The Eschatological Key

Abstract

Abstract In the first volume of his systemic series, German theologian Jürgen Moltmann begins his systematics with a musical metaphor; “The eschatological is not one element of Christianity, but it is the medium of Christian faith as such, the key in which everything is set …” Moltmann then goes on to propose that the eschaton is a temporal event, which breaks the logic of his initial metaphor of the key signature. This essay will explore the differences between understanding the eschaton explicated as the key that Christian hope is set as opposed to a temporal alternative, such as the time signature. Jeremy Begbie is brought into the conversation to explicate how “harmony” can guide our conversation of music theory, and Miguel De La Torre illuminates how Moltmann’s claim, which while revolutionary in many aspects, continues to rely on Eurocentric understanding of salvation history, just as music theory tends towards Eurocentrism. We also examine what we lose out on when we leave this uninterrogated. To conclude, we explore how Moltmann’s proposal about Christian hope becomes more coherent within the metaphor of key signature and right relationship instead of time signature and temporality.