Liturgical Theology

Module Description:

This module will introduce the student to the idea of sacrament, in the first part, as a central theological hermeneutic that underpins some of the key ways of thinking in the Catholic tradition. The idea of the ‘sacramental imagination’ will be explored from the perspective of the early Christian writers (for example, Augustine), as well from that of modern theological discourse on a sacramental worldview, especially in the writings of Odo Casel, Otto Semmelroth, Karl Rahner, Edward Schillebeeckx and Louis-Marie Chauvet. A second part of the module will move to the idea of liturgy as theologia prima, and explore some contemporary expositions of (sacramental) worship as an encounter of the humanity of God in Christ (Schillebeeckx, David Power, and Chauvet). This will allow for an exposition of ritual sacramental theory through the ages: including that of Augustine, the medieval theologians and the reformation. Contemporary inter-church and ecumenical discussion will be explored. A specific sacrament, baptism, will be surveyed from the perspective of the principal debates that helped shape how it is understood today in various church traditions, and from the perspective of the various schools of thought that have been presented in the module.

Indicative Bibliography:

Bordeyne, P. and B. Morrill, eds. Sacraments: Revelation of the Humanity of God. Engaging the Fundamental Theology of Louis-Marie Chauvet. (Collegeville, MN.: The Liturgical Press, 2008).
Fagerberg, D.W., Theologia Prima. What is Liturgical Theology? (Chicago: Hillenbrand Books, 2004).
Mitchell, N.D., Meeting Mystery: Liturgy, Worship, Sacraments (Maryknoll, NY.: Orbis Books, 2006).
Morrill, B.T. Divine Worship and Human Healing: Liturgical Theology at the Margins of Life and Death (Collegeville, MN.: The Liturgical Press, 2009). Osborne, K.B., Christian Sacraments in a Postmodern World: A Theology for the Third Millennium ( NY / Mahwah, NJ.: Paulist Press, 1999).
Power, D.N. Sacrament: The Language of God’s Giving (New York: Crossroad, 2000).
Spinks, B.D. (ed.), The Place of Christ in Liturgical Prayer: Trinity, Christology, and Liturgical Theology (Collegeville, MN.: The Liturgical Press, 2008).

Learning Outcomes:

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

• Outline the relationship between faith, reason, and imagination as interpretation of life in different periods and authors.
• Distinguish analogical, metaphorical and literal uses of language.
• Recognise and evaluate different approaches to the sacramental view of the world which is central to the Catholic theological tradition.
• Recognise the distinctive contribution of different schools and thinkers to liturgical understanding.
• Appraise the paradigm shifts in understandings of sacrament in its liturgical expression from patristic through scholastic and neo-scholastic, to contemporary.
• Explore some of the principal theological themes as they relate to baptism.
• Evaluate the postmodern critique of fundamental theological assertions.

Methods of Assessment and Student Workload

Annual examination and essay.