Theology and Religion
We pride ourselves on publishing the latest, intelligent theological thoughtby leading scholars in an accessible way that general readers can understand and enjoy.
- A beautifully produced book of meditations and
prayers to mark the beatification of Cardinal Newman
- Selections from Newman’s private spiritual writings
- Edited and Introduced by the world’s foremost
Newman scholar
These meditations and devotions have been selected by Ian Ker from the collection gathered together and published after Newman’s death by his secretary and friend William Neville of the Birmingham Oratory.
Often surprisingly simple and direct, they combine the
traditional language of Catholic devotion with Newman’s own distinct voice. The bulk of the material is made up of meditations on Christian doctrine, with a selection of his devotions to Mary. Also included is his profound but delightful ‘A Short Road to Perfection’, which expresses vividly Newman’s guiding conviction that we have no more to do to love and obey God than to perform our ordinary duties well.
Price: £10.99 Pages: 120 ISBN: 9780232528015 Extent: 120 H
As religious believers feel themselves more threatened
by the modern world, they increasingly often turn to
fundamentalism. The fundamentalist argues that attempts to engage with contemporary culture will only end in the watering down of the Christian message to suit the passing whims of the age. In Fidelity without Fundamentalism Gerard J. Hughes shows that in
fact being a truly faithful Christian involves avoiding
fundamentalism; to be faithful is to express our faith in a way that respects contemporary knowledge.
On the back cover of The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ is printed in large capital letters, THIS IS A STORY.
Philip Pullman’s re-telling of the story of Jesus of Nazareth is certainly an impressive achievement. ‘Time and again,’ says Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, ‘when Pullman offers his version of a familiar biblical saying or narrative, he achieves a pitch-perfect rendering in modern idiom, carrying something of the shock and compelling attraction of the original gospel text.’
Pullman is clear that what Christians tell us about Jesus is just a story too. The life and teaching of a simple, inspiring, tragic Jewish rabbi was intentionally distorted and embellished, creating a self-serving religious institution with a bloated hierarchy of bishops and priests.
In Philip Pullman’s Jesus the leading biblical scholar and theologian, Gerald O’Collins, looks calmly at the evidence. Can we know the truth about Jesus? Did the first followers of Jesus simply make up the story of his rising from the dead? Did Jesus claim a personal authority that put him on a par with the God? As he faced death and celebrated a final meal with his dearest friends, what did he mean by his words and actions?
With The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ Philip Pullman issues a serious challenge to the reader to look again at the Gospels,and ask whether or not it is reasonable to believe what the New Testament and the Church teach about the founder of Christianity. In Philip Pullman’s Jesus Gerald O’Collins takes up that challenge with authority, passion and flair.
In this series of reflections that takes us through the liturgical year, Michael Northcott explores themes of ecology, ethics and economics. He speaks on the matters that affect us all, and that indeed find expression in newspapers and many other forms of media, but seeks to hold true also to Barth’s injunction that a preacher’s primary role is to hear and study the Word of God.
Northcott’s incisive words bring into clear focus the role of preaching as public theology, a political and prophetic task that can challenge received opinions and dominant modes of operating. Cuttle Fish, Clones and Cluster Bombs is an inspiring and encouraging read for anyone seeking a real engagement with the divine Word in our contemporary world.
way he responded to the abuse of children by clergy, we may have read his controversial statements on Islam.
But what is the theology that underlies the Pope’s thinking? Covenant and Communion reveals the hidden key that unlocks the mind of Benedict XVI.
The first half of the twentieth century saw the emergence of three renewal movements in Catholic thought – the biblical, the patristic and the liturgical.These movements converge and flourish in Benedict’s theology as never before.
Scott Hahn is one of the best-selling contemporary Catholic writers. His introduction to what he describes as ‘a theology of great power and beauty’ is vivid and enthralling.
What would the giants of theology say to us today?
In Faith Maps a theologian of great flair and originality ‘translates’ the voices of several leading thinkers into a series of reflections on faith and contemporary
life and culture. The result is both a delightful introduction to theology and religion for students and general readers and a thought-provoking improvisation on familiar themes that will delight specialists.
Gallagher devotes a separate chapter to each of ten writers who have explored the credibility of religious faith, beginning with John Henry Newman and ending with Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, due to visit the UK later this year. But, he writes, ‘I do not simply report on what they say. I offer a brief summary of their ideas but I also “translate” their vision into a more contemporary and less specialist idiom. What would they say today? Or, what do they inspire in me? As in music, they are variations on a theme with considerable freedom to go beyond their explicit statements.’
• First book for four years from the UK’s leading gay Catholic writer
• Hugely popular with all lovers of lively, intelligent, critical theology
This new book from James Alison has all the brilliance, wit and panache that
have made him one of the most influential contemporary Catholic writers.
Celebrated for his firm but gentle insistence on facing down current
ecclesiastical teaching on homosexuality with the question, ‘Yes, but is it
true?’, and his wry observations as the church flails around on gay issues,
Alison is also admired and enjoyed for the freshness and verve of his
interpretations of scripture, for his dazzling word play and teasing
connections, surprises and reversals.
Alison develops the implications for theology and religion of the insights of
the French literary critic and philosopher René Girard, which expose the
violence hidden at the heart of our culture. He shows how Girard’s concepts
of mimetic desire and the scapegoat mechanism both confirm and transform our understanding of Christianity.
The Black Church in the 21st Century provides an exciting and fresh look at the key issues facing the Black Church Movement in Britain today, representing a bold attempt for scope and analysis. Now over 50 years old, and having experienced great success, the Black Church is facing an uncertain future as part of a context in which Christianity is itself challenged by an increasingly secular, plural society. The book shows why at a post-modern moment of competing voices and simultaneous calls for faith and cultural cohesion, the Black Church is crucial as a prophetic advocate for the Black Community. Its chapters also demonstrate that current and future social, economic and political challenges demand of the Black Church in Britain greater awareness and progressive change in both style and substance.
Austen Ivereigh
People are jaded of politics, angry with politicians, and increasingly doubt their power to make a difference. Yet every week an alliance of grass-roots organisations including churches, mosques and trade unions persuades employers to pay a living
wage to their cleaners, creates a safe street, or wins legal status for an undocumented migrant.
London Citizens translates the principles of Catholic social teaching into concrete victories -- not just in the justice it pursues, but in the way it pursues it: by building the power of civil society to hold decision-makers to account.
Faithful Citizens shows how London Citizens puts into practice both the themes and methods of papal teaching on the common good, subsidiarity, solidarity and justice. Through interviews with its organisers and leaders, it shows how LondonCitizens’ victories are achieved through the methods of community organising, first developed in the poor areas of Chicago in the 1940s and made famous by Barack Obama. Faithful Citizens argues that community organising and Catholic social teaching are made for each other – the ‘fuel’ of Church’s teaching driving the
‘vehicle’ of community organising.
In Faith in Politics? Richard Harries addresses our concerns by re-examining the roots of our political values. He considers the various strands of thought that have had a bearing on political philosophy over time, such as utilitarianism and liberalism, and how each contribute to contemporary views of the good society. He argues strongly that a Christian perspective has a distinct part to play in the shaping of our life together, and that rediscovering this perspective can help towards building a better society.
What is the spiritual meaning
of work in our lives?
If you won £1m in the TV game-show Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Would you go into work the following Monday morning? Is work something irksome that must be endured so that we may eat, enjoy quality leisure time, and retire as early as possible? Is it more integral to personal identity and one of the blessings of God’s
creation?
The twin problems of today’s ‘high-pressure, burn-out’ workplaces and unemployment make some Christian theologies of vocation seem idealistic. The global implications of the West’s lust for cheap consumer goods pose major challenges to any moral case for prosperity. In Work, for God’s Sake Esther Reed tackles these questions within a biblical framework, and sketches a theological ethic of work in the hope of God’s coming kingdom
Continues DLT’s series publishing the
Sarum Theological Lectures