Abstract
It is somewhat ironic that The Living God and the Fullness of Life is the first book I have read cover-to-cover, and that from world-renowned theologian Jürgen Moltmann. Arguably, Moltmann is one of the most important theologians of the past century. I read in seminary multiple articles and large portions of some his most prominent works—The Crucified God, for starters. This being the first book of his I have read in its entirety shaped my experience of it in ways I imagine differ for those who have read the majority of his works. As I turned the pages of Moltmann’s The Living God, I reflected on how his thoughts challenged and/or affirmed my own beliefs about God and my ministerial praxis.
For starters, whether it was intentional or not (I cannot say), the title is especially apt. For in the large canon of Moltmann’s works this book reads like a long-beloved endeavor coming to its full fruition. At times the reader of this book might find Moltmann’s theological insights and statements brief—not fully fleshed out. This would be an unfair judgment, as it misses the intent of this book. This book is in many ways an overview of his life’s works focused now explicitly on what those works mean for humanity in our present circumstances. It can, and should, be seen as his theology made flesh in answer to the life’s archetype question: What makes life meaningful?
His response to the question permeates the pages of the book. The answer to meaningfulness is joy. Life at its fullest is a cultivation of joy: joy in our shared humanity with others, joy in our interconnectedness with creation, and joy in our partnership with the living God. The book is divided into three parts.
The introduction gives the reasons for why this book is needed in our present society. Moltmann argues that the rise of modernity has led us into a world of diminished human life. He understands and frames modernity as a reaction and critique of religion that has resulted in life being reduced to a materialistic understanding devoid of any type of transcendence. This total paradigm shift away from transcendence to a complete materialistic understanding of reality deprives humanity of a full life.
After making his observations in the introduction, Moltmann moves into the first section of the book and provides an overview of his theological beliefs. For those who have read his previous works, I imagine there will be few surprises in this section. Those engaging with Moltmann for the first time will probably find this section too brief. Overall, this section does a masterful job of providing an overview of his theological concepts developed in prior works.
In the last part (section 2), everything comes together. Responsible for almost two-thirds of the book, in this section Moltmann develops a complete sketch of what a full human life looks like when lived in relationship to the transcendent joy of God who desires to partner with us in freedom. I found the depth of his arguments for human joy refreshing and challenging as I have a propensity to be a bit cynical at times. He particularly emphasizes the relationship between joy and suffering. He writes, “Joy over life’s happiness leads us spontaneously to indignation over the ruined life of ‘the millions’; for the protest against the suffering in this world is nothing other than the ardent longing for a world of happiness.” Joy does not turn a blind eye to suffering. Joy, in Moltmann’s understanding, calls us into solidarity with those who are suffering. His working through the nuances of his understanding of joy and its prime central location in the heart Christianity is worth the price of this book alone. It is a mature vision of joy that needs to be given a hearing in a world of great wealth and despair. It is a joy that offers genuine hope, not a cheap idealistic hope.
Those who do not have an academic background might be discouraged when first beginning this book as Moltmann wrestles with some heavy atheistic existential and philosophical arguments, primarily from philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach. But, rest assured, the rest of the book is accessible and I would argue that it is important for academics and ministers alike to ponder as they think about its potential use in their ministerial praxis, and even for their own personal spiritual development.
I could not help feeling that in my hands was the work of a master craftsman, who had this idea in mind from the very beginning of his theological quest and set out upon his daily work to complete it, with each work he completed before this one putting the pieces in place to build a foundation for this topic. If this be the case, then indeed Moltmann accomplished the task, providing a vision of life worth living in partnership with the living God: a life not reduced, limited, and broken down into rote materialistic mechanics.