Micheal Buckley argues that a theology of papal primacy, as opposed to an idealogy, must focus on its nature as a unique relationship whose term or purpose is the unity of bishops amond themselves and through them the unity of the entire Church.

An essential and reliable reference work and manual of the Christian faith this book provides both students and interested readers with a basic text presenting the findings of modern scholarly thought and research. Ecumenical in spirit and approach, no responsible and inquiring Christian can afford to be without it.

The primacy of the bishop of Rome, the pope, as it was finally shaped in the Middle Ages and later defined by Vatican I and II has been one of the thorniest issues in the history of the Western and Eastern Churches. This issue was a primary cause of the division between the two Churches and the events that followed the schism of 1054: the sack of Constantinople by the crusaders in 1204, the appointment by Pope Innocent III of a Latin patriarch of Constantinople, and the establishment of Uniatism as a method and model of union. Always a topic in ecumenical dialogue, the issue of primacy has appeared to be an insurmountable obstacle to the realization of full unity between Roman Catholicism and the Orthodox Christianity. In this timely and comprehensive work, Maximos Vgenopoulos analyzes the response of major Orthodox thinkers to the Catholic understanding of the primary of the pope over the last two centuries, showing the strengths and weaknesses of these positions. Covering a broad range of primary and secondary sources and thinkers, Vgenopoulos approaches the issue of primacy with an open and ecumenical manner that looks forward to a way of resolving this most divisive issue between the two Churches. For the first time here the thought of Greek and Russian Orthodox theologians regarding primacy is brought together systematically and compared to demonstrate the emergence of a coherent view of primacy in accordance with the canonical principles of the Orthodox Church. In looking at crucial Greek-language sources Vgenopoulos makes a unique contribution by providing an account of the debate on primacy within the Greek Orthodox Church. Primacy in the Church from Vatican I to Vatican II is an invaluable resource on the official dialogue taking place between the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church today. This important book will be of broad interest to historians, theologians, seminarians, and all those interested in Orthodox-Catholic relations.

Examines the implications of the consensus reached by the AnglicanRoman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) on universal primacy for the further development of the Catholic Church’s doctrines of papal primacy, in order that a reformed and renewed Petrine ministry may be received by all Christians .

This major work, written by one of the leading historians of France's ancien regime, is the first in-depth study of the French upper clergy during the key period of the Catholic Reformation following the Council of Trent. In describing the creation, character, and role of these early French bishops, it also sheds light on social mobility, education, the career patterns and prospects of particular groups, the workings of patronage and clientage networks, and the wider dimensions of royal policy and patronage at this time. Joseph Bergin begins by analysing the structures of the French church and the process by which individuals were nominated and confirmed as bishops. He then presents a collective profile of these bishops in terms of their social and geographical origins, educational attainments, and pre-episcopal careers. Bergin examines royal patronage in relation to episcopal office, tracing the successive pressures with which the crown had to deal in the wider social and political world. In particular he shows how the crown painfully and gradually recovered control of church patronage after the low point of the religious wars, reducing the grip of the nobility on large numbers of dioceses. He also examines how reforming pressures were brought to bear on the crown to appoint bishops who met the standards of the counter-reformation church and how the crown became increasingly in tune with these reformist pressures. He concludes by explaining particular features of the French episcopate within a wider European context. The book, the result of years of research in French and Italian archives, includes an extensive biographical dictionary that will make it an invaluable reference for allFrench historians of the period.

Vatican I and Vatican II represent two of the three ecumenical councils in modern times, yet relatively few studies have sought to understand their relation to one another. In fact, the councils are often positioned as mutually exclusive so that one must choose either Vatican I's or Vatican II's presentations of church and ecclesial authority. Failing to understand the relationship between these councils inhibits the church's self-understanding and risks misinterpreting key aspects of its own tradition; further, it limits the church's ability to teach effectively on topics of concern to modern women and men, such as authority, freedom, and ecclesiology. Vatican I and Vatican II: Councils in the Living Tradition uses the questions of what, why, and how the councils taught to frame and demonstrate significant points of continuity, complementarity, and difference between them. It argues that only by seeing both Vatican I and Vatican II as communicating vital dimensions of the Christian faith can the church's living tradition be fully appreciated and speak meaningfully to modern Christian women and men.?

This is a print on demand book and is therefore non- returnable.

Presents points of view on the sensus fidelium from a wide range of theologians and pastors and makes an outstanding contribution by widening its application to ethical and not only doctrinal issues.

Papal primacy has grown with the Church, and it remains a reality embedded in the Church as a living community begins to change.

In the first volume of Essays in Ecumenical Theology Ivana Noble depicts differences between what she calls a sectarian outlook and one which engages in the search for common roots, dialogical relationships and shared mission in a world that has largely become post-Christian, but often also post-secular. Drawing on both Western and Orthodox scholarship, and expressing her own positions, Noble sketches what ecumenical theology is, how it is linked to spirituality, the methods it uses, how it developed during the twentieth century, and the challenges it faces. Specific studies deal with controversial interpretations of Jan Hus, Catholic Modernism, the problematic heritage of the totalitarian regimes, and responses to the current humanitarian crisis.