Modele Kościoła według Avery Dullesa

Abstract

Card. Avery Dulles is one of the best known Contemporary theologians. He occupies predominantly with ecclesiology and revelation theology. His book Models of the Church became a classical theological standard. From many ecclesiological theories Dulles dislinguishes five main types of’ ecclesiological approach which he names root metaphors or models. They are: the Church as institution, mystical communion, sacrament, herald and servant. To the above five he adds his own, sixth model: the Church as community of disciples. He describes the main features of the Church according to each view. In the first, institutional approach the Church appears as a perfect society, similar to secular States. This model emphasizes the division between active and passive part of the ecclesial society: these who are leaders on the way to eternal life and those who are governed and led. Quite oppositely, the second model, the mystical communion, presents mainly the inner, spiritual nature of the Church and treats its visual structure as secondary. Dulles himself promutes rather the sacramentai metaphor, in which he finds the best explanation of the relationship between the supernatural and visual elements in the ecclesial community. His own model, the Church as community of disciples is similar to the previous one – the disciples represent “sacramentally” their Master in the world – but more personal. The last two models - herald and servant – focuse on the Church’s tasks: the first on preaching and the second on developing the eternai Kingdom’s values, such as justice, brotherhood and freedom, in this world. All together the ecclesiological models create a useful scientific tool for the Church understanding and for further theological work.