Washington D.C., Sep 14, 2007 / 08:46 am
Both the Vatican and the U.S. bishops are investigating a book, which raises issues about the uniqueness of Christ and the Church. Fr. Peter Phan of Georgetown University authored the book, titled Being Religious Interreligiously.
The Dallas priest and prominent theologian is a former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America. The book in question was published by Orbis in 2004.
According to a report by John L. Allen Jr., Fr. Phan received a July 2005 letter from the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine for the Faith. It presented 19 observations under six headings, charging that Phan's book "is notably confused on a number of points of Catholic doctrine and also contains serious ambiguities."
The central problems with Fr. Phan’s text are reportedly related to: Christ as the unique and universal savior of the world; the role and function of the Catholic Church in salvation; the saving value of non-Christian religions.