On Rahner, a caution: how Rahnerians "lacked the vital immersion in the Catholic theological Tradition that had characterized Rahner himself"
From First Things Karl Rahner: An Appreciation and Critique by Robert Imbelli Robert Royal’s fine book A Deeper Vision: The Catholic Intellectual Tradition in the Twentieth Century consists, by and large, of a series of inviting and insightful essays on the great figures who brought that tradition into creative and challenging encounter with a culture that was fast forgetting its Christian roots. Maritain and Gilson, de Lubac and Rahner, von Balthasar and Ratzinger are treated with generosity and discernment. As are the poets and novelists of the Catholic revival in England and France : Chesterton, Belloc, Greene, and Tolkien; Péguy, Claudel, Bernanos, and Mauriac. Each essay sparkles with appreciation and delight. Yet Royal’s is not an exercise in hagiography. As in all authentic discernment, one comes to recognize both light and shadow. Only thus can one learn and move forward. I found particular resonance, for personal and professional reasons,...