Masters of Preaching: The Most Poignant and Powerful Homilists in Church History (review)

A priest of Dubuque has written a most useful guide for anyone who wishes to consider more seriously the fact that preaching is, in the clear teaching of the Council of Trent, the Primum Officium of the priesthood. Ray E. Atwood provides the historical schema for the development of various schools and styles of preaching, from the Hebrew prophets to the twentieth century, with typical sermons and homilies in accessible translation.

The patristic tradition expounded sacred texts not only literally, spiritually, and morally but also allegorically and anagogically. Although the typology in the latter idioms when overwrought can wear thin, it obviously had an impact on their original hearers. This only shows that great preaching must not only have a timeless quality but also a certain datedness, if it speaks directly to the vernacular culture.

The author draws heavily on the Reformed theologian Hughes Oliphant Old, who proves to be a good source. For instance, in contrast to the sometimes extravagant rhetorical devices of the Cappodocians, he sees in St. Augustine a sacramental sense of preaching that did not aim at “great oratory” but rather understood preaching as an act of worship. The Second Vatican Council’s teaching on the preaching ministry only renewed what had always been in the bosom of the Church and which in earlier times also had to be reinvigorated, as it was through such great lights of the Counter-Reformation as the Jesuit saint and cardinal Robert Bellarmine. He did not disparage oratory as an art and even encouraged its refinement, but not for its own sake. In his “De ratione formandae concionis” Bellarmine expects in a preacher “zeal, wisdom, and eloquence” and finds these symbolized by the tongues of fire at Pentecost whose “heat points to zeal, the splendor to wisdom, and the form of tongues, eloquence” (p. 209). St. Charles Borromeo’s insistence on a thorough knowledge of history reminds us that the neglect of such study explains much of the weakness in contemporary preaching.

Since the book includes thirty sermons and introduces voices such as Ezekiel, Jeremiah, St. Basil the Great, St. Ephraim the Deacon, the Venerable Bede, St. Alphonsus Liguori, and St. Jean Marie Vianney, it is almost pedantic to regret the omission of St. Bernardino of Siena. The Dominican Jean-Baptiste Henri Lacordaire is mentioned only in passing. But it is a major loss to have overlooked Monsignor Ronald A. Knox, the most polished and original preacher of his age. Instead, for the twentieth century, we have Walter Burghardt, whose admirable style could outshine content, and Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, whose influence on many somewhat atones for indulgent dramaturgy. “Cupio dissolvi” was not a motto instinctive to him, and his free use of Knox, G. K. Chesterton, and C. S. Lewis without attribution was so bold as to be almost guileless.

None of the preachers cited followed the author’s advice that ten minutes should be the length of a homily. Just as a prelude and a sonata are not a symphony, so should distinctions be made between forms of preaching, and sacred rhetoric is not confined to the liturgy. At least preaching is no longer a “legitimate interruption” of the Mass, as the old Code of Canon Law had it. The reader will learn much from the many details presented here, although, alas, John Keble and Edward Pusey did not “follow [John Henry] Newman back to Rome” (p. 242), and Pope Benedict XVI did not canonize Newman. One hopes that may be a not too hasty prophecy. Atwood has written an edifying study, and both priests and people will benefit if it is widely used.