404
reading these languages which is
pity. The second point that the
is
author’s understandable enthusiasm
for Blondel’s brilliance is at times a
little uncritical and leads him to think
of Blondel as a deeper thinker than
someone else, like, say, Boutroux. The
undue complexity of Blondel’s style is
often matched by an undue complex-
ity in his thought, and this problem or
these problems need to be acknowl-
edged by all scholars trying to make
sense of Blondel’s philosophy. Lastly,
and this is merely a speculative point,
if Blondel indeed had a scientific
method which it took him some time
to perfect, his later philosophy would
have to differ slightly if not substan-
tially from the earlier one in structure
and tone. It might be interesting then
to speculate whether Blondel was
more in the grip of a philosophy of
consciousness at the end of his writing
than at the beginning. But this is not
the issue at hand.
The fact that these speculative
questions can arise now is due to the
high level of historical scholarship
evidenced in Conway’s book. The
text shows exceptional high quality
and indeed mastery in an area of study
often neglected in the English-speak-
ing world and for this reason it will be
welcomed by Blondel scholars. This
piece comes from a young and accom-
plished researcher in the field whose
obvious talent will soon manifest
itself again in print before long.
FIACHRA LONG
Cork
THEOLOGY OF PRIESTHOOD
Llamados a servir: Teologia del sac-
erdocio ministerial. By Miguel Ponce
Cuéllar. Barcelona: Herder Books,
2001. Pp. 526. Np. ISBN 84-254-
2174-8.
If you attend to the title and sub-
title, if you read the curriculum vitae of
the author as well as his introductory
words and his words of dedication,
and if you take note of the cover
a design, you will be ready to guess what
might be the contents and spirit of
this book.
The title and subtitle are a
reminder that all priestly activity is a
response to a call to service in the
name of Jesus Christ. The author is a
canon penitentiary at the cathedral of
Merida-Badajoz. He has had various
assignments as teacher of theology,
and he is a member of the Inter-
national Marian Pontifical Academy.
He has written two books and many
articles. He dedicates this book ’to all
priests, my brothers’ and he writes out
of his own experience of priesthood in
the household of the Church, which
he loves. The cover design, a tree
with full foliage, expresses his wish for
a priestly ministry continually in
touch with its roots and bearing much
fruit.
From all of this, you might expect
some very cosy, self-confident writing.
But it becomes clear that the author
sees ministerial priesthood as being in
a state of crisis. He situates this crisis
in the wider crisis of faith, of author-
ity, of the supernatural, of ecclesial
structure, of charity. He believes that
the crisis in priestly ministry is aggra-
vated by our failures to integrate the
ecclesial, christological, and pneu-
matic aspects of priesthood, and by
some questionable forms of democra-
tisation in the Church. Topics like the
decline in vocations, the large num-
ber of laicisations, and the quest for
optional celibacy, are placed in the
context of these imbalances.
In the long introduction, the pages
on the crisis are followed by twenty
pages, which outline the positions of
six writers who are seen as challeng-
ing official Church teaching. The
introduction is followed by three sub-
stantial parts. The first is on scriptural
foundations. There is detailed mater-
ial on the unique priesthood of Jesus
Christ, on the priesthood of all the
faithful, on the various forms of min-
istry in the New Testament, on how
sacerdotal language came to be
applied to ministry. The second part

deals with tradition, magisterium, and
theology, from the Didachj to the
Second Vatican Council and after.
The third and most interesting part
consists of theological reflection.
Ministerial priesthood is presented in
terms of the presence of Christ, head
and shepherd of the Church. The
sacrament of orders is looked at from
its christological, hierarchic, commu-
nitarian, and pneumatic aspects.
There are sections on the rite of ordi-
nation, the sacrament as an anointing
by the Holy Spirit, the character in
the setting of the three specific func-
tions of priesthood, the diversity of
ministries and the unity of the sacra-
ment, ministerial functions at the ser-
vice of ecclesial communion.
From the foregoing, you might
wonder whether we have here an
updated version of the old style text-
book. Having dealt with the ’errors’
and presented the ’true doctrine’, does
the author crown his work with unas-
sailable conclusions? The answer is
no. While he sets out to give a clear
and comprehensive presentation of
Catholic doctrine, he also sees himself
as being engaged in a search, in a
spirit of what he calls sincere dia-
logue. He is convinced that the
Church should be ready to learn from
the possibilities that are opened up in
various new movements. He talks
about nuclear and permanent truth
a find a setting for these topics in the
about priesthood. He points out that
perspectives have changed from
Trent’s emphasis on a hierarchical
priesthood and on power over the
eucharistic body of Christ to a call by
the Second Vatican Council to act in
the name of Christ the head.
Presumably he is asking us to be open
to new changes of perspective.
Could the approach of the book be
described as basically conservative? I
would prefer to describe it as main-
stream and immersed in the whole of
the Church’s tradition. Of recent
writers, the ones most drawn on are
Galot, Arnau, Rahner, Ratzinger and
Congar. In dealing with new app-
roaches, the author’s urge is not to
405
reject but to see whether or not they
can be accommodated in what is fixed
in Catholic tradition. He draws heav-
ily on the work of P. Grelot and A.
Vanhoye when he is dealing with the
implications of E. Schillebeeckx’s
positions on such topics as absolute
ordinations, the call of the commu-
nity, incorporation as minister into
the concrete community, the right of
the Christian community to the
Eucharist, ministry from below rather
than above, the possibility of provi-
sional praxis alongside official praxis,
the limitations of the ontological
approach to character. Less detailed is
his treatment of the positions of H.
King on apostolicity, a canon within
a canon, institution and charism, the
sacralisation and sacramentalisation
of orders, and L. Boff’s positions about
base communities, the Church as
sacrament of integral liberation, the
re-inventing of the Church, and the
functional nature of ministries.
Much importance is given to the
trinitarian foundations of Christian
priesthood and to the special role of
the Holy Spirit. There is no formal
treatment of priestly spirituality but
openings are continually provided.
Neither is there a formal treatment of
celibacy or of the question of the ordi-
nation of women. It would appear
that the reader is being encouraged to
chapters on tradition and on theolog-
ical reflection.
Does the book make significant
new contributions to the theology of
ministerial priesthood? I do not think
so. Its main value will be as a resource
book for anybody lecturing on the
foundations of priestly ministry, in
any setting. The layout and organisa-
tion of the material, as well as the
attractive and lucid style, make it a
joy to read. It can be easily read by
anybody with a basic knowledge of
the Spanish language.
THOMAS LANE, CM
Dublin