Bogwitch

Why then should anyone bother to make the effort [of reading Karl Barth]?

Perhaps the best answer is that those readers who have managed to get past the initial difficulties find that they are in the midst of something truly magnificent. Barth’s theology in the Church Dogmatics could be compared to the cathedral at Chartres. Once one’s eyes get used to the light, one discovers that one is inside an awesome and many-splendored structure, soaring with vaulted arches, arrayed with intricate passage-ways, adorned with exquisite statuary, and crowned above all by rose windows dancing with fire. The problem, then, is for one’s eyes to get used to the light. But once they do, no other architecture, no other theology, is likely to be quite the same. Back in the light of day, some contemporary theologies will begin to look more like lecture halls than cathedrals, others will stand out as respectable but limited sanctuaries, still others perhaps as monuments to suburban kitsch. There will of course be other cathedrals to visit, but they will have been constructed long ago. One effect of getting to know the cathedral of Barth’s theology is that it can help one appreciate the older cathedrals and make one want to spend time in them, too. But none of this will happen if one leaves the cathedral before one’s eyes get used to the light.

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George Hunsinger, How to Read Karl Barth (via wesleyhill)

A friend gave me some Barth for my birthday.  I’m currently preparing a clean space in my mind for it, but this is encouraging, and beautiful.