An Introduction to Catholic Sacramental Theology

Description: Ganoczy provides a complete overview of the history of Catholic sacramental theology and a clear explanation of contemporary theological developments. The classical teaching of the Council of Trent and its later theological formulations are compared to the new theological language of the Second Vatican Council and the personalist theologies of modern thinkers such as Karl Rahner and Edward Schillebeeckx. Introduction to Catholic Sacramental Theology moves clearly from (1) a sketch of the historical development of the sacramental concept to (2) the basic elements in a general theory of the sacraments to (3) discussion of the individual sacraments. In the last chapter the author introduces his own expanded understanding of the sacraments. Using the concepts of modern communication theory he envisions the sacraments as events of communication in the life of the concrete faith community in which each sacrament has its own particular form and purpose. Endorsements: Alexandre Ganoczy one of Europes leading theologians has provided a much-needed introduction to the sacraments. I cannot think of anyone who would not learn something from this masterful synthesis. --Regis A. Duffy OFM About the Contributor(s): Alexandre Ganoczy was born in Budapest Hungary in 1928. He is Professor Emeritus of Dogmatic Theology at the University of Wuerzburg Germany. He has published numerous books including Sprechen von Gott in heutiger Gesellschaft (1974) and Der schöpferische Mensch und die Schöpfung Gottes (1976).