John Cuthbert Ford, SJ: Moral Theologian at the End of the Manualist Era

CHAPTER TWO: John Ford’s Moral Theology and the Manualist Tradition

acknowledgments To those who have contributed to the completion of this book I offer my heartfelt thanks. I would like to thank Fr. Paul Nelligan, the archivist of the New England Jesuit Province during the time of my research. I also thank Heidi Marshall for her help in photocopying and cataloging my research and Alice Howe for her assistance in facilitating permission for publication. A number of Jesuits have provided valuable personal information about John Ford through interviews and emails. I wish to thank Bro. Edward Babinski, Frs. Robert Manning, Paul Lucey, Maurice Walsh, John Broderick, and Charles Currie. I thank Richard Brown, director of Georgetown University Press, and the Press staff for their assistance and support. Most of all, I wish to thank my director, editor, and friend Fr. Jim Keenan. He introduced me to the writings of John Ford and encouraged my interest in Ford’s manualist method. Without his inspiration, guidance , personal care, and humor I probably would not have persevered long enough to finish. He believed in my work, sometimes even more than I did. Jim, I am truly, truly grateful. xv This page intentionally left blank chapter one The Life and Career of John C. Ford, SJ John Cuthbert Ford was born on December 20, 1902, in Boston, Massachusetts . He graduated from Boston College High School and, at the age of seventeen, entered the Maryland–New York Province of the Society of Jesus. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1932.1 He received his doctorate in moral theology in 1937 from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and began teaching moral theology at Weston College, the Jesuit house of formation in Weston, Massachusetts. While at Weston, he also earned a degree in civil law from Boston College Law School. He taught at the Gregorian University in Rome (1945–47), at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC (1958–66), and at West Baden College in Indiana and St. Mary’s College in Kansas.2 A prolific writer and popular public speaker, Ford combined an extensive knowledge of moral principles with a creative pastoral sense. He made his expertise accessible to the general public; his personal papers give evidence of numerous inquiries from both clergy and laity who sought his advice on a variety of moral topics such as medical and sexual ethics, war, religious governance, psychology, and addictions. With Gerald Kelly, SJ, Ford coauthored a widely used two-volume work, Contemporary Moral Theology Vol. I: Questions in Fundamental Moral Theology and Contemporary Moral Theology Vol. II: Marriage Questions.3 Ford and Kelly also invented the genre of “Notes of Moral Theology” currently used in the journal Theological Studies.4 For six years Ford wrote the journal’s “Notes” where he reviewed and critiqued current literature on moral theology.5 Ford is recognized for his significant contribution to the Church’s teaching on three moral issues: obliteration bombing, alcoholism, and contraception. On the issue of obliteration bombing, Ford is widely praised for writing “The Morality of Obliteration Bombing” in the September 1944 issue of Theological Studies.6 This article is considered one 1 h฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀f of the best moral critiques during World War II of a particular strategy of waging war against Germany and is cited as the most influential article in the journal’s history.7 Translated into various languages, the article is still used by the US Army in its international training center in Europe.8 Ford’s article is considered one of the inspirations for the Vatican II statement condemning attacks against civilians as a crime against humanity.9 On the issue of alcoholism, Ford campaigned for alcohol education for both clergy and laity and introduced a pastoral approach aimed at assisting alcoholics both in the confessional and in counseling situations . His approach to alcoholism combines rigorous moral theology and attentive listening to the stories and experiences of alcoholics, leading to the development of a nuanced understanding of the freedom and responsibility of persons addicted to alcohol and other drugs.10 Ford also contributed significantly to the development and promotion of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). His first-hand experience of recovery from alcoholism through the help of AA led him to attend the Yale Summer School of Alcohol Studies, where he eventually became a regular summer lecturer and where he came into contact with the pioneers of the AA movement.11 Through the invitation of Bill Wilson, cofounder of AA...