John L. McKenzie
Personal Information
Description
Father John L. McKenzie was a prominent Roman Catholic historian and biblical scholar, was considered the dean of Catholic biblical scholars during the 1960s when the Vatican began encouraging more Scripture studies. In 1966 he was the first Catholic priest to be elected president of the large Society of Biblical Literature. Near the end of the Vietnam War, McKenzie resigned from the Jesuit order and became a diocesan priest because he felt the Jesuits were not taking a strong stand against the U.S. position in Vietnam. At the height of his academic career, McKenzie taught at Loyola University of Chicago, the University of Chicago, Notre Dame and DePaul University. He authored two dozen books, including the monumental "Dictionary of the Bible," "The Roman Catholic Church" and his last one, published in 1986, "The Civilization of Christianity." "His 'Dictionary of the Bible' was really a landmark volume for biblical studies for Catholics," said John Sprague, president of the Thomas More Assn. in Chicago, publisher of several other McKenzie books. "For years the Catholic Church kind of rebelled against scientific inquiry into the Bible." A frequently outspoken critic of ecclesiastical heavy-handedness, McKenzie wrote in his book "Authority in the Church" that the authority of the Roman Catholic Church rests on how it serves people, not on formal structures or governance. McKenzie retired in Claremont 13 years ago and assisted on the staff of Our Lady of Assumption Catholic Church in Claremont where he is buried.
Books
Authority in the church
The question of authority has always been a lively issue within the Roman Catholic Church. While some have warned against the danger of "democratizing" the Church, others have warned against applying too narrowly the "monarchical" model which has been dominant in past centuries. Father McKenzie's thesis is that these political paradigms simply do not apply to the Church. The Christian community, he points out, is a unique society, and hence its understanding and use of authority must also be unique. McKenzie shows how Christian authority is unique by illuminating the understanding of authority that Jesus gave to the "society" which He founded. After a brilliant exposition of authority in the New Testament, the author traces how the Church has lost sight of these unique aspects, with a consequent erosion of both Christian authority and Christian freedom.
Light on the Epistles
The Epistles, for all their disarming simplicity do not make easy reading; even in crisp, modern translations they pose a problem for the ordinary reader, no matter how interested and concerned. The exciting findings of modern biblical research compound the problem. Scholars know more with each passing year and the knowledge gap grows wider. This unique reader's guide is ideally suited to close that gap between the contemporary Christian and the Epistles. Written by the most distinguished Catholic scripture scholar of his day and designed to be read in conjunction with the New Testament it provides lucid and expert commentary and explanation. With a guide like John L. McKenzie and the option of setting your own pace -- the difficult suddenly becomes not only possible, but pleasurable.
Source
This bold, wide-ranging collection -- his sixth book of poems -- demonstrates the unmistakable lyricism, fierce observation, and force of feeling that have made Mark Doty's poems special to readers on both sides of the Atlantic.The poems in Source deepen Doty's exploration of the paradox of selfhood. They offer a complex, boldly colored self-portrait; their muscular lines argue fiercely with the fact of limit; they pulse with the drama of perception and the quest to forge meaning.
The Power and the Wisdom
"In the composition of this book I experienced a growing conviction that the thing with which we believe we are familiar is not the New Testament; it is a conventionalized popular understanding of the New Testament. The simplicity of the New Testament can be deceptive. We have lived with it so long that its explosive power has become sweet reasonableness. I have noticed this not as a preacher but simply as a professional interpreter. It is our office to explain the text....The New Testament interpreter finds that he has the unpleasant task of liberating the text from certain encumbrances." John L. McKenzie, from the preface
Did I Say That?
He did indeed say the acerbic, insightful, original, candid and frequently seemingly outrageous things in this long-awaited book. For this is one of America's top theologians come down from the ivory tower of scholarship to deal with the moral and ecclesiastical problems of everyday life in the crisp, colorful, and jargon-free style that have made John L. McKenzie one of the most widely read and highly regarded Catholic writers of our day. One of the few things Father McKenzie is not famous for is pulling his punches. When he talks about the problems of evil in modern life his indictments shy away from no sacred cows. His outspoken criticism of authority in the church, of ecclesiastical repression of personal and academic freedom have not necessarily made him friends in high places but they have influenced many. His tremendous depth of scriptural knowledge illuminates all his writing without ever slipping over to the pedantic.
The two-edged sword
Moving from Genesis through the Hebrew prophets, McKenzie has produced a moving picture of Hebrew religion produced by divine revelation. Throughout the work he confronts biblical ideas with modern thought and modern thought with biblical ideas. Themes include the Hebrew view of history, the backdrop of ancient Near Eastern religions and literary forms, and the unique role of Israel as a society governed immediately by the will of God. In short, McKenzie offers an engaging interpretation of the Old Testament which will challenge scholars and delightfully instruct the general reader.
New Testament Without Illusions
From the beginning of the New Testament era, there have been disputes over what individual passages meant, who wrote them, when they were written, and whether certain sayings could be directly attributed to Jesus. McKenzie's aim is not to destroy the credibility of the New Testament, but rather to enhance belief by allowing it to rest on a foundation freed from various manmade illusions and historically inaccurate assumptions that modern biblical research has discovered from both internal and external evidence about the writings. Father McKenzie takes on a variety of topics the "real Jesus" and the Son of man; gospels and gossip; the roles of Peter and Paul; divorce; the resurrection; the meaning of the Apocalypse to name but a few, in this highly informative look at key themes and episodes of the New Testament.