The Ecumenical Christian Dialogues and the Catechism of the Catholic Church ed. by Jeffrey Gros, F.S.C. and Daniel S. Mulhall (review)

about religion and law, religion and the Constitution—a need recognized by McConnell, Garvey and Berg. McConnell is U.S. Circuit Judge for the Tenth Circuit and Professor at the S.J. Quinney College of Law, Utah; Harvey, Dean and Professor of Law at Boston College; and Berg, Professor at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, Minnesota. There is no question about their credentials. The text is comprehensive, replete with valuable excerpts from judicial decisions, historical documents, and endless questions in casebook style. It covers the history of religion under the Constitution, religion in the regulatory state, the power of the purse (over religion), the influence of government and religion on culture, and the burning question, “What is religion anyway?”. It follows a classic methodology of looking at secular legal doctrine from two perspectives: Establishment Clause/Free Exercise Clause (necessary, given the constitutional text). The authors find the Supreme Court’s resolution of questions concerning religion no more satisfactory than anyone else writing on the subject; however, they offer a rich and valuable resource for asking the right questions, probing the right issues, and critiquing inanities in the jurisprudence. While Religion and the Constitution is costly, it can well serve one teaching a course on religion and the law at the university level. Phillip J. Brown, S.S. The Catholic University of America School of Canon Law Washington, D.C. THE ECUMENICAL CHRISTIAN DIALOGUES AND THE CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH edited by Jeffrey Gros, F.S.C. and Daniel S. Mulhall. NewYork and Mahwah: Paulist Press, 2006. The editors (Gros, an ecumenist for thirty years and Mulhall, a catechist for twenty-five years) recognize that the Catechism of the Catholic Church forms one essential resource for Catholic educators and catechists as well as for those engaged in “the effort to bring about visible unity within the church” [1]. Thus, the Catechism assists in fulfilling the purpose of this book as summarized succinctly by the editors: “This book was written to help you understand key aspects from the [ecumenibook reviews 245 246 the jurist cal] dialogues organized around the articles of faith as expressed in the catechism. . . . What the Catholic Church believes and what other Christian churches believe on the same topic are gathered together for the reader’s consideration.” [3] In Chapter 2 “Church Unity and Catholic Education,” the editors establish the Catholic context through which the ecumenical dialogues can be both encouraged and understood, most particularly through prayer, collaborative efforts, internal renewal and common theological dialogue as well as involvement in the ecumenical movement.Among the insights derived fromVatican II, the editors signal out the real but imperfect communion among the churches and ecclesial communities; a shift in terminology from “separated brethren” to “fellow Christians”; recognition of common baptism; transition from an ecumenism of return to one of mutual respect; and a realization that elements of the true Church are present outside the Catholic Church. The chapter concludes with a section concerning the dialogues with other churches and ecclesial communities. Chapter 3 answers the title question, “Who Are our Partners?” i.e., those with whom the Catholic Church has entered into dialogue. These partners include the Orthodox, Polish National Catholics, Anglicans; Lutherans; Methodists; Reformed; Presbyterian, members of the United Church of Christ, Disciples of Christ; Mennonites; Baptists; Evangelicals ; and Pentecostals. The Catholic Church enters into dialogue with other churches and communities through the Faith and Order Commission of the World and the National Council of Churches. [22] The following seven chapters, aligned with both the Catechism and the results of various dialogues and agreements, concern the profession of faith, specifically, transmission of divine revelation (Chapter 4); the profession of faith, specifically, the Creed (Chapter 5); celebrating the Mysteries: the sacraments of initiation (Chapter 6); the sacraments at the service of communion (Chapter 7); life in Christ, the dignity of the human person (Chapter 8); salvation and the Church (Chapter 9); and Christian prayer and spirituality (Chapter 10). These seven chapters follow the same basic outline. After giving citations to the Catechism, ‘reflection questions’ are posed, followed by selections of pertinent texts from various dialogues with ‘Editors notes’. The editors have an important mission in mind: to...