Description
Book SynopsisIn a context of scandal and precipitous decline, the Christian church cannot afford to do what it has always done, argues Eugene R. Schlesinger. It must return to its roots and clarify to itself and the general public what its nature and purpose are. Sacrificing the Church provides this clarity by returning to the church’s foundation: Jesus Christ and his crucifixion. It presents a vision of the church in which every aspect of the church’s life flows from and expresses the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This sacrifice is the basis of every ecclesial experience. It is the form and content of the church’s life, a life which shares in the eternal Trinitarian life of God. By Christ’s sacrifice we are introduced into the divine life, and therefore we must participate in it. This plays out in three key areas of the church’s life: its worship of God (Mass), its mission to the world (mission), and its efforts toward the unity of all people, beginning with divided Christians (ecumenism).
Trade ReviewIn this richly orchestrated theology of sacrifice, Eugene Schlesinger demonstrates how this often neglected theme is what truly binds together the Paschal Mystery, the Trinity, and the Church's deepest being, as expressed in Liturgy, mission, and ecumenical endeavour. In so doing, he shows himself a worthy successor of the great Anglo-Catholic theologians of the past. -- Aidan Nichols, OP, Blackfriars, Cambridge
The Church is liturgical self-giving, a theurgic performance. If we can see this, then worship, mission and ecumenism are one enterprise. This is the arrestingly direct thesis of this excellent book, diversely articulated and expanded. -- Catherine Pickstock, University of Cambridge
Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter One: Trinitarian Soteriology: Towards a Theology of the One Sacrifice of Christ Chapter Two: Augustine and the One Sacrifice of Christ Interlude: The Mass Preceded by Mission Chapter Three: The Sacrifice of Christ in the Mass Interlude: The Mass Flows into Mission (and Back) Chapter Four: The Sacrifice of Christ in Mission Interlude: Both Mission and Mass Depend upon Ecumenism Chapter Five: The Sacrifice of Christ in Ecumenism Conclusion: Sacrificing the Church as the Church’s Being
