Overview

Fr. Paulinus Odozor, C.S.Sp., offers a comprehensive survey of developments in moral theology since the Second Vatican Council. In this useful new book he discusses the call of the Council for the renewal of moral theology and the role the Council itself played in this renewal. Odozor also explores the various issues and controversies which have marked the discipline in the past forty years. The dramatic changes and developments in moral theology during this time period rival any in the history of the Church. Moral Theology in an Age of Renewal covers a wealth of important topics, including the distinctiveness of Christian morality, natural law, scripture and ethics, moral norms, the Church's teaching authority, virtue ethics, and casuistry. Odozor provides a constructive proposal for a common ground which makes these debates in moral discourse possible. This scholarly study, one of the few of its kind, will be of significant value for moral theologians, other ethicists, systematic theologians, and anyone interested in Catholic cultural and intellectual history since Vatican II.

Full Product Details

9780268034696

Table of Contents

Reviews

This original and important undertaking will be of interest to Christian ethicists and theologians. Odozor's project is a soundly-based, fairminded survey that gets all the tough issues on the table. It takes a considerable amount of courage to write a book such as this, given the highly charged polemical climate of the subject matter. Defenders of orthodoxy will examine it closely to determine if it upholds their position while others will want to see if their viewpoints are fairly expressed. In general . . . the author has succeeded in satisfying both camps. --The Heythrop Journal Moral Theology in an Age of Renewal has much to recommend it. It is well researched and ... represents fairly a variety of positions.... The great contribution of this text is that it synthesizes in one volume what has happened in Catholic moral theology during a time of great development. We needed a map of the bumpy terrain, and Odozor has provided it. --America, December 1, 2003, Vol. 189 No. 18 .. . a scholarly study recommended to those interested not only in moral theology, but also in the post-Vatican II Church. --Catholic Library World, March 2004, Vol. 74 No. 3 .. . Odozor's study of contemporary positions on Christian distinctiveness, authority of Scripture, conscience, virtue, and objectivity of moral norms is clear, informative, and fair.... [His] survey of the moral landscape since Vatican II is, overall, impressive and offers a fine (and needed!) introductory resource for seminary and graduate students interested in contemporary Catholic moral theology. --Religious Studies Review, July 1, 2004 .. . provides an overview of the major themes, questions, and scholars in Catholic moral theology. . . . In covering so much ground in a way that is for the most part fair to all concerned, Moral Theology in an Age of Renewal: A Study of the Catholic Tradition since Vatican II can itself be judged as a contribution to renewal. --Journal of Markets and Morality, Vol. 7 No. 2 (no date given) This volume is a well-documented and clearly written history of Catholic moral theology since Vatican II.... [It] succeeds in ... providing a history of moral theology in the past half-century. It does so by making a generally good set of selctions among the figures that could have been chosen for study and by presenting the type of reasoning that each of these schools of thought has produced, with appropriate comparision and contrast between the competing parties so as to provide a rich sense of the give-and-take of the many battles that have marked this area in moral theology. --Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Quarterly, Vol. 27 No. 4, Winter 2004 This is a tantalizing ... ambitious book. . . . [E]xceptionally well done and illuminating. For scholars this book is well worth reading. --Theological Studies, Vol. 66 No. 1, March-May 2005 .. . those in the field should be grateful for Odozor for providing a book that will serve as a constant reference for years to come. --Pro Ecclesia, Vol. XIII, No. 2 It takes a considerable amount of courage to write a book such as this, given the highly-charged polemical climate of the subject matter. Defenders of orthodoxy will examine it closely to determine if it upholds their position while others will want to see if their viewpoints are fairly expressed. In general . . . the author has succeeded in satisfying both camps. --The Heythrop Journal, Vol. 48, Issue 1, January 2007

This original and important undertaking will be of interest to Christian ethicists and theologians. Odozor's project is a soundly-based, fairminded survey that gets all the tough issues on the table.

Author Information

Paulinus Ikechukwu Odozor, C.S.Sp., is a visiting associate professor of Christian Ethics at the University of Notre Dame. Two of his previous books, include Sexuality, Marriage, and Family and Richard McCormick and the Renewal of Moral Theology, which are also published by the University of Notre Dame Press.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available