Chaitanya Jyothi Museum Opening, 2000

RAMANAM
In the Name of The Father, and of The Son, and of The Holy Spirit, Amen.

Countrymen,

ORBIS NON SUFFICIT
SOLUS DEUS SUFFICIT

Rare, about 30 minutes total of filmed (NBC) now video interview with Tillich circa 1956, after he had left Union to be University Professor, the top academic rank, at Harvard. Interview conducted at Union by a former student. I recognize the portico at the opening, the corridor at the end and the type of furniture in the interview room, which is a visiting guest quarters.

Notice his graciousness, no arrogant professor there. And constant, total informality. I love it. Thinking of people and their conditions, not of abstractions. “I ask always first the human question.” “Do not throw dogma, like stones, at people’s heads. They will leave.” Correlate what people are feeling, their existential questions, with the existential meanings of the Christian symbols. This is called apologetic theology or Christian Apologetics. The only way of doing theology that is Evangelical (Good-News-bearing).

It strikes me that Sellers as Dr. Strangelove may have copied the voice, inflections, accent, hair style and even some mannerisms of Tillich. See what you think. Close your eyes and you will think Strangelove is speaking, not by what he is saying but by the accent, voice and inflections. And the hair style.



You can see why students and others so loved the man, thought they were in transcendent presence when with him and especially when listening to him speak.

Here is Tom Driver, Tillich’s student and my professor, reminiscing about Paulus (portrait at the end is by my mother, at Union in the late 40s)

Driver says that while he was on his death-bed, Hannah, his wife, said to him, “I always loved your face.”

Update I: Professor Wesley Wildman maintains a fine anthology of online Tillich resources.

Update II: There is also this compendium of online Tillich resources.

Update III: And these posts at Theological-Geography.net.

Update IV:  Systematic Theology, Vols. I, II, III  /  The Rev. Dr. Paulus Johannes Tillich

AUM NAMAH SHIVAYA