Eric Doyle OFM on the Place of Christ in Teilhard de Chardin and John Duns Scotus

This volume presents an edited version of the many talks, dated 1967 to c. 1972, that Eric Doyle OFM delivered on Teilhard de Chardin, together with some of his published articles on John Duns Scotus. Here, the seeming incongruity between the Franciscan and Jesuit thinkers comes together in Doyle’s thought and writing, providing an insight into his unique understanding of their respective Christologies, despite the six centuries which separate them. Doyle was one of the first British Catholic theologians to introduce the thinking of the French priest and scientist, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ, to an English speaking audience. His interest in Teilhard stemmed from his emphasis on the evolutionary, dynamic character of modern life and also the cosmic aspect of salvation. Doyle’s unique insight of the 1960s was the similarity he saw in both Teilhard and Scotus on the place of Christ in the universe. Whilst Scotus’ Weltanschauung was that of a static universe and that of Teilhard a dynamic evolving universe, they both saw Christ as the central point of creation. Christ would have become incarnate even without the Fall. Much of Doyle’s writing is considered to be ahead of its time and his Franciscan vision has an urgent and contemporary relevance both for the Church and the wider world; the lectures presented here are no exception, making them not only apposite but also seminal, even prescient.

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