The Sacrament of the Eucharist by John D. Laurance, and: The Sacrament of Baptism by Michael G. Witczak (review)

Antiphon 18.3 (2014) 301–321 Book Reviews John D. Laurance The Sacrament of the Eucharist Lex Orandi Series Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2012 v + 203 pages. Paperback. $24.95. Michael G. Witczak The Sacrament of Baptism Lex Orandi Series Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2011 vii + 200 pages. Paperback. $24.95. In the years following the Second Vatican Council, sacramental theology has received a sometimes chilly reception by those involved in liturgical studies. The Lex Orandi series, edited by Fr. John D. Laurance, provides a corrective to this maltreatment of sacramental theology among those studying liturgy. The preface to this Series offers a rationale for studying the seven sacraments of the Church by attending both to the meaning of a typical parish liturgical celebration, as well as employing systematic, theological reflection, with the goal of fostering fuller liturgical participation in these rites. The Sacrament of the Eucharist offers a compelling theological and mystagogical account of the celebration of the Eucharist, one that adroitly uses systematic theology, historical sources, and the keen wisdom of a liturgical celebrant. The text consists of two parts. In part one, Fr. Laurance utilizes an array of twentiethcentury theological scholarship to present a vision of the liturgical life of the Church founded in the sacramentality of Christ and the Church. In addition, he provides a persuasive and rather unique treatment of the patristic maxim lex orandi, lex credendi as based on the universal nature of salvation accomplished in Christ, the typological pedagogy of the liturgy, the expressing of the apostolic experience of faith through the anamnetic, epicletic, and doxological structure of such faith, and the early practice of specific prayer forms. While the chapters on sacramentality rehearse the theological claims of Karl Rahner and Louis-Marie Chauvet, the section on lex orandi, lex credendi offers a methodological foundation for a liturgical theology, which employs historical and sys- 302 ANTIPHON 18.3 (2014) tematic insights into a study of liturgical rites. This last chapter of part one deserves further treatment by Fr. Laurance and those who seek to learn from him. In part two, Fr. Laurance employs this methodological insight into a typical parish celebration of the Eucharist (Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time). Here, one is introduced masterfully into historical, systematic, and pastoral theological reflection on each part of the Eucharistic celebration; at the same time, the reader is invited into a mystagogical formation into Eucharistic practice. For example, the Amen that concludes the signing of oneself with the cross in the Introductory Rites is examined within the biblical imagination of the Old Testament, as a personal act of faith to the Blessed Trinity, and as a sign of Christ himself drawn out from the Book of Revelation. Reading this passage, one comes to a deeper understanding of what it means to say “Amen,” as an act of commitment to Christ himself. There are countless occasions in Fr. Laurance’s commentary to encounter an enrichment of one’s understanding of Eucharistic practice. Not to mention that the academic reader will discover a plurality of sources to chase down. Though portions of the text may be read in a variety of settings, The Sacrament of the Eucharist seems pitched slightly above the average parishioner. In fact, the text would work best for undergraduate students at the university level, as well as graduate courses seeking a theological explication of the Eucharistic rites of the Church. Fr. Michael Witczak’s The Sacrament of Baptism, issued before Fr. Laurance’s The Sacrament of the Eucharist, consists of three parts: the first providing an overview of the ritual structure of adult initiation and the baptism of children, the second seeking a theological elucidation of the Scriptures and words of prayer in baptism, and lastly, a theology of baptism based in a historical account of the rite and its celebration. The virtues of the work are several. The novice in liturgical and sacramental theology discovers a rather thorough introduction to the ritual components of the rites. In some sense, the work offers a baptismal grammar, one that would be extraordinarily helpful to a new liturgist, director of religious education, or musician in a parish. Likewise, there are moments of mutual illumination in which...