The English Bishops and the First Vatican Council by Frederick J. Cwiekowski, S. S.

Abstract

666 BOOK REVIEWS this particular tract of theology at a time when scripture was invoked almost exclusively to prove the Real Presence and the sacrificial character of the Mass. The author shows how the Eucharist, when situated in the Passover context of berakah and memorial, takes on a rich new depth of meaning. Perhaps more might have been made of the memorial dimension of the Eucharist, along the lines indicated by Jeremias and Bouyer. A minor criticism that might be made is that the very wealth of material provided in some chapters (e. g., ch. 5) tends to confuse the clear lines of development of the author's treatment. All in all, however, this is a very satisfying piece of work. It makes one realize with a sense of regret what the Theology Today series might have been if all the volumes were of the same high standard. The Priest as Preacher Past and Future might be described as a commentary on the statement in Presbyterorum Ordinis (n. 4) that " priests. . . . have as their primary duty the proclamation of the gospel of God to all." What the theology of the priest has needed for so long is a resolution of the conflict between the post-Tridentine Catholic view of the priest as essentially a man who offers the Eucharistic Sacrifice and administers the Sacraments on the one hand, and the opinion of the Reformers on the other hand, who stressed, at times exclusively, the minister 's preaching role. Through a survey of scriptural, patristic, medieval, and modem ecclesiastical documents up to and including Vatican IT, Father Echlin throws considerable light on the priest's role as minister of the word and shows that it is without prejudice to the ministry of the Sacrifice. Both roles are indispensable for the wholesome exercise of the priesthood and though preaching may be the primary duty of priests, the goal of all preaching is the Eucharist. St. Charles' Seminary, Nagur, India ANTHONY MoRRIS, 0. P. NoEL MoLLOY, 0. P. Lours HuGHES, 0. P. The English Bishops and the First Vatican Council. By Frederick J. Cwiekowski, s. s. Bibliotheque de la Revue d'Histoire Ecclesiastique, Fascicule 5!t. Louvain: Editions Nauwelaerts. 1971. Pp. 871. FB 500. In this impressively researched study Frederick J. Cwiekowski gives a broad view of the English hierarchy before, during, and after the First Vatican Council. The focus is national and emphasizes " the bishops ' concerns with the ecclesiological issues " as the English prelates " saw the council largely in these terms." A background perspective is provided on the state of Catholicism in England, followed by a survey of the English BOOK REVIEWS 667 role in council preparations. The author then treats with the Council itself: its organization and management, major debates and the formation of parties, English secular interests and activities, the position and participation of the bishops on the great issues, especially those growing out of the Schema constitutionis dogmaticae ecclesia Christi-to which was attached the explosive chapter on papal infallibility-and finally, the resolution of the controversies. Concluding chapters concern the aftermath as it affected acceptance and interpretation of the decrees by the hierarchy, closing with " The Ecclesiology of the English Bishops at Vatican I," a return to the prefatory theme. From cover to cover the author leaves little doubt that a majority of the prelates were prepared to follow Ultramontane leadership, with slight exception . The story is dominated throughout by the energetic Archbishop of Westminster, whose anti-Gallican convictions and personal quest for an authoritative papacy assured him prominence before, during, and after the Council, both in England and at Rome. Manning's pastoral letter of October 1869-the eve of the council-pointed the way and, as with his pastoral of two years earlier, strongly promoted infallibility. Even as Wiseman 's successor waxed polemical at home, Cardinal Antonelli was assuring Odo Russell that no new dogma of personal infallibility was to be submitted to the Fathers in that the Council had no auhority over such matters. Because so much of the literature on the Council focuses on the struggle over the definition of papal infallibility, this study is particularly noteworthy for its consideration of the attitudes of...