Reviewed Book: Küng, Hans. Mozart: traces of transcendence. London: SCM Press, 1992

Muller, Richard A.

English

Wilfrid Laurier University

ConsensusVolume 21Issue 2 Aspects of Ecumenity Article 1711-1-1995Mozart: traces of transcendenceRichard A. MullerFollow this and additional works at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensusThis Book Reviews is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by anauthorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.Recommended CitationMuller, Richard A. (1995) "Mozart: traces of transcendence," Consensus: Vol. 21 : Iss. 2 , Article 17.Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol21/iss2/17Book Reviews 129Mozart: Traces of TranscendenceHans KiingGrand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993xii + 81 pp.Hans Kiing’s brief essay on the religious and theological dimensionsof Mozart’s music can only be highly recomrciended. It is surely the bestessay of its kind to appear in print—without doubt of greater insight andpenetration than Karl Barth’s famous homage, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1986) and, for similar reasons, superior alsoto Jaroslav Pelikan’s theological meditation on Bach. What makes Kiing’swork so outstanding is its movement beyond basic aesthetic appreciation tothe careful analysis both of musical and theological issues in the historicalcontext of Mozart’s life. The analysis, in turn, returns both Kiing and hisreaders to the aesthetic and religious appreciation of Mozart’s achievementat a more profopnd level.As his point of departure, Kiing notes the contrast between Karl Barth’sassumption of Mozart’s deep Catholic religiosity and the more “ambivalent”view of Wolfgang Hildesheimer’s penetrating biography—in which the “re-ligious” atmosphere of Mozart’s time is seen as a background, but not as aprofound presupposition, of Mozart’s musical culture. From the beginning,Kiing addresses squarely the issues raised by this contrast of perceptionsby examining Mozart’s sometimes negative relationship to the Catholic hi-erarchy, as represented by his one-time patron. Archbishop Coloredo, andthen balancing this aspect of Mozart’s life and work with the intimate rela-tionship between his religious and secular style of composition. Kiing, as atheologian and a Catholic, well understands that Mozart, as a non-dogmaticCatholic who had little difficulty relating positively to Protestant musicians(and to Freemasons!), could nonetheless partake of a deep Catholic religios-ity, revealed not only in aspects of his music but in his comments that hewould never live in a country that was not Catholic and that no Protestantcould really understand the Agnus Dei.Kiing also carefully considers the work done by recent musicologistsand historians on the “secular”, popular, and even the vulgar Mozart—and attempts to strike a balance between the traditional romanticizationof Mozart and contemporary iconoclasm, including that of the unhistoricaland untrustworthy play Amadeus. Kiing can conclude that “Mozart’s musicdoes not contain any message of faith as does that of Bach, nor is it aconfession of life like that of Beethoven or Bruckner, far less programmemusic like that of Liszt or Wagner. . . Mozart’s primary concern was simplyto make music... with ‘expression’, using every possibility of melody andharmony” (p. 21). Nonetheless, and with great insight and sensitivity,Kiing is able to draw out the lines of connection between the profoundspirituality and sense of enormous mystery that Mozart himself recordedas a part of his early experience of religion and the entrance into what130 ConsensusMozart himself referred to as “the mystical sanctuary of our religion” thatso frequently occurs in Mozart’s religious music. Kiing concludes with achapter analyzing the entirety of Mozart’s great Coronation Mass.This is a fine and wonderful little book that will be read with appre-ciation by theologians, musicians, untrained lovers of music, and Christianlaity alike. It is certainly the best examination of Mozart’s musical religios-ity to date.Richard A. MullerCalvin Theological Seminary,Grand Rapids, MichiganEvil, Sexuality and Disease in Griinewald’s Body ofChristEugene MonickDallas: Spring Publications, 1993XV + 189 pp. $18.50 U.S.Eugene Monick’s book is a thought-provoking study of the links be-tween sexuality, sickness and religion. His major focus is the violentlygraphic crucifixion scene of the Isenheim altarpiece, completed by MattiasGrunewald around 1515. The work was commissioned by members of theOrder of St. Anthony, for the chapel of a monastery which had become ahospice for victims of plague, leprosy, syphilis and the “burning sickness”,a form of gangrenous ergotism.The painting features a grotesquely twisted Christ, whose body isriddled with wounds and festering sores. Monick arrives at the ratherstartling conclusion that this Christ—like many of the original viewers ofthe painting—suffers from the effects of syphilis. This image is one whichis far removed from that of orthodox Christianity, where the perfect persontakes upon himself the sin and suffering of the outside world; Griinewald’sChrist embodies corruption literally as well as figuratively. Of particularnote is the suggestion that his disease is one linked to sexual activity, tra-ditionally considered evil in orthodox Christian thought.The notion of Jesus as a sexual being is not new. It appears as earlyas the second century in gnostic literature and in modern times has beenexplored by a diverse body of writers, from theologians William Phippsand Rosemary Ruether to art historian Leo Sternberg. However, Monicksuggests an even more controversial hypothesis—that Griinewald’s Jesushad a sexually-transmitted disease. This Christ has special relevance inthe age of AIDS.As a Jungian analyst, Monick believes there is an interlacing network ofgood and evil at the core of the human psyche. As an Episcopalian priest.

Mozart: traces of transcendence

Scholars Commons

Consensus
Volume 21
Issue 2 Aspects of Ecumenity Article 17
11-1-1995
Mozart: traces of transcendence
Richard A. Muller
Follow this and additional works at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus
This Book Reviews is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by an
authorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.
Recommended Citation
Muller, Richard A. (1995) "Mozart: traces of transcendence," Consensus: Vol. 21 : Iss. 2 , Article 17.
Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol21/iss2/17
Book Reviews 129
Mozart: Traces of Transcendence
Hans Kiing
Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993
xii + 81 pp.
Hans Kiing’s brief essay on the religious and theological dimensions
of Mozart’s music can only be highly recomrciended. It is surely the best
essay of its kind to appear in print—without doubt of greater insight and
penetration than Karl Barth’s famous homage, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1986) and, for similar reasons, superior also
to Jaroslav Pelikan’s theological meditation on Bach. What makes Kiing’s
work so outstanding is its movement beyond basic aesthetic appreciation to
the careful analysis both of musical and theological issues in the historical
context of Mozart’s life. The analysis, in turn, returns both Kiing and his
readers to the aesthetic and religious appreciation of Mozart’s achievement
at a more profopnd level.
As his point of departure, Kiing notes the contrast between Karl Barth’s
assumption of Mozart’s deep Catholic religiosity and the more “ambivalent”
view of Wolfgang Hildesheimer’s penetrating biography—in which the “re-
ligious” atmosphere of Mozart’s time is seen as a background, but not as a
profound presupposition, of Mozart’s musical culture. From the beginning,
Kiing addresses squarely the issues raised by this contrast of perceptions
by examining Mozart’s sometimes negative relationship to the Catholic hi-
erarchy, as represented by his one-time patron. Archbishop Coloredo, and
then balancing this aspect of Mozart’s life and work with the intimate rela-
tionship between his religious and secular style of composition. Kiing, as a
theologian and a Catholic, well understands that Mozart, as a non-dogmatic
Catholic who had little difficulty relating positively to Protestant musicians
(and to Freemasons!), could nonetheless partake of a deep Catholic religios-
ity, revealed not only in aspects of his music but in his comments that he
would never live in a country that was not Catholic and that no Protestant
could really understand the Agnus Dei.
Kiing also carefully considers the work done by recent musicologists
and historians on the “secular”, popular, and even the vulgar Mozart
—
and attempts to strike a balance between the traditional romanticization
of Mozart and contemporary iconoclasm, including that of the unhistorical
and untrustworthy play Amadeus. Kiing can conclude that “Mozart’s music
does not contain any message of faith as does that of Bach, nor is it a
confession of life like that of Beethoven or Bruckner, far less programme
music like that of Liszt or Wagner. . . Mozart’s primary concern was simply
to make music... with ‘expression’, using every possibility of melody and
harmony” (p. 21). Nonetheless, and with great insight and sensitivity,
Kiing is able to draw out the lines of connection between the profound
spirituality and sense of enormous mystery that Mozart himself recorded
as a part of his early experience of religion and the entrance into what
130 Consensus
Mozart himself referred to as “the mystical sanctuary of our religion” that
so frequently occurs in Mozart’s religious music. Kiing concludes with a
chapter analyzing the entirety of Mozart’s great Coronation Mass.
This is a fine and wonderful little book that will be read with appre-
ciation by theologians, musicians, untrained lovers of music, and Christian
laity alike. It is certainly the best examination of Mozart’s musical religios-
ity to date.
Richard A. Muller
Calvin Theological Seminary,
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Evil, Sexuality and Disease in Griinewald’s Body of
Christ
Eugene Monick
Dallas: Spring Publications, 1993
XV + 189 pp. $18.50 U.S.
Eugene Monick’s book is a thought-provoking study of the links be-
tween sexuality, sickness and religion. His major focus is the violently
graphic crucifixion scene of the Isenheim altarpiece, completed by Mattias
Grunewald around 1515. The work was commissioned by members of the
Order of St. Anthony, for the chapel of a monastery which had become a
hospice for victims of plague, leprosy, syphilis and the “burning sickness”,
a form of gangrenous ergotism.
The painting features a grotesquely twisted Christ, whose body is
riddled with wounds and festering sores. Monick arrives at the rather
startling conclusion that this Christ—like many of the original viewers of
the painting—suffers from the effects of syphilis. This image is one which
is far removed from that of orthodox Christianity, where the perfect person
takes upon himself the sin and suffering of the outside world; Griinewald’s
Christ embodies corruption literally as well as figuratively. Of particular
note is the suggestion that his disease is one linked to sexual activity, tra-
ditionally considered evil in orthodox Christian thought.
The notion of Jesus as a sexual being is not new. It appears as early
as the second century in gnostic literature and in modern times has been
explored by a diverse body of writers, from theologians William Phipps
and Rosemary Ruether to art historian Leo Sternberg. However, Monick
suggests an even more controversial hypothesis—that Griinewald’s Jesus
had a sexually-transmitted disease. This Christ has special relevance in
the age of AIDS.
As a Jungian analyst, Monick believes there is an interlacing network of
good and evil at the core of the human psyche. As an Episcopalian priest.


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