When Msgr. Eugene Kevane’s seminal work The Lord of History
was originally published in 1980, it responded to a call by the Second
Vatican Council to promote “a more effective coordination of philosophy
and theology so that they supplement one another in revealing . . . the
Mystery of Christ, which affects the whole course of human history” (Optatum Totius 14).
Lamenting that in modernity Christ is no longer the center of the
universal history of mankind, let alone the center of one’s personal
history, Kevane believed it was critical for catechists to reclaim
Christ as the Lord over every aspect of humanity’s collective and
individual experience. In this new edition of The Lord of History,
Kevane’s groundbreaking work introduces today’s generation to the
bedrock of Christian philosophy and its relationship to religious
instruction and beyond.
Pages: 158. Hardcover. Foreword by Scott Hahn.
About the author:
Msgr. Eugene Kevane was a pioneer in the field of catechetics. A
longtime faculty member at both the Catholic University of America and
St. John’s University (Long Island, New York), he went on to found the
Notre Dame Catechetical Institute. The Institute’s Master’s program in
catechetics provided rigorous intellectual formation in accordance with
Catholic teaching during an era when this was almost unheard of. Msgr.
Kevane also authored nine books related to catechetics, history,
philosophy, and more. A beloved teacher, scholar, and spiritual father,
Msgr. Kevane passed away in 1996.
Endorsements:
“In the early 1980’s, I was invited to teach summer school
at the Notre Dame Catechetical Institute in Middleburg, Virginia. It was
there that I first encountered Msgr. Eugene Kevane. Over breakfast, I
had the opportunity to benefit from his wisdom and experience as a
faithful priest, a sound philosopher and theologian, and a true
pedagogue.
Returning after all these years to his book, The Lord of History,
I felt as though I were renewing those early morning conversations with
Msgr. Kevane. With erudition and insight, he moves us beyond the
ideological compartmentalization of history, under which we’ve labored
so long, and presents to us instead an authentic philosophy of history
which, at its root, is open both to the doctrine of creation and the mysterium,
the saving plan of the Father, revealed and accomplished by the Pasch
of the Incarnate Logos through the Holy Spirit in the very heart of
human history. Thus do we glimpse the Lord of History! In setting forth
this vision and understanding, Msgr. Kevane offers perennially wise
guidance for the intellectual formation of seminarians, priests, and
indeed all who engage in the ministry of evangelization and catechesis.
After forty years, this volume continues to merit our study and
attention.”
—Most Reverend William E. Lori, Archbishop of Baltimore,
Maryland
“As I worked on my Master’s degree under Msgr. Eugene Kevane, he
quoted St. Paul in every class: ‘O Timothy, guard the deposit of faith’ (1 Tim 6:20).
He demonstrated his deep desire to do so by astute intellectual
reflection as well as total and loving fidelity to the Church’s
Magisterium. Now, after so many years, his work has become easily
available to all those who love the Lord and his Church! It is with
great personal joy that I recommend this book.”
—Sr. M. Johanna Paruch,
FSGM, Ph.D., Franciscan University of Steubenville
“When I wrote the course of studies for Franciscan University’s
catechetics program, I considered Msgr. Kevane my mentor. His
understanding formed my own approach. In this work, Msgr. Kevane
presents to priests and catechists the absolutely necessary philosophy
of history that ‘reveals the mystery of Christ which affects the whole
course of human history.’ He brings out the revelation of the mystery of
Christocentrism and the need for us to pass that on. The kerygma,
contained in the Apostles’ Creed, must be presented as transforming
history. The kerygma is the definite plan for the revelation of God.
This plan has two comings: The coming of the Incarnate Word and the
Second Coming in glory. This rootedness in time, between the two
comings, has had a tendency to disappear in catechesis. It must be
brought back.
In Sapientia Christiana (1979), Pope St. John Paul II gives
the norms for the presentation of the faith. Kevane’s book, following in
1980, is an application of the Saint’s instruction, still pertinent
today. We must go back to a revealed understanding of the world. This
book will help take you there.”
—Barbara Morgan, Founding Director of the
Office of Catechetics and Former Professor of Catechetics at Franciscan
University of Steubenville, Author of Echoing the Mystery, and Director of Religious Education, Christ the King Catholic Church, Ann Arbor, MI