Abstract
In this volume, George Hunsinger brings together a superb collection of essays on Karl Barth’s relationship to the Jewish people and to Judaism. This is no doubt a complex matter. On the one hand, Barth’s covenantal theology is committed to affirming God’s continuing faithfulness to God’s covenant with Israel, as the people of God. Yet, on the other hand, he ties God faithfulness to this covenant with its fulfilment in the person of Jesus Christ, the new covenant to whom the Church stands witness. For Barth, there is complete unity between God faithfulness to Israel and to the Church, yet there is also a complete newness that comes with the event of the incarnation. As such, as Hunsinger notes, quoting David Novak, it can be apt to associate Barth’s theology with a ‘soft supersessionism’ (p. ix). Such an approach clearly raises difficult theological issues, and these are given careful consideration throughout this volume. Then there are the complex historical and contextual issues that arise, which are also given due attention.
I cannot say much more about the complexities that emerge when asking whether Barth was a ‘post-Holocaust theologian’. But I can say that these complexities are given nuanced and detailed treatment throughout this volume. Depending on what one is hoping to glean from this volume, there will be some essays that will be more engaging than others. Given my own interests, I found the chapters by Mark Lindsay, Eberhard Busch, Derek Alan Woodard-Lehman, and David Demson particularly penetrating. What these essays do so well is not simply clarify Barth’s position but elucidate its complicated nature. To commend these essays, however, is certainly not to dismiss the others. John Michael Owen provides an excellent translation of Barth’s important sermon for Advent 2, 1933. Faye Bodley-Dangelo contributes a beautiful and moving essay on Barth’s use of the parable of the Good Samaritan to challenge the anti-semitism of the völkisch theology in Germany. The other essays provide insightful reflections on the connection of this volume’s theme to Roman Catholic theology, religious pluralism, and modern European history.
As Hunsinger notes, ‘[t]he essays in this volume are more nearly a tentative beginning than a conclusive end’ (p. xi). This certainly rang true for me. So, I come away from this volume with a much deeper and more nuanced understanding of the complex nature of Barth’s relationship toward the Jews and Judaism. Yet, I also come away wanting more. From my perspective, this is precisely how one should feel after reading an edited volume. As such, I highly recommend this collection to others.