Called to Communion: Understanding the Church Today

Called to Communion: Understanding the Church Today starts off with three theology lectures for a course on universal vs. particular Churches for bishops in Brazil, followed by an address to the Synod of Bishops on the priesthood, a talk on ecclesial reform to conclude an annual meeting in Rimini, and finally a homily preached at a seminary in Philadelphia which is added to "clarify once more the spiritual orientation of the whole book" (from the Foreword). All of these events took place in 1990, but the material is as relevant, if not more so, today. The stated goal in the Foreword of offering "a sort of primer of Catholic ecclesiology" to "bring clarity and help in the crisis of ecclesial consciousness" is fulfilled in spades. The nature of the book and the audiences it was directed toward originally does not allow Cardinal Ratzinger to go into the level of detail I would have like to have seen, but nevertheless he is quite successful at giving the reader a good overview of Catholic ecclesiology, particularly as it relates to the roles of bishops, priests, and the nature of true reform in the Church. In the first chapter he establishes the origin of the Church in Jesus, of course, by using not only Gospel testimony, but also Paul's doctrine of the Church as the Body of Christ, and the beginnings of Church functioning in the Acts of the Apostles. Chapter Two deals with Petrine primacy and the unity of the Church. The author acknowledges the ecumenical difficulty of this question, but goes on to solidly show the status of Peter as "Rock", as head of the Twelve, and as keeper of the "keys" which he deals with at the greatest length of the three points. Succession is one of the areas that would have been worth exploring more, but his appeal to early Christian writers Irenaeus and Eusebius is effective, and he hits a home run with this observation: "[I]t is impossible to avoid the idea of succession once the word is transmitted in Scripture is considered to be a sphere open to the future" (p. 67). The next chapter gets to the heart of the theology lectures: the universal and particular Churches and the role of the bishop. Unsurprisingly, the Eucharist is seen as the heart of ecclesiology - it is the unifying factor. Orthodox and Protestant views are contrasted with each other and the Catholic approach, and the conclusion is reached that "communio is catholic, or it simply doesn't exist at all" (p. 82). The bishopric is traced back to Peter, James, and Paul, and then as now, the bishop is called to be a missionary of the whole Church, not just his local Church, and he must be ready to suffer as his Lord did. The essence of the priesthood is the topic of the fourth chapter. This is a very full chapter. He bemoans the fact that a new look back tried to justify the priesthood by looking at its biblical roots and deeming it a functional role only. He provocatively states that this view was reached by Reformation-era

In this short book, Cardinal Ratzinger writes paints several images as to what roles different people withing the Church must play, for instance the episcopate, the laity and clergy. He also focuses on the Eucharist and it's importance within the faith. He analyzes where things have gone wrong and what must be done to correct these deviations. Most often if not always the solution is to reach back to Christ and recapture His intention for what His Church should be. In particular I found useful the chapter where he elucidates the primacy of Peter not because he was the best and brightest of the apostles, but because he was the one chosen by Jesus for that role. Ratzinger's prose is beautiful, even in translation. At time's it can be a bit dense, but it's always engaging, and well worth reading with a pen in your hand. I especailly recommend this book to the "but why can't we" Catholics out there. He answers pretty much every major objection people raise as to why the Church is moving and continues to move in a certain direction and why certain shifts can't happen.

Theologically liberal Protestants and theologically liberal Catholics have distorted the New Testament witness by pushing a false opposition between the Kingdom of God and the Church. They have also ignored the New Testament evidence for the primacy of Peter as first bishop of Rome and for the priesthood of the New Covenant. Fortunately, Cardinal Ratzinger sets the record straight by showing that there is no opposition between the kingdom preached by Jesus and the Church founded by the same Jesus, by documenting the New Testament evidence for the Petrine primacy, and by pointing to the theology of the New Covenant's own priesthood present in the New Testament. All of this is done concisely, precisely, and clearly. This book should be read by any Christian interested in the Church and especially by Catholics. It is a primer on ecclesiology.

Of all Cardinal Ratzinger's works, this is my favorite. It touches upon issues of ecclesiology and sacramental theology. In short, Cardinal Ratzinger ties in the Most Blessed Sacrament, the Holy Eucharist, with the Church. Through it, he explores God's covenant with His people. I have long noticed the various double meanings -- one sacramental, the other ecclesiological -- in much of our theological language. Words like "communion" and "Body of Christ" carry the double significance of our communion with one another, as well as our communion with Christ. This book explores both, tying them together in an easy to read, as well as understandable, format.

This is a little book which was not originally a book by intention. Yet it is held together by the internal theme of ecclesial self-identity. It is a little book with a big message.In any sphere in order to know how something is to function, it is extremely important to understand its origin and purpose. It is no different with the Church. In a confused and confusing world there is need for such a book as this to re-establish and re-invigorate our ecclesial focus. ...And Christ Jesus is its essence and center.CALLED TO COMMUNION is not necessarily the easiest read because a good part of it was originally directed at individuals(Bishops) who could be assumed to have had some prior knowledge of the subject matter. Still it is worth the time invested, for even the average reader interested in the Church as well, to search out the pearls of wisdom which are assuredly to be found within its pages.As always the Cardinal writes from an admirably, profound knowledge and depth of faith.