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Encountering Divine Drama: A Comparative Analysis of Christological Perspectives of Aloysius Pieris and Raymund Schwager

The Christological Perspectives of Aloysius Pieris and Raymund Schwager invite scholars and believers to encounter the transformative power of Christ's message of love, justice, liberation and reconciliation.

Ray­mund Schwa­ger                                                                                            Aloy­sius Pie­ris

Aloysius Pieris, a Sri Lankan Jesuit Theologian, reimagines Christology through the lens of liberation, solidarity and dialogue. His concept of covenantal Christology offers a vision of Christ that transcends doctrinal boundaries and embraces the diverse manifestations of the divine presence in the Asian context. According to Pieris, Christ's baptism in the Jordan is Christ's commitment to open dialogue with the cults and religions of his time, while Christ's death on the cross (the baptism of Calvary) is Christ's identification with the poor and marginalized. Doing Christology in the context of religion and the poor is the main idea of Pieris' Christology.

Grounded in the traditions of Western theological thought, Schwager's Christology unfolds as a compelling drama of divine merciful love, redemption and reconciliation. In the dramatic model, he also refers to the historical process of dogma as a dramatic process. The credibility of dogma can only be measured by the dramatic action of God in history and by the action and suffering of Jesus himself, not by the ethical actions of the Church. In interreligious dialogue, the dramatic view invites religions to promote non-violent teachings and to minimize the victim mechanism in the world community. Through his dramatic Christology, Schwager, a Swiss Jesuit theologian, reveals the transformative power of Christ's life, death and resurrection and invites us to participate in the ongoing drama of salvation as actors on the stage of human history.

This dissertation embarks on an exploration of the heart of Christological discourse. Through a comparative lens, this research explores key themes such as Pieris's covenantal Christology and Christ beyond dogma, Pieris's and Schwager's interreligious dialogue, and Schwager's dramatic Christology. By engaging in dialogue with Pieris's contextual theology rooted in the socio-cultural realities of Asia and Schwager's dramatic theology grounded in the Western theological tradition, this research explores the convergence, divergence, and dialogical possibilities between these different theological frameworks. Through this comparative analysis, "Encountering Divine Drama" offers an exploration of the intersections and dialogues between Asian and Western Christological perspectives, inviting scholars and theologians to engage in meaningful dialogue and reflection on the enduring mysteries of the Christian faith. In this way, it aims to promote deeper insights into the transformative power of Christ's message of love, justice, liberation and reconciliation in today's pluralistic world.

Research Questions

1. How do Aloysius Pieris and Raymund Schwager navigate the tension between doctrinal formulations and the dynamic unfolding of divine revelation in their respective Christological perspectives, and what implications does this have for the understanding of salvation history as a divine drama?
2. In what ways do Aloysius Pieris and Raymund Schwager contribute to the discourse on interreligious dialogue and engagement with other faith traditions, and how do their approaches to dialogue reflect their broader theological frameworks and understandings of divine drama and religious pluralism?
3. Are the two Theologians’ approaches compatible with each other or even complementary? How do we dissolve divergences or apparent contradictions?

Methodology

1. Literature Study: a comprehensive study of primary and secondary sources, including the theological works of Aloysius Pieris and Raymund Schwager, focusing on their writings on Christology, divine drama, dogma, and interreligious dialogue.
2. Comparative analysis: to identify key themes and concepts within the Christological perspectives of Pieris and Schwager, such as covenantal Christology, dramatic Christology, dogma, and interreligious dialogue. Then to compare the theological methods, assumptions, and arguments of Schwager and Pieris, examining similarities, points of convergence, and dissolving divergence or apparent contradictions in their approaches to Christology and divine drama.

Literature

Pieris, Aloysius. 1988. Asian Theology of Liberation. London: T&T Clark.

Pieris, Aloysius. 2000. “Christ Beyond Dogma: Doing Christology in the Context of the Religions and the Poor,” in: Louvain Studies, vol.25, pp. 187–231.

Schwager, Raymund. 1999. Jesus in the Drama of Salvation: Toward a Biblical Doctrine of Redemption, translated by James G. Williams and Paul Haddon, English translation by The Crossroad Publishing Company.

Schwager, Raymund. 2014. Gesammelte Schriften: Dogma und dramatische Geschichte: Christologie im Kontext von Judentum, Islam und moderner Marktkultur. Freiburg i.Br.: Herder, 1. Edition, Band 5.

Julia, Norlan H. S.J. 2017. “ALOYSIUS PIERIS’S ASIAN LIBERATION THEOLOGY AND ITS CHALLENGES TO THE CHURCH’S MISSION IN ASIA” Landas Vol. 31, pp. 51–75.

Wandinger, Nikolaus. 2006. “RAYMUND SCHWAGER, S.J. DRAMATIC THEOLOGY”, Lonergan Workshop Vol. 19, University of Innsbruck, Austria, pp. 325–346.