The great twentieth-century theologian Henri de Lubac sought in this work to clarify the relationship between nature and grace, a relationship he thought had been greatly misunderstood by certain theologians. De Lubac's insights revolutionized the modern discussion of nature and grace, and they influenced thinkers such as John Paul II and Benedict XVI, as well as Hans Urs von Balthasar. This book, written after the Second Vatican Council and toward the end of de Lubac's long life, summarizes and extends key ideas he sought to recover from the classical sources of early and medieval Christianity. Confronted with distortions of Christian teaching, de Lubac repudiates on the one hand the extreme of radically opposing nature and grace, as if grace were entirely alien to nature, and on the other hand, the extreme of radically confusing them. A Brief Catechesis on Nature and Grace also contains appendices, including de Lubac's famous The Council and the Parachurch, in which he examines widespread misinterpretations of the Second Vatican Council. PREFACE I.Natural and the Supernatural 1.Two Correlative Terms 2.The True Supernatural 3.Adjective or Noun? 4.Admirabile Commercium 5.A Distinction Which Remains II.Consequences 1.Humility 2.Mystery 3.Ascesis, Transformation, Synthesis 4.Transcendence 5.The Role of the Church III.Nature and Grace 1.Conversion 2.Allergy to Sin 3.Evil and History 4.Realism 5.Liberation and Salvation CONCLUSION APPENDICES A.The Supernatural at Vatican II B.The Sacrament of the World? C.The Council and the Para-Council D.The Cult of Man: In Reparation to Paul VI

Over 3 million copies sold! Essential reading for Catholics of all walks of life. Here it is - the first new Catechism of the Catholic Church in more than 400 years, a complete summary of what Catholics around the world commonly believe. The Catechism draws on the Bible, the Mass, the Sacraments, Church tradition and teaching, and the lives of saints. It comes with a complete index, footnotes and cross-references for a fuller understanding of every subject. The word catechism means "instruction" - this book will serve as the standard for all future catechisms. Using the tradition of explaining what the Church believes (the Creed), what she celebrates (the Sacraments), what she lives (the Commandments), and what she prays (the Lord's Prayer), the Catechism of the Catholic Church offers challenges for believers and answers for all those interested in learning about the mystery of the Catholic faith. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a positive, coherent and contemporary map for our spiritual journey toward transformation.

This book includes essays, notes, and reviews reflecting the fundamental ideas and key writings of Henri de Lubac, one of the greatest theologians of the twentieth century. In these pages Cardinal de Lubac explains the origin, meaning, and fate of his works, in the context of his life, studies, personal relationships, as well as his legendary exiles, and his later vindication. At the Service of the Church provides crucial insights into the work of a man who profoundly shaped the Church, including the teaching of the Second Vatican Council. No student of contemporary theology can afford to neglect de Lubac's work and this book gives readers a unique perspective on that work. This volume is also an important source for understanding the renewed theological debates regarding nature and grace, the natural desire for God, and the authentic interpretation of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Are you interested in connecting with other women who share your faith, interests, and everyday concerns? A vibrant, self-sustaining women’s ministry will help you achieve this goal, can take many forms, and is a key component of any vital parish, says Elizabeth Tomlin, who for nearly a decade has launched and grown Catholic women’s ministries in the United States and abroad. In Joyful Momentum, Tomlin shows you how you also can start, expand, strengthen, or retool an existing women’s group or ministry in your own Catholic parish. God can use even the most unlikely people to build up a successful women’s ministry, Elizabeth Tomlin says. “If someone had told college-aged me that I would someday lead a global women’s ministry, I would have said, ‘No way. I’m not smart enough. I don’t know enough. I’m too sinful. I’m not good enough.’” And yet, that is exactly what happened. Tomlin is a founding member of the Military Council of Catholic Women Worldwide, the women’s ministry organization of the Archdiocese for the Military Services USA. Whether you are interested in starting a spiritual book club or a group for moms with young children, retooling an existing ministry for moms who work outside their homes, or revitalizing a languishing prayer group or committee, you may feel underqualified and overwhelmed when first facing the challenges. Joyful Momentum provides the tools you need to get started, including “Momentum Builders” that will give you the confidence to do what needs to be done. Tomlin shares her personal stories, spiritual insights, and practical tips to show how almost any group can create a spirited, sustainable outreach. With natural warmth, honesty, and self-deprecating humor, she makes a compelling case for the importance of women’s ministry in the life of a parish, and coaches you through all the details. Used for personal formation or as a group study, this book conveys the important elements of women’s ministry—from a small book club to a larger undertaking that might include social media-based prayer supports, on-call childcare helpers, or multi-committee annual festivals or parishwide events. This book will teach you: why spiritual friendships and pastoral connections are essential to the success of any women’s ministry; how to build a team dedicated to prayer, simple hospitality, faith-filled catechesis, humble service, and personal outreach; and tips for handling trickier aspects of team leadership, such as conflict resolution and long-term transitional planning. Each chapter offers practical advice and inspirational stories to help you discover how to cultivate Christ-centered friendships; discern a call to women’s ministry in yourself and others; invest in prayerful preparation, biblical hospitality, and faith formation; develop a leadership team; and create a mentoring plan that will sustain the group over time.

This book focuses on a historical analysis of hte genesis of the idea of pure nature, which arose in reaction to the distorted Augustinianism of nominalist theologians at the end ot the Middle Ages.

Winner of a first-place award for a first time author and second-place in popular presentation of the faith from the Catholic Media Association. During the past five decades, the Second Vatican Council has been alternately celebrated or maligned for its supposed break with tradition and embrace of the modern world. But what if we’ve gotten it all wrong? Have Catholics—both those who embrace the spirit of Vatican II and those who regard it with suspicion—misunderstood what the council was really about? Fr. Blake Britton discovered the truth and beauty of the council while he was in seminary and he has witnessed firsthand the power of its teachings in the life of his own parish. In Reclaiming Vatican II—a partnership between Ave Maria Press and Word on Fire Catholic Ministries—Britton presses beyond the political narrative foisted upon the post-conciliar Church and contends that Vatican II was neither conservative nor liberal, but something much more beautiful and challenging. Britton clears up misconceptions about the council and reveals how—when properly understood and applied—it fosters a richer experience of being in the Church. Britton says Vatican II promotes a radical return to the Church Fathers and the Scriptures, holding both a commitment to tradition and the need for constant renewal in life-giving balance, recenters the Church on sacred liturgy and encourages both active participation and genuine encounter with transcendence, and charts a clear path for the Church’s renewal and empowers it for evangelism and transformative engagement with the world. Britton invites all Catholics to step beyond the polarization and embrace Vatican II as one of our greatest resources for being in the Church in a way that is faithful, engaged, and effective if we answer its radical call to worship and renewal.

Hans Urs von Balthasar prepared this overview of the theology and spirituality of Henri de Lubac, whom he calls friend and master, on the occasion of the latters's eightieth birthday. Beginning with personal reflections drawn from the then unpublished pages of "memoirs" which de Lubac placed in his hands, von Balthasar offers a review of all the major works of de Lubac. Von Balthasar illustrates here the wonderful synthetic power for which he is justly known: bringing the range as well as the organic unity of de Lubac's work clearly into view. The main themes of that work remain as important now as when de Lubac first took them up--perhaps even more important. And there is no one better able to discuss these themes than von Balthasar, a master of theology in his own right and de Lubac's great friend for over fifty years. Co-published with Communio Books.

Origen (185-ca. 254), one of the most prolific and influential of the early Church Fathers, is best known to us for his Scripture exegesis. Henri de Lubac's History and Spirit is a landmark study of Origen's understanding of Scripture and his exegetical methods. In exploring Origne's efforts to interpret the four different senses of Scripture, de Lubac leads the reader through an immense and varied work to its center: Christ the Word.

First published in 1965, this book represents a refinement and further development of the core thesis that Henri de Lubac had originally put forward many years earlier in a bold and controversial work in which he first called into question the idea of pure nature.