Listen free for 30 days
-
Karl Rahner: Theologian of Grace
- Narrated by: Richard Lennan
- Length: 4 hrs and 51 mins
- Categories: Religion & Spirituality, Christianity
People who bought this also bought...
-
Hans Urs von Balthasar: Rediscovering Holistic Christianity
- By: Kevin Mongrain
- Narrated by: Kevin Mongrain
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Explore the profound spirituality of Hans Urs von Balthasar. Born in Switzerland, Balthasar (1905-1988) was one of the most prolific and sophisticated Catholic thinkers of the 20th century. As you will discover, Balthasar's theology provides a powerful model for the Catholic Church in the modern world. In Hans Urs von Balthasar: Rediscovering Holistic Christianity, you will join Balthasar expert Dr. Kevin Mongrain (PhD, Yale University) in exploring this great theologian.
-
Karl Rahner: Theological Giant of the Twentieth Century
- By: Harvey D. Egan
- Narrated by: Harvey D. Egan
- Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Karl Rahner is known as the father of the Catholic Church in the 20th century. Join Rahner’s celebrated student, acclaimed theologian, author, and Boston College professor, Fr. Harvey Egan, SJ, in this exploration of Rahner’s wisdom. A Jesuit priest, Rahner was also a philosopher, theologian, commentator on church documents, devotional writer, preacher, and retreat director. His 4,000 written works reveal a powerful vision, and the questions he raised continue to inspire theology today.
-
-
Outstanding theology
- By Barry Tebb on 09-09-18
-
Teilhard de Chardin's Cosmic Christology and Christian Cosmology
- By: Donald Goergen
- Narrated by: Donald Goergen
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Journey through the life, thought, and works of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. One of the most celebrated spiritual minds of the 20th century, Teilhard de Chardin was both a respected scientist and a Jesuit priest. He combined an evolutionary worldview with his commitment to his Christian tradition and Catholic faith. A pioneer in the dialogue between religion and science, he remains a widely influential mystical voice.
-
-
Great introduction to Teilhard de Chardin
- By Kristijan on 20-12-20
-
That All Shall Be Saved
- Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation
- By: David Bentley Hart
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The great fourth-century church father Basil of Caesarea once observed that, in his time, most Christians believed that hell was not everlasting, and that all would eventually attain salvation. But today, this view is no longer prevalent within Christian communities. In this momentous book, David Bentley Hart makes the case that nearly two millennia of dogmatic tradition have misled readers on the crucial matter of universal salvation.
-
-
Brilliant and persuasive
- By MR J. on 14-11-19
-
The Seven Storey Mountain
- By: Thomas Merton
- Narrated by: Sidney Lanier
- Length: 2 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Seven Storey Mountain is the extraordinary spiritual testament of Thomas Merton (1915-1968), a man who experienced life to its fullest in the world before entering a Trappist monastery. By the end of his life, he had become one of the 20th century's best known and loved Christian voices. This autobiography deals...not with what happens to a man, but what happens inside his soul.
-
-
I wish there was an unabridged version!
- By Pen Name on 28-05-20
-
The Dark Night of the Soul
- By: St. John of the Cross
- Narrated by: Peter Wickham
- Length: 5 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the center of The Dark Night of the Soul (La noche oscura del alma) is a poem written by the 16th century Spanish poet and mystic St John of the Cross. Consisting of eight stanzas, each of five lines, the poem outlines the journey in pursuit of divine union, within which the only source of light comes from the soul. This recording in English includes the poem itself and St John's two accompanying treatises (1584-1585), essentially commentaries, which offer line-by-line explanations of the poem. Many modern listeners have found guidance and consolation in this work.
-
Hans Urs von Balthasar: Rediscovering Holistic Christianity
- By: Kevin Mongrain
- Narrated by: Kevin Mongrain
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Explore the profound spirituality of Hans Urs von Balthasar. Born in Switzerland, Balthasar (1905-1988) was one of the most prolific and sophisticated Catholic thinkers of the 20th century. As you will discover, Balthasar's theology provides a powerful model for the Catholic Church in the modern world. In Hans Urs von Balthasar: Rediscovering Holistic Christianity, you will join Balthasar expert Dr. Kevin Mongrain (PhD, Yale University) in exploring this great theologian.
-
Karl Rahner: Theological Giant of the Twentieth Century
- By: Harvey D. Egan
- Narrated by: Harvey D. Egan
- Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Karl Rahner is known as the father of the Catholic Church in the 20th century. Join Rahner’s celebrated student, acclaimed theologian, author, and Boston College professor, Fr. Harvey Egan, SJ, in this exploration of Rahner’s wisdom. A Jesuit priest, Rahner was also a philosopher, theologian, commentator on church documents, devotional writer, preacher, and retreat director. His 4,000 written works reveal a powerful vision, and the questions he raised continue to inspire theology today.
-
-
Outstanding theology
- By Barry Tebb on 09-09-18
-
Teilhard de Chardin's Cosmic Christology and Christian Cosmology
- By: Donald Goergen
- Narrated by: Donald Goergen
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Journey through the life, thought, and works of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. One of the most celebrated spiritual minds of the 20th century, Teilhard de Chardin was both a respected scientist and a Jesuit priest. He combined an evolutionary worldview with his commitment to his Christian tradition and Catholic faith. A pioneer in the dialogue between religion and science, he remains a widely influential mystical voice.
-
-
Great introduction to Teilhard de Chardin
- By Kristijan on 20-12-20
-
That All Shall Be Saved
- Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation
- By: David Bentley Hart
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The great fourth-century church father Basil of Caesarea once observed that, in his time, most Christians believed that hell was not everlasting, and that all would eventually attain salvation. But today, this view is no longer prevalent within Christian communities. In this momentous book, David Bentley Hart makes the case that nearly two millennia of dogmatic tradition have misled readers on the crucial matter of universal salvation.
-
-
Brilliant and persuasive
- By MR J. on 14-11-19
-
The Seven Storey Mountain
- By: Thomas Merton
- Narrated by: Sidney Lanier
- Length: 2 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Seven Storey Mountain is the extraordinary spiritual testament of Thomas Merton (1915-1968), a man who experienced life to its fullest in the world before entering a Trappist monastery. By the end of his life, he had become one of the 20th century's best known and loved Christian voices. This autobiography deals...not with what happens to a man, but what happens inside his soul.
-
-
I wish there was an unabridged version!
- By Pen Name on 28-05-20
-
The Dark Night of the Soul
- By: St. John of the Cross
- Narrated by: Peter Wickham
- Length: 5 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the center of The Dark Night of the Soul (La noche oscura del alma) is a poem written by the 16th century Spanish poet and mystic St John of the Cross. Consisting of eight stanzas, each of five lines, the poem outlines the journey in pursuit of divine union, within which the only source of light comes from the soul. This recording in English includes the poem itself and St John's two accompanying treatises (1584-1585), essentially commentaries, which offer line-by-line explanations of the poem. Many modern listeners have found guidance and consolation in this work.
Summary
"Grace itself is everywhere and always." (Karl Rahner)
Encounter the towering thought of Karl Rahner (1904-84), one of the most significant voices in Catholic theology in the 20th century. An extraordinarily productive and creative theologian who wrote over 5,000 works, he played a central role as a theological advisor to the bishops at Vatican II. His influence continues to live on in the church and world today.
In this 12-lecture course, you will journey through Rahner's life, thought, and works. Under the guidance of Rahner expert Fr. Richard Lennan, you will explore his theology of grace, which lies at the heart of his works. As you will come to see, Rahner's approach to grace stresses the encounter between God and humanity, an encounter that takes place in every dimension of human life. You will examine how Rahner developed an understanding of God's mystery, the dynamics of the Trinity, and the human person as the recipient of God's grace.
Rahner's work includes all the principal theological themes - Trinity, church, sacraments - but what makes his theology so powerful is his constant reference to the presence of grace in human history. For Rahner, therefore, spirituality is not simply a theme of his writings but is rather at the heart of all that he writes. Karl Rahner's powerful theology will help you encounter God's profound presence in history and our world today.
Critic reviews
"Karl Rahner is a vitally important theologian who still has important things to say for the 21st-century Church. Richard Lennan is both an expert on Rahner's thought and inspiring teacher able to get complex ideas across in a way that makes them clear and attractive. What better combination could there be for this lecture series? Get [his course] if you want to understand your faith more richly." (Philip Endean, S.J.)
More from the same
What listeners say about Karl Rahner: Theologian of Grace
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- snozek
- 11-09-19
good teacher bad material
Dr. Lennan does a great job presenting with his rather notable Australian accent, it was wonderful.
The material however was another animal. It starts with Rahner not being a systemic theologian. His outlook is frusteratingly incomplete and does not deal with most of the chief arguments against it.
As a result, It leaves the reader wondering whether or not Rahner considered these issues in his own writings.
In the course, it mentions that Rahner failed his doctoral defense. This seems altogether likely considering the strange mischaracterization of Scholastic theology and Catholic theology in general.
Throughout the course, it seemed is though he were competing against a straw target that he created himself. Often times, it seems as though he drew a line of delineation that never existed.
Whereas this may seem to reinforce the significance of Rahner's contribution to Catholic theology, to the discerning student, it serves to undermine the thinker in the 1st place. It removes the legitimacy of the initial premises from Rahner's arguments.
I was only familiar with his writings in directly before this course, his contributions being fairly clear in some parts of the documents of Vatican II. Taking this course, it serves to land less credence to Rahner's arguments in general and his contributions to Vatican II more specifically.
Again, for a discerning student, the class can be very frustrating because the primary concerns and counter arguments seem never to be dealt with. Runners chief competing outlook would be the scholastic, Tomistic, School of thought. Those positions are seldom if ever dealt with. It makes the entire view of Rahner to be unreliable as a result.
It does not help that after such an ignoring of a chief argument against his position, Dr. Lennan proceeds down the rabbit hole of what turns into, for the student, Rahner serial speculation. This serial speculation is compounded upon itself until the student is not even on the same planet from which he began.
The effect is an emotive, dreamlike, surrealistic walk down speculation avenue with German theologian sensibilities. That is unappealing.
1 person found this helpful