Dialogue of Love: Confessions of an Evangelical Catholic Ecumenist

The Dialogue of Love is written from the perspective of an evangelical Catholic Ecumenist. Raised Catholic, but having responded to the Gospel at L'Abri Fellowship in 1970, Eduardo J. Echeverria's journey took the paths of Reformed and then Anglo-Catholic Christianity on his way back to full communion with the Catholic Church in 1992. Engaging in ecumenical conversation as a committed Roman Catholic whose views have been shaped by, among others, Romano Guardini, John Paul II, and Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI), the author discusses in an articulate, bracing, and constructive manner, the positions of representative thinkers in the Dutch neo-Calvinist tradition of Reformed Christianity: Herman Bavinck, G. C. Berkouwer, and Herman Dooyeweerd. Fundamental issues of ecclesiology, meaning and truth, sacramental theology, the relation between the Church and the world, nature and grace, and issues on the relation of faith and reason are examined with the aim of achieving clarification and understanding. Readers will experience ecumenical "Dialogue . . . not simply [as] an exchange of ideas," but also as "an 'exchange of gifts'," indeed, "a dialogue of love" (John Paul II). "This is an amazing book. Professor Echeverria, artfully and persuasively, shows how the Catholic and Reformed traditions can better understand, as well as learn from, each other. This book is a model on how Christians ought to think about the relationship between faith and reason and how that understanding informs ecumenical dialogue."--Francis J. BeckwithBaylor University"An 'evangelical Catholic ecumenist' of the most attractive sort, Eduardo Echeverria engages in a dialogue between Catholicism and neo-Calvinism that is concerned, equally, with love and with truth. With a background both in neo-Calvinist and Catholic thought, Echeverria displays the theological riches of both traditions. He shows that, genuine differences notwithstanding--on Church, sacraments, and the relationship between faith and reason--Catholic and neo-Calvinist theologians have every reason to pursue a dialogue of love."--Hans BoersmaRegent College"Although the temptation of some, both Protestant and Catholic, may be to dismiss the possibility of such a 'dialogue,' happily the days of deep distrust are past. Indeed, we may affirm, in the spirit of Dorothy Sayers, that the 'drama is in the dogma' while at the same time taking Christian unity seriously. Our Lord's high priestly prayer, as recorded in John 17, impels all who love our Lord's church to seek unity within the bounds of orthodoxy. This, I am delighted to say, is the burden of Eduardo Echeverria, who more than anyone I know, embodies what it means to be a true 'evangelical Catholic ecumenist.' Read his splendidly elucidating argument and find out why."--J. Daryl CharlesThe Bryan Institute for Critical Thought & Practice"Drawing upon his personal knowledge of Neo-Calvinism as a one-time adherent, Eduardo Echeverria manifests the finest qualities of a Catholic theologian and ecumenist in this remarkable book. By comparing the rich Catholic theology of Vatican II with the teachings of Neo-Calvinists like Bavinck, Berkouwer, and Dooyeweerd, a fruitful 'dialogue of love' emerges, one that illuminates the key points of convergence and divergence between the two faith traditions." --Robert L. FastiggiSacred Heart Major SeminaryEduardo J. Echeverria is Professor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Theology at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit, Michigan. He is the author of Slitting the Sycamore: Christ and Culture in the New Evangelization (2008). Read more