The Church: The Evolution of Catholicism by Richard P. McBrien

The Church: The Evolution of Catholicism Reviews

• 
  Ryan

  I thought this would be a little more historical and devote less pages to a religious vocabulary than I am not used to absorbing (liturgy, ecclesiology, monastic, eucharine, etc etc). Also, apparently Marionology (Mary) and Christology (Jesus) are words. And disciplines. Yes, religious scholars have taken scientific terminology and used it on characters in the bible, and have devoted whole areas of study to them. I just don't get it.
  
  I skimmed through pretty quickly over the parts that had constant biblical citations or paragraph after paragraph of the aforementioned language. But the parts I did read were a slightly interesting summation of the history of the church, albeit one-sided. I will give McBrien credit for acknowledging some of the seedier sides and epochs of the Catholic church, and celebrating the small steps forward (he particularly loves Vactican II, and he wrote warmly about Pope John Paul II genuflecting at the Wailing Wall and writing some apologetic things about the Holocaust. So that's nice. Bu the rest of the book either bored me to death, or insulted my intelligence. I just don't understand a life, be it layman or scholarly, devoted to these amorphous formulations, theories, terminologies, and artifices of faith. I'd understand if it was historical (in fact, that's exactly what I was hoping this book would be), but it's pseudohistory. It's scattered too-brief sketches of what the people behind the bible might have done, plus the bible itself, and then an examination of church behavior since its founding colored through esoteric and artificial terms like eucharist, body of Christ, Holy Ghost, and Church (evidently I still don't understand what they mean that word to mean).
  
  So I gave it a shot! Now when I read my Dawkins, I have something to compare it to.
• 
  Andrew

  An ecumenically aware Roman Catholic interpretation of the ecclesiology of Vatican II, including a more "open" interpretation of Trent and Vatican I than usual.
  
  For the lay reader, the book helps explain some of the biblical and theological interpretations as well as historical and pastoral situations in the past that have contributed to Catholic self-understanding and views of other Christian denominations today. Is the Roman Catholic Church the one and only true Church? Can people be saved outside the Church? What does it mean to be part of the People of God, the Body of Christ, and the Temple of the Holy Spirit?
  
  Unfortunately, what the book could have and should have helped the reader understand are the ecclesiological and sacramental deficiencies behind corruption in finance, and sexual abuse. The author had a real opportunity there, and missed it. Instead, he saved his prophetic critique for conservatives like Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI for their restrictive and centralizing tendencies.
  
  
• 
  Bishop

  One of the best books on contemporary Roman Catholic eclesiology.
• 
  Jonah Peleus

  I can at least commend McBrien for sincerity. The book is useful as an introductory overview to ecclesiology, and touches on many points, especially surrounding and following Vatican II. Yet in many little ways McBren falls short of truth, and while his opinions might just scrape the edge of what is permissible from a Catholic stance, it is only because some of his views make subtle jabs without elaboration and without pervading the whole text. I am not referring to the obvious influence of liberal/modernist theological scholarship which can include ideas that sort of remain within the land of orthodoxy (i.e. certain ecclesiological emphasis', and certain biblical stances), but positions which are outright false. Positions which are not uncommon among many sincere but misled, liberal (not a fan of such political terms) Catholics.
  
  One of these being that Eucharistic Adoration is archaic and takes away from the Liturgy, and undermines Sacrosanctum Concilium's call for 'active participation' in the Liturgy. As Benedict XVI says in Sacrametum Caritatis: "The act of adoration outside Mass prolongs and intensifies all that takes place during the liturgical celebration itself." (66). Thus McBrien does falls prey to that stance which misunderstands 'active participation' to mean literally doing stuff other than being a devout member of the congregation (I mean how many roles even allow for such 'literal participation'), for whom in reality, adoration even during Mass, is the climax of a truly active participation in the liturgy - an engagement of the mind and heart.
  
  Another error pertains to suggesting the Catholic Church is not synonymous with the Body of Christ. McBrien misreads LG 8: "The Church... subsists in the Catholic Church," as though the Body of Christ resides therein but is not limited to the Catholic Church. Setting up a false-dichotomy. Instead he should speak of the distinction between the explicit and visible structure of the Catholic Church and the implicit and invisible dimension by which those outside the visible Church can still be said to be in varying degrees of communion with the Church, and receptive to the grace of salvation attained only through Her. McBrien undermines the mediatory necessity of the Church, and vaguely intimates the possibility of salvation aside from Christ, although I wouldn't rest on this charge since I do not cite specifically, nor would it be fair to forgo the fact he may have simply expressed himself ambiguously on this matter.
  
  McBrien's sentiments regarding Mariology are also clear. He falls into a typical liberal devotional reductionism of Mary. Granted his articulations on Mary as Mother of the Church contain some value, his ecclesiology lacks Marian depth, and pits true Mariology against a distortion of a sound post-conciliar ecclesiology.
  
  Many more things could be said, but I'll just add that McBrien is of the school that argues for the hermenutical discontinuity and continuity of Vatican II.
  
  The book is by no means valuable in terms of a work of truth; but as a general introduction to ecclesiology, and a work that touches upon various key figures and areas of importance, the book is a valuable read. Especially since it contains those subtle false views which are so important to tackle today for the academic Catholic and theologian - not in an aggressive way, but in a way that is respectful of the sincerity of those who often hold such erroneous views.
• 
  The

  Every now and then it is good to read a book like The Church: The Evolution of Catholicism. Richard McBrien is a reliable source for a comprehensive overview of catholic (with both a big C and little c) perspective. Even though published in 2008 it is a timely resource. In times of turmoil and rapid changes in so many areas of life the world over, I needed to reground myself in the big picture so as to see the ongoing process of growth that is being made in the hope of bringing into being the kingdom of God Jesus came to reveal. If you need to refresh your hope in the future this book might be for you.
• 
  Alan

  Valuable book, but only if you know what you're getting. The presentation is not particularly exciting, but the text is readable and accessible. It provides a very good summary of the history of Catholic approaches to ecclesiology. It is especially valuable for those that want a good picture of what "Church" meant to the theologians at Vatican II, and what it means for liberationist and feminist theologians today.
• 
  Maureen

  Probably a good book for researchers and other specialists, not terribly accessible or relevant to the layman.