"Jesus takes on himself our guilt-entangled history, but,
through his voluntary obedience and his vicarious ser-
vice, gives it a new quality and establishes a new begin-
ning. The history of disobedience, of hatred and lying is
brought to a halt in his obedience and service. Even
more: in his suffering and dying on the cross, where his
obedience and service reach their supreme perfection,
these powers of injustice wear themselves out on him and
rush to their death; since he does not respond to them, he
swallows them up - so to speak - in his death. His death
is the death of death.... Jesus Christ then is not only a
member of mankind, but the beginning of a new humani-
ty.... Thus he recapitulates the whole previous develop-
ment and at the same time opens up a new history."
- Walter Kasper
