Spirituality and Science: Greek, Judaeo-Christian and Islamic Perspectives shows that the historical origins of Western science lie in the medieval synthesis of Greek science and philosophy with the faith traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. This synthesis is most evident in medieval medicine where the synergies of Greek philosophy and Greek science are most evident. The first such Western synthesis of medieval medicine took place in the eleventh cenury at the monastery of Monte Cassino when Constantine the African translated, for the first time, Arabic medical manuscripts into...

The Catholic Church has a tradition of bridge-building, one founded on Christ and that began with the Apostle St. John and the convert St. Paul. It helped bridge the Hebrew, Greek, and Roman worlds. Later, it helped civilize the tribes that overran Europe. Limits appeared in the Church's bridge-building ability when Europe was confronted with Islam, and later with the secular mentality that arose in Western Europe, as well as in its encounters with China, India, and Africa. Steps Toward Vatican III examines the present dilemmas facing the Church and humanity in an age of globalization that...