Italian, English, Español

 

KARL RAHNER AND EASTER AS A TIME OF REDISCOVERY OF GLORY

«The beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, apparently so lost and wandering, needy and distant, we are already enveloped in infinite bliss. Because the end has already begun. And that's the glory."

— Theologica —

.

A famous proverb goes:: «Even a broken watch, twice a day, marks the exact time".

It will seem strange to you, but for once I found myself in agreement with Karl Rahner, who dedicated some reflections to Easter. I read one of his texts because I wanted to take a while’ in discussion on what were also my Easter reflections, and I must say that the speech of this Jesuit theologian seems to me, as well as profoundly Catholic, also very consistent and profitable. In this article we will start from one of his considerations and then try to apply it to the Easter season.

Yup, because Easter time is coming a little’ left out, and this is the first reflection I want to leave you. It seems to run away quickly until summer, almost as if it were exclusively a period in which we sit and rest: just remember that Jesus is risen and everything is resolved, and we put ourselves in a position of pure celebration. Unlike Lent, considered the strong spiritual and existential time par excellence, in which fasting is rightly practiced, ascetic choices are made and topics such as death are reflected upon par excellence, judgment and original sin, and that is what the Church asks of us at that moment.

You understand well, At that time, that it would be appropriate for us believers to also be a time of Easter to pay attention to certain issues that, otherwise, they tend to escape us a little. Of course, it is obvious that we need to diversify the Easter season from that of Lent; the liturgy up to Pentecost already distinguishes the colors, passing from Lenten purple to the white vestments of the holiday. It is based on some of Rahner's intuitions - although he does not share many others, but by grasping what is valid - that a profound detail emerges about the meaning of Easter. He states:

«I believe that the beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, apparently so lost and wandering, needy and distant, we are already enveloped in infinite bliss. Because the end has already begun. And that's the glory." (cf.. What Easter means, Queriniana, Brescia, 2021, 37).

Rahner says this starting from the idea that the resurrection is not a past event, closed in time, nor is it an event that will occur exclusively at the end of time: it is a present, a resurrection that begins now, a glory we experience now. On this point I could quote Rahner's antagonist par excellence, also trained in the Society of Jesus, Hans Urs von Balthasar, but it would take us down paths that are too far away. Glory is presence, the might and strength of God in our today.

And then we can make this reflection, dear friends of the Island of Patmos: truly the Easter season is a time of glory for us? We have truly understood that with the resurrection of Christ the era of the new man began for us, of man living in God? Indeed, entering the glory of God happens, in the first place, in the sacraments. It is the moment in which sacramental grace - in particular the Eucharistic one, but united with all the other sacraments - already now introduces us into the very life of God. And so experiencing the sacraments during Easter time is the right time to enter into the glory of the Risen One, to understand that the life we ​​are living has a different meaning, a sense of eternity. And this shouldn't make us fear the rules - “don't do this, otherwise one day eternal life could be hell” —, limiting itself to a cold normative sense. This promise of eternal life, which starts now, it is also the joy and hope of building, as of now, real paths to eternity.

And here we come to the third point: what does it mean, in practice: live as a resurrected person? It means learning that behind every suffering, behind every pain, behind every mourning and behind every trial, Christ already promises us glory from now on; he promises us that He is with us and asks us to face difficulties in a Christian way and then rise again with Him.

I still have vivid memories of my years of study for Bachelor of Theology: during an in-depth study on the theology of marriage, our teacher, suor Alexandra Diriart, he reminded us that every wedding goes through its own Easter. Pass through the nights of passion, of pain and lack of understanding, to arrive at Easter and rise again every time. This dynamic doesn't just apply to marriage: it is our whole life that is resurrected, and rises again now. To live as resurrected people we must have the courage of love, of charity, and the courage to discover the truths of the Catholic faith. We don't all have to be theologians, but we must all learn to believe intelligently. Here is a spiritual journey that we can rediscover at Easter. The liturgical elements of this time – the Ascension, Pentecost and so on - must help us to enter into the perspective of glory to start thinking from “glorified”, looking, as Saint Paul exhorts us, the things from above.

Santa Maria Novella, in Florence, 27 April 2026

.

KARL RAHNER AND EASTER AS A TIME OF REDISCOVERING GLORY

“I believe that the beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, apparently so lost and wandering, needy and distant, are already enveloped in infinite beatitude. For the end has already begun. And it is glory”.

— Theologica —

.

A well-known proverb says: «Even a stopped clock is right twice a day». It may seem strange to you, but for once I found myself in agreement with Karl Rahner, who devoted some reflections to Easter. I read one of his texts because I wanted to question my own Easter reflections, and I must say that the thought of this Jesuit theologian appears to me not only profoundly Catholic, but also remarkably coherent and fruitful. In this article, we will begin from one of his insights and then attempt to apply it to our present Easter season.

Yes, because the Easter season is somewhat neglected, and this is the first reflection I would like to offer you. It seems to pass quickly until summer, almost as if it were merely a time to sit back and rest: it is enough to recall that Jesus has risen and everything is resolved, and one settles into a purely festive attitude. In contrast to Lent, considered the strong spiritual and existential time par excellence, in which one rightly practices fasting, undertakes ascetical choices, and reflects above all on themes such as death, judgment, and original sin — as the Church asks of us in that time.

You can understand, then, that it would be fitting for the Easter season also to become for us believers a time of attention to certain themes which otherwise tend to slip away from us. Of course, it is clear that Easter must be distinguished from Lent; the liturgy itself, up to Pentecost, distinguishes the colors, moving from the Lenten violet to the white vestments of the feast. It is from some insights of Rahner — while not sharing many of his other positions, but taking what is valid — that a profound detail about the meaning of Easter emerges. He states:

“I believe that the beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, apparently so lost and wandering, needy and distant, are already enveloped in infinite beatitude. For the end has already begun. And it is glory” (cf. What Does Easter Mean?, Queriniana, Brescia, 2021, 37).

Rahner says this starting from the idea that the Resurrection is not a past event, closed in time, nor is it an event that will occur only at the end of time: it is a present reality, a Resurrection that already begins now, a glory that we live even now. On this point I could mention Rahner’s great counterpart, also formed in the Society of Jesus, Hans Urs von Balthasar, but that would lead us too far afield. Glory is the presence, the power, and the strength of God in our today.

And so we may ask ourselves, dear friends of the Island of Patmos: is the Easter season truly a time of glory for us? Have we really understood that with the Resurrection of Christ there has begun for us the era of the new man, the man alive in God? Indeed, entering into the glory of God takes place, first of all, in the sacraments. It is the moment in which sacramental grace — especially Eucharistic grace, but united with all the other sacraments — already introduces us into the very life of God. Thus, living the sacraments during the Easter season is the favorable time to enter into the glory of the Risen One, to understand that the life we are living has a different meaning, a meaning of eternity. And this should not instill in us fear of rules — “do not do this, otherwise eternal life may become hell” — reducing everything to a cold normative sense. This promise of eternal life, which begins already now, is also joy and hope, allowing us to build, even now, true paths of eternity.

And here we come to the third point: what does it mean, in practice, to live as risen? It means learning that behind every suffering, behind every pain, behind every loss and every trial, Christ already now promises us glory; He promises that He is with us and asks us to face difficulties in a Christian way in order to rise again with Him.

I still vividly remember my years of study for the licentiate in theology: during a lecture on the theology of marriage, our professor, Sister Alexandra Diriart, reminded us that every marriage goes through its own Easter. It passes through the nights of passion, suffering, and misunderstanding, in order to arrive at Easter and rise again each time. This dynamic does not apply only to marriage: it is our whole life that rises again, and rises now. To live as risen, we must have the courage of love, of charity, and the courage to discover the truths of the Catholic faith. We do not all have to be theologians, but we must all learn to believe with intelligence. This is a spiritual path that we can rediscover at Easter. The liturgical elements of this time — the Ascension, Pentecost, and so on — must help us to enter into the perspective of glory and begin to think as “those already glorified,” seeking, as Saint Paul exhorts us, the things that are above.

Santa Maria Novella, Florence, April 27, 2026

.

KARL RAHNER AND EASTER AS A TIME OF REDISCOVERY OF GLORY

«The beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, seemingly so lost and wandering, needy and distant, we are already enveloped in infinite bliss. Because the end has already begun. And it is the glory

— Theologica —

.

A well-known proverb says: "Even a broken watch, twice a day, mark the exact time. It may seem strange, but for once I found myself agreeing with Karl Rahner, who has dedicated some reflections to Easter. I have read one of your texts because I wanted to question my own Easter reflections, and I must say that the thought of this Jesuit theologian seems to me, in addition to being deeply Catholic, also remarkably coherent and fruitful. In this article we will start from one of his intuitions to try to apply it to our Easter time..

Yeah, because Easter time is usually a bit sloppy, and this is the first reflection that I want to leave you. It seems to go by quickly until summer, almost as if it were just a time to sit and rest: It is enough to remember that Jesus has risen and everything is resolved, thus adopting a purely festive attitude. Unlike Lent, considered the strong spiritual and existential time par excellence, in which fasting is precisely practiced, ascetic choices are made and reflection is made on topics such as death, judgment and original sin — just as the Church asks us at that time.

Understand well, so, that it would be appropriate for Easter time to also be for us, believers, a time of attention to certain themes that, otherwise, they tend to escape. It is evident that the time of Easter must be distinguished from that of Lent.; of the liturgy, until Pentecost, differentiate the colors, going from Lenten purple to the white ornaments of the holiday. Based on some of Rahner's intuitions — although not sharing many of his other positions, but embracing what is valid — a profound aspect emerges about the meaning of Easter. He claims:

«I believe that the beginning of the glory of all things is already underway, that we, seemingly so lost and wandering, needy and distant, we are already enveloped in infinite bliss. Because the end has already begun. And it is the glory (cf. What does Easter mean?, Queriniana, Brescia, 2021, 37).

Rahner affirms this based on the idea that the Resurrection It is not a past event., closed in time, nor is it an event that will happen only at the end of time: it is a present, a Resurrection that begins now, a glory that we already live today. At this point I could quote Rahner's great counterpoint, also trained in the Society of Jesus, Hans Urs von Balthasar, but it would take us too far. Glory is the presence, the power and strength of God in our today.

And then we can ask ourselves this question, dear friends of the Island of Patmos: Is Easter time really a time of glory for us?? Have we truly understood that with the Resurrection of Christ the era of the new man has begun for us?, of man alive in God? Indeed, entering the glory of God happens, first of all, in the sacraments. It is the moment when sacramental grace - especially Eucharistic grace, but united to all the other sacraments — it already introduces us into the very life of God. Living the sacraments at Easter time is, therefore, the opportune moment to enter into the glory of the Risen Lord, to understand that the life we ​​are living has a different meaning, a sense of eternity. And this should not make us afraid of the rules — "don't do this.", otherwise eternal life could be hell”—reducing itself to a cold normative sense. This promise of eternal life, that starts now, It is also joy and hope, allowing us to build from now on true paths of eternity.

And here we come to the third point: what does it mean, in practice, live like resurrected? It means learning that behind all suffering, behind all pain, behind every loss and every trial, Christ now promises us glory; He promises us that He is with us and asks us to face difficulties in a Christian way and then rise again with Him..

I still have very vivid memories of my years of study. for the degree in theology: during a class on the theology of marriage, our teacher, sor Alexandra Diriart, He reminded us that every marriage goes through its own Easter. Go through the nights of passion, of pain and misunderstanding, to reach Easter and resurrect each time. This dynamic doesn't just apply to marriage.: It is our whole life that is resurrected, and resurrect now. To live as resurrected we must have the courage of love, of charity, and the value of discovering the truths of the Catholic faith. Not all of us should be theologians, but we must all learn to believe intelligently. Here is a spiritual path that we can rediscover at Easter. The liturgical elements of this time — the Ascension, Pentecost and so on — should help us enter into the perspective of glory and begin to think as “glorified.”, searching, as Saint Paul exhorts us, the things above.

Santa Maria Novella, Florence, 21 April 2026

.

Subscribe to our Channel Jordan the Theological club directed by Father Gabriele by clicking on the image

 

THE LATEST EPISODES ARE AVAILABLE IN THE ARCHIVE: WHO

.

Visit the pages of our book shop WHO and support our editions by purchasing and distributing our books.

.

______________________

Dear Readers,
this magazine requires management costs that we have always faced only with your free offers. Those who wish to support our apostolic work can send us their contribution through the convenient and safe way PayPal by clicking below:

Or if you prefer you can use our
Bank account in the name of:
Editions The island of Patmos

n Agency. 59 From Rome – Vatican
Iban code:
IT74R0503403259000000301118
For international bank transfers:
Codice SWIFT:
BAPPIT21D21

If you make a bank transfer, send an email to the editorial staff, the bank does not provide your email and we will not be able to send you a thank you message:
isoladipatmos@gmail.com

We thank you for the support you wish to offer to our apostolic service.

The Fathers of the Island of Patmos

.

.

.