Morality: The Catholic View

Morality: The Catholic View

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<DIV><P>“As Alasdair MacIntyre notes in the preface, the work of Pinckaers attracted strong</P><P>and fully justified notice in this country with the publication in English of his <I>The</I></P><P><I>Sources of Christian Ethics</I>. As Pinckaers himself notes in the text, excellently translated</P><P>by Michael Sherwin, the interest should in no way be limited to Roman</P><P>Catholics. <I>Morality </I>recasts the earlier book in an argument that is both lower and</P><P>upper case ‘catholic,’ and is accessible to readers and teachers outside the limited</P><P>circle of moral theologians and academic ethicists. Pinckaers contends that</P><P>Christian morality is not first of all about obligations but about happiness, understanding</P><P>that the happiness of union with God is our natural destiny made possible</P><P>by grace. The Sermon on the Mount is at the center of an approach to morality</P><P>that turns on the distinction between ‘freedom for excellence’ and ‘freedom of</P><P>indifference,’ the former understood as human flourishing and the latter as a ‘neutral’</P><P>capacity to choose between controversies. The proposal of Morality is thoroughly</P><P>Christ-centered, humanistic, and faithful to the magisterial teaching of the</P><P>Church. Warmly recommended.”</P><P><I>First Things</I><BR />  </P><P>“If you want to have the experience of reflecting on Catholic morality as though</P><P>you were reading about it for the first time, treat yourself to Father Servais</P><P>Pinckaers’ <I>Morality: The Catholic View</I>. He has recovered the classical view of the</P><P>moral life as the quest for happiness and has presented it with disarming simplicity.</P><P>Bringing us back to the Sermon on the Mount and Romans 12–15, the writings</P><P>of Augustine and Aquinas, and the theme of natural law, he has freed those texts</P><P>from the layers of legalism which has hidden their liberating, spiritual powers for</P><P>moral living. By distinguishing freedom of indifference from freedom for excellence,</P><P>he has restored a wise vision of freedom. No one has shown better the role</P><P>of virtues as building blocks for morality. Catechists need to read this book.”</P><P><I>Rev. Alfred McBride, O.Praem., Professor of Homilectics and Catechetics at Blessed</I></P><P><I>Pope John XXIII Seminary, Weston, Massachusetts</I></P><P><BR /> “Father Pinckaers has given us a masterful exposition of Christian living. The clarity</P><P>and brevity of his presentation – captured well by the translator – make this book</P><P>ideal for classroom and parish use.</P><P>     “Readers will find the historical and systematic observations very informative.”</P><P><I>Romanus Cessario, St. John’s Seminary, Brighton, Massachusetts</I></P></DIV>