Miroslav Volf's Theology of Embrace AS A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION for Hussite Theology, with Focus on the Question of Eschatology Leading to Christian Engaged Life
Abstract
The last phase of theological developments in the world has shown that the question of eschatology and the topic of social engagement are among key issues for contemporary churches. This essay attempts to introduce the Croatian Protestant theologian Miroslav Volf (Professor at Yale University and the founding director of the Centre for Faith and Culture at Yale) as a suitable partner for dialogue with Hussite theology, especially regarding the concept of eschatology and the resulting requirements of Christian engagement which is typical of the Bohemian reformation and in changing ways also for the CHC.
At the end of his life, the Czech theologian and pastor of the CHC Zdeněk Trtík subscribed to the programme of Jürgen Moltmann's theology of hope - Moltmann was Volf's teacher and friend. Volf's theology, which gracefully combines radicalism with an uncommon amount of realism, can provide us with fruitful stimuli.
In a world which faces numerous problems that should be addressed by the church before the face of God, be they ecological problems, poverty and exploitation, hunger, military conflicts, coexistence of diverse culture and religions in close proximity, Hussite theology surely needs such impulses.