Pattern for a Christian according to St. Thomas Aquinas by A. I. Mennessier, O. P. (review)

BOOK REVIEWS 618 works (pp. 134-35) Augustine's emphasis is that these " greater works " consist quite simply of the faith through which sinners are made righteous, so that the preaching of Christ by believers accomplishes more than what Christ accomplished through his direct words and actions, though all of this is to be understood not as lack but as generosity on Christ's part (Tr. 7U-3). Augustine's hermeneutical procedure is worth analyzing. It may be, of course, that the Fourth Gospel itself contains all of these qualifications upon its promises. But one cannot help but notice Augustine's abundant use of passages from the Pauline epistles to reinforce the aspects of tentativeness and struggle in the Christian life and thus forestall a spirit of triumphalism. He is not functioning purely as a historical or literary commentator concerned with the text of the Fourth Gospel alone. His interpretation comes out of a situation of conflict-many conflicts!-in his own day, and it is executed by dealing with the New Testament as a whole, not supposing, however, that it is a perfectly homogeneous whole, but recognizing the diversity of voices with which it speaks and letting one part " correct " or at least clarify what might seem to be implied in another part. This is, of course, the usual procedure of the early centuries, when the New Testament canon still retained its pluralistic character. It may be worth closer examination in our own day, when we are confronted with a newly reinforced awareness of the diversity within the Scriptures and when questions concerning the meaning of the canon and the nature of the hermeneutical process have gained new urgency. Vanderbilt University Nashville, Tennessee EuGENE TESELLE Pattern for a Christian according to St. Thomas Aquinas. By A. I. MENNESSIER, 0. P. Translated by Nicholas Halligan, 0. P. New York: Alba House, 1975. Pp. ~9l5. $4.95. Pattern For A Christian is a marvelous explanation of the meaning of religion as transformed by Christ through the New Convenant of Faith, Hope, and Love in him. At the same time the author is disclosing for the reader the Christian rather than the so-called Aristotelian St. Thomas Aquinas. In order to achieve his twofold objective, Father Mennessier simply turns to Aquinas's commentaries on the Bible and those sections of his theological writings which are more directly inspired by Sacred Scripture . In reality, the author is convinced that St. Thomas is Christian in his use of Aristotle, for he used the writings of the Stagirite with his eyes fixed on Christ rather than on Greek thought. 614 BOOK REVIEWS Another corrective that Father Mennessier supplies is for those who limit themselves to one tract from the Summa and presume they have the total doctrine of Aquinas on the subject. By so doing, the author feels, they miss and at times distort the authentic teaching of the Angelic Doctor. One example from the book is the doctrine on grace. (cf. chapter 4) However, the main interest of this book is an adequate explanation of religion in all its aspects as taught by St. Thomas in the Summa and as elaborated upon in his commentaries on the Bible as' well as expressed in his preaching. The methodology of the book is ideal for attaining the purpose of the author. He sets up the doctrine, updated for our times, and explains it. Then he selects texts from St. Thomas as a continuation of his own thought. Father Mennessier introduces most of the texts with observations that focus the attention of the reader on the precise thrust of the text which comments , as it were, on the author's presentation. The result is a profound reenforcement of the central theme of the book, namely, how Christian religion is an embodiment of Faith, Hope, and Love. Without much explicit reference to the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy from Vatican II, the book, nonetheless, is extremely helpful in disclosing the theology involved in the new liturgy. Pere Chenu has written the Introduction and must have done so with great satisfaction. Father Mennessier has captured the message of Chenu's classic Toward Understanding St. Thomas and put the doctrine...