Christian Ethics and the Community by James M. Gustafson

Abstract

340 BOOK REVIEWS the human being truly constitute an existing whole or is he merely a dynamic unity of dimensions of a mind, in which consciousness affects the mental-physical, while this, as "explainable on the basis of the functioning of the body " (XIX) is incapable of exercising any causal influence upon the non-physical reflective awareness? Consciousness and Freedom discusses problems of the modern philosophy of mind in an intelligent and interesting manner; it does not answer the important questions of a realistic philosophy of man which it raises in its readers. The Catholic University of America Washington, D. C. MARms ScHNEIDER, 0. F. M. Christian Ethics and the Community. By JAMES M. GusTAFSON. Philadelphia : Pilgrim Press, 1971. $7.95. Eight of ten chapters in Gustafson's book consist in the reprinting of articles from such sources as the Union Seminary Quarterly Review, Una Sancta, and The Scope Of Theology (World Publishing Company, 1965). Another is printed from a lecture to the 1967 colloquium of the Contemporary Theology Institute, Loyola College, Montreal. Thus only two of ten sections contain material not otherwise available, and only one chapter "The Moral Conditions Necessary for Human Community" appears to have been written specifically for the book. The original chapter, moreover, appears the weakest by far of Gustafson's efforts. That human community cannot exist without faith, hope, and love (all broadly defined) is quite apparent to anybody who stops in the street to think about trusting traffic laws, sharing some measure of confidence in the future, and bearing at least minimal loyalty, reverence, and gratitude for others. By way of creative insight, then, Gustafson's book offers nothing beyond the contributions he has already made to the study of Christian ethics. On the other hand, Christian Ethics and the Community does collect and organize several expressions by Gustafson which continue to exercise considerable influence on the field. His " Context Versus Principles: A Misplaced Debate in Christian Ethics," reprinted from the Harvard Theological Review (1965), offered seasoned wisdom at the time of that encounter and several prophetic questions still are guiding much of the discussion . Again, his focus upon " The Conditions for Hope: Reflections on Human Experience" (Continuum, 1970) asks the bases and objects of hope. " Only when the object of hope is delineated with enough specificity BOOK REVIEWS 841 to make possible the inference of certain achievable moral intentions can it give relatively clear direction to moral actions " was the conclusion of his essay. The most appealing of his efforts is also his most lengthy, occupying almost dne third of the book. " Christian Ethics in America," a historical summary of the personalities and issues involved in the writing of ethics since 1930 remains a normative study of the recent history of the discipline. Viewed as an anthology of provocative writings rather than as a major contribution in its own right, Gustafson's work merits both attention and reflection of serious scholars, students, and others who will be interested. Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary Louisville, Kentucky LOUIS WEEKS The Search for Human Values: Moral Growth in an Evolving World. By CoRNELIUS J. VANDERPoEL, C. S. Sp. New York: Newman Press, 1971. 186 pp. $4.95. Van der Poel's recent book is a relatively comprehensive essay in moral theology, providing outlines of a theological anthropology necessary for understanding man as a moral agent, a methodology for evaluating the rightness or wrongness of human actions, a discussion of the role of conscience in the moral life of man, and a consideration of sin and virtue as manifestations of failures and successes in human self-fulfillment. Much that the author has to say is exceptionally valuable, in particular his stress on the dynamism of man's moral life, on the interpersonal relationships between human beings and between man and God that form the fabric of man's existence as a moral being, and on the need to take into account the total human or moral dimensions of an activity in evaluating its moral worth instead of focussing immediately on some isolated element within the activity. He is surely correct in stressing the historicity of man in discussing the way in which moral values are formulated and...