Hungarian Church Press, 1968 (20. évfolyam, 2. szám)

1968-06-01 / 2. szám

HCP Vol XX Special Number

1968 No 2

~ 75

(07779)

c) On the Nature of the Dialogue

In the present stage of the dialogue we note three indispensable preconditions of the further continuation of this activity which., at the sene time, also indicate the direction in which the dialogue of the future will proceed*

First, it is an obvious fact that we cannot speak of the dialogue in general termsa The content of tin dialogue is to be determined in concreto*. To speak about the dialogue in general is tantamount to conduct a dialogue about the dialogue,, The problems of society, of world society .present their various aspects in the various social situations?) As a result of this differentiation, the dialogue will have other themes in societies besieged by the revolutionary demands of the masses than in other societies in which the themes will reflect the interests of the peoples of the Third World with the urgent imperative of the revolutionary struggle and the requirement to build up new types of societies in the countries liberated or being now liberated from colonial oppression? Again, the dialogue will have its peculiar themes and tasks in the socialist societies in which the Christian churches have agreed to support the aims and programmes of the socialist society without accepting all the presuppositions and consequences of the Marxist ideology*

Another pre-condition as the theological heart—searching, in other words, the "historical self-criticism" of the Church as stipulated by a peculiar theological trend in the Evangelical churches» This theological re-cric:tation (Bonhoaffor, Ivari Barth, Hromédka, Borccsky et ale), while repudiating the traditional anti—revolutionary position cf the Christian churches, reel eons with the forces organising the social revolution of the modern age and with the international movement cf the workers so that it has made the historical reality signalised by appearance 'of the socialist order the object cf theological scrutity in the light cf Gcd;,s full rove lat ion0 It is only in the spirit of this theological re-orientation, that is, in the spirit of penitence, humility and of the acceptance of God’s judgment on the Church that the Christian churches oan make their approach to the tasks of the dialogues

Our third note refers to the fact that, in Christian theology the cultivation of the so-called "theology cf the revolution" has progressively become the widespread and accepted practice of the churches. One cannot, however, make reflexions in ms roly general terms about the revolutionary transformation of the social structure* Theological scrutiny must face the social reality of the revolution, specifically, the existence of ti - internst.icnol movement of the workers« Christian thinking about the revolution has net yet reached the stage in which, beside some abstract theses, the exact study of historical arri social data is also properly attended tcr

And, at last, we cannot ignore the new aspects cf the latest Marxist investigations of the problems of religious sociology* We must refer,-, first ;of all, to the requirement to examine the phenomena cf religion am oi the