Thomas Joseph White - Böcker

This new Companion to Aquinas features entirely new chapters written by internationally recognized experts in the field. It shows the power of Aquinas's philosophical thought and transmits the worldview which he inherited, developed, altered, and argued for, while at the same time revealing to contemporary philosophers the strong connections which there are between Aquinas's interests and views and their own. Its five sections cover the life and works of Aquinas; his metaphysics, including his understanding of the ultimate foundations of reality; his metaethics and ethics, including his virtue ethics; his account of human nature; his theory of the afterlife; his epistemology and his theory of the intellectual virtues; his view of the nature of free will and the relation of grace to free will; and finally some key components of his philosophical theology, including the incarnation and atonement, Christology, and the nature of original sin.

The Light of Christ provides an accessible presentation of Catholicism that is grounded in traditional theology, but engaged with a host of contemporary questions or objections. Inspired by the theologies of Irenaeus, Thomas Aquinas and John Henry Newman, and rooted in a post-Vatican II context, Fr. Thomas Joseph White presents major doctrines of the Christian religion in a way that is comprehensible for non-specialists: knowledge of God, the mystery of the Trinity, the Incarnation and the atonement, the sacraments and the moral life, eschatology and prayer.At the same time, The Light of Christ also addresses topics such as evolution, the modern historical study of Jesus and the Bible, and objections to Catholic moral teaching. Touching on the concerns of contemporary readers, Fr. White examines questions such as whether Christianity is compatible with the findings of the modern sciences, do historical Jesus studies disrupt or confirm the teaching of the faith, and does history confirm the antiquity of Catholic claims.This book serves as an excellent introduction for young professionals with no specialized background in theology who are interested in learning more about Catholicism, or as an introduction to Catholic theology. It will also serve as a helpful text for theology courses in a university context.As Fr. White states in the book's introduction: ""This is a book that offers itself as a companion. I do not presume to argue the reader into the truths of the Catholic faith, though I will make arguments. My goal is to make explicit in a few broad strokes the shape of Catholicism. I hope to outline its inherent intelligibility or form as a mystery that is at once visible and invisible, ancient and contemporary, mystical and reasonable.

In recent years, Thomistic thought has seen a noteworthy revival, especially in the domain of systematic and historical theology. This resurgence of interest in Aquinas' thought is beginning to significantly affect the shape of academic theology as well as ecumenical theology. Yet there exists no serious study of Thomistic Christology, especially in dialogue with major themes in modern Christology.The Incarnate Lord, then, considers central themes in Christology from a metaphysical perspective. Particular attention is given to the hypostatic union, the two natures of Christ, the knowledge and obedience of Jesus, the passion and death of Christ, his descent into hell, and resurrection. A central concern of the book is to argue for the perennial importance of ontological principles of Christology inherited from patristic and scholastic authors. However, the book also seeks to advance an interpretation of Thomistic Christology in a modern context. The teaching Aquinas, then, is central to the study, but it is placed in conversation with various modern theologians, such as Karl Barth, Karl Rahner and Hans Urs von Balthasar. Ultimately the goal of the work is to suggest how traditional Catholic theology might thrive under modern conditions, and also develop fruitfully from engaging in contemporary controversies.The first part of the book, then, examines the ontology of the hypostatic union, the grace and human nature of Christ, the analogical similitude of the human and divine natures of Jesus, and the human knowledge and obedience of Christ. The second part of the book considers the obedient self-offering of Christ, his cry of dereliction, suffering and death, as well as his descent into hell, and physical resurrection. The conclusion of the book provides a systematic reflection on the nature of Christology as a theoretical and historical discipline.

The conversation of this book is structured around five major documents from the Second Vatican Council, each of which Barth commented upon in his short but penetrating response to the Council, published as Ad Limina Apostolorum. In the two opening essays, Thomas Joseph White reflects upon the contribution that this book seeks to make to contem­porary ecumenism rooted in awareness of the value of dogmatic theol­ogy; and Matthew Levering explores the way in which Barth’s Ad Limina Apostolorum flows from his preconciliar dialogues with Catholic repre­sentatives of the nouvelle théologie and remain relevant to the issues facing Catholic theology today. The next two essays turn to Dei Verbum, the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation; here Katherine Sondereg­ger (Protestant) reflects on scripture and Lewis Ayres (Catholic) reflects on tradition. The next two essays address the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, which touches upon central differences of Cath­olic and Protestant self-understanding. Christoph Schwöbel (Protestant) analyzes visible ecclesial identity as conceived in a Protestant context, while Thomas Joseph White (Catholic) engages Barth’s Reformed crit­icisms of the Catholic notion of the Church. The next two essays take up Nostra Aetate: Bruce McCormack (Protestant) asks whether it is true to say that Muslims worship the same God as Christians, and Bruce D. Marshall (Catholic) explores the implications of the Council’s reflections on the Jewish people. The next two essays take up the Pastoral Constitu­tion on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et Spes: John Bowlin (Protestant) makes use of the thought of Aquinas to consider the prom­ise and perils of the document, while Francesca Aran Murphy (Catho­lic) engages critically with George Lindbeck’s analysis of the document. The next two essays explore Unitatis Redintegratio: Hans Boersma (Prot­estant) asks whether the ecumenical intention of the document is im­paired by its insistence that the unity of the Church is already present in the Catholic Church, and Reinhard Hütter (Catholic) systematically addresses Barth’s questions regarding the document. The noted ecumen­ist and Catholic theologian Richard Schenk brings the volume to a close by reflecting on “true and false ecumenism” in the post-conciliar period.

Catholic theology has to face a certain number of fundamental questions: what is the nature and content of Christian revelation, what are the sources of revelation, how are the mysteries of the faith to be understood in relation of one to another, and how do the truths of the Catholic faith relate to the acquisitions of natural reason. In the contemporary context, Catholic theology is marked by a diversity of approaches, many of which are seemingly incompatible or estranged from one another. How might we think about the unity of Catholic theology over and above the diversity of forms? What role, if any, can Aquinas play as a common doctor in facilitating exchanges between theological traditions in the Church?Principles of Catholic Theology seeks to address directly the nature of Catholic theology and the challenge of its contemporary articulation with an eye towards its articulation in its Thomistic key. This book is also the first of a series of collections of essays by Thomas Joseph White, OP, extending over a range of fundamental topics in Catholic dogmatic theology.

What if anything can human beings know about God, either by way of philosophical reasoning or by divine revelation? How does the mystery of the Incarnation illuminate our understanding of the nature and mystery of God and the nature and destiny of the human person? The essays in this book explore topics pertaining to the nature of God, apophatic theology, divine simplicity and the holy Trinity, divine beauty, and the beauty of creation. The book also contains a series of speculative considerations of Christology: Why did God become human? How ought we understand the two natures of Christ and the topic of the communication of idioms (attribution of both divine and human properties to one person)? There is also a sustained treatment of Jesus' human knowledge and voluntary freedom. Did Jesus understand his own lordship and his unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and if so, how? Did Christ's human will always accord with the divine will, and what significance does this idea have for our understanding of the redemption affected by Christ for the whole human race? Through these explorations, principles drawn from Thomas Aquinas and from Thomistic tradition are taken into account as key resources for the adjudication of contemporary theological challenges. Principles of Catholic Theology, Book 3 is a continuation of Fr. Thomas Joseph White's collection of essays, extending over a range of fundamental topics in Catholic dogmatic theology.

In the Nicene Creed Christians profess belief in the Church, "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic." The Church is also called the mystical body of Christ and the bride of Christ. What is the Church and how can we understand her mystery in light of the mystery of Christ? Principles of Catholic Theology, Book 4 explores Catholic ecclesiology and the theology of the Virgin Mary, as an exemplar of the Church's life. It also considers the people of Israel in light of the Church and Christ. The second half of the book considers human nature in light of the grace of Christ, and ecclesial humanity, so as to consider thematic and universal relations of grace to human nature. Major controversies are addressed such as the natural desire to see God and the Thomistic understanding of election and predestination. Effectively this volume seeks to receive and interpret the teaching of the Second Vatican Council Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, within the Thomistic theological tradition and in light of that tradition.Principles of Catholic Theology, Book 4 is a continuation of Fr. Thomas Joseph White's collection of essays, extending over a range of fundamental topics in Catholic dogmatic theology.

What if anything can human beings know about God, either by way of philosophical reasoning or by divine revelation? How does the mystery of the Incarnation illuminate our understanding of the nature and mystery of God and the nature and destiny of the human person? The essays in this book explore topics pertaining to the nature of God, apophatic theology, divine simplicity and the holy Trinity, divine beauty, and the beauty of creation. The book also contains a series of speculative considerations of Christology: Why did God become human? How ought we understand the two natures of Christ and the topic of the communication of idioms (attribution of both divine and human properties to one person)? There is also a sustained treatment of Jesus' human knowledge and voluntary freedom. Did Jesus understand his own lordship and his unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit, and if so, how? Did Christ's human will always accord with the divine will, and what significance does this idea have for our understanding of the redemption affected by Christ for the whole human race? Through these explorations, principles drawn from Thomas Aquinas and from Thomistic tradition are taken into account as key resources for the adjudication of contemporary theological challenges.Principles of Catholic Theology, Book 3 is a continuation of Fr. Thomas Joseph White, OP, collection of essays, extending over a range of fundamental topics in Catholic dogmatic theology.

What are the aims of the Christian spiritual life and how can we deepen our life in Christ? What is the Catholic form of the spiritual life and what are its causes? This book serves as an introduction to Catholic spirituality by examining the mystery of Jesus Christ- His Crucifixion and His Resurrection- as the center of our spiritual life. The central argument of the book is that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus present us with the form or essence of the Christian spiritual life and orient us toward union with the Trinity as the final end or aim of human existence. The means of union with God through sacraments, the interior life of the theological virtues (faith, hope, and charity), and the virtue of religion are considered as vehicles by which we rejoin God in Christ. The effects of the Cross are considered in our life by a study of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The Virgin Mary is considered as a model of the spiritual life. What results is a Christ-centered spirituality that is sacramental and Marian, and that depicts the life of the Church living in contemplative charity as the basic expression of Catholic spirituality.

This is the first volume of its kind, bringing together a group of international Jewish and Catholic scholars in creative conversation addressing the question of the status of the land called Israel. Is Israel best viewed as political territory, the 'Holy Land', or part of the biblical promise? If committing to one of these options, what are the theological and political consequences?The book is divided into sections that take the reader through several related questions that bear upon this topic. There is a preface with an overview of how far Catholic Jewish conversations have gone since Nostra Aetate, and how these conversations have now begun to address the land. Then there is an attempt to advance positive theological cases by Catholics and Jews affirming the people in the land as theologically significant, not without difficulties regarding the state itself. The next section deals with the bible/Tanakh as the basis of such claims and addresses the different reading strategies by each community. One of the central questions is then addressed: what of the Palestinian people, do the biblical promise to the Jewish people spell disaster for the Palestinians? Can revelation mean dispossession? The following essays address a stumbling block for both groups: do Jewish and Christian theologies underwrite a nation state? Isn't this option perilously close to God underwriting nationalism? The book ends with subtle critiques of the entire venture undertaken in this volume.Essential reading for Catholic Jewish relations and one that addresses one of the most pressing contemporary questions for both religions.

This work explores a Christian understanding of God's presence in the world. As the Creator of all that exists, the Creator-Trinity is mysteriously present to all things, and truly but imperfectly knowable as such. In addition to this creative presence, however, there is also the manifestation of God's presence as a gift of grace. By supernatural faith, the trinitarian life of God is made known to us as an object of the Christian mystical life. This life is centered especially upon God's unique presence by way of Incarnation, human life, death, and resurrection, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. This work explores these notions in comparison with other religious traditions, in a Catholic as well as ecumenical perspective. Original considerations are offered regarding the nature of scriptural inspiration, the Church as the mystical body of Christ, and the sacraments as instrumental expressions of the Incarnation, all with a view to the notion of mystical experience, and union with God.Principles of Catholic Theology, Book 5 is a continuation of Fr. Thomas Joseph White's collection of essays, extending over a range of fundamental topics in Catholic dogmatic theology.