Final Examination of
Sr. Chau Nguyen, O.P.
for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Friday, November 18, 2016
Abstract
The Marian Mystery of the Church in the Theology of Henri de Lubac
Director: Rev. Msgr. Paul McPartlan, D.Phil.
Numerous studies have been undertaken to examine the contribution of Henri de Lubac, S.J. (1896-1991) to contemporary theology, but little attention has been paid to the specific topic of the relationship of the Virgin Mary and the Church in his writings. This is a topic that gave rise to contentious discussion at the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), and although the Council fathers approved the integration of Marian doctrine into the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, the synthesis of Mariology and ecclesiology has been largely neglected in contemporary theology. This study argues that de Lubac's writings can aid in addressing this post-conciliar lacuna.
The dissertation examines de Lubac's influence on Lumen Gentium and studies his writings on the relationship of Mary and the Church. These works, which include Catholicisme (1938), Me´ditation sur l'E´glise (1953), Paradoxe et Myste`re de l'E´glise (1967), and Les Eglises particulières dans l'Église universelle (1971), and L'Éternel fe´minin (1983), consider the dual aspects of maternity and virginity in both Mary and the Church. De Lubac underscores that all ecclesial ministries are expressions of the Church's motherhood, derived from the model of Mary's divine motherhood. He also expounds the image of the Church as Bride in his writings on a Marian exegesis of the Song of Songs and in his comments on the idea of the "concrete universal" in relation to Teilhard de Chardin's Eternal Feminine. De Lubac holds to a mystical identification of Mary and the Church, and his writings on the topic help lay a foundation for a conception of the Church in personalistic terms by illumining the Church's maternal and virginal countenance as exemplified in Mary.
The final chapter of the dissertation serves as a test case to show how de Lubac's writings potentially contribute to advancing post-conciliar ecclesiological discourse. It applies his Marian ideas to the perennial question of the relationship between particular churches and the Universal Church and shows that his consideration of the Virgin Mary as a concrete universal and as Sponsa Christi sheds new light on that relationship. Thereby, this study highlights the potential value of de Lubac's Mariology and suggests ways in which the Council's great synthesis of Mariology and ecclesiology might be received more fully and employed anew.
More about Nguyen
Sr. Chau Nguyen, O.P. was born and raised in Houston, Texas where she discerned a religious vocation and joined the Dominican Order. As a Dominican Sister of Mary Immaculate Province, she has served in a number of apostolates, including parish ministry, teaching high school theology, and assisting in postulancy formation. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theology from the University of Saint Thomas and a Master of Arts in Historical and Systematic Theology from the Catholic University America, where she is presently concluding her doctoral studies. During her time at Catholic University, Sr. Chau has served as a teaching assistant, teaching fellow, and First Year Experience Fellow. Some of her writings have appeared in theological journals such as The Newman Studies Journal and Marian Studies.