Reviews for The Papacy and the Church in the United States

The average rating for The Papacy and the Church in the United States based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-09-16 00:00:00 Michael Donohue The relationship between the bishop of Rome and the other bishops in the Catholic Christian tradition has been fraught with tension as well as symbiosis. William Henn, OFM Cap. provides a good and well documented historical analysis of the particular aspects of the relationship. In providing us with this detailed overview, Henn also offers Catholics the opportunity to see how this dynamic relationship can continue to grow and be shaped by the needs of the church.Ultimately, he argues that to seek to arrive at a definitive structure for this relationship is wrong-headed. What is needed instead, are leaders who, in a spirit of humble service, listen attentively to the Spirit’s voice speaking in the churches, and who respond to the needs of the community with structures that maintain the balance between the two leadership ministries.

Review # 2 was written on 2017-05-06 00:00:00 Andy Libby Peter Lake applies his usual thorough analysis of the religious-political strands of thought in the late Elizabethan period. He sets the stage for the rise of the Laudian/high church element in the English church, in the Jacobean period. I would have preferred more discussion of the reason for the political sidelining of the Puritan faction, but I guess that is for a different book. He avoids exhaustive treatment of the Admonition Controversy, leaving that with McGinn. What I found helpful was the in-depth treatment of Richard Hookers' contribution to political thought. Compared to the puritans, Hooker seems so broad-minded, with his proposal of a middle way, between Calvinism and popery. The irony is that Hooker, followed by other anti-Calvinists, would lay the groundwork for the jure divino mentality of the Stuart period, and the ensuing fracturing into civil war.