Not longer loved or fostered by religion, beauty is lifted from its face as a mask, and its absence exposes features on that face which threaten to become incomprehensible to man.

Saints appear as an example of the lived Christian life throughout his writings. Hans Urs von Balthasar (12 August 1905 Lucerne – 26 June 1988 Basel) was a Swiss theologian and priest (incardinated into Roman Catholic Diocese of Chur) who was to be created a cardinal of the Catholic Church but died before the ceremony.

He is considered one of the most important theologians of the 20th century.