That They May All Be One: The Call to Unity Today

Here, Kasper outlines his vision for the unity of Christian Churches. Cardinal Kasper is a distinguished theologian who was a colleague of Cardinal Ratzinger, Karl Rahner, and Hans Kung at The Universities of Münster and Tübingen. Kasper now heads the Vatican's Council for Promoting Christian Unity, with the specific task of fostering relations between the Catholic Church and other Christian Churches and Ecclesial communities. A man with an open mind, Kasper covers one of the major responsibilities of the contemporary Catholic Church. His perspective of the uniqueness of The Catholic Church and its magisterium is presented here as a modern inquiry into the nature of truth. His views are enlightening and engaging, and reflect the important role of dialogue as understood by the Catholic Church, which also listen to other traditions and learn from them. Many will read it in the hope that the thought of this renowned, open-minded Church leader may give hope to people of all traditions that they may learn to understand Jesus's injunction - 'they may be one'.

Table of Contents:
1. The Current Situation in Ecumenical Theology 2. Its Nature and Purpose 3. Communion:The Guiding Principle 4. Open Questions in Ecclesiology 5. A Rapprochement between East and West 6. The Joint Declaration on Justification 7. Petrine Ministry 8. Spiritual Ecumenism 9. Contemporary Pluralism

About the Author :
Cardinal Walter Kasper was President of The Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. A German by birth, he spends much time lecturing and giving conferences in the English-speaking world.

Review :
The book's 10 chapters include important addresses or articles by Cardinal Kasper during his years of international church leadership.... Christians can thank God for the Holy Spirit's working in the midst of the modern ecumenical movement, and for skillful scholars and ministers like Cardinal Kasper who assist us to be more deeply engaged together in the common pilgrimage toward full, visible unity. Kasper is also very helpful in addressing the difficult question of relations with the Eastern churches, including the filioque clause, the future of the Eastern Catholic churches and the problem of the autocephaly of the Orthodox national churches....As a theologian who is also a cardinal of the Roman Curia, Kasper shows considerable ability to push the tradition and at the same time to interpret some of the more difficult positions...rich in wisdom for pursuing Jesus' call :that all may be one. The well-known German theologian and Cardinal Prefect of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity pulls together a series of reflections that provide an overarching vision for ecumenical work in the present moment. Given the nature of his role in the Vatican Curia, as well as the different dialogue partners with whom he is engaged, the book is remarkably forthright in illustrating his hopes while accounting for the very real obstacles to unity. One of the many strengths of his book is the international vantage he now enjoys in coming to his conclusions, though his notes betray a rather Eurocentric gleaning of the literature...it should also be read by every ecumenical officer or persons with an interest in fostering unity among faiths. No living Catholic theologian is more qualified than Cardinal Kasper to comment on the current state of ecumenical relations. In summary, when the current dean of ecumenical theology on the Catholic side speaks out on the present perceived impasse on ecumenism, all will so well to listen.... Kasper is wise in his assessment that "full communion will not be achieved by convergence alone, but even more by conversion. Kasper's very positive book is an invitation to continue this conversation with the Cardinal and, because of his position in the Vatican, with the Roman Catholic Church as such. Happily, however, although Walter Kasper's words command attention on the basis of his prominent position alone- he is head of the Catholic Church's Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity- in him we have a theologian of high caliber whose works have been widely read for years and can be reviewed on their own merits. "...I... warmly recommend Kasper's book to all those who want to understand the mind of the Catholic Church's foremost ecumenist and one of her most prominent contemporary theologians, and also to understand the contemporary debates of ecumenical theology.