Charles RAITH II, ed. The Book of Acts: Catholic, Orthodox, and Evangelical Readings. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2019. pp. 282. $34.05 pb. ISBN 9780813231679. Reviewed by Kathleen BORRES, Retired from Saint Vincent Seminary, Latrobe, PA 15650.

The Book of Acts: Catholic, Orthodox, and Evangelical Readings is an informative and engaging work and the fruit of a conference eighteen scholars attended at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas in the fall of 2016. The Paradosis Center For Theology and Scripture sponsored the conference to encourage Catholics, Orthodox and Evangelical Christians to share theological insights, rooted in Sacred Scripture and “the Great Tradition,” so that each community may more fully “live out the traditions . . . passed down . . . from the beginning” (ix).

The book opens with an informative preface and introduction by the editor, Charles Raith II. Raith reviews in a very succinct way the basic arguments in the six chapters that follow and prepares readers for a rich array of theological insights. The introduction captures the essence of what the eighteen scholars experienced and shared at the six sessions of the conference and the kinds of questions with which they wrestled.

Each of the six chapters in the book involves a single pericope that three of the eighteen scholars engaged at one of the sessions of the conference.From their own purviews, the three scholars engaged the text and each other with analytical and creative skill. For the most part, they do so with humility and appreciation for the insights shared. This tripartite presentation adds to the hermeneutical richness of the book, as does the selection of biblical texts. They deal with matters of considerable import in the life of the Great Tradition: Christ’s Ascension (Acts 1); Pentecost (Acts 2); the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7); Paul’s conversion (Acts 9); the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15); and the “altar with an inscription to The Unknown God” at Mars Hill (Acts 17).

Those who first present a paper and those who respond, make this point in some very interesting and well-developed ways. By no means exhaustive, the scholars explore at the conference and on paper the following topics: 1) the matter of Christ’s ascension; that is, how the believing Christian might understand Christ’s ascension (and his or her ascension in him) and how Christ’s two natures participate in his ascension;2) the missionary and evangelical dimensions of Pentecost, the call for renewal and unity in the Church, and the temporary and enduring gifts of glossolalia and xenolalia in the Church; 3) the witness of Stephen personally and as “Israel” and “Church,” along with the formative aspects of memory (remembering whose we are, from where we come, and to where we are being led) and the Spirit’s role in this remembrance, formation, and witness;4) the human and divine, natural and supernatural dimensions of the conversion (and divinization) of Paul and what a history of interpretation might suggest concerning this; 5) the relationship between Jews and Christians and how the Church should read the historical event of the Jerusalem Council and the normative expectations of the early Church with respect to the gentiles and the keeping of the Jewish law; and, 6) looking at Paul’s conversation with the philosophers about the inscription to an unknown God (Acts 17), the notion of revelation, the relationship between philosophy and theology, Paul’s probable read of the inscription in an apophatic way (to an unknowable God) along the lines of the mysterious figure of Dionysios, and how comfortable the different traditions, Catholic, Orthodox and Evangelical are with the via negativa approach to the faith.

Given the nature of these topics, the hermeneutical influences and questions, and the breadth and depth of the material, I trust the eighteen scholars found the six sessions thought provoking, enriching, and perhaps even challenging of their own approaches. I cannot imagine that they were not impressed with the richness of the conference material, for I found I was nodding and applauding at the nuanced points and arrangement of material. I would not be surprised if other readers of this compilation do the same. More than a few will find themselves challenged as well, not only by the wealth and extent of material presented in each chapter but by the presentation of diverse hermeneutical lenses and nuanced insights of these scholars in their engagement of the biblical texts. I imagine readers will find they develop a more mature understanding of, and appreciation for, the Great Tradition.
The nature of the book’s content lends itself to graduate level instruction. It could serve well as a classroom text in a graduate seminar or as a text in an independent study. There needs to be ample time devoted to each chapter if readers are to grasp the arguments and understand the hermeneutical challenges associated with maintaining fidelity to the Great Tradition.