Customer Reviews

Bible and the Liturgy

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Over the past 40 years, there has been a revival within the Catholic Church recognizing the biblical roots of the liturgy. Figures such as Scott Hahn have led the way for Catholics - and non-Catholics - to understand the deep Scriptural basis for the various liturgies within the Church, especially the Mass. Fr. Jean Danielou was the forerunner of this revival, and this book, "The Bible and the Liturgy" is one of the foundational stones of this edifice.

Fr. Danielou, who was made a Cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1969, was a major figure in the "resourcement" movement in the Catholic Church leading to Vatican II. This movement desired to "return to the sources" for understanding all aspects of Catholic theology including the liturgy; the sources they wished to return to were primarily the writings of Scripture and the Church Fathers. This book, originally written in 1956, is a splendid fruit of this movement, as Fr. Danielou explores the biblical roots of the liturgy as understood by the Church Fathers. The book primarily focuses on the three sacraments of initiation: baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist, and follows the development of the rites of these three sacraments, from their biblical roots to their practice in the first five centuries of Christianity. But where this book really shines is in its analysis of the Sabbath and its successor, the Lord's Day. Fr. Danielou explores the various images the Fathers used to explain the transfer of the day of worship from Saturday to Sunday, the "Eighth Day." This is theology that is often forgotten today, but it has a very practical application in helping Christians today to set aside a day for the worship of the Lord.

This is a book that can be read again and again to much profit. The University of Notre Dame Press is to be commended for republishing this classic of liturgical theology.

This is one of those texts on the liturgy that every MA Catholic theology student will want to own a copy of, along with Vagaggini and Pope Benedict XVI. While sellers here have the book at an extraordinary cost, it is available from the Franciscan University of Steubenville bookstore www.franciscan.edu for $25.95 (retail). I secured a new copy through their bookstore this week. As far as I can tell it is out of print now though (unavailable through Notre Dame, the publisher).

It's a wonderful book for reading about symbols in the liturgy, for example the shining robe. This book was offered new on Amazon at $24, then it said out of stock, and now the only listings are for used books at higher prices. It is still listed on University of Notre Dame Press web site at $24 but that shows the 1956 edition.