The Morally Divided Body—Ethical Disagreement and the Disunity of the Church

Synopsis: At the same time as Catholic and evangelical Christians have increasingly come to agree on issues that divided them during the sixteenth-century reformations, they seem increasingly to disagree on issues of contemporary "morality" and "ethics." Do such arguments doom the prospects for realistic full communion between Catholics and evangelicals? Or are such disagreements a new opportunity for Catholics and evangelicals to convert together to the triune God's word and work on the communion of saints for the world? Or should our hope be different than simple pessimism or optimism? In this volume, eight authors address different aspects of these questions, hoping to move Christians a small step further toward the visible unity of the church. Endorsements: "Christians are often divided by the justification of homosexuality or some other controversial moral issue rather than the doctrine of justification. This excellent collection of essays helps us think through the ways in which moral differences have reshaped the ecumenical task." --R. R. Reno, Creighton University "This book identifies the chief cause of internal strife and division afflicting most mainline Protestant denominations. Separating faith from works is an old heresy that always breeds schism. The authors are leading theologians of their respective traditions who write from a wealth of experience in church service and with profound knowledge of classical Christianity. Anyone engaged in ecumenical dialogues and the quest for Christian unity needs to read and heed the message of this book." --Carl E. Braaten, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago "It is a historical fact that moral disagreement has divided the church. This is not possible unless certain kinds of moral disagreements are, in fact, doctrinal disagreements . . . and other kinds of moral disagreements are, in fact, tolerable divergences owing to context and judgment. The offerings in this excellent collection go a long way toward recognizing this difference and sorting it out for us today." --Paul R. Hinlicky, Roanoke College Author Biography: James J. Buckley is Professor of Theology at Loyola University Maryland. He has contributed to and edited (with Frederick Bauerschmidt and Trent Pomplun) The Blackwell Companion to Catholicism (2007). He is associate director of the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology. Michael Root is Professor of Systematic Theology at The Catholic University of America and Executive Director of the Center for Catholic and Evangelical Theology. He was formerly the Director of the Institute for Ecumenical Research, Strasbourg, France.