Roman Catholic theology experienced profound growth and development with the Second Vatican Council and since. With the renewal in scriptural, historical and ecumenical studies, open to new philosophical currents, and sensitive to diverse cultural contexts, Catholic systematic theology has undergone a remarkable evolution. The Church is societas sui generis, but vera societas “constituted and organized in this world as a society” (LG 8). That the Church is a true society is obvious to all who look at its history; but its specific nature is involved in mystery. In particular there is the relationship between faith, law and liturgy in the light of the classical adage Legem credendi statuat lex supplicandi. The Church is an adoring society. But the Church is also an acting society, and the adage should hold: Legem agendi statuat lex canonica.
The author is emeritus professor of the Pontifical Oriental Institute, Rome, where he has taught canon law, theology of law and philosophy of law. He has published several works in the series Kanonika, of which he was editor from the beginning till 2012. His recent publications include: Quest for the Historical Thomas Apostle of India: a Re-reading of the Evidence, Theological Publications in India, Bangalore 2008; “The Council in Trullo Revisited: Ecumenism and the Canon of the Councils,” Theological Studies 71 (2010) 651-676; “Christian Origins in India According to the Alexandrian Tradition,” OCP 77 (2011) 399-422; “Typology of Peter in the Symbolic Theology of Aphrahat,” OCP 80 (2014) 291-328; Renewal of Life and Law: An Indian Contribution (Dharmaram Canonical Studies, 10), Dharmaram Publications, Bangalore, 2015. His latest book is Covenant life, law and ministry according to Aphrahat (Kanonika series n.26), Edizioni Orientalia Christiana & Valore Italiano™, Rome, 2018.
In the present work the author studies how efforts at understanding the juridic relationship between the Apostolic See and the Eastern Catholic Churches over the past roughly five hundred years have led to the increased recognition of the juridic autonomy of those Churches. The work first focuses on the early jurisprudence concerning the binding force of papal legislation on Eastern faithful, highlighting an important though unapproved decision made by a particular congregation of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith in 1631, which declared that the popes did not intend to bind the subjects of the sees of the schismatic patriarchs by certain types of apostolic constitutions except in three particular cases. The work then reviews the jurisprudence of Pope Benedict XIV, who cited this decision three times in his writings; the events of the pontificate of Pope Pius IX, particularly those surrounding the First Vatican Council when the preconciliar commission on the Churches of the Eastern rite sought to suppress the praxis based on this decision; the period of the first codification of canon law, when this decision was reaffirmed in praxis; and, finally, the Second Vatican Council and the second codification period, when this decision became the basis for canon 1492 of the Eastern code. This study emphasizes the impact that the jurisprudence surrounding the 1631 decision has had on how the understanding of Eastern juridic autonomy has developed in the Catholic Church. It also shows how the current canonical norms impacting Eastern autonomy can be better understood in light of this historical development.
«Si credeva che dopo il Concilio sarebbe venuta una giornata di sole per la storia della Chiesa. E' venuta invece una giornata di nuvole, di tempesta, di buio, di ricerca, di incertezza».
Papa Paolo VI
Nei pochi decenni della sua esistenza, la Teologia delle religioni ha sviluppato risposte tra loro inconciliabili. Il paradigma ecclesiocentrico "fuori della Chiesa non c'è salvezza" è stato sostituito dal paradigma cristocentrico "Cristo salvatore unico di tutti gli uomini". Alcuni teologi, inoltre, hanno proposto il paradigma geocentrico, secondo il quale Dio è la fonte della salvezza e Cristo è solo uno dei mediatori. Le tre concezioni, note anche con i nomi di esclusivismo, inclusivismo e pluralismo, testimoniano che la Teologia delle religioni ha mosso i suoi primi passi senza un adeguato fondamento biblico. La presente opera di Giovanni Odasso intende offrire un contributo proprio in questo ambito scientifico.
Il presente volume costituisce la raccolta degli interventi dei relatori al Congresso di Missiologia organizzato dalla Pontificia Università Urbaniana e dall'International Association of Catholic Missiologists (IACM). Il Congresso, svoltosi a Roma dal 17 al 20 ottobre 2000, ha proposto una riflessione missiologica sul passato, sul presente e sul futuro della missione cristiana studiando il ruolo salvifico di Gesù Cristo alla luce dei contesti socio-culturali dei diversi continenti.
