Being Salvation: Atonement and Soteriology in the Theology of Karl Rahner

Karl Rahners theory of how Jesus saves has garnered criticism. Rahners portrayal of Jesus has been described by Hans Urs von Balthasar as merely notifying the world of Gods salvific will. Others have doubted whether Rahner thinks Jesus causes salvation at all. Even Rahners advocates style his Jesus as a kind of sign albeit an effective one the primal Sacrament. But another major and yet underappreciated dimension to Rahners christology is his identification of Jesus as Representativeboth our representative before God and Gods before us. As such a Representative Jesus is not a redemptive agent who accomplishes human salvation simply through an act and even less is he a mere exemplar or notification. This Jesus does not only do our salvationrather he is the locus of salvation itself. He not only opens heavens gates but he creates heaven with his own resurrection. Being Salvation uncovers this dimension within Rahners theology relating it to other historical examples of representative soteriology (e.g. Irenaeuss theory of recapitulation) and to Rahners more familiar sacramental soteriological categories. It gives special attention to Rahners intense attention to the church fathers early in his career including Rahners untranslated theology dissertation E latereChristi (From the Side of Christ).