Callings and Consequences by Christopher J Lane

Callings and Consequences by Christopher J Lane

The concept of vocation in an early modern setting calls to mind the priesthood or religious life in a monastery or cloister; to be called by God meant to leave the concerns of the world behind. Beginning in the mid-seventeenth century, French Catholic clergy began to promote the innovative idea that everyone, even an ordinary layperson, was called to a vocation or state of life and that discerning this call correctly had implications for one's happiness and salvation, and for the social good. In Callings and Consequences Christopher Lane analyzes the origins, growth, and influence of a culture of vocation that became a central component of the Catholic Reformation and its legacy in France. The reformers' new vision of the choice of a state of life was marked by four characteristics: urgency (the realization that one's soul was at stake), inclusiveness (the belief that everyone, including lay people, was called by God), method (the use of proven discernment practices), and liberty (the belief that this choice must be free from coercion, especially by parents). No mere passing phenomena, these vocational reforms engendered enduring beliefs and practices within the repertoire of global Catholic modernity, even to the present day. An illuminating and sometimes surprising history of pastoral reform, Callings and Consequences helps us to understand the history of Catholic vocational culture and its role in the modernizing process, within Christianity and beyond.

"It is hard to explain why the striking change in French discourse around vocation in the early modern era has gone almost unstudied, but from the point of view of the faithful, this was one of the biggest innovations of early modern CatholicismCallings and Consequences provides a crucial introduction to the topic, filling a major gap in our understanding of the early modern Catholic world. All serious scholars of early modern Catholicism should read this book." Jotham Parsons, Duquesne University and author of The Church in the Republic: Gallicanism and Political Ideology in Renaissance France

Christopher J. Lane is associate professor of history at Christendom College.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780228008552
ISBN 10	0228008557
Title	Callings and Consequences
Author	Christopher J Lane
Series	Mcgill-Queen's Studies In The History Of Religion
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	McGill-Queen's University Press
Year published	2021-12-15
Number of pages	200
Prizes	Short-listed for the Catholic Media Association 2022 CMA Book Awards in the Category of History, Short-listed for the Catholic Media Association 2022 CMA Book Awards in the Category of Theology, History of Theology, Church Fathers and Mothers
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.