Guy MANSINI OSB. Fundamental Theology. Sacra Doctrina Series. Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2018. Pp. 291. $24.95 pb. ISBN 9780863229850. Reviewed by John T. FORD, Logansport, IN 46947.

Revelation, along with its transmission through Tradition and Scripture and its proclamation and interpretation by the Church, is at the heart of Christianity. In Roman Catholic theology from the Enlightenment to the Second Vatican Council, these topics were usually treated in courses on “Apologetics” via a series of questions such as: can God reveal? Where is divine revelation to be found? What is the role of the Church in teaching revelation? Et cetera. Such questions were intended to convince inquirers of both the authenticity and the credibility of Revelation as taught by the Church.

Although this series of questions and answers may not have convinced many non-believers, believers were presumably reassured by the historical evidence and philosophical arguments presented in support of Christian Revelation. Yet surprisingly, although this apologetic approach usually defined revelation as “God speaking authoritatively” (locutio Dei attestans), Revelation was generally treated as “divinely revealed propositions” while inexplicably ignoring the obvious question: what is the nature of revelation? In addition, this apologetic approach usually did not examine the nature of faith, which was customarily considered in a separate theological treatise.

In the middle of the twentieth century, a number of theologians began re-examining Revelation, Tradition and Scripture from theological perspectives of both the individual believer and the believing community. The initial results of this theological reorientation were adopted by the Second Vatican Council, in its constitution, Dei Verbum, which emphasized that Revelation was conveyed by the works as well as the words of Jesus. Theologically then, Revelation should be treated not merely as a product—a set of propositions—but also as a process—a way of life to be lived as a hearer of the Word.
In the post-conciliar decades, “Apologetics” has metamorphosed into “Fundamental Theology” through the efforts of many theologians and the publication of numerous monographs. Mansini’s Fundamental Theology is a well-researched and well-written—though sometimes over-written—addition to this on-going process of theological aggiornamento. In terms of content, Mansini first treats Revelation, Tradition, Scripture, Inspiration and the Church, and then considers the Praeambula Fidei (prerequisites for faith) and credibility in relation to Faith and Theology. The result is an impressive presentation that incorporates official church teaching and a wide range of multilingual theological sources: patristic, medieval, and modern. 

Although this book is an admirable achievement, the result is not entirely satisfactory. For example, while there is a considerable amount of information about past and present theories concerning the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture, such comments as “the inerrancy of Scripture is correlative to the impeccability of Christ” (102) are puzzling at best. (Parenthetically, one wonders whether the basic question of divine-human authorship is not only theologically complex, but an unsolvable mystery.) And, for example, the claim that “Christ’s testimony is auto-credible, worthy of belief, in and of itself” (209) will hardly satisfy those concerned about the historical reliability of the Gospels.

In addition, any discussion of Revelation and Scripture inevitably presumes some stance about the nature of human language. Yet this book’s claim that scriptural statements and dogmatic propositions are “trans-cultural” and “trans-temporal” seemingly runs counter to the historical-cultural conditioning of all human language. As in the case of the divine-human authorship of Scripture, one is confronted with the mystery of the historical Jesus and the Christ of faith, which can only be expressed in fragile human speech that is subject to limitations of time and place.

Perhaps the most surprising omission in this book is the absence of any treatment of Avery Dulles’ Models of Revelation, although mention is made of some of his other works on faith and magisterium. The lack of an explicit engagement with Dulles’ models leaves one wondering what model(s) Mansini is implicitly using. Moreover, the lack of an explicit identification of model(s) makes Revelation’s basic connection with Tradition and Scripture conjectural at best. Collaterally, this lack of model-specificity results in a disconnection of Revelation from Faith and Theology: one’s view of Revelation should be linked to one’s Theology of Faith.

In sum, this book resembles a friend’s collections of wood-carvings. Each carving is a masterpiece in itself, evidencing the expertise of its maker. Yet one cannot help liking some carvings more than others, just as one may like some, but not all of the positions espoused in this book. And although each of my friend’s carvings is valuable independently, the pieces do not constitute a harmonious whole. Similarly, this book is more a juxtaposition of interesting and informative analyses, but lacks an over-arching synthesis. This book then provides a valuable resource for theologians already familiar with the topics treated, but is not easily enlightening for neophytes in fundamental theology.