Summaries / Resúmenes - Studia Moralia

THE 50 TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LAW OF CHRIST 239thought should be recognised as a major, early effort to pursuethe ideals concerning moral theology later set out in Optatamtotius. At the same time, over against developments since thenboth in theology and related disciplines, the limitations andperduring difficulties of such an ambitious project must berecognised.Bruno HidberThe contribution of Bruno Hider, as already mentionedabove, differs considerably from those of Gallagher andSchockenhoff in that it addresses a specific theme, that of culture,within Häring’s thought taken as a whole. This change offocus is both of inherent value and of great interest precisely inso far as it helps us to understand the context of DCG and theissue of renewal already discussed in the earlier pieces.The essential components of Hidber’s piece are: a responseto the question what is culture?; an analysis of how cultureemerges as central to Häring’s thought before, during and afterVatican II; some interesting critical comments.Like Augustine’s question about time, the question what isculture?, Hidber suggests, has produced and continues to produceperplexity. The least that must be acknowledged inHäring’s favour regarding this theme is that he is one of thefirst in moral-theological circles to recognise its importanceand that he himself can be shown to have gradually developedin his understanding of culture and its significance for moraltheology. Before tracing this development more or less chronologically,Hidber identifies two main strands in Häring’s understanding:Personkultur and Sachkultur. The first of these termsrefers to the importance of culture for the formation and developmentof the human person, the other to a growing awarenessthat all aspects of a given society (artefacts, buildings, tools,institutional structures etc.) together constitute its culture.While both strands are to be found throughout Häring’sthought, there is a noticeable growth in his awareness of theimportance of the latter (71).Moving on now to the three phases in which Häring’s conceptionof culture develops, Hidber begins with an importantreminder concerning Häring’s doctorate entitled Das Heilige