Six decades on from Vatican II, the Catholic Church continues to struggle with a crisis precipitated by clerical child sexual abuse. The faith of believers has been shaken and a chasm has opened between popular conceptions of the church and the theological ones prized by Scripture and Tradition.

Seeking to bridge the chasm, this work approaches the church as «sacrament of the world». It underscores the need for continuing ecclesial reform while also insisting on the importance of mutual engagement between church and world, even when the relationship between them is strained and the...