Catholic Press Book Awards!

Posted on July 9, 2015 by Linda Wolf

We are delighted to announce two Lectio authors as recipients of the 2015 Catholic Press Book Awards. In Lectio’s first year to submit entries, Theology of the Body Extended: the Spiritual Signs of Birth, Impairment, and Dying (authored by Susan Windley-Daoust) won First Place for Best Book by a Small Publisher.

1st Place: Best Book by a Small Publisher

The review reads, “This book is well-written and insightful. It applies the Theology of the Body to themes that are rarely discussed and illustrates how God’s grace lifts up the suffering, dying, and those with disabilities. The author combines compelling research with beautiful reflections on what it means to be a person in communion with God and with others.” (The Catholic Journalist Vol. 67, No. 5, p. 40 June 2015)

Sacramental Theology: 50 Years After Vatican II by Kenan B. Osborne OFM, won Third Place in the category (B22) 50th Anniversary of Vatican II.

This review: “Probably of greatest interest to Church professionals (clergy, liturgists, etc.) Sacramental Theology: 50 Years After Vatican II is nevertheless an accessible treatment of its subject. It offers an historical outline of the development of the sacraments and, in a broader sense, of the notion of sacrament (e.g. the Church as sacrament); a treatment of Vatican II’s teaching on sacramental theology; and summaries of the modern history of sacraments and contemporary thought on the liturgy. It is wide-ranging without being excessively long.” (The Catholic Journalist Vol. 67, No. 5, p. 41 June 2015)

Congratulations to our winners and to the Catholic Press Association for another successful conference.

Pope Francis: Legacy of Vatican II

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Linda Wolf

Pope Francis: The Legacy of Vatican II

Recently released is Professor Eduardo J. Echeverria’s study Pope Francis: The Legacy of Vatican II.

Catholics and Protestants alike tend to use Pope Francis’s pronouncements to justify the correctness of their own viewpoints on Vatican Council II and other religious and theological matters. Professor Echeverria does a thorough job of drawing from the pre-papal writings of Jorge Mario Bergoglio and the man’s current papal writings, talks, and sermons to discover and document the continuity in thought Francis has with the councils.

Echeverria compares Francis’s discourse with that of his papal predecessors in the era since Vatican II. He draws heavily on the documents of Vatican II and the theology of doctrinal development stemming from the First Vatican Council and embraced by Vatican II. Not left out is the modern ecumenical movement from both the Reformed and Catholic side.

This book draws high praise from prominent theologians whose full endorsements can be found here.

It is an ideal text for basic theology courses, courses on the modern Church for seminarians or divinity students, or courses about the influence of Vatican II. It’s a must-read for those wanting to learn about Pope Francis and the future of Christianity. A special strength of the book is the respect with which it treats the Reformed Tradition.

Just Released! Maldari’s “The Creed”

Posted on May 14, 2015 by Linda Wolf

For I truly tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain,
‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
(Matt 17:20)

As copy editors of scholarly books written by immensely talented theologians, it’s not always duck soup to stay focused. However, The Creed: the Faith That Moves Evolution, the book we celebrate today, published on the Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ, May 14, 2015, and authored by Le Moyne College professor Donald C. Maldari, S.J., is quite the exception!

Every paragraph is a joyous experience of faith read against a backdrop of the stuff of scientific research.

The Creed: the Faith That Moves Evolution George V. Coyne, S.J., a trusted friend and mentor of Fr. Maldari, suggests: “No one of us lives without, even unconsciously, seeking for that which gives meaning to our lives, for that which treads together all our lived experiences, for that which makes us deep down who we are.”

This former Director of the Vatican Observatory and current chair in Physics at Le Moyne College goes on to say, “Although this book is clearly written for the Christan believer, for those who voyage into the beyond, it does that in a unique way by searching for a deeper understanding of the transcendent in the immanent and, in particular to probe the transcendent by meditating upon our best scientific knowledge of the universe in which we live.”

He frames the book as “a consideration of how we can best participate in God’s work of creation in our 21st century world.”

The book is the culmination of many years of research, spurred by what the author perceives as an artificial dissociation between faith and reason encountered over 20 years of undergraduate teaching and conversations with students, theologians, and people who inquire about the relevance of faith in a contemporary world.

While the work will be a delight for general readers, it’s written with undergraduate students in mind, making the book unique.

Readers can download a Sample ePub Book or purchase the Softcover on our website. Inquiries to our Textbook Adoption Team are welcome at (772) 932-7969.