Kościół jako mysterium, communio, missio. Przejrzysta wizja eklezjologii katolickiej 40 lat po soborowej konstytucji Lumen gentium

Abstract

The Second Vatican Council came to be referred to as “the ecclesiological Council”, as it proved to have been instrumental in re-awakening the selfunderstanding of the Church and in stimulating systematic reflections on the nature of the Church. One of the most important fruits of the Council was the dogmatic constitution Lumen gentium – a great chapter in the history of the teachings on the Church. Today, after 40 years from its publication Lumen gentium is still perceived as a “providential event” and its influence on the development of the Catholic ecclesiology is clearly visible. The question: “What can You say about Yourself?”, addressed to the Church by theologians in the middle of the 20th century brought about the formulation of a new ecclesiological synthesis. This synthesis was no longer focused on any specific aspect or analogy but it presented a global view on the essence of the Church. In order to properly interpret the essence one has to concentrate on the following triad: mystery-communion-mission. The immemorial mystery of the Holy Trinity has assumed a visible form within the reality of the Church. As a result, the Church constitutes a mystery, i.e. a reality which is half-visible, half-transcendental. It is within this reality that God expresses His love for His creation (ontological element). The Holy Trinity – the communio personarum of God – shapes the Church into the communion of local Churches and of individual persons in the bosom of the Church of Christ, which enables Christians to reveal the truth about living Christ within their hearts through love and unity (relational element). Communion is the source of energy for the Church in Her mission of redemption. Missionary activity is the final way through which the very nature (or personality) of the Church can fully manifest itself. The Church can be said to possess Her own personality only if She is ready to go out to preach the Gospel to others and reveal Her internal dynamism through acts leading to eternal life. It was precisely this vision of the Church that marked the great pontificate of the late John Paul II.