Theology Faculty Books

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Piety and Politics: The Dynamics of Royal Authority in Homeric Greece, Biblical Israel, and Old Babylonian Mesopotamia

Dale Launderville OSB

In Homeric Greece, Biblical Israel, and Old Mesopotamia, the king was said to be installed by divine appointment and was regarded as having a special and privileged relationship with God or the gods. This comparative and thematic study assesses the role of the king as a divine messenger and his use of, and reliance on, piety to legitimate his position and ensure the compliance of his subjects. Based on a variety of texts from each of the three regions, including poetry, philosophy, history and theological works, Launderville examines the rhetoric of royal legitimation. He also looks at what the community expected from the king as the centralising symbol of the community, the chief messenger from the divine world and the dispenser of justice, and he explores the means by which the king's power and privileged position could be kept in check.
Faith Transformed : Christian Encounters with Jews and Judaism

John C. Merkle

Traditionally, Christian churches have taught that the validity of Judaism came to an end with the emergence of Christianity. But in the last half-century, many Christians have repudiated this teaching and have affirmed the abiding validity of Judaism. Consequently, they have had to reevaluate Christian self-understanding in relation to Judaism. In Faith Transformed, Christian scholars who have been at the forefront of Christian-Jewish relations share how their encounters with Jews and Judaism have transformed their understanding and practice of Christianity. They reveal how their Christian faith has been profoundly enriched by drawing inspiration from the Jewish tradition.
Reading in Christian Communities : Essays on Interpretation in the Early Church

Charles A. Bobertz, David Brakke, and Rowan A. Greer

The essays in this book honor and extend the work of Rowan A. Greer, Walter H. Gray Professor Emeritus of Anglican Studies at Yale University Divinity School, by exploring the connections between textual interpretation and the formation of religious identity. A diverse and prestigious group of biblical scholars, church historians, and theologians studies the role that scripture plays in the creation and maintenance of faith communities and the ways that communal locations in turn shape the interpretation of scripture.

The first part of the book examines specific examples of ancient biblical interpretation as a means of creating, maintaining, and challenging Christian identity in the pluralistic ancient world. Authors study interpretation in the Martyrdom of Polycarp, the Physiologus, Gnostic literature, the fifth-century mosaic of the Church of Hosios David in Thessaloniki, and in the works of Irenaeus, Origen, Augustine, John Chrysostom, and Porphyry of Tyre. Reading scripture emerges as a strategy for locating the reader and his or her community with respect to other Christians, Jews, and pagans. Part 2 of the volume considers the general problem of interpretation within Christian communities, whether ancient or modern, as they face the task of maintaining a coherent identity.
New Proclamation: Year B, 2002-2003, Advent through Holy Week

Frederick Houk Borsch, James M. Childs, Philip H. Pfatteicher, and Martin F. Connell

The New Proclamation series helps preachers write better sermons from Advent through Pentecost. It offers creative links to literature, spirituality, and the sociocultural scene in addition to historical and exegetical reflections on all the biblical texts. Its format assists those using the Revised Common Lectionary, the Roman Catholic lectionary, and the Episcopal lectionary (BCP).
In Our Image: Artificial Intelligence and the Human Spirit

Noreen L. Herzfeld

In Our Image is the first extensive theological engagement with the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Herzfeld probes this new field, which seeks to replicate thinking in computers and more broadly to model human intelligence, for its theological depth. Offering a smart, accessible history and typology of research in AI, Herzfeld shows how its rival schools parallel competing options in the theological anthropologies. Herzfeld's exciting work further develops a relational model, in which she finds a needed corrective to the individualistic and narcissistic tendencies of much recent spirituality and the seeds of a human/computer ethic for the future.
Parish Faith Formation Assessment and Planning Tool: Catholic Education Ministries, Diocese of St. Cloud

Jeffrey J. Kaster

How are new member being welcomed into your parish? How are parishioners being challenged to grow in their relationship with God and in service to others? Parish Faith Formation Assessment and Planning Tool, winner of the 1997 Research Award from the National Conference of Catechetical Leadership, helps identify key areas in faith formation for assessment and planning. This book is solid and comprehensive, yet flexible enough to meet individual needs.
The Death of Jesus: The Diabolical Force and the Ministering Angel: Luke 23, 44-49

Michael Patella OSB

Beginning with Peter's Pentecost oration, the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ become the object of preaching throughout the remainder of Acts. The Lucan corpus has two volumes, the Gospel and the Acts. Thus, the possibility for detecting the literary strains which went into the Christian kerygma is greater in the third gospel than in Matthew, Mark , or John. It has been demonstrated that the kerygma was transmitted orally before its achieving canonical, written form. The salvific strains contained in the kerygma, and how and why they were redacted into a final Lucan version of the death of Jesus constitute the major examination of this study. [from the Introduction]
Guide to the Revised Lectionary

Martin Connell

Description of series: The Basics of Ministry series explores parish ministries that are vital to an active and meaningful eucharistic celebration. Each book provides useful material for the recruitment and training of new ministers, as well as insights to revitalize those who have been involved in ministry for years. The series includes introductions to specific ministries, brief histories, spirituality and instructions. You also will find a list of other resources, along with prayers and questions for discussion and reflection.
Traditions and Transitions

Martin Connell and Eleanor Bernstein

A collection of presentations from the 1996 annual conference of the Notre Dame Center for Pastoral Liturgy. This conference considered our liturgical heritage in terms of what has changed over time and what has remained constant. The progress of reform during the three decades from the end of the Second Vatican Council until today was measured by the major scholars and speakers on liturgy that gathered to share insights, perspectives and experiences of the past, present and future of liturgy.
The Changing Face of the Church

Martin Connell and Timothy Fitzgerald

For a generation since Vatican II we have been engaged in the diverse challenges of renewal. This collection of papers seeks to understand how the changing face of the church influences the liturgies we celebrate. Its contributors envision how the church of the future will embrace the church of the past. The authors deal with topics like initiation, eucharist, preaching, inculturation, music, liturgical space and design, conversion and the formation of the assembly and its ministers.
The Gospel and the Law in Galatia: Paul's Response to Jewish-Christian Separatism and the Threat of Galatian Apostasy

Vincent M. Smiles

From the Inside Flap

Among Paul's letters, Galatians is outstanding for the depths of its emotion, for its unrelenting attack on the law of Israel (while appealing to that law as the sacred witness of the Gospel's truth) and for the historical information it provides about Paul's conversion, his opponents and his relationship with the "pillar" apostles. It offers a penetrating view into some of early Christianity's important personalities and difficult controversies. In The Gospel and the Law in Galatia, Vincent Smiles delves into the Galatian situation to understand it from Paul's perspective. Why was he being attacked? Why were the Galatians being persuaded by his opponents? What part, if any, did the leading apostles have in the controversy? And, above all, how could Paul persuade the Galatians that they were not bound by the dictates of Jewish law? Smiles examines these questions by detailed analysis of the text of the letter. After an initial chapter introducing the method and debate with some modern scholarship, chapter two examines Paul's response to the attack on his apostolate. Chapter three tackles the issue of "the other gospel" which Paul combatted in Galatia and which had also made its presence felt in Jerusalem and Antioch. Chapter four is a detailed examination of Galatians 2:15-21 in light of recent scholarship. The final chapter summarizes the major insights of the study and applies them in a comparison of Galatians with Romans. The Gospel and the Law in Galatia is for a scholarly as well as a professional audience and for those with an interest in the earliest history of the Church. Most of the finer points of scholarly debate are confined to the footnotes; the major line of argument can be followed in the text without recourse to the notes. Chapters are "Introduction," "Paul's Defense of His Apostolate," "The Gospel Versus the Other Gospel in Galatia, Jerusalem and Antioch," "Paul's Response to Jewish Christian Separatism and the Threat of Galatian Apostasy," and "Summation and Further Issues." Students and scholars alike will find much to discover by revisiting the epistle under tutelage. Stephen Westerholm Chair Department of Religious Studies McMaster University" Dr. Smiles combines an expository style of unusual clarity and elegance with penetrating exegetical insight into the circumstance and argument of the Galatian letter. . . . His work will be a beacon for future Pauline and Galatians scholarship." Richard J. Dillon, S.S.D. Ordinary Professor of Theology Fordham University
An Introduction to the Church's Liturgical Year

Martin Connell

Why is Christmas always on December 25, but Easter is on different Sundays? What are the origins of Advent? The Church keeps time based on the life of Christ, with its most important seasons corresponding to the major events in the life of Jesus. The liturgical year is also strongly linked to the Church's early rites of initiation. This handbook guides you through the history and nuances of the Church year. Especially helpful in planning school liturgies and prayer services.
The Renewal That Awaits Us

Martin Connell and Eleanor Bernstein

Presentations from the 1995 Notre Dame Center for Pastoral Liturgy conference.
Just Trading: On the Ethics and Economics of International Trade

Daniel K. Finn

Recent debates over an alphabet soup of trade agreements -- GATT, GUSFTA, WTO, NAFTA, and others -- are remarkably confusing to the ordinary citizen. They are also marked by strident disagreements, with experts on both sides marshaling economic data and moral arguments and charging that their opponents are driven predominantly by ideological conviction.

Daniel Finn, an economist and Christian ethicist, helpfully and clearly sorts through the conflicting claims about international trade and analyzes the three policy areas most controverted in debates about trade: agriculture, the environment, and employment. His straightforward explanations of complicated and controversial issues will be appreciated by readers at many levels of familiarity with the topic.

304 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
The Catechetical Documents: A Parish Resource

Martin Connell

Gathered in this one book, you'll find the major teachings about catechesis from the Second Vatican Council until the present. This is an essential reference tool for teachers, catechists, clergy, pastoral leaders and students of catechesis. Includes General Catechetical Directory (1971), Basic Teachings for Catholic Religious Education, Sharing the Light of Faith, Guidelines for Doctrinally Sound Catechetical Materials and many others. Each document is preceded by a general overview that describes the origin, context and contribution of the document.
The Reshaping of a Tradition: American Benedictine Women, 1852-1881

Ephrem (Rita) Hollermann OSB

"The primary focus of this book is on the women and the way of life from 1852-1881. In researching this segment of time, the chief aims were 1) to identify the early foundresses of Benedictinism in North America, 2) to describe as far as possible the experiences and role of these women in the early spread of the Order in the United States, and 3) to discover some of the continuities and discontinuities between their life in America and in Europe. The results of this research yielded deeper insight into the nineteenth-century founding experience of American Benedictine women." [from the Introduction, xxvi]
Theology of Priesthood and Seminary Formation: Issues of Assembly II

Daniel K. Finn, Zeni Fox, John O'Malley, and Robert Schwartz

Contents:

Introduction, by Rev. Robert J. Wister; Ordained Ministry: Sign of Leadership and Unity in the Great Sacrament of the Church, by Rev. Robert Schwartz; A Response, by Rev. Robert Schreiter, CPPS; A Response, by Msgr. George H. Niederauer; Diocesan and Religious Models of Formation – Historical Perspectives, by Rev. John O’Malley, SJ; Preparing for Collaborative Ministry, by Dr. Zeni Fox; A Response, by Rev. John E. Linnan, CSV; Response, by Rev. Robert J. Cook; Theological Scholarship: Freedom and Responsibility in the Seminary Setting, by Dr. Daniel Finn; A Response, by Rev. Frederick M. Jelly, OP; A Response, by Rev. Thomas D. McGonigle, OP.
Theology of the Land

Bernard F. Evans and Gregory D. Cusack

“Theology of the Land” is an ongoing study of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference and the Virgil Michel Ecumenical Chair in Rural Social Ministries (St. John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota). This volume contains the papers presented at a 1985 conference on this subject.

Authors and topics: Leonard Weber, “Land Use Ethics: The Social Responsibility of Ownership”; Walter Bruggemann, “Land: Fertility and Justice”; C. Dean Freudenberger, “Implications of a New Land Ethic”; John Hart, “Land, Theology, and the Future”; Richard Cartwright Austin, “Rights for Life: Rebuilding Human Relationships with Land.”
Abraham Joshua Heschel : Exploring His Life and Thought

John C. Merkle

Based on presentations made at the Symposium on the Life and Thought of Abraham Joshua Heschel, held May 9-11, 1983 at the College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph, Minn.
The genesis of Faith : the Depth Theology of Abraham Joshua Heschel

John C. Merkle

Abraham Joshua Heschel was a leading 20th-century Jewish theologian and philosopher.