Sacrifice as Gift: Eucharist, Grace, and Contemplative Prayer in Maurice de la Taille
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Sacrifice as Gift: Eucharist, Grace, and Contemplative Prayer in Maurice de la Taille
320Hardcover
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Overview
How is the church to understand the Eucharist? Historically, the church has thought in terms of Christ's sacrifice that atones or makes satisfaction for our sins. Today, many theologians hold that Christ's death is primarily a self-gift, and they de-emphasize atonement or satisfaction. According to Michon M. Matthiesen, the early twentieth-century Jesuit Maurice de la Taille offered a theology that is relevant to this contemporary debate because it accounts for both the sacrifice and gift aspects of the Eucharist. De la Taille's three-volume masterpiece, Mysterium Fidei, published in 1921, generated theological excitement and controversy. Some praised the work as a new theological method that overcame post-Tridentine immolationist Eucharistic theories of sacrifice. Others objected to his view of Trent and were offended by his mystical-theological synthesis.
Sacrifice as Gift retrieves de la Taille's magisterial thought, presenting him as an early nouvelle théologie thinker who recovered patristic and medieval insights that lost prominence after Trent. The volume also demonstrates his role in the liturgical movement in Europe. According to Matthiesen, de la Taille did not claim to offer a "new theory" about the sacrifice of the Mass. Rather, he carefully read the tradition, weaving "the voices of the pages"—from scripture and the Fathers (East and West), to the scholastics, and the mystics of the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries.
This study captures the remarkably integrated nature of de la Taille's thought on eucharistic sacrifice. Matthiesen argues that de la Taille's theology of eucharistic sacrifice cannot be properly understood apart from his theology of grace and contemplative prayer. Besides providing a new appreciation of the depth of de la Taille's theological contribution, Sacrifice as Gift is a timely presentation of a forgotten vision of eucharistic sacrifice, one that reconfigures the current philosophical and theological divide between sacrifice and gift.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Michon M. Matthiesen is adjunct assistant professor at Providence College.
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK:
"Michon Matthiesen has written a rigorous elucidation of the immensely respected sacramental theology of Maurice de la Taille not primarily as historical research, but rather as a way of resolving what she sees as a debilitating impasse in sacramental theology today. Matthiesen is a sacramental theologian of considerable merit, whose grounding in liturgy enriches her theological inquiry. Her presentation of de la Taille's often dense argumentation makes it comes to life, ever showing its relevance to the issues it questions."—David Burrell, CSC, Hesburgh Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Theology, University of Notre Dame
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780813220031 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | The Catholic University of America Press |
| Publication date: | 12/05/2012 |
| Pages: | 320 |
| Product dimensions: | 6.30(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.20(d) |
About the Author
MICHON M. MATTHIESEN is adjunct assistant professor at Providence College.
Read an Excerpt
Sacrifice as GIFT
Eucharist, Grace, and Contemplative Prayer in Maurice de la TailleBy Michon M. Matthiesen
The Catholic University of America Press
Copyright © 2013 The Catholic University of America PressAll right reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-8132-2003-1
Chapter One
The Nature of Sacrifice
A first indication that Mysterium Fidei offers a decidedly different approach to eucharistic theology, different from that of the eucharistic treatises that populated the theological field from the early medieval period up to the manuals of de la Taille's own time, is his decision to treat "sacrifice" before "sacrament," thereby inverting what had become the classical structure for explicating the Eucharist. De la Taille defends this bouleversement as a rightful attending to the "natural order" or sequence of events: that is, dealing with what came first—the sacrifice offered by Christ—before considering the daily sacrifice of the church. However, without accusing de la Taille of being disingenuous, sacrifice is much more than a temporal "first" in his eucharistic theology. Sacrifice, in fact, is the principal intellectual category in the whole of de la Taille's Mysterium Fidei—always implicit, and frequently coming rather explicitly to the surface throughout the various questions he treats. De la Taille likewise acknowledges that some readers will be disconcerted that a proof of "real presence" does not emerge as the "set purpose" of his work (also indicated by the reverse structuring of Mysterium Fidei). Still, though he professes not to address this apologetic question with direct intention, real presence is demonstrated, nonetheless, in the course of his focus upon sacrifice. We commence then with a detailed presentation of de la Taille's definition of sacrifice, precisely to the end of tracing the ways it shapes and illuminates his treatment of Christ's sacrifice and the sacrifice of the ecclesia.
I shall not attempt here a full apologia for de la Taille's starting point in sacrifice, despite the protest of modern eucharistic theology. He maintains, and with reason, that a Christian theology of the Eucharist will, of necessity, attend to sacrifice "in genere." Scripture and tradition give ample evidence that the event of Christ's passion was interpreted in terms of sacrifice, and de la Taille would be puzzled indeed by the suggestion of some late-twentieth-century theologians (R. Daly, E. Kilmartin, and L-M. Chauvet) that beginning with sacrifice is a "methodological mistake." Of course, it is another question altogether to ask whether or not elements from his initial discussion of sacrifice in genere govern his eucharistic theology in too heavy-handed a way, to the point of straining revelation and official church tradition. I do not think so. Alternatively, we shall see that these elements of sacrifice enhance our understanding of the Eucharist in ways that corroborate church tradition and truths of Christian practice and formation.
In any event, de la Taille is not unaware that his theological approach leaves some angles on the Eucharist unexplored, or at least underexplored. However, his express purpose is to shed greater light on the mystery of the Eucharist, striving for a systematic, coherent understanding that is both congruent with the truth of scripture and tradition and concerned to "foster piety." The genus of sacrifice is that archê that allows for an "organic articulation" of the theological complexus of the Eucharist. Sacrifice responds to the central theological questions about the Eucharist, namely, "What properly is this?" and "What in its intrinsic essence is this matter with which our faith concerns itself?" For de la Taille, sacrifice is the theological key to a hermeneutic of the Eucharist. This chapter begins to outline why this is the case, while also revealing how sacrifice is intrinsically related to its frequently segregated relative: gift.
Sacrifice In Genere
De la Taille stipulates that his definition of sacrifice is founded upon "revelation" (contained in "sacred writings") and upon "reason"—reason that, in the Thomistic sense, understands that human nature demands ("exigit") sacrifice. As he lays out his theory of sacrifice at the opening of Mysterium Fidei, it immediately becomes apparent that his definition rests on an amalgam of sources: scripture; liturgical texts; theological tradition (the fathers, mediaeval theologians, conciliar documents, sermons, and hymns); and history-of-religions research. In regard to the latter, he acknowledges that such studies fluctuate and contain more conjecture than well-established fact. Even so, de la Taille displays an intellectual delight in correlating the findings of comparative religious studies with his strictly theological witness to sacrifice, welcoming the illuminating power that comes from such an approach. One may quibble with his broad methodological approach and observe that he has cast his net too widely in considering sacrifice in genere. But I would argue that de la Taille's creative synthesis, which gives evidence of a clear hierarchy among materials, is both theologically responsible and valuable.
The central features of de la Taille's definition of sacrifice will be identified and discussed in the following order: (1) a traditional, but presciently stipulated, doctrine of sacrifice as latria and propitiation; (2) a categorization of sacrifice as belonging to the species of sign and gift; (3) an instructive parsing of oblation and immolation in sacrifice; and (4) an understanding of sacrifice as gift and moral pactum, thereby involving divine acceptance and the subsequent flow of gifts "touched" by the divine (sacrificial banquet). During this exposition of de la Taille's thesis on sacrifice, I urge that three questions or concerns remain close to the surface. The prevailing sentiment against sacrifice in contemporary circles frequently contends that the only appropriate response toward a God who requires destructive blood sacrifice from human beings is repulsion. Thus the first question, "What picture of God emerges from de la Taille's definition of sacrifice?" needs to hold place in the context of this discussion. Precisely, what kind of a God is suggested in this treatment of sacrifice and the gift dynamic imbedded within it? Secondly, we do well in advance to point to the unrelenting tension between external sign and interior reality in de la Taille's construal of sacrifice. Does he, in fact, negotiate successfully this tension? This is a fair question, provided it is issued without an accompanying demand that the tension need be resolved. At any rate, acknowledging this tension in his definition of sacrifice forestalls a dismissal of his thought as purely objectivistic. Thirdly, and certainly related to the exterior/interior question of sacrifice, de la Taille's theory is marked by an emphasis upon the role of will (intentio) and devotio in the act of sacrifice, which emphasis, if overlooked, contributes both to a misconception of his unicist position on the supper and cross and to serious oversight in regard to the spirituality behind his eucharistic theology. In regard to these last two issues, we do well to recall the central inspiration for de la Taille's thought on eucharistic sacrifice—namely, the Epistle to the Hebrews. This New Testament text itself returns frequently to the themes of external rite/ internal disposition and of the will's obedience and purity. In short, I argue that de la Taille's understanding of sacrifice as laid out in the first Elucidation of Mysterium Fidei bears within it a theology that is neither crass in its concept of the divinity nor simplistic in its portrayal of the human act of oblation.
Sacrifice as Latria and Propitiation
De la Taille's exposition of sacrifice as latreutic and propitiatory reveals him to be a heedful disciple of Thomas on this question. Even so, his exposition holds out a few theological surprises of its own, particularly in regard to the portrayal of latria and propitiation as dual sources of the obligation to offer sacrifice. While arguing that latria is central to the act of sacrifice, de la Taille also demonstrates that the "second source" of obligation to offer sacrifice, propitiation, cannot, given the de facto condition of sin, be absolutely divorced from that of latria. This overlapping or conjoining of the reasons for offering sacrifice goes some way toward precluding a construal of de la Taille's position on sacrifice as either purely ethical offering or as an offering made only to placate—or change the disposition of—a justly angry God.
Let us carefully define latria, the "first and highest" duty of the human creature. Latria includes an obligation to surrender to, to submit to, and to entirely "hand oneself over" to God, who is the source and the Creator of all things. Following Thomas, de la Taille argues that sacrifice is the singular exterior representation of that interior, latreutic dedication of the mind and will to God; more, it is a worship that cannot be directed to any other being without the grave sin of idolatry. We shall return shortly to the emphasis on the necessity of the outward, sensible sign of latria. I first want to underscore both how de la Taille characterizes the God to whom this sacrifice is offered and how he delineates the elements peculiar to latreutic sacrifice.
De la Taille establishes his understanding of sacrifice in opposition to theologians like Cardinal de Lugo, who, holding that latreutic sacrifice worships God as the omnipotent "lord of life and death," thereby sees a destruction of the self (or a substitute) as inevitably demanded by sacrifice. De la Taille, to the contrary, insists that latreutic sacrifice honors God "as our end, or as the highest Good, the perfecting of all things (ut finis nostra, seu ut summa Bonitas, perfectiva rerum omnium)." As such, latreutic sacrifice must signify the perfecting of the creature; it cannot be a diminution ("inimicam"), but only an enrichment ("amicam") to the life of a human being. Even more, de la Taille stipulates that this office of latria is referred not to God's omnipotence, by which he holds all things in being, but to his "goodness and lovableness (bonitatem seu amabilitatem)," by which he calls all beings to himself ("quae omnia vocat ad se"). God moves and draws human beings to participate in God, and it is in accordance with this Supreme Good that the believer offers latreutic sacrifice to the creator and provider of beatitude. In other words, it is God's "loveableness"—which is love itself ("ipse amor") and which alone moves and inclines the rational will—that elicits from humans the cult of latria.
Latreutic sacrifice likewise includes aspects of both eucharistia and impetratio. As God is the diffusive origin of all goods, latria fittingly and explicitly acknowledges these gifts by thanksgiving. Concomitantly, as God will not be outdone in generosity, the securing of divine favors by petition is also involved in latreutic sacrifice. What can be expected by the worshipper who devotes herself to the first Good, to the fons from which every created thing comes forth and to which every good leads? Quoting Ignatius of Loyola, de la Taille suggests that the more generous one is in latria, the closer one is to God and the more generous will be the response of the divine majesty. Between God and the worshipper there exist robust intimacy and mutual generosity. In asking for help and specific goods, latria appropriately gives expression to a desire for God. Hence, thanksgiving and petition are layered realities of latreutic sacrifice.
If latreutic sacrifice is a submission to God, God as attracting love and the end of human happiness, how can one reconcile to this the second source of obligation for offering sacrifice—propitiation? In a word, de la Taille weaves propitiation into latria without a seam. Propitiation, in fact, becomes a form of latria that best accords with the fallen state of humankind. This move may be de la Taille's novum in regard to Christian sacrifice. His argument unfolds first by questioning what relationally ought to obtain in sacrifice between the worshipper and God, and then, secondly, by more precisely demonstrating that propitiation and latria inherently coalesce as twin obligations in the genuine offering of sacrifice. Does de la Taille here too readily unite two distinct forms of Hebrew sacrifice? Perhaps, but some scholars have noted that issues of purity and impurity and harmony and disorder underlie the entire sacrificial system in ancient Israel. As far as the history of Hebrew sacrifice is concerned, it is certainly not clear that the peace or communion sacrifice (sometimes translated as "completion" offering), which typically ends in a shared meal among participants, is ever offered without an accompanying recognition of human impurity before an all-holy Lord. In fact, the communion meal or feasting of the peace sacrifice is often the final ritual moment after a purification sacrifice has removed what could hinder harmony with the divine. Once one admits that sin or impurity is inevitably involved whenever the creature comes before the Creator in the worship of sacrifice, de la Taille's logic is difficult to controvert. To be sure, while the two obligations of latria and expiation are always conjoined in a single liturgy of sacrifice, there is no difficulty in acknowledging that, most frequently, one of the two aspects will predominate.
De la Taille construes the propitiatory aspect of sacrifice in the following attractive way. Because human beings are sinners, every honor or gift given to God must also ("prius") give testimony of sorrow and exhibit some kind of compensation or reparation. This requirement is based on the sacrificial dynamic of gift giving that calls for genuine goodwill and friendship. Without the element of penitential acknowledgement, along with an expression of the desire to make reparation, the offering in sacrifice of gifts or thanksgiving to God would bear the "savour" of coming from one "both unworthy and unfriendly (ab indigno et inimico)." To be a friend of God, to be one who offers gifts to God—be it in praise, thanksgiving, impetration, or all three—necessarily involves a testimony to sorrow for sin. Note that de la Taille does not specify here some process of penance and purification necessary before offering sacrifice to God. Rather, an element of propitiation pertains to the act of sacrificial oblation proper, such that the purification is embedded in the offering, a reality to which we shall return. More forcibly still, de la Taille asks us to see the inherently overlapping religious posture in the two obligations. If propitiation includes the concept of "compensation" for the injured "right" of God, then that very acknowledgment of divine excellence reveals an unmistakably latreutic attitude toward God's majesty. The latreutic friend of God offers sacrifice knowing the need and desire for reconciliation; the repentant offerer of sacrifice acknowledges that the one to be "compensated" is the creator and lord of the universe—i.e., the only being worthy of latria.
This conflation of the double obligation to offer sacrifice can be promoted from yet another angle: de la Taille posits that propitiation, like latria, includes eucharistia and impetratio. Thanksgiving is proper to propitiatory offering because such action expresses gratitude for mercy shown to the unworthy and undeserving. On a similar note, the propitiatory aspect of sacrifice includes not only the obvious petition for forgiveness and reconciliation, but also, pardon being granted and "obstacles" removed, petitions for other benefits flowing from divine goodness. De la Taille so parses propitiation as to argue that latria and propitiation cannot be absolutely distinct in genere sacrificii.
Two final observations about propitiatory sacrifice may curtail later confusion. De la Taille does not hesitate to show that real or metaphorical death and mortification are conveniens to propitiatory sacrifice. At the same time, however, he argues that love plays an essential role in propitiatory oblation (as it does in latreutic sacrifice). Invoking scripture, and particularly Paul, de la Taille draws his conclusions about the relationship between death and propitiation. Because the subjection of the spirit to the flesh is a "natural consequence" of sin, mortification of the flesh is appropriate in the "undoing" of sin. He acknowledges with Paul that eternal death is the "wage" of sin, and that this death begins with a temporal dying. In chapters 8 and 9 we shall have occasion to look precisely at how this "mortification" is entwined with baptismal life and the practice of prayer. For now I merely intend to highlight de la Taille's unflinching recognition of death as a fitting component to propitiatory sacrifice. "Sine sanguinis effusione non fit remissio" (Heb. 9:22). Quoting the author of the epistle that so penetrates his eucharistic theology, de la Taille argues that when a propitiatory end is preeminent, sacrificial action most congruently exhibits the reality of alienating sin through some sensible sign of death. Significantly, however, this sign of blood and death is not efficacious without amor. Indeed, love is and must be the central motive in the pain and death that accompany sacrifice. Suffering and death are so naturally repugnant to the human appetite that love must lead the way in any propitiatory offering: there is no ampliorem aut nobiliorem "field of victory open to love" than that of propitiatory sacrifice (cf. John 5:13; Phil. 2:8). De la Taille states frankly the law of efficacy in propitiatory sacrifice: "The greater the intensity of love in the person converted to God and turned away from sin, the more adequate (condignior) will be the compensation." This principle, which will be crucially important in its application to the church's sacrifice, clearly announces the key issue in his doctrine of sacrifice—namely, the relation between the external sign and the internal reality of devotio, to which we now turn.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Sacrifice as GIFT by Michon M. Matthiesen Copyright © 2013 by The Catholic University of America Press. Excerpted by permission of The Catholic University of America Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Table of Contents
Preface ix
Abbreviations xiii
Introduction 1
Part 1 De Sacrificio
1 The Nature of Sacrifice 31
2 Christ's Sacrifice 55
3 The Ecclesial Sacrifice 92
Part 2 De Gratia
4 Eucharistic Union and Divinization 119
5 The Grace of the Redeemer 153
6 "Created Actuation by Uncreated Act" 188
Part 3 De Contemplatione et De Baptismo
7 The Nature of Contemplation 213
8 Contemplation and the Eucharist 238
9 Baptismal Mortification and the Eucharist 261
Conclusion 287
Bibliography 299
Index of Subjects 313
Index of Names 318