Understanding The Hierarchy of Truths |
Douglas Bushman, S.T.L.
This article may be found at the website of Ignatius Insight: http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/features2005/dbushman_hiertruths_sept05.asp
Catechists, evangelists, apologists and others
today sometimes encounter the term "hierarchy of truths." Sometimes
the term is misused to imply that some truths of the faith are negotiable or
that some truths are less true than others. In fact, the hierarchy of truths is
merely the principle of ordering the mysteries of faith based on the varying
ways they are related one another as elements of Christian revelation, as
summarized in the Creed.
Because the hierarchy of truths is so often
misunderstood, it is important to examine it. What follows is an examination of
the principle itself, based on the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, as
well as a discussion of some implications of the hierarchy of truths for
evangelization and apologetics.
Hierarchy of Truths in Magisterial Texts
The first magisterial use of the expression was at
Vatican II, in the context of ecumenical dialogue: "When comparing
doctrines with one another, they [theologians] should remember that in Catholic
doctrine there exists a ‘hierarchy’ of truths, since they vary in their relation
to the fundamental Christian faith" (Unitatis Redintegratio, no.
11). This is closely allied to the axiom that the bond of faith that unites
Christians is greater than the things that divide them.
Here the Church recognizes that the way to
agreement regarding disputed points of doctrine is the way of faith itself,
grounded in essential truths about God and Christ. The hierarchy of truths also
has application in the Church’s catechetical activity: "This hierarchy
does not mean that some truths pertain to faith itself less than others, but
rather that some truths are based on others as of a higher priority, and are
illumined by them. On all levels catechesis should take account of this
hierarchy of the truths of faith."
These truths may be grouped under four basic heads:
the mystery of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Creator of all
things; the mystery of Christ the incarnate Word, who was born of the Virgin
Mary, and who suffered, died, and rose for our salvation; the mystery of the
Holy Spirit, who is present in the Church, sanctifying and guiding it until the
glorious coming of Christ, our Savior and Judge; and the mystery of the Church,
which is Christ’s Mystical Body, in which the Virgin Mary holds the preeminent
place" (General Catechetical Directory, no. 43).
This text excludes a misunderstanding, summarized
by Cardinal Schönborn: "the ‘hierarchy of truth’ does not mean ‘a
principle of subtraction,’ as if faith could be reduced to some ‘essentials’
whereas the ‘rest’ is left free or even dismissed as not significant. The
‘hierarchy of truth . . . is a principle of organic structure.’ It should not
be confused with the degrees of certainty; it simply means that the different
truths of faith are ‘organized’ around a center" (Introduction to the Catechism of the Catholic Church,
p. 42).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)
employs the hierarchy of truths, linking it to the teaching of Vatican I on the
mutual connections among the mysteries or articles of faith (no. 90). Vatican I
taught: "If reason illumined by faith inquires in an earnest, pious and
sober manner, it attains by God’s grace a certain understanding of the
mysteries, which is most fruitful, both from the analogy with the objects of
its natural knowledge and from the connection of these mysteries with one
another and with man’s ultimate end" (Dei Filius, Ch. IV).
Following the Church’s Creeds, the CCC identifies
the Trinity as the central mystery of Christian faith and "the source of
all the other mysteries of faith, the light which illumines them" (no.
234). Finally, the recent General Directory for Catechesis (GDC) states:
"All aspects and dimensions of the Christian message participate in this
hierarchical system" (no. 115). It goes on to mention: the Christocentric
nature of the history of salvation; the Trinitarian structure of the Creed; the
centrality of the Paschal Mystery, and therefore of the Eucharist, in the
sacramental system; the primacy of the two commandments of love of God and
neighbor in Christian moral teaching; the way the Lord’s Prayer is a
"summary of the Gospel" and sum of all petitions. For Pope John Paul
II, "The truth that God is Love constitutes as it were the apex of all
that has been revealed . . . . This truth illumines the whole content of divine
revelation" (Gen. Audience, Oct. 2, 1985). God is Himself love (1 Jn 4:8),
and this love is fully revealed in Jesus Christ.
Theology of the Hierarchy of Truths
God’s ordering wisdom is the foundation for the
hierarchy of truths. God has revealed this order to man, who by faith receives
it and expresses it through propositions (CCC, nos. 156, 170). The use of
propositions corresponds to the human mode of knowing: composing and dividing
based on causal relations. Since the human mind grasps reality through causes,
ordering what God has revealed depends upon the various ways in which
"cause" is understood.
For example, the text of Dei Filius, above,
identifies an order based on the final cause or end of man: All that God has
done in the economy of salvation is directed to our salvation, eternal life
with God. This allows the mind to identify the order of means to end, a
distinction with profound implications, for example, in doctrine pertaining to
morals, sacraments, and the Church. In morals, this is verified in the Lord’s
teaching about the Sabbath being made for man (Mk 2:27) and the Church’s
understanding of the dominical obligation; in the sacraments, it is seen in
Trent’s teaching on Baptism of desire; in ecclesiology, its application yields
an understanding of apostolic authority as a divinely instituted means at the service
of holiness. But at the beginning and end of all is God Himself, the first and
final cause of all things. This is often expressed in Church documents by
reference to God’s wisdom and goodness (or love) as the absolute starting point
for all that exists and all that has been revealed (see Lumen Gentium,
no. 2; Dei Verbum, no. 2).
Since God is Three Consubstantial Persons, the
doctrine of the Trinity is the central truth of faith. A Trinitarian-based
hierarchy of truths must also be Christologically-based. Jesus Christ, Second
Person of the Blessed Trinity, is the fullness and perfection of revelation. He
is the Alpha and Omega and the center of history. He is the instrumental
efficient cause of the fulfillment of God’s plan, as well as the exemplary and
meritorious cause of our salvation. Thus, a "christocentric accent is not
opposed to the trinitarian view; it is through the Incarnation of the Eternal
son, his life, death and Resurrection, that the Father is revealed and the
Spirit is given. Therefore, catechesis, to be trinitarian, has to be
christocentric" (Introduction to the Catechism of the Catholic Church,
pp. 44-45).
Throughout the Church’s history, controversies have
been the occasion for the Church to define some necessary implications of a
doctrine. For example, the doctrine of Mary as Mother of God defined at the
Council of Ephesus is incomprehensible without prior knowledge of Jesus Christ
as true God and true man. Again, the doctrine on the human and divine wills of
Christ presupposes the doctrine of the two natures of Christ. These two
examples show how the hierarchy of truths is a principle of the development of
doctrine.
Implications for Evangelization
The principle of the hierarchy of truths allows
evangelists to build a solid foundation for the development of faith while
focusing on a kerygmatic central proclamation of the Good News of God’s love
revealed in Jesus Christ Who died to forgive sins. To be effective, the
evangelist’s message must correspond to the basic questions people have about
life, death, suffering, justice, love and sin. The evangelist knows that Jesus
Christ is God’s answer to all questions (CCC, no. 68), and needs to be skilled
in showing how all questions are reducible to a few fundamental ones.
Christocentric evangelization seeks to lead people
to faith in Jesus Christ who revealed God’s love and died to save us. Once
Jesus is loved for what He has done for us, a person can begin to love Him in
Himself, and becomes interested in all of His message, His relationship with
His Father, with Mary, the apostles, etc. Vatican II affirmed the
Christocentric foundation of Catholic faith when it taught that entering and
remaining in the Church becomes a religious obligation, and therefore
determines one’s relationship with God, precisely when one sees that the Church
was made necessary by Christ (LG, no. 14). The task of catechesis is to make
this explicit, but this task is greatly aided by a prior Christocentric faith.
A Christocentric introduction to Mary might go as follows: "St. Paul
taught: ‘It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’ (Gal 2:20);
‘Christ enables us to live in him all that he himself lived, and he lives it in
us’ (CCC, no. 521). Now Christ’s relationship with His mother is an essential
element of his human experience. Therefore, I must also have a relationship
with Mary."
The re-evangelization of people who have already
heard the Christian message, including the baptized who have abandoned the
practice of their faith, is a special difficulty. Two issues are involved. The
first is a question of relevance of doctrine which is not perceived because of
an erroneous understanding of one or several elements of Catholic faith.
Through dialogue the evangelist can show that what the Church teaches is God’s
answer the mystery of life.
Second, the Church’s faith can appear as a list of
propositions having no coherent order. The perceived lack of order is itself an
obstacle, since man by nature is made to know order. "If the
interrelatedness of all of the doctrines regarding both faith and morals is not
perceived, one can be left with the impression that it would be possible to
accept one or other doctrine, and leave the rest aside" (Archbishop
William Levada, Origins, vol. 23, p. 739). By showing the connections
among the articles of faith, the evangelist can lead a person to perceive the
integrity and unity of the whole of Catholic faith.
Implications for Apologetics
The mind’s natural capacity to grasp causal
connections and consequent order is a great asset to the apologist. Sometimes a
person does not see that the denial of one truth leads to the denial of another
which he does not intend to deny. By pointing out the unintended, ancillary
denial, the apologist can lead a person to reconsider his first denial. Often a
person’s difficulty is due to an exaggeration of a truth which conflicts with
another.
For example, in response to claims that Catholics
elevate Mary to the level of God, an apologist need simply to refer to Vatican
II on the subordinate role of Mary, on her mediation being totally dependent
upon Christ’s, and her veneration contributing to, not detracting from, the
worship of God (LG, Ch. 8). Mary can only be understood in the light of Christ,
though it is true that, by better understanding Mary’s place in God’s plan, we
more fully comprehend the mystery of Christ.
Another apologetic use of the hierarchy of truths
is to show how one fundamental truth sheds light on many others. For example,
the truth that in the saving actions of Jesus Christ God’s love is effective
necessitates the conclusion that grace brings about a real change in the human
condition. This is the foundation for the Catholic understanding of the
sacraments causing grace ex opere operato, and for the insistence that
moral teaching is more than just an ideal at which to aim, but an obligation we
are made capable by grace of fulfilling.
Another example is the relationship between Christ
and the Church. Ecclesiologists point out that the early Christological
heresies reappear as errors about the Church. The mystery of Christ is so
closely connected to the mystery of the Church that errors about Christ
implicitly contain errors about the Church. As a final example, moral
theologians following the lead of Vatican II (esp. Gaudium et Spes, no.
24) and Pope John Paul II ground Christian anthropology and morality in the
mystery of the Trinity as a communion of Persons. Because God is a mystery of
interpersonal communion, man, who made in His image, is made for communion
based on the truth.
This article originally appeared in the
January/February 2000 issue of Catholic Faith magazine.
Douglas Bushman holds a
licentiate in sacred theology from the University of Friebourg. He is Assistant
Director of the Institute for Pastoral Theology at Ave Maria
University, and author of the adult faith enrichment program, In His Image, published by Ignatius Press.
Professor Bushman and his wife, JoAnn, home school their six children in Green
Bay, Wisconsin.
