RIP CHOAN-SENG SONG: PROPONENT OF "THIRD-EYE THEOLOGY"

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By: Dr. Fransiskus Borgias, M.A.

Indonesian Lay Theologian and Senior Lecturer and Researcher at the Faculty of Philosophy and Theology of Parahyangan Catholic University, of Bandung, West-Java, Indonesia.

 

Introduction

Choan-Seng Song is Lutheran theologian from Taiwan. He passed away in an old age. He born in 19^th October 1929 and died in 26^th November 2024. He reached a very long age. He was one of the great Asian theologians. Most of his ministry as a theologian was in Taiwan, although some of his formational years have been made abroad.

As a theologian he was creative and prolific. He was prolific because in he has written many books. For example, in 1986, he published Theology from the Womb of Asia (NY: Orbis Books). In 1994, he published Jesus in the Power of the Spirit (Minneapolis: Fortress Press). In 1984, he published Tell Us Our Names. Story Theology from an Asian Perspective (NY: Orbis Books). In 1982, he published The Compassion God (NY: Orbis Books). In 1979, he published Third-Eye Theology (NY: Orbis Books). He was creative, because of his effort to find some theological metaphors and approaches. Two tittles of the book can be taken as a proof for this statement: 1). Tells us our Names. Story Theology from an Asian Perspectives. 2). Third-eye Theology.

 

Song’s Idea of “Third-Eye Theology”

Here I am interested in giving an elaboration on Third-Eye Theology. As a comparison, back in 1980 (original in Portuguese 1978), a Brazilian theologian, Leonardo Boff, wrote a theological book with a title, Way of Cross, Way of Justice. In it, Boff postulated a requirement for a good theology. Boff said that theology should have an “ante et retro oculata.” Theology should have two eyes; one eye to look to the past when the salvation took place in the event of Jesus Christ. The other eye is used to look to the present when the salvation taking real struggle in human life. Using one eye only (looking to the past or present) will automatically made theology to suffer from a myopia (1980: viii).

In 1979, Song wrote Third-Eye Theology. But what is the meaning of “Third-Eye”? Song borrowed this phrase from a Japanese Zen-Buddhist scholar, Daisetz T. Suzuki, who once motivate people to open the “third-eye” to the realm of the hitherto closed, dark and alienated from us due to our ignorance (1979:26-27). Song said, the first-eye of theology should put much attention to the insight and inspiration flowing out of the Judeo-Christian Sacred Scriptural texts. The main concentration is on the texts. The second-eye is an eye that putting much attention to the long tradition of Western Christianity in interpreting Sacred Scriptural Texts, concentrating on the hermeneutics of the texts. Song said that such theology is two-dimensional theology of Western Christianity.

When Christianity reach Asia, then it needs a third-eye theology, said Song. This is the third-dimensional understanding of theology. The previous two-dimensional theology was a flat theology, said Song. Theology needs a Third-eye to become an integral and complete theology. This third-eye is an Asian eye, used to find and search Asian perspectives and Asian peculiarities and Eastern sensibilities treasured for centuries in the indigenous stories of Asian people.

 

Some Historical Patterns

Godfrey Kurth (Belgian Church History scholar), in the early years of last century (in 1913), published a book in French (then translated into English in 1917), The Church at the Turning Point of History. This book has been republished in the beginning of this century, in 2007. In that book, Kurth described seven turning-points in the whole western development of the Church ([1] The mission of the Church, [2] The Church and the Jews, [3] The Church and the Barbarians, [4] The Church and Feudalism, [5] The Church and New-Caesarean, [6] The Church and the Renaissance, [7] The Church and the Revolution). The turning point in history of the church always happen in the moment of the encounter between the gospel message and local culture.

In 1989, Hans Kung and David Tracy published a proceeding from an international symposium on theology in Chicago, with a title, Paradigm Change in Theology (Crossroad: 1989). In it they described the turning points of history of Christian theology (1989:3-33; 34-62). This theological symposium was based on the great work of an American physicist and historian of science, Thomas S. Kuhn, who published his book, The Structure of Scientific Revolution (Chicago: 1962; 1989:2-10). In it, Kuhn proposed the “paradigm change”. Kung and Tracy described many moments of encounter in the history of theology. One thing is clear: the moment of the change happens in the cultural encounter. The moment of paradigm changes takes place in the cultural encounter or collision.

Now, following the creative theology of Song’s Third-Eye Theology, I propose the historical turning points in the development of Christianity in Asia. In this connection, Song once said that: “Until Christian theology has acquired this third-dimensional ability to deal with Christian Faith, it will remain a stranger outside the Western world” (1979:29). So, the appearance of the third-eye is a prerequisite for an unalienated Christian faith in Asia. Only with that peculiar ability, Asian Christians are able to “speak in our own tongue” (Acts 2:17). This text of Acts 2:17 has been used by Peter C. Phan, a Vietnamese-American theologian, to be the title of his book (NY: Orbis Books, 2007).

 

In Conclusion

If in the past Christian message of the Gospel has been formulated in the philosophical treasures of the Greek, it is now the time for Asian turning point, or the Third-Eye Theology, to use Song’s terminology. Only by understanding the Gospel “in our own tongue” we, the Asians can understand it and, in its turn, Christian faith will not become a stranger in this holy land of Asia. Or to use the language of Aloys Pieris, the Christian message should be baptized in the Ganges and in other sacred rivers of Asian religious tradition.

Song has recently died. But his theological heritage and inspiration will always be with us to challenge and inspire us to establish an Asian perspective of theology. His theological voice will echo in the reflection of the young Asian theologians in the time to come. Rest in peace for Choan-Seng Song. Thanks for your very creative and brave innovation and inspiration in theological researches and reflections.

 

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