally those of recent philosophies reflective of man's contemporary dilemma, whereas among Catholic thinkers they were of a more traditional philosophy reflective of the rich insights of classical philosophy. With the opening of Vatican II, however, this difference more than ever before has been shown to be one of complementarity rather than competition. "The Council," said Pope Paul VI, " will build a bridge toward the contemporary world. . . . The Church looks at the world ... with the sincere intention ... not of condemning it but of strengthening and saving it." In this project the Protestant philosophical insight into man's contemporary religious dilemma becomes an indispensable element in any solution, and does so in a way which opens a dimension of ecumenism sufficiently profound to contribute to all others. For this reason the study of the basic religious philosophy of America's foremost Protestant theologian, Dr. Paul Tillich, takes on a special importance. His thought is contemporary, reflecting the modern dichotomy of subject and object in the manner of the existentialist movement. It is ·also Protestant, stressing the corruption of man and his distance from the Creator. The investigation of these facets of Tillich's philosophy will proceed by three stages. First, it will consider his evaluation of the nature and extent of the elements of individuation and participation in relation to previous forms of Christianity. Then it will analyse his conciliation of these two aspects in a philosophy which is religious, Protestant, and contemporary. Finally it will evaluate his contributions both in themselves and in relation to Catholicism. It can be hoped that the study of this recent adaptation of Protestantism to the contemporary scene will shed light on two matters of great interest and urgency. One is the nature of the religious problem expressed in present day thought. The TILLICH'S EXISTENTIAL PHILOSOPHY OF PROTESTANTISM 3 other is the nature of the religious system which can answer these demands. Both contributions should be of assistance to all in understanding that faith which was given for all days even unto the consummation of the world. I. NORMS FOR RELIGIOUS PHILOSOPHIES Paul Tillich is much concerned with the relation between subject and object. His concern extends from its contemporary modality to its fundamental nature. There has been a general consensus of opinion that the great tragedy of recent times has been the subjection of man to the objects he produces. Man is seen to be reduced to the state of an impersonal object.2 We will be able to follow the analysis of this contemporary situation more completely below. For now, it is sufficient to note that it is a pressing manifestation of the fundamental polar relation of self and world, subject and object. Tillich considers this to be the basic ontological structure because it...