Robert P. Imbelli - Rekindling the Christic Imagination: Theological Meditations for the New Evangelization

To read these profound theological meditations is to recall the words of the fourth-century monk, Evagrius Ponticus: the bosom of the Lord is knowledge of God; the one who rests there will be a theologian. Robert Imbelli is, by Evagrius standard, a master theologian. He offers evocative explorations of such diverse sources as the documents of Vatican II, the theology of Pope Benedict XVI, Dante, iconography, hymns, and the writings of Simone Weil and Etty Hillesum. In these pages we reap the fruit of a long career of theological scholarship and biblically informed preaching. Under Imbellis tutelage we experience the rewarding cultivation of a Christic imagination too often neglected in contemporary theology.

Richard R. Gaillardetz
Joseph McCarthy Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology
Boston College

By careful scriptural exegesis Robert Imbelli properly places Christ at the center of our Christian faith and lives, governing the identity, mission, and worship of the church. All this is illustrated from Christian poetry and art over the centuries in such a way as to encourage and inspire in a freshly imagined way the new evangelization that the Second Vatican Council saw to be sorely needed in our time and world. Rekindling the Christic Imagination could serve in a classic way the theological education of candidates for the priesthood as well as refreshing those already in the ministry (including Protestants!).

Dr. Geoffrey Wainwright
Robert Earl Cushman Professor Emeritus of Christian Theology
Duke Divinity School

Robert Imbellis beautifully written book on the centrality of Christ for the Catholic faith does fair justice both to trinitarian theology and to the mystery of the church in the light of Christ. It should be read in the manner it was written: in a spirit of contemplative reflection. The authors intention of being a work of aggiornamento and ressourcement is fully realized.

Lawrence S. Cunningham
John A. OBrien Professor of Theology (Emeritus)
The University of Notre Dame

This is a beautiful, profound, and precise book. Theology, for Imbelli, is a matter of meditative, Christ-centered reasoning, and he shows what this means by responding to Christ as imaged by and present in four works of visual art. This way of working gives to Imbellis prose and pattern of thought a limpidity through which the face of Jesus can be seen in chiaroscuro. It also makes possible a depth of theological thinking that undercuts and reconciles the tired divisions in the American church. I read Imbellis book immediately after reading Pope Francis Evangelii Gaudium, and what Imbelli does exemplifies what Francis recommends: a recovery of the joy of thinking about and approaching Jesus that transcends internal oppositions and permits ressourcement and aggiornamento to kiss. Imbellis work is theological mystagogy of a very high order.

Paul J. Griffiths
Warren Chair of Catholic Theology
Duke Divinity School

Imbelli doesnt just talk about mystagogy; he practices it. Drawing on poets and painters, Rekindling the Christic Imagination aims for the reader to be possessed by Christ. Imbelli rightly refuses to choose between aggiornamento and ressourcement, recognizing that their unity is found in a renewed focus on Jesus Christ himself as the center of our theological endeavors. The result is a biblically grounded and theologically rich meditation on Christological, trinitarian, eucharistic, and ecclesial themes.

Hans Boersma
J. I. Packer Professor of Theology
Regent College
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Painters and poets help Imbelli distill decades of preaching and teaching into a fine evangelical wine. Charles Taylors call to recover a sense of what the incarnation can mean inspires an accessible and moving account of church, eucharist, and Vatican II as Christic calls to holiness in the world. A meditative gem of a book!

William L. Portier
Mary Ann Spearin Chair of Catholic Theology
University of Dayton

I had the good fortune of reading Fr. Imbellis book right before Christmas. The small but rich book proved to be a most rewarding meditation on the surpassing mystery of the incarnationtheologically fecund, spiritually edifying, and aesthetically appealing. The content, style, and artistic appeal of the book gives tangible witness to the fact that truth, goodness, and beauty are united in the person of the crucified and risen Christ. Fr. Imbellis very accessibly written mystagogy is a compelling invitation into the mystery of Christ and an important contribution to the New Evangelization.

Reinhard Htter
Professor of Christian Theology
Duke University Divinity School

Here is clear and beautiful writing at a peaceful pace and tone. With quiet confidence Robert Imbelli places the concept of revelation, especially in its fresh articulation in Vatican IIs Dei Verbum, at the center of the theological enterprise. And as the center of revelation he places with renewed clarity the figure of Jesus Christ. This is a model of how to advance theological thinking in the coming years. Faith, wonder, and adoration accompany sharp critical thought in exposing the uniqueness of the treasure given us by God in Jesus Christ.

Jeremy Driscoll, OSB
Pontifical Athenaeum Sant Anselmo,
Rome/Mount Angel Seminary

Robert Imbellis new book uses art and literature to show how the new evangelization needs to be rooted in the paschal mystery of Christ and Vatican IIs universal call to holiness. Fresh and original in its approach and profoundly incarnational, this timely book is a rich resource for adult education and introductory courses in theology.

Thomas P. Rausch, SJ
T. Marie Chilton Professor of Catholic Theology
Loyola Marymount University
Los Angeles, California

Drawing on sources artistic, literary, spiritual, and theological, Robert Imbelli provides a splendid and intellectually stimulating exploration of the New Evangelization. Anyone interested in preaching, teaching, or pastoral work should read this uplifting book.

Very Reverend Robert Barron
Rector / President, University of Saint Mary of the Lake / Mundelein Seminary
Mundelein, Illinois

Cover design by Jodi Hendrickson. Cover image: Wikimedia Commons.

The images that appear at the beginning of each chapter are from Wikimedia Commons and fall under fair use.

Translations of Scripture and the documents of the Second Vatican Council are by the author.

Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.

2014 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, microfiche, mechanical recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permission of Liturgical Press, Saint Johns Abbey, PO Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7500. Printed in the United States of America.

The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013955286

ISBN 978-0-8146-3550-6
ISBN 978-0-8146-3575-9 (ebook)

In loving memory of my mother, Julia Piro Imbelli

Tu se lo mio maestro e l mio autore

Dante

We do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lordourselves your servants for Jesus sake. For God, who said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts, giving the light of the knowledge of the glory of God on the face of Christ.