Scheeben in the Kulturkampf: The Ernstfall and the Theo-Politics of Grace

Vincent L. Strand, SJ, counters the perception of Matthias Joseph Scheeben as an abstracted mystic, demonstrating his active engagement as a priest and journalist during the Bismarckian Kulturkampf. Analyzing Scheeben’s journalism, Strand explains how Scheeben’s theology of nature and grace informed his critique of liberal secularism as a rebellion against the supernatural world-order. This retrieval highlights the contemporary relevance of Scheeben’s political theology for navigating modern church-state relations.