Learning from All the Faithful

Do various members of the church--regardless of their generation, gender, race, sexual orientation, country of origin, and whatever their doubts are about official church teachings and policies--have any role in determining, safeguarding, and assessing the authentic teaching and praxis of the faith of the church? This has always been a haunting question in the life of the Christian church, though only recently acknowledged, because of the long-standing role of male clergy of European descent with a Eurocentric outlook who held hierarchical offices and determined official doctrines and moral and disciplinary codes. There have been controversies that bear on these matters over the course of the church's history. But it has only been over the last fifty years that the question has received increasing attention among Roman Catholics in terms of the baptismal anointing of the Spirit that bestows the gift of the sense of the faith on individuals and the collective sense of the faithful. This gift provides discerning skills to recognize, receive, and imaginatively and practically apply the living faith in history and society. This book explores these issues from historical, sociological, systematic and theological ethical perspectives, infused by the contributions of world Christianities.

""Hinze and Phan represent two of the most influential figures working in Catholic theology today and they have brought together in one volume both established scholars and important new voices. This volume will serve as an invaluable resource for those wishing to explore how the Spirit of God continues to be heard in the world today.""
--Richard R. Gaillardetz, Boston College
 
""At a time when Pope Francis is challenging lay Catholics to exercise greater leadership in the Church, this superb collection of essays draws on history, theology, ethics, and the social sciences to explore how the sense of the faithful has long contributed to the life of the Church and offers exciting possibilities for future development around the world. Highly recommended for all who care about the future of the Catholic Church!""
--Leo D. Lefebure, Georgetown University

""The essays collected here explode in a kaleidoscope of colorful views that show just how rich this single theme can be. Eminently readable, the book makes a strong contribution to a disputed but vitally important question in ecclesiology today.""
--Elizabeth Johnson, Fordham University

""This exciting collection takes the term sensus fidelium beyond being a buzzword of liberal theologians and grounds it firmly where theology must be grounded, equally in the insights of inherited tradition and in the theological wisdom of contemporary global Catholicism.""
--Paul Lakeland, Fairfield University


Bradford E. Hinze is the Karl Rahner, S.J., Professor of Theology, Fordham University, New York, NY. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including Prophetic Obedience: Ecclesiology for a Dialogical Church (2016).
 
Peter C. Phan is The Ignacio Ellacuria Chair of Catholic Social Thought at Georgetown University, Washington, DC. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including Living Into Death, Dying Into Life: A Christian Theology of Death and Life Eternal (2014).