The Sources of Christian Ethics: Tranlated from the Third Edition [Paperback]

Servais Pinckaers (Author), Mary Thomas Noble (Translator), Romanus Cessario (Foreword)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0813208181 | ISBN-13: 978-0813208183 | Publication Date: June 1995 | Edition: 3rd

Now available for the first time in English, this work is widely recognised as a classic in the field of moral theology.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

Recognized by scholars worldwide as one of the most important books in the field of moral theology, this book returns Christian ethics to its sources: the Gospel and the Holy Spirit. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 489 pages
• Publisher: Catholic University of America Press; 3rd edition (June 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813208181
• ISBN-13: 978-0813208183
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #236,593 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Morality as Freedom for Excellence, July 27, 2001

By 

"gomerkid" (Spring, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sources of Christian Ethics: Tranlated from the Third Edition (Paperback)

Have you ever been to a class on Morality or Ethics at a Church or School, and you were basically told a bunch of "do's and don'ts?" Fr. Pinckaers finally revealed to me why so many leave the Church and why so many are bored with Morality. He traces for us a brief history of Ethics and Morality and shows how people like William of Ockham and Immanuel Kant destroyed morality by focusing on the Commandments of God instead of the Virtues of God. God is now viewed in modern society as a mere law giver, arbitrary and exacting; whereas in ancient and medival times, climaxing with St. Thomas Aquinas, God was viewed as Father and Laws were regarded as Virtue builders loving instructions to His Children. This text is being used at one of the greatest universities in America, Fransican University of Steubenville in Ohio, in several classes. This is just to attest to its truth, beauty and goodness, which i discovered when reading it as a hobby. I'm 19 years old, i was 18 whenever i purchased it, and i can honestly say that this book will open your eyes to the truth, and you will love every minute of it. Do's and Don't melt away and become What More can i do for you Lord? Get this book now for a more Scriptural, more Scholastic, more Thomistic, more Catholic, more real view of Morality and Ethics, centered around the Sermon on the Mount.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Renewal of Christian Ethics, December 21, 2004

By 

Ryan P. Hilderbrand (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sources of Christian Ethics: Tranlated from the Third Edition (Paperback)

Fr. Pinckaers' book is a wonderful overview of Christian ethics, calling for a renewal in the methodology of moral theologians. I've found it to be good, though laborious, spiritual reading. He gives an overview of Christian ethics, followed by a history of the study of moral theology from the age of the Patristics. He also covers Ockham's nominalism and how it destroyed the traditional Christian attitude towards morality. Finally, he studies the virtues, freedom and natural law in the tradition of the Fathers and St. Thomas Aquinas. Not leisure reading, but good foundational reading for those who wish to study theology.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Needed contribution to Post Vatican II Moral Theology, March 2, 2005

By 

Ryan R. Grant (Lancaster, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sources of Christian Ethics: Tranlated from the Third Edition (Paperback)

Fr. Pinckaers book presents a lifetime of research into Catholic Moral Theology from the Patristic era to the present, especially focusing on the atmospher after Trent, and the problems posed by the Protestant Reformation, and Modern Philosophy.

Pinckaers shows us that many manuals of moral theology, while presenting orthodox doctrine, present the wrong reasons for that doctrine. Many books while claiming to follow St. Thomas and his brilliant Virtue Theory, actually are closer to Kant imperative: that virtue is following the Law for the Law's own sake, rather than for the sake of virtue.

As a result many books rely soley on the Decalogue (Ten Commandments) rather than look at them as part of a whole, in light of the Sermon on the Mount.

Pinckaers makes a terrific contribution to Catholic Moral Theology, and examines in great detail the works of Scripture, St. Paul, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, and the protestant reformers Luther and Calvin. The book is also not filled with overly technical language. It is written in such a way that an athiest who has never heard an iota about Catholic or Protestant Moral Theology could pick up the book and understand it. Pinckaers is the most emminent moral theologian of our day.