The author replies.Whenever I stand meditatively med·i·ta·tive adj. Characterized by or prone to meditation. See Synonyms at pensive. med  i·ta beneath a great painting, intuition and emotion reign. Language stutters--and ultimately fails--to translate image into word. Chagall's canvas suggests that Jesus symbolizes the great suffering of the Jews without totally subsuming it. Can this language of seemingly authentic devotion be theologically justified? Robert Imbelli states that the Christian paschal faith is that Jesus died for all and cites for us Nostra aetate's words: "Christ in his boundless love, freely underwent his passion and death on account of the sins of all people, so that all might attain salvation" (italics mine). I subscribe fully and unequivocally to the reality that Jesus died for the sins of all people (Jews and gentiles). Jesus is, indeed, a sign of God's universal love and the source of all grace. He is not just my savior or only one for those who explicitly believe. But note that Nostra aetate Nostra Aetate is the Declaration on the Relation of the Church with Non-Christian Religions of the Second Vatican Council. Passed by a vote of 2,221 to 88 of the assembled bishops, this declaration was promulgated on October 28, 1965, by Pope Paul VI. speaks of redemption from sin. It says nothing of suffering. In a more profound sense, I sometimes think--with Theodore Adorno--that no act of fulfillment (not even the Resurrection) totally subsumes the senseless sense·less adj. 1. Lacking sense or meaning; meaningless. 2. Deficient in sense; foolish or stupid. 3. Insensate; unconscious. sufferings, the wastes of history. Suffering is one of the consequences of sin, which even Jesus undergoes. He takes away the sins of the world but, just perhaps, does not fully sublate sub·late tr.v. sub·lat·ed, sub·lat·ing, sub·lates Logic To negate, deny, or contradict. [From Latin subl the mystery of senseless suffering. He retains his wounds, even in resurrection. I call for a necessary silence, humility, and waiting before God when faced with the cross. I would still want to stand long before the White Crucifixion White Crucifixion is a painting by Marc Chagall. It was painted in 1938, and can be viewed at the Art Institute of Chicago. External links
adj. Of or relating to a creed. Adj. 1. creedal - of or relating to a creed credal formulas of Nostra aetate. I think the proclamation of Jesus as the redeemer of the world gains by such mediation rather than loses. JOHN A. COLEMAN, SJ |
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