A Theology of the Presence and Absence of God - by Anthony J Godzieba (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In a consumer-driven and technologized world, can we still experience the mystery of God? This book answers yes by exploring the rich resources of the Christian tradition of thinking and speaking about God. Focusing on God's dialectical character--divine availability ("presence") and divine excess ("absence")--and the belief that "God is love" (1 John 4:16), professor Anthony J. Godzieba tracks how God became a problem in Western culture, then responds by showing how human experience is open to divine transcendence and how that openness encounters the revelation of God as Trinity. The book's contemporary edge comes from its insistence that belief as embodied performance is the most authentic way to participate in the mystery of God's love, which is "the answer to the mystery of the world and human beings" (Walter Kasper).

Review Quotes

"A capstone achievement that harvests years of theological research and teaching, Anthony Godzieba masterfully illustrates what a phenomenological study of God should do. This brilliant new book gives attention to relevant biblical passages, significant philosophical positions, noteworthy works of art, and major contributions of contemporary theologians in a `student-friendly' way."Anne M. Clifford, Msgr. James A. Supple Chair of Catholic Studies, Iowa State University

"A theological gem. Godzieba engages the biblical and theological tradition, as well as contemporary theology, in a way that is easily understandable and illuminating. He also takes on the challenge of God's presence and absence in a way that is creative and original. It is a must-read for any Christian facing the mystery of God, and experiencing both the absence and presence of God in a time and in the world where God seems both near and far. The book will serve as a great introduction for courses on God."Francis Schüssler Fiorenza, Stillman Professor of Roman Catholic Theological Studies, Harvard Divinity School

"A theological masterpiece! In deeply learned and highly readable prose, with Walter Kasper leading the way, Godzieba follows the traditional ways of negation and eminence down modern and postmodern paths of construction and critique. While giving natural theology its due, he deftly works the dialectic between God's incomprehensible mystery and simultaneous presence into a genuinely theological theology. If these two approaches to God as present and absent don't exactly lie down together, they come to as much peace as we might expect in our times. This book bears many signs of Godzieba's long career in the classroom. If you have been waiting for a God book for your graduate course, A Theology of the Presence and Absence of God is it."William L. Portier, Mary Ann Spearin Chair of Catholic Theology, University of Dayton

"I highly recommend this book as an intensely practical way to access the mystery of God's salvific love."Michael L. Cook, SJ, Theological Studies

"Anthony Godzieba's new book is a fascinating and informative passage through the main questions of Christian theology. It integrates a profound historical view on dogmatic theology, deep spirituality, and innovative theological concepts into contemporary research on God. Assessing the questions posed by the modern critique of religion, it offers convincing arguments on why we should neither cease to consider God as an essential topic of science nor as a possible dimension in our everyday lives."Kurt Appel, University of Vienna

"This scholarly, academic book is a theological treasure for all who study, pursue, or experience the paradox of the Mystery of God both as present and absent in one's life and in our world."
Catholic Press Association?

"Clear, very well informed, and admirably argued, this book shows how, after all the changes in Western thought, we are still justified in holding that God is simultaneously present (available and knowable) and absent (mysterious and uncontrollable). God's love answers the deepest human longings. This work is a splendid example of authentic natural theology."Gerald O'Collins, SJ, Jesuit Theological College, Australia

"Highly recommended for graduate classes on God and theologians wanting a refreshing and rather comprehensive exploration of territory mapped all too flatly in much modern theology."
Horizons

"A recapitulation of the work of a lifetime in academic theology."
Catholic Book Review

"An excellent, clearly written book. Godzieba reapplies traditional Christian thought on the knowledge of God to the contemporary debates on the presence and absence of God in a creative and engaging manner. The book is interesting both for more advanced scholars working on fundamental theology and the doctrine of God, and for teaching purposes, since it combines a lucid discussion of many traditional and contemporary theologians on knowledge of God with an interesting own argument."
Louvain Studies

"This book explores perennial questions and contemporary conundrums about knowing God. Considering venerable answers to these questions and their critics launches this endeavor. In conversation with the contribution of Walter Kasper at the crossroads of the heritage of natural theology and the confession of faith in the Triune God, this work navigates through postmodern frontiers and pioneers an aesthetic and performance approach to the encounter with the God of Jesus Christ that illuminates paths for Christian discipleship on pilgrimage in the world. An important achievement." Bradford E. Hinze, The Karl Rahner, SJ, Professor of Theology, Fordham University