Marriage and families are becoming increasingly complex. No longer can any of us speak with simplicity about what a "typical" family is like, now that our vocabulary includes words like "single parent," "blended," and "multi-faith." "Inerfaith Families" is a brief, usable book designed for ministers and priests to use with congregants who are entering into, or are already in, an interchurch (Reformed-Catholic) marriage. It can also be useful for laity involved in interchurch families.

The Princeton Proposal is a landmark statement on the present situation and future possibilities of modern ecumenism. Drafted by sixteen theologians and ecumenists from various church traditions, who met over a period of three years in Princeton, New Jersey, this document seeks to steer contemporary efforts at church unity away from social and political agendas, which are themselves divisive, and back to the chief goal of the modern ecumenical movement -- the visible unity of Christians worldwide, of all those who are reconciled in one body through the cross.

Since the study group that produced this statement was instituted and its participants were chosen by an independent ecumenical foundation, the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology, their unofficial work presents especially profound and creative reflection on the ecumenical task. With this report the study group members do not claim to speak "for" their churches, but hope to speak "to" all the churches out of shared concern for the founding ecumenical imperative that they all may be one . . . so that the world may believe.

Signatories of the Princeton Proposal: William Abraham
Mark Achtemeier
Brian Daley
John H. Erickson
Vigen Guroian
George Lindbeck
Lois Malcolm
Bruce McCormack
R. R. Reno
Michael Root
William G. Rusch
Geoffrey Wainwright
Susan K. Wood
Telford Work
J. Robert Wright
David Yeago

These studies represent a stocktaking at the end of the 20th century of "the unity we have" and a reassessment of "the unity we seek". It provides a well-documented overview of the field: a thorough and accessible introduction for everyone with an interest in ecumenism and a resource for everyone involved at any level.;A substantial section charts some of the major ecumenical developments of the 20th century and some of the new problems that have emerged. The goal of "visible unity" remains unchanged - but what sort of visible unity and how should we move towards it?

James Heisig has spent his life traveling along many roads--living in Japan, Spain, England, and the United States, and listening to other religious traditions while remaining a Roman Catholic. In this book, Heisig draws from this worldly insight, and presents an invaluable dialogue between Christianity and Buddhism.

Wisdom Has Built Her House brings together for the first time the collected studies of Silvia Schroer on the biblical figure of Sophia, divine Wisdom. Schroer presents a differentiated image of Wisdom as female, creator, teacher, prophet, beloved, and more. In Wisdom Has Built Her House Schroer portrays Wisdom as a cosmic ordering principle, as universal architect, and as mediator of all scientific knowledge. Schroer also inquires about the contexts of these writings: about feminine wisdom and women's roles after the Babylonian exile, about the goddess traditions behind the idea of Sophia, and about their significance within a monotheistic symbol system. Schroer then follows the tradition of God imaged as Wisdom to the time of the Jesus- movement and the first Christian communities. Teachers, students, and those looking for a well-reasoned study of personified Wisdom - and reasons for reinvisioning our own images of God - will find this in Wisdom Has Built Her House. Chapters are Wisdom on the Path of Righteousness (Proverbs 8:20)," "Divine Wisdom and Postexilic Monotheism," "Wise Women and Counselors in Israel: Models for Personified Hokma," "'And When the Next War Began . . .' The Wise Woman of Abel of Beth-maacah (2 Samuel 20:14-22)," "Abigail: A Wise Woman Works for Peace," "The One Lord and Male Dominance in the Book of Jesus Sirach: The Image of Woman and the Image of Wisdom in a Misogynist Document," "Personified Sophia in the Book of Wisdom," "Jesus Sophia," and "The Spirit, Wisdom, and the Dove."

Over the past two hundred years, several scholars have concluded that Jesus was a Cynic, a magician, a witch, a wise teacher, and a Jewish apocalyptic prophet. These papers, collected from two conferences at Creighton University, draw on some of the best contemporary scholarship in historical Jesus studies. Catholic scholars Luke Timothy Johnson, Daniel Harrington, and Monika Hellwig provide overviews of the history of the search for the historical Jesus. Jewish scholars Alan Segal, Amy-Jill Levine, and Adele Reinhartz explore the significance of Jesus for Judaism and for contemporary culture. With clear insight, the essays point out the ways that historical Jesus scholarship can be applied to everyday issues. The essays offer a unique perspective on the historical Jesus that provides a view contrary to many other contemporary books on Jesus. Contributors include: Bernard Brandon Scott (University of Tulsa); Luke Timothy Johnson (Emory University); Daniel Harrington (Weston School of Theology); Monika Hellwig (Georgetown University); Michael Cook (Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion); Amy-Jill Levine (Vanderbilt University Divinity School); Adele Reinhartz (McMaster University); Alan Segal (Barnard College); and Jonathan Brumberg-Kraus (Wheaton College). Bryan F. Le Beau is the John C. Kenefick Faculty Chair in the Humanities at Creighton University. Leonard Greenspoon holds the Philip and Ethel Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization and is Chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Studies at Creighton University. Dennis Hamm, S.J., is Professor of Theology at Creighton University.

This volume surveys the various theological approaches that Christian denominations bring to the issue of religious pluralism. In these diverse essays, writers from eleven different Christian traditions each share their confession's characteristic approaches to the challenges and possibilities raised by religious pluralism. Readers will gain an understanding of the variety of Christian views and a wider appreciation for the range of Christian resources available for responding to religious diversity.

In Mapping Christian Education: Approaches to Congregational Learning, Jack L. Seymour provides the most up-to-date insights about the various aspects of Christian education. Ecumenical in scope, and unified in process, his work includes chapters on schooling, faith communications, human development, social transformation, and future agenda. Contributors include: Elizabeth Caldwell, Margaret Ann Crain, Maria Harris, Donald E. Miller, Gabriel Moran, Robert O'Gorman, Daniel Schipani, and Jack Seymour.

By reading Mapping Christian Education:

- Seminarians will learn the fundamentals of educational theory

- Professors will discover a reliable textbook to be included in their curriculum

- Directors of Christian Education will enjoy a refresher course in recent developments and advances in the field

The greatest challenge to ecumenical dialogue has come not from discussions on justification by faith or papal primacy or even infallibility, but from discussions related to the Virgin Mary. This remarkable assertion is the reason behind noted theologian and ecumenist George Tavard's historical and ecumenical investigation of the image of Mary. Mary belongs not only to Christians but to Jews and Muslims as well. In a broad sense she can also be seen in relation to female symbols of the Absolute not as divinity but as divine. Time and changes in dogma have also affected the way Mary is perceived. Tavard has therefore divided his investigation into five parts. He gathers insights from Scripture (Part I), Tradition (Part II), the Reformation (Part III), the Modern Age (Part IV), and World Religions (Part V). Together these perspectives clarify and enhance the Theotokos and her ties with the people of God. George H. Tavard, a member of the Augustinians of the Assumption, professor emeritus of theology at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio, and distinguished professor of theology at Marquette University, was a peritus at Vatican Council II, where he was involved in preparing the decree on ecumenism. He has participated in several international and American ecumenical dialogues and has written extensively on theology and ecumenism.

Many environmentalists believe that religion has been a major contributor to our ecological crisis, for Judeo-Christians have been taught that they have dominion over the earth and so do not consider themselves part of a biotic community. In this book a philosopher of environmental ethics acknowledges that religion may contribute to environmental problems but argues that religion can also play an important role in solving these problems-that religion can provide an ethical context that will help people to become sensitive to the environment and to elect leaders who are genuinely responsive to the ecological crisis. Examining a broad range of Western religious traditions-from conservative Christianity and orthodox Judaism to Goddess feminism and nature religion-Max Oelschlaeger provides a sociolinguistic analysis of their creation stories and finds environmentally positive aspects in each of them. He asserts that religious discourse in the public arena can offer a way for such environmental issues as biodiversity, pollution, and population to be addressed outside the realm of special-interest politics. And he urges local churches to make "caring for creation" a theme for worship in their services; the majority of Americans, says Oelschlaeger, will discover an environmental ethic only through their religious faith.

If church is like a family, it fights like one too As in any family, conflict in the church family is natural and inevitable. But the way the church family handles its fights can make or break ministry. By using stories and examples of real problems at actual churches, Cosgrove and Hatfield have applied family-systems theory to help us identify the hidden structural boundaries in any group relationship. They show how the dynamics and 'family rules' operating in the informal family-like church system powerfully influence how church members relate to each other.

English text with Spanish, German, and French translations. This volume presents the policy statement on ecumenical commitment of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America adopted in 1991 by the ELCA's second churchwide assembly.

This book attempts to outline a theology of the Church for the twenty-first century. Starting from a principle that was enunciated in Paul VI's first encyclical (Ecclesiam suam), it finds its focus in the awareness of being the Church that is implied in the profession of the Christian faith. It takes full account of the contemporary manner of reading Scripture, and it sees the tradition as an unfinished forward movement. The ecumenical dialogues and the encounter with religions that were the fruits of Vatican Council II contribute to the discussion. The future of the Church is anticipated in light of scientific findings regarding the shape and history of the universe. This ecclesiology is profoundly Cathohlic, experiential, and Trinitarian.

For some thirty years Eric Dean, as a layman, husband, parent, Presbyterian minister, Lafollette Professor of Humanities at Wabash College, and as an ecumenical oblate of a Benedictine abbey has reflected on and put into practice the Rule of St. Benedict. In Saint Benedict for the Laity he comments on how the Rule "has important things to say even to those of us who - because we are already committed to lives in the secular sphere - can never think of a monastic vocation. The rule can speak to us of values which, even apart from the daily structures of monastic life, are relevant to our own lives in 'the outside world.' "

This unique work - no other work yet available in English treats this subject - illustrates the contribution of these Councils in the development and formulation of Christian beliefs. It then shows how their legacies lingered throughout the centuries to inspire - or haunt - every generation.

In the face of competing religious claims in our shrinking world, many turn to dialogue as a hopeful way of fostering understanding and reducing violence. But why does actual dialogue so often fail? This provocative essay investigates the possibilities and limits of interreligious dialogue. By showing the significant obstacles for dialogue within Christianity, the book also proposes ways in which these obstacles may be overcome from within. Major themes include Humility, Conviction, Interconnection, Empathy, and Generosity.

Juxtaposing "ecumenism" and "jihad," two words that many would consider strange and at odds with one another, Peter Kreeft argues that we need to change our current categories and alignments. We need to realize that we are at war and that the sides have changed radically. Documenting the spiritual and moral decay that has taken hold of modern society, Kreeft issues a wake-up call to all God-fearing Christians, Jews, and Muslims to unite together in a "religious war" against the common enemy of godless secular humanism, materialism, and immorality. Aware of the deep theological differences of these monotheistic faiths, Kreeft calls for a moratorium on our polemics against one another so that we can form an alliance to fight together to save Western civilization.

In recent years many books have been published in the area of Christology (who is Jesus in himself?) and soteriology (what did he do as Saviour?). A number of notable, ecumenical documents on Christian ministry have also appeared. But in all this literature there is surprisingly little reflection on the priesthood of Christ, from which derives all ministry, whether the priesthood of all the faithful or ministerial priesthood. This present work aims to fill that gap by examining, in the light of the Scriptures and the Christian tradition, what it means to call Christ our priest.
Beginning with a study of the biblical material, the book then moves to the witness to Christ's priesthood coming from the fathers of the Church, Thomas Aquinas, Luther and Calvin, the Council of Trent, the seventeenth-century 'French School', John Henry Newman, Tom Torrance and the Second Vatican Council. The two concluding chapters describe and define in twelve theses the key characteristics of Christ's priesthood and what sharing in that priesthood, through baptism and ordination, involves.

A profile of nine religious geniuses--Zoroaster, Lao-Tzu, Buddha, Confucius, Socrates, Krishna, Jesus, and Muhammad--whose visions of God have been and continue to be a crucial factor in human history.