Asian theological reflections have been quite original,and even radical. They have contributed to enliven the life of the Christian communities and also make them open to the realities of the Asian societies, cultures and religious traditions. There has been as well quite a significant impact of Asian theological reflections at the global level. Some of the more open positions regarding the role of other religions, for example, to be found in the Roman documents owe in no small measure to the sustained reflections of Asian theology and of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC). The force of Asian theology and its innovative character came in the open at the Asian Synod in the many interventions of the bishops.1) They reflected a theology rooted in the experience of the Asian continent in dialogue with religions, cultures and the poor of Asia — the triple dialogue announced by FABC.
In the first introductory part of this chapter, I intend to quickly recall the spirit of Asian theological pursuit and some of its main characteristics. While they mark a significant achievement, there is also the need to move forward. The second part of the chapter then goes to show that this new direction probably has to be the development of an Asian public theology.
Part I: The Spirit of Asian Theology
Reading into the various theological efforts in Asia in the past decades, and going through the documents of FABC and of Christian Conference of Asia (CCA), I find certain convergence of concerns and shared perceptions. Asian theologizing has certain quality which may not be always explicitly articulated but could be found underlying. This quality of Asian theologizing I wish to present briefly, instead of going into specific issues.
Sense of Divine Mystery
One of the important things Asian theologies imply is the sense of the inexhaustible mystery of God. This has been conveyed differently whether Asia deals with Christology, mission or theology of religions. This sense of the divine mystery inspires Asian theologies not to follow paths of exclusion but of integration and inclusion. This sense, of mystery is also behind pluralism is not simply a reaction to dogmatism, but something born of the realization that the mystery of God is endless, and innumerable are the ways in which it comes to expression. Asian theologies celebrate this pluralism and have tried to understand Jesus Christ and, Christian faith from this perspective.
The Turn to the Subject in Mission
Asian approach to mission is inspired by the sense of mystery, as well as the importance of the subject in mission. The people, their aspirations, their perceptions are important. Mission is not simply a teleologically oriented project. People are not object of mission; but subjects. It is they who in freedom appropriate faith, a process set in particular social, political and cultural processes within their history. Hence it is important to enter into their world and know the story of their experience of faith and understand the expressions they give to it at various levels. There is an effort today to rewrite mission history by foregrounding the subjecthood of the people. Moreover, the realization of the presence of God in peoples, cultures, religious traditions, etc., have contributed to view mission in a unique manner by Asians. It became very evident during the preparation as well as in the various interventions of bishops during the Asian Synod.
Integral Understanding of Salvation and Liberation
Asian theological efforts show more and more an integral understanding of salvation. It means the well being of the whole person without any dichotomy of body and soul, and the welfare of all without distinction of caste, class, religious belonging. Moving towards salvation implies progressive liberation from all that maims, corrodes or negates life in any form. It is a freedom from whatever binds the self the society and the world. Integral salvation and liberation imply that there ate no two histories — one history of salvation and the other of the world — moving on parallel lines. Some would even oppose one to the other. There is but one single history which all the peoples share across borders and boundaries, testifying to the universality of God’s grace and dealings.
Realization of Diversity and Pluralism
Asian theology is infused with the positive affirmation of diversity and spirit of pluralism, not only as a fact but as a value to be fostered. Few continents have such diversity as Asia in its composition of peoples, cultures, traditions and the variety of gifts of nature. The traditional recognition of pluralism and value of a life of harmony defy trends of uniformity and homogenization. In Asian theology, here is no attempt to streamline all this diversity into one common point of unity. There is a mystical feeling that all the differences and plurality we experience meet somewhere and ate somehow interconnected, though we are not able to identify the bonds that bind them together. Asian theologies have cultivated this spirit of millennial diversity and pluralism of the continent. It is this which also inspires Asian theology to recognize the infinite faces of the divine mystery.
Pluralism derives also from the fact that human beings are subjects and their perception of reality and their judgments ate shaped by their differing world-views, experiences, diverse contexts, histories, etc. This realization has led Asian theologies to view the diversity of perspectives not as a hindrance but as a great enrichment to the life of faith.
There is today a feeling of threat whenever, pluralism is talked about. It derives from a false,conflation of pluralism with relativism. FABC has clearly distinguished the two.
A pluralism which claims that all points of view of reality are of equal value surely ends up in relativism. When a point of view lacks a common reference to reality, it amounts to the mere opinion of the subject who holds that opinion. When each and every such point of view that is cut off from,a, common reference to reality is assigned an equal value, then it amounts to relativism. In other words, relativism holds that there are many truths which vary according to the subjects who hold different opinions of reality…The affirmation of plurality rests on the human search for an underlying unity that enables us to understand reality better. Many Asian philosophies and theologies have shown the unity and harmony behind pluralism. 2)
Partnership in Salvation and Liberation
If all the people in their diversity of cultures, traditions and religious paths participate in the single salvation, they become partners in salvation and liberation. People of different religious traditions converge to experience and bear witness to the grace of God, and God’s salvation. They engage themselves in bringing about ever greater freedom to the human family and for the protection and flourishing of nature and all of God’s creation. Religious traditions are not opposed to each other but are partners in the project of God’s salvation and liberation. This is also true of the many secular movements at wotk among Asian peoples.
Practising a Different Theological Methodology
Theology is not simply a learning of faith-propositions or interpretations of the same. Conscious of this fact, Asian theology follows a method of dialogue and mutuality. Its methodology is not aimed at simply communicating the truths of faith but dialoguing with the larger world. Asian theological orientation is not marked by any sense of closure and easily attained certainties, but rather is imbued with the spirit of a movement. The images of journey, pilgrimage could more aptly characterize Asian theologizing than images of frames and architectures. In fact, Asian theologizing has broken the conventional frames and architectures as it moves into new avenues
of reflection and travels on untrodden paths.
Such being the nature and orientation of Asian theology, it has called for also a significant transformation in theological methodology. This methodology can be characterized as dialogical and open-ended, experiential and transformation- oriented. The integral character of Asian theologizing has come out also in the fact that it does not rely simply on reason. Reason is not the sole instrument. Theology involves other faculties and dimensions of human life. The sources of this Asian theologizing includes the religious traditions of the neighbours of other faiths, the riches of cultures as well as the new forces at work in the life of the Asian peoples. These realities of the context, as rightly pointed out by the document of the Office of Theological Concerns (OTC) of FABC, form part of the resources of theology along with Scripture and tradition.3) Asian theologians have been using these resources in their theological endeavours, and this has made a difference, and has given a distinctive character to their theologizing. OTC sums up the Asian methodology when it states:
The Asian way of doing theology is historically rooted and concrete, a method in which we learn to face conflicts and brokenness, a method we value as one of liberative integration, inter-relatedness and wholeness, a method that emphasizes symbolic approaches and expressions, and is marked by a preference for those at the periphery and “outside the Gate” (Heb 13:3).4)
[By Felix Wilfred]
Ref:
1) Cf. Peter Phan, (ed.) The Asian Synod: Texts and Comments, New York:Orbis Books, 2002. See also Felix Wilfred, “The Reception of Vatican II in a Multireligious Continent”, in Concilium (2012/3): 116-121.
2) Office Of Theological Concerns of FABC, Document on “Methodology: Asian Christian Theology” 1.1. For the text see, Vimal Tirimanna, (ed.) Sprouts of Theology from the Asian Soil. Collection of TAC and OTC Documents (1987-2007), Bangalore: Claretian Publications; (2007): 258-259.
3) Cf. Vimal Tirimanna (ed.), Sprouts of Theology from the Asian Soil…op.cit.
4) Op.cit. 343.