Freedom and Possibility considers the ongoing adventure of God acting through the randomness and chance of the evolutionary process, whereby matter became life and life became self-conscious spirit with freedom. God's creation of freedom has been pivotal in the theology of the younger Joseph Ratzinger, as well as of Karl Rahner, Edward Schillebeeckx, and others. Making room for human freedom involves thinking about God's patience, defenselessness, and vulnerability, particularly as made clear in the humanity of Jesus. By creating humans with their finite and free will, God has voluntarily renounced power and control. And, as Walter Kasper has emphasized, if the Church is to be a credible advocate for human rights and freedom in the world, it must assess its own record, and plan to integrate freedom into its internal structures.
Bernard P. Prusak, professor emeritus of systematic/constructive theology at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, is also the former chair of the theology and religious studies department there. He is the author of The Church Unfinished: Ecclesiology through the Centuries (Paulist Press), as well as numerous articles. He has lectured extensively on both the historical and theological perspectives of the Second Vatican Council and its continued influence and challenges, with hope for new possibilities.
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