Theology and the Church

Rating:
Summary: Light upon light: a marriage of theology and spirituality
Review: The rather prosaic title of this brilliant book does not convey the wonderful riches of spiritual insight in store for the reader as he or she enters the theological world of Dumitru Staniloae. Staniloae was the greatest Romanian Orthodox theologian of this century. Experts in the field like Bishop Kallistos Ware consider Staniloae as perhaps the greatest Orthodox dogmatic theologian of modern times, but since most of his work remains untranslated, his greatness is not yet fully appreciated. In this book, the reader gets a taste of theology Staniloaen-style. It is not dry-as-dust intellectualizing, but wonderfully supple, allusive prose grounded in spiritual insight and rich in symbolism. Each chapter in the book develops the authentic Orthodox understanding of the nature, function and life of the Church as living Body of Christ. Reading this book attentively is an unfolding illumination, subtle, harmonious, balanced, brilliant. His chapter on Trinitarian theology, for example,usually the type of thing that makes the average reader's eyes glaze over, is clear, firmly grounded in the Fathers of the Church, utterly traditional yet cuttingly current, insightful as well as precise, sparkling with gems of perception, a joy to read. This is to be expected, when you consider that Staniloae was the epicenter of the modern spiritual revival in Romania, translator of the Philokalia into the Romanian language, and himself an adept in Orthodox hesychastic spirituality. All of Romania mourned his death in 1993, but his work lives on in books like Theology and the Church. This is a marriage of theology and spirituality not to be missed. Highest recommendation.