Christ the Sacrament of the Encounter With God

Rating:
Summary: A Theological Classic!
Review: It's nice to know that this classic work by one of the great Catholic theological minds of the 20th century is back in print. Originally published in 1960 (1963 in English), this is perhaps the best book written on sacramental theology last century.

Schillebeeckx's thesis is simple: Jesus Christ is the God-Man, and salvation is only possible through a personal encounter with Christ. Christ, however, has risen and ascended into heaven. The question remains: how are people saved who have not had this personal encounter? The sacraments -- which are an extension of the primordial sacrament, Christ himself -- are established by Christ in the Church so that people of all ages may have an encounter with Christ and be saved.

The book is a little over 220 pages (at least the 1963 edition is), and has seven parts: Part 1: Christ, Sacrament of God; Part 2: The Church, Sacrament of the Risen Christ; Part 3: Implications of the Ecclesial Character of Sacramental Action; Part 4: The Sacraments in their fullness: The Fruitful Sacrament; Part 5: Encounter with Christ in the Church as Sacrament of the Encounter with God: The Effects of a Sacrament; Part 6: Sacramental Encounters with Christ: Culminating Moments in the Ecclesial Character of Christian Life; Part 7: The Mystical Quality of the Sacraments.

On a personal note, this book profoundly changed my sacramental spirituality. I highly recommend it to all Catholics and students of the faith. And if you are a theology student beyond the undergraduate level, you should consider this book to be required reading.