THE FUTURE AS THE PRESENCE OF SHARED HOPE

The most embarrassing aspect of traditional theology today lies in that section known as eschatology, which treats of the ""last things"": death, judgment, heaven, hell. It is an embarrassment which expresses itself eloquently in silence; one seldom hears hellfire and brimstone invoked from the pulpit any more. In the vacuum thus created it is necessary to formulate a view of the future more in keeping with modern realities, and it is this that Sister Maryellen and her co-authors essay. The vital element of their view of the future is hope--hope basically for the improvement of the lot of humanity, but a hope essentially based on a belief in God. Interestingly enough, the three essays which discuss hope from the standpoint of the Jewish experience are extraordinarily perceptive and practical, while the four which approach it from a wholly Christian perspective seem, in comparison, formidably speculative and theoretical-while Father Dominic Crossan's contribution on ""Eschatological Statements in the New Testament"" is a masterpiece of scholarly pedantry. All in all, a worthwhile collection, particularly in view of the scarcity of modern thought in this area, but one whose appeal is to the professional theologian rather than to the lay reader.