The Eucharist

by Thomas O'Loughlin

Publisher:

Bloomsbury

, 2015

Overview

Theological reflection upon the Eucharist is dominated by two paradigms: one approach interprets the Eucharist almost exclusively in theological terms, shaped by Scholasticism and the Reformation. Most discussions about the nature of the Eucharist, eucharistic presence, or the role of the priest follow these categories, even if they come in modern disguise. The other approach reads the Eucharist as an event which can be explored empirically. O’Loughlin develops a new understanding of the Eucharist. This can be done by looking afresh at the historical evidence and bringing it in dialogue with modern theology. In the past decades, historical research and new discoveries have changed our view of the origins and the development of the Eucharist. By bringing history into a fruitful dialogue with sacramental and liturgical theology, he shows not only ways how theology and practice can be brought closer together again, but also how current ecumenical divisions can be overcome. His book makes an important contribution to eucharistic theology, both for individual church traditions as well as for ecumenical dialogues.

Product Details

• Title: The Eucharist: Origins and Contemporary Understandings
• Author: Thomas O'Loughlin
• Publisher: Bloomsbury
• Print Publication Date: 2015
• Logos Release Date: 2015
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Lord’s Supper (Liturgy) › History; Religion › Christian rituals and practice--Worship and liturgy; Religion › Institutions and organizations
• ISBNs: 9780567156051, 9780567384591, 9780567037329, 9780567213136, 0567156052, 0567384594, 0567037320, 0567213137
• Resource ID: LLS:EUCHOLOUGHLIN
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T19:40:25Z

About Thomas O'Loughlin

Thomas O'Loughlin, BA, Phil, PhD, STB, and DD, is a professor of historical theology at the University of Nottingham, Faculty of Arts, UK. But he started his teaching career at University College Dublin.

While researching his MPhil and, later, his PhD at Dublin, he held several positions, instructing in church history, traditional logic, the history of theology, and patristics. This experience gave him perspective on his research topics and pressed him to reflect on his personal theological method. In so doing, he recognized that while others might value his teaching as "the history of theology" or "the history of ideas," his desire to teach and research was rooted in what he calls "the discipline and perspective of historical theology."

He was offered a position in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Wales, Lampeter, in January 1997, which he says allowed him to develop "a distinctive style of historical theology focused on the dynamics of tradition within theology." His work there led to his appointment as Professor of Historical Theology at the University of Wales in February 2006 and being awarded a DD by Bangor University in 2010. He was later made scholar at the School of Religious Studies at the University of Wales—the school's first professor of historical theology.

He joined Nottingham in 2009. His research has focused on the early medieval period and the works of insular writers. He is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, and the Royal Historical Society.

O'Loughlin is also a Catholic priest. In addition to The Didache: A Window on the Earliest Christians, O'Loughlin authored Saint Patrick: The Man and His Works, Missionary Monks: An Introduction to the History and Theology of Missionary Monasticism, and The Eucharist.