Editing Karl Rahner (section)

==Biography==
Karl Rahner's parents, Karl and Luise (née Trescher) Rahner, had seven children, of whom Karl was the fourth. His father was a professor in a local college and his mother had a profound religious personality, which influenced the home atmosphere. Karl attended primary and secondary school in Freiburg, entering the [[Society of Jesus]] upon graduation; he began his Jesuit formation in the North German Province of the [[Jesuits]] in 1922, four years after his older brother [[Hugo Rahner|Hugo]] entered the same order. Deeply affected by the spirituality of [[Ignatius of Loyola]] during the initial phase of his formation (1922–24), he concentrated the next phase of his formation (1924–7) on Catholic scholastic philosophy and the modern German philosophers: he seems to have been particularly interested in [[Immanuel Kant]] and two contemporary [[Thomism|Thomists]], the Belgian Jesuit [[Joseph Maréchal]] and the French Jesuit [[Pierre Rousselot]], who were to influence Rahner's understanding of [[Thomas Aquinas]] in his later writings.{{efn|As well as offering Rahner a way to deal with [[Immanuel Kant|Kant]]'s transcendental method in relation to [[Thomism|Thomistic]] [[epistemology]], Maréchal and Rousselot, as Rahner himself later mentioned, deeply influenced his own philosophical and theological work. Maréchal was famous for his study on Kant and Thomism, especially for applying Kant's transcendental method to Thomistic epistemology.{{sfn|Vorgrimler|1986|p=51}}}}

As a part of his Jesuit training, Rahner taught [[Latin language|Latin]] to novices at [[Feldkirch (Hartheim)|Feldkirch]] (1927–29), then began his theological studies at the Jesuit theologate in [[Valkenburg aan de Geul]] in 1929. This allowed him to develop a thorough understanding of [[Patristics|patristic theology]], also developing interests in spiritual theology, [[mysticism]], and the history of piety. Rahner was ordained a priest on 26 July 1932, and then made his final year of [[tertianship]], the study and taking of Ignatius' [[Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola|Spiritual Exercises]], at [[St. Andrä]] [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Lavant|in Austria's Lavanttal Valley]].{{sfn|Michaud|n.d.}}

Because Rahner's superiors wished him to teach [[philosophy]] at [[Pullach]], he returned home to Freiburg in 1934 to study for a [[Doctor of Philosophy|doctorate in philosophy]], delving more deeply into the philosophy of Kant and Maréchal, and attended seminars by [[Martin Heidegger]].{{sfn|Woodson|2018|pp=123–141}} His philosophy dissertation ''Geist in Welt'', an interpretation of Aquinas's [[epistemology]] influenced by the [[transcendental Thomism]] of Maréchal and the [[existentialism]] of Heidegger,{{efn|That is, the relation between Aquinas's notion of dynamic mind and Heidegger's analysis of ''[[Dasein]]'', or "being-in-the-world".}} was ultimately rejected by his mentor [[Martin Honecker]], allegedly for its bias toward Heidegger's philosophy and not sufficiently expressing the Catholic [[Neo-Scholasticism|neo-scholastic tradition]].{{efn|According to [[Herbert Vorgrimler]], Honecker's rejection of Rahner's dissertation reflected the former's dislike of Heidegger's philosophy. Thirty four years later the Philosophical Faculty of the [[University of Innsbruck]] gave Rahner an honorary doctorate for his philosophical works, especially for his failed dissertation, published in 1939 as ''Geist in Welt'' (''Spirit in World''). At any rate, it was in the early 1930s that Rahner elucidated his conviction that the human search for meaning was rooted in the unlimited horizon of God's own being experienced within the world.{{sfn|Vorgrimler|1986|p=62}}}} In 1936 Rahner was sent to [[Innsbruck]] to continue his theological studies and there he completed his [[habilitation]].{{efn|A second dissertation qualifying one to teach at university level. The English title of this dissertation was ''From the Side of Christ: The Origin of the Church as Second Eve from the Side of Christ the Second Adam. An Examination of the Typological Meaning of John 19:34''.}} Soon after he was appointed a ''Privatdozent'' (lecturer) in the faculty of theology of the University of Innsbruck, in July 1937. In 1939 the [[Nazis]] took over the university and Rahner, while staying in Austria, was invited to [[Vienna]] to work in the Pastoral Institute, where he both taught and became active in pastoral work until 1949. He then returned to the theology faculty at Innsbruck and taught on a variety of topics which later became the essays published in ''Schriften zur Theologie (<ref>Theological Investigations</ref>)'': the collection is not a systematic presentation of Rahner's views, but, rather a diverse series of essays on theological matters characterised by his probing, questioning search for truth.<ref name="KRS bio">{{cite web |last=Masson |first=Robert |title=Karl Rahner: A Brief Biography |url=http://karlrahnersociety.com/life/ |publisher=Karl Rahner Society |access-date=22 October 2017|date=2013-01-05 }}</ref>

[[File:Karl Rahner 3976 02.jpg|thumb|left|The Karl Rahner centre in [[Freiburg]]]]
In early 1962, with no prior warning, Rahner's superiors in the Society of Jesus told him that he was under Rome's pre-censorship, which meant that he could not publish or lecture without advance permission. The objections of the Roman authorities focused mainly on Rahner's views on the [[Eucharist]] and [[Roman Catholic Mariology|Mariology]];{{citation needed|date=November 2018}} however, the practical import of the pre-censorship decision was voided in November 1962 when, without any objection, [[John XXIII]] appointed Rahner a ''peritus'' (expert advisor) to the [[Second Vatican Council]]: Rahner had complete access to the council and numerous opportunities to share his thoughts with the participants. Rahner's influence at Vatican II was thus widespread, and he was subsequently chosen as one of seven theologians who would develop ''[[Lumen gentium]]'', the dogmatic explication of the doctrine of the Church.{{efn|Rahner had input to many of the other conciliar presentations as well.{{sfn|Vorgrimler|1986|pp=100–102}}}}{{sfn|Second Vatican Council|1964}} The council's receptiveness towards other religious traditions may be linked to Rahner's notions of the renovation of the church, God's universal salvific revelation, and his desire to support and encourage the [[ecumenism|ecumenical movement]].{{efn|According to [[Herbert Vorgrimler]], it is not hard to trace Rahner's influence on the work of the council (apart from four texts: the ''Decree on the Means of Social Communication'', the ''Decree on the Catholic Eastern Churches'', the ''Declaration on Christian education'', and the ''Declaration on Religious Liberty'').{{sfn|Vorgrimler|1986|p=100}}}}

During the council, Rahner accepted the chair for Christianity and the Philosophy of Religion at the [[University of Munich]] and taught there from 1964 to 1967. Subsequently, he was appointed to a chair in [[dogmatic theology]] at the Catholic theological faculty of the [[University of Münster]], where he stayed until his retirement in 1971.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chronology |url=http://karlrahnersociety.com/life/chronology/ |publisher=Karl Rahner Society |access-date=22 October 2017|date=2013-01-05 }}</ref> Rahner then moved to [[Munich]] and in 1981 to [[Innsbruck]], where he remained for the next 3 years as an active writer and lecturer, also continuing his active pastoral ministry. He published several volumes (23 total in [[English language|English]]) of collected essays for the ''Schriften zur Theologie (Theological Investigations)'', expanded the ''Kleines theologisches Wörterbuch (Theological Dictionary)'', co-authored other texts such as ''Unity of the Churches: An Actual Possibility'' with Heinrich Fries, and in 1976 he completed the long-promised systematic work, ''Foundations of Christian Faith''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rahner |first1=Karl |title=Foundations of Christian Faith: An Introduction to the Idea of Christianity |journal=Religious Studies Review |date=July 1979 |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=190–199 |doi=10.1111/j.1748-0922.1979.tb00215.x }}</ref>{{efn|For specific biographical information, see {{harvnb|Michaud|n.d.}}}}[[File:Karl Rahner Grabnische Jesuitenkirche Innsbruck.jpg|thumb|right|Rahner's burial niche. Jesuit Church, [[Innsbruck]], Austria.|199x199px]]

Rahner fell ill from exhaustion and died on 30 March 1984 at the age of 80, after a birthday celebration that also honoured his scholarship. He was buried at the {{ill|Jesuit Church (Innsbruck){{!}}Jesuit Church|de|Jesuitenkirche (Innsbruck)}} in Innsbruck.{{sfn|Byers|Bourgoin|2004}} During his years of philosophical and theological study and teaching, Rahner produced some 4,000 written works.{{sfn|Kennedy|2010|p=134}}

===Affair with Luise Rinser===
From 1962 to his death in 1984, Rahner engaged in a 22-year long romantic affair with German author [[Luise Rinser]]. During this period, the couple sent roughly 4,000 letters to each other, detailing their romantic feelings. The couple's letters were originally published in the 1990's in German under the title ''Gratwanderung'', drawing embarrassment and public ridicule for Rinser.<ref>{{cite news|last=Schaeffer|first=Pamela|title=Karl Rahner’s secret 22-year romance|url=https://natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives2/1997d/121997/121997a.htm|work=[[National Catholic Reporter]]|date=19 December 1997}}</ref>