Second Vatican Council, Cardinal Bea 

Cardinal Bea's new book deals with the destiny, and especially with the unity, of humanity--a theme developed previously in books, essays, and orations. The particular aspect of that topic which is the subject of the present work is the unity of the human family in Christ. It is an approach which--albeit regarded as specifically Catholic--reflects the fundamental teaching of sacred scripture, and for that reason the author relies heavily upon quotations from the Bible in developing his thought as he discusses the guiding principles set forth by Vatican II, the meaning of such concepts as ""the family of God"" and ""the people of God,"" and the continual intermingling of the Church with mankind, all within the context of humanistic, liturgical, and theological considerations. The cardinal preaches--as, one may believe, did Christ--an optimistic theology of human brotherhood which transcends not only ethnic, economic and social, but also religious limitations. It is a theology which he expounds with a lucidity and force that rise above the inadequacies of this translation and that will command the respectful attention of Bea's large following in America.