A History of Catholic Theological Ethics

by James F. Keenan SJ

Overview

An introduction to Catholic theological ethics through the lens of its historical development from the beginning of the church until today. Starting with the Scriptures, and in particular the New Testament, the author looks at the inspiration and foundational values and virtues that emerge from its moral instruction.

This is a comprehensive study of every period in the history of the tradition, from the early Patristic period to the history of the Penitentials and Confessionals, to the founding of religious orders and universities, the emergence of scholasticism, the birth of modern casuistry, the Council of Trent and the subsequent moral manuals, to contemporary Reformers within the Global Church.

“The task of writing a history of moral theology is daunting. James Keenan has written a superb history. The breadth and depth of this work are stunning. The narrative is clear, logically developed, and convincing. We are all in his debt.”
—Charles Curran. author, Sixty Years of Moral Theology (Paulist Press, 2021)

“James F. Keenan, SJ, is among the most important Catholics in the world today writing on theological ethics. In this book, he displays his dazzling knowledge of the breadth of the Catholic tradition as it stretches from the New Testament to the present, and he combines that knowledge with compelling insights into its relevance for our times. Indispensable for the professional, the book is, despite its great learning, accessible to the general reader. I congratulate James Keenan on the landmark achievement of A History of Catholic Theological Ethics.”
—John W. O’Malley, SJ, University Professor Emeritus, Georgetown University

“The inimitable James Keenan has provided us with another moral-theological tour de force—surfacing twenty centuries of theological innovation in a tradition better known for its attachments to the past. Carried by Keenan’s signature themes of mercy, conscience, spirituality, and virtue, this history moves ever forward into the diversity of perspectives, emergence of women, and reverse of direction from the local to the universal, that characterize this century’s global church. This far-reaching and learned work will educate, stimulate, and provoke, all in a highly readable style with existential power.”
—Lisa Sowle Cahill, Donald Monan, SJ, Professor of Theology, Boston College
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Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780809155446
Publisher:	Paulist Press
Publication date:	06/01/2022
Pages:	456
Sales rank:	688,746
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

James F. Keenan, SJ, is the Canisius Chair, director of the Jesuit Institute, and vice provost of global engagement at Boston College. A Jesuit priest since 1982, he received a licentiate (1984) and a doctorate (1988) from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He has edited or written twenty-five books and published over three hundred essays, articles, and reviews in over twenty-five international journals. Fr. Keenan is the founder of Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church (CTEWC).

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xix

Chapter 1 Jesus in the New Testament: The Inspiration and Foundation of Catholic Theological Ethics 1

I Preliminaries 1

Why Start with the New Testament? 1

Catholic Theological Ethics and the Bible 3

What about the Ten Commandments? 7

II The New Testament 8

Introduction 8

Paul 9

The Influence of Paul on the History of Catholic Theological Ethics 13

The Synoptic Gospels 13

Kingdom of God 14

Discipleship 16

Love and Mercy 18

Sin 22

The Influence of the Synoptic Gospels on the History of Catholic Theological Ethics 25

The Gospel of John 26

The Influence of John's Gospel on the History of Catholic Theological Ethics 31

III Toward a Conclusion 32

Chapter 2 Mercy: The Social Formation of the Early Church (Up to 500 CE) 35

I Disciple and Neighbor 35

Understanding Christ and the Human Body 36

The Virtues of Hospitality and Solidarity 42

The Corporal Works of Mercy 48

The Spiritual Works of Mercy 50

II Turning to Emerging Ambiguities and Challenges 52

Celebrating the Eucharist 53

Readmitting Apostates by Acknowledging Sin 56

Sexuality 57

III Augustine's Ethics 61

Interiority and the End of Ethics 61

The Virtues 64

Lying and Warring 64

Sexuality and Marriage 66

Chapter 3 Pathways to Holiness: The Fourth to the Sixteenth Century 69

I Introduction 69

Taking a Different Path 69

Preparing for the Journey 71

II Pathways to Moral Living and Holiness from the Fourth to the Sixth Century 76

III Confessing Sin from the Sixth to the Sixteenth Century 84

IV The Pathways to Holiness of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries 93

The Discovery of the Self 93

V An Odd Catholic Detour 102

Sexual Ethics from the Fourth to the Sixteenth Century 102

VI New Pathways to Holiness in the Sixteenth Century 110

Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466-1536) and Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) 110

Chapter 4 From the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century: The Medieval Scholastic Foundations of Modern Moral Theology 125

I Peter Abelard (1079-1142) 127

II Heloise (1101-64) 135

III Peter Lombard (1100-1160) 137

IV Thomas Aquinas (1224-74) 142

V The Achievement of Scholasticism 161

VI Anticipating Modernity from John Duns Scotus (1265-1308) to William of Ockham (1287-1347) 163

Chapter 5 Pathways to Modernity I: Casuistry 167

I Introduction 167

Our Way of Proceeding 169

A Word about the Arc of High Casuistry 172

Previewing the Impact of Sixteenth-Century Casuistry 175

II The Start of the Arc of Casuistry: John Mair (1467-1550) 180

III The Achievement of Sixteenth-Century High Casuistry 184

IV The Decalogue or the Ten Commandments 192

V Probabilism 196

VI The End of the Arc of Casuistry: Francisco de Toledo (1532-96) 199

VII Some Concluding Thoughts on These Pathways 204

Chapter 6 Pathways to Modernity II: Confraternities and the School of Salamanca 208

I The Confraternities 208

II Salamanca and Beyond 214

Francisco de Vitoria (1483-1546) 217

Bartolomé de las Casas, OP (1484-1566) 228

Chapter 7 Reforming Moral Theology: From the Eighteenth Century to the Second Vatican Council 237

I Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787) 238

II The Suppression and Restoration of the Society of Jesus 247

III The Moral Manuals 252

IV European Reformers 266

V English-Speaking Resistance to Reform 273

VI The Second Vatican Council (1962-65) 274

VII Humanae Vitae (1968) and the Collapse of Manualism 280

VIII Conclusion: Learning to Think Historically 284

Chapter 8 Moral Agency for a Global Theological Ethics 290

I The Moral Agency of the Theological Ethicist in Breaking Boundaries 290

Changing the Face of the Field 291

Resistance 295

Changing the Location of the Field of Theological Ethics 297

Changing the Boundaries of Catholic Theological Ethics 301

II Recognizing Human Suffering, Descending into the Particular, and Going Global 305

Descent into the Particular 314

Latin America 318

Africa 320

Asia 327

North America, Particularly the United States 332

Cross-Cultural Discourse, Ethics in the Church, and Globalization 335

Epilogue 336

Notes 339

Index 421