The article begins by making a connection between the theme of the sensus fidelium and theological hermeneutics, proposing the theology of Edward Schillebeeckx as a resource for weaving together the distinctive – and complementary – contributions to the development of doctrine made by the magisterium and by theologians. This helps to articulate an account of ‘the faithful’ that is inclusive, and can overcome the separation between the teaching Church and the learning Church that was so firmly in place between Vatican I and Vatican II. The ecclesiological image of the people of God is then explored, using two newly translated sources from Schillebeeckx's later works. This links the theological voice back to the magisterium and, drawing on the teaching of Pope Francis, the idea of ‘integral ecclesiology’ is proposed as part of the inclusive approach being recommended. Such an ecclesiology needs to draw the image of the people of God into a fruitful interaction with that of communio, and the article takes a pneumatological turn in order to do this. Using a metaphor from Pope Francis of the Holy Spirit as the source of harmony in the symphony of the church, a proposal is voiced that is retrospective and prospective at the same time, drawing the two hermeneutical strategies for the interpretation of Vatican II into a relational dialectic with each other. It also offers the possibility of a theological diversity that leads the church into greater union, and into ever deeper communion with the living God.

In light of the problem of the postmodern “de-centered” subject for Christianity, I address the loss of a common expectation horizon of the eschatological future. This loss is situated within the wider collapse of modern metanarratives and the dispersal of the primacy and critical power of the future, leading to an incomplete and even shattered process of identity formation for Christians. By recovering elements of Edward Schillebeeckx's eschatology, I suggest a way forward by drawing on the wider Christian tradition and hope for salvation as an essential element for the ongoing process of identity formation, while using his thought to critique the fractured postmodern “self” and contemporary trends in culture, religion, and economics.

This article, “reflects back and works forwards”, by thinking together the three “sorrowful mysteries” of the last one hundred years; three marked and irrevocable steps of escalation and complexity in the history of international conflict. Along with so many others in this centenary year, we commemorate: its causes, and the lessons to be learned. What are the continuities between the Great War, 1914–18, and the second “sorrowful mystery”, the advent of nuclear weapons? This brings us to the specific challenges that face us in the present: globalized violence in the name of religion, the reactive “war on terror” and the development of “smart” technology, remind us that our context too is unprecedented and uniquely dangerous. Explanatory avenues opened up include discussion of the moral and political implications of unmanned weapons, or drones. Here is an example of the crisis of sacrifice associated with René Girard, while Girard's own recasting of Clausewitz's notion of the “escalation to extremes”, and the humanism in Edward Schillebeeckx are also examined.