An exemplary summary of the state of Catholic theology—and a clear indication of its future—this work offers a historical and methodological introduction to Catholic theology that focuses not on doctrinal content alone, but on the form in which that content is received, ordered, and articulated.
Rather than surveying individual teachings, Fr. Aidan Nichols, O.P., examines the sources, principles, and intellectual habits that shape Catholic theology as a living discipline. He explores how Scripture, Tradition, philosophy, liturgy, art, and the Magisterium function together in the theological task, and how unity and plurality are held in creative tension within the Church’s theological tradition.
Designed originally for theological students yet fully accessible to the educated general reader, this volume provides a sound and balanced introduction to “doing” Catholic theology. Nichols combines historical breadth with systematic clarity, drawing on the Fathers, councils, and major theological movements to illuminate how Catholic theology has developed—and how it must remain ordered if it is to remain faithful and fruitful.
Widely praised as both rigorous and readable, this book serves equally well as an academic introduction, a reference work, and a guide for serious readers seeking a deeper understanding of how Catholic theology thinks, reasons, and renews itself.
About the Author
Aidan Nichols, O.P., is a Dominican friar of Blackfriars, Cambridge, and a lecturer at Cambridge University. He was awarded the title Sacrae Theologiae Magister by the Dominican Order in 2003.
Fr. Nichols is the author of numerous influential works in theology, including The Shape of Catholic Theology, Epiphany: A Theological Introduction to Catholicism, Lovely, Like Jerusalem, The Thought of Pope Benedict XVI, and Lost in Wonder: Essays on Liturgy and the Arts. His writing is widely regarded for its clarity, fidelity to tradition, and engagement with contemporary theological questions.
