For the Sake of the Gospel

Edward Schillebeeckx describes his new book like this: It is difficult, especially for a theologian, to separate faith, theology, and proclamation. But you can discover what theologians really think from their sermons. However, sermons are not like articles. You are asked to give a sermon by a Christian community on a particular day of the year, and it is related to the readings of the Sunday in question. The text of the sermon comes into being by interaction with the community that is there to hear it. That is very different from a theological article, in which you yourself choose both the text and context. This book contains two series of homilies, one on Jesus' life and message and one on problems with God experienced by Christians, along with some meditations and articles to make it into a coherent whole. The title points forward towards the third volume of my christological trilogy, the Dutch text of which will, I hope, be ready in the middle of 1989. Some of the more recent sermons reflect my preoccupations in that book. It will be evident that preaching and theology belong closer together. As do prayer and politics.