God of Faith and Reason

Given that this had been strongly recommended by Fr James Schall, whose recommendations I respect, I came to this book with high expectations, which were not quite met. That being said, there are some valuable thoughts on the development of Greek religion and the interrelatedness of human virtue and supernatural virtue. He is excellent on the absolute transcendence of God and on the place of the sacraments in the christian life.

This is a beautiful piece of theological writing and reflection. I appreciated most his discussion of the "necessary absence" of God due to the distinction we must make between the Creator and the creation. What we have access to directly is the created order itself, not the Creator. Also valuable was his discussion of the elements of human action and natural virtue. At times his treatment grew more difficult to follow because of my lack of background in this kind of philosophical inquiry. But what I understood, I valued and grew from. This book requires a good deal of mental effort to absorb. It will probably resonate most with someone from a traditional Catholic perspective.

In this book Msgr. Sokolowski, one of the most respected philosophers of phenomenology, applies his philosophical insights to theology. The result is a fruitful new way of thinking about the World, God, human living, and the Scriptures which he names the "Theology of Disclosure." This is the book where Sokolowski does his most fundamental work on explaining the "Christian Distinction" between God and World, and how this distinction changes the way we see everything. He explains how the virtues that Aristotle explores remain necessary for human living even when we move into a Christian setting. But then Sokolowski argues that the distinction between God and World shows us that even what is necessary in our world is contingent upon the free and loving act of God in creating and redeeming our world. This book shows us how Christians can take pre-Christian insights about human nature seriously, while bringing those insights into the new context provided by the distinction between God and World. Through Sokolowski's explanation of this distinction we not only come to see our human living in a new light, but also come to understand the Creation and Incarnation in wonderful new ways. This is solid theological and philosophical work, and is not confined to either a Catholic or non-Catholic audience.