Cover -- Contents -- Acknowledgements 9 -- Introduction: A Renewed Notion of Person as Relational 11 -- The Argument 15 -- Conversation as a Theological Method 16 -- Outline of the Book 18 -- 1. Rahner and Macmurray in Context 21 -- 1.1 Karl Rahner (1904-1984) 22 -- 1.1.1 Rahner in Relation to Philosophy 29 -- 1.2 John Macmurray (1891-1976) 33 -- 1.2.1 Macmurray in Relation to Religion 40 -- 2. Rahner's Notion of Person as Relational 45 -- 2.1 Spirit in the World 46 -- 2.1.1 Person as Matter and Spirit 48 -- 2.1.2 Rahner's Understanding of Subjectivityand Otherness 51 -- 2.1.3 Human Being and the Absolute 52 -- 2.2 Hearer of the Word 59 -- 2.2.1 The Action of Love 63 -- 2.2.2 Communal 66 -- 2.3 Conclusion 68 -- 3. Rahner's Early Essays on Person 71 -- 3.1 "The Consecration of the Layman to the Care of Souls" (1936) 73 -- 3.2 "The Christian Commitment" (1961) 78 -- 3.3 "The Theological Concept of Concupiscentia" (1941) 79 -- 3.4 "Concerning the Relationship between Nature and Grace" (1950) 83 -- 3.5 "The 'Commandment' of Love in Relationto the Other Commandments" (1961) 87 -- 3.6 Conclusion 90 -- 4. Rahner: Persons in Relationship 93 -- 4.1 The Unity of the Love of Neighbour and the Love of God (1965) 94 -- 4.1.1 Recalling Foundations 95 -- 4.1.2 Love of Neighbour as the Fundamental Personal Activity 96 -- 4.1.3 Manifestation of a Person's Wholeness and Essence 99 -- 4.1.4 Love of Neighbour the condition for Love of God 101 -- 4.2 From Relationship to Communion (1980) 104 -- 4.3 Responding to Rahner's Critics 112 -- 4.4 Conclusion 120 -- 5. John Macmurray: Search for a New Paradigm 121 -- 5.1 The Search for Personality 122 -- 5.2 Early Insights on Personality 124 -- 5.3 "The Unity of Modern Problems" 128 -- 5.3.1 The Mechanical Metaphor 129 -- 5.3.2 The Organic Metaphor 130 -- 5.4 Friendship and Personality 134 -- 5.5 Persons and Rationality 144.

5.6 Conclusion 148 -- 6. Persons as Agents 153 -- 6.1 Challenging Descartes and Kant 154 -- 6.1.1 René Descartes (1596-1650) 156 -- 6.1.2 Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) 159 -- 6.2 The Primacy of Action 161 -- 6.3 Person as Agent and Subject 164 -- 6.4 Agency and the Other-than-Self 167 -- 6.5 Person as the Fundamental Construct of Reality 169 -- 6.6 Action and Intentionality 170 -- 6.7 The World as One Action 174 -- 6.8 Critical Evaluation 177 -- 6.9 Conclusion 180 -- 7. The Paradigm of The Personal 183 -- 7.1 Fundamental Orientation of Humans to the Personal 184 -- 7.2 The Motivation for Mutuality: Love and Fear 189 -- 7.3 Mutuality and Individuality 193 -- 7.4 Three Types of Relationship 195 -- 7.5 Persons in Communion 197 -- 7.5.1 Equality 202 -- 7.5.2 Freedom 203 -- 7.5.3 Inclusiveness 204 -- 7.6 Person in Communion with Creation 205 -- 7.7 Communion of Persons: The Fundamental Goal of Religion 207 -- 7.8 Communion of Persons in Relationship with God 211 -- 7.8.1 God as Personal Other 212 -- 7.8.2 God as Universal Agent 216 -- 7.9 Critical Comments: Loss of the Transcendent? 219 -- 7.10 Conclusion 224 -- 8. The Conversation: Towards a Communion Notion of Person 225 -- 8.1 The Priority of Action 226 -- 8.1.1 Subjectivity and the Relational Person 230 -- 8.2 Spirit (transcendence) as Constitutive of Person 233 -- 8.3 Freedom and the Relational Person 240 -- 8.4 God Deeply Embedded in Human Relationships 244 -- 8.5 The Internal Dynamic of Communion: Love and Mutuality 254 -- 8.6 Person as Agent for Communion in an Evolutionary Worldview 261 -- Conclusion 269 -- Bibliography 273 -- Index 285.