This book is on Pope Francis' significant impact on the Church and the world. This is
an edited work where about 27 Indian Christian theologians and philosophers have written
articles on the general impact of the Pope on the contemporary Church. These articles, in
general, are very appreciative of the new ambience that the Pope has brought in to the
world at large. These scholarly presentations are meant to be read both by academicians
and educated public.
The learned work is also meant to commemorate five years of the Pope's pontificate,
which falls in March 2018. Its general features are: (1) Interdisciplinary in nature
(philosophy, theology, social science, natural sciences); (2) Dialogical in character (the
articles deal with perspectives from India in dialogue with the world church); (3)
Creatively critical in spirit (most of the articles are appreciative of the Pope and
critical at the same time).
The book, largely from the Indian context, tries to appreciate the life-affirming
aspects of "Francis effect." It seeks to enhance the positive climate that Pope
Francis has enabled for the Church worldwide, and especially in India, with its specific
religious identities. Written by eminent Christian theologians and thinkers from all over
India, this volume celebrates five years of Pope Francis' Papacy, which falls on March 13,
2018.
Contents
Editorial
I. Historical Overview
1. Making of Popr Francis / Jacob Naluparayil
2. Pope Francis : Pontifex Maximus / Mathew Chandrankunnel
II. Pastoral Approach
3. A Rediscovery of the Gospel and the Discipleship : Enduring Impact of `Eavangelii
Gaudium' / Thomas Padiyath
4. Pope Francis on Catholic Bioethics : The Impact and Significance / Jery Njaliath
5. The Era of Pope Francis : Break or Beginning? Pastoral Care of the Divorced and
Remarried with an Open Ear and a Generous Heart / J. Charles Davis
6. Pope Francis' Moral and Pastoral Approach in `Amoris Laetitia' / George Therukaattil
III. Building Bridges
7. Gazing at Our World with God's Eyes of Mercy : Pope Francis' Theological Vision /
Francis Gonsalves
8. The Pilgrim Church Building Bridges with the Modern World / Antony D'Cruz J. O.
Praem
9. Embracing the Laity : The Vision of Pope Francis / A. Pushparajan
10. Reinventing Religious Life : The Challenge of Pope Francis / Rajakumar Joseph
IV. Dialogue as Way of Life
11. Dialoguing with Religions : The Impact of Pope Francis on `Inter-Cultural and
Inter-Faith Interactions' / John Peter Vallabadoss
12. Dialoguing with Science : Science and Religion for Human Growth / S. Stephen Jayard
13. Ian Barbour's Models for Science-Religion Dialogue : A Re-reading Inspired by Pope
Francis / Gregory Mathew Malayil
V. Listening to the Cry of the Poor
14. Pope Francis' Challenge : Listening to the Cry of the Marginalized / Paul Thelakat
15. Pope Francis' Plea : Critiquing the Capitalist Order / Victor Ferrao
16. Pope Francis' Mission : Prophetic Commitment / Mariapushpam Paul Raj
17. Is Pope a Communist? A Critical Response / Francis Arackal
VI. Protecting Environment
18. `Laudato Si' : Its Trinitarian and Christological Dimensions / Jacob Parappally
19. `Laudato Si' : Its Philosophical Foundation / Thomas Kalary
20. `Laudato Si' : Eco Vision of Pope Francis / Isaac Parackal
VII. Servant Leadership
21. Pope Francis : His Leadership Style and Impact / Kurien Kunnumpuram
22. Pope Francis : Making of a New History of Church Leadership / Errol A. D'Lima
23. Relationality as the Paradigm of Pope Francis' Leadership / Joseph A. D'Mello
24. Pope Francis, the Game-Changer : From the Top-Down Tradition to Down-Up,
Communication Approach / Job Kozhamathadam
VIII. Enduring Impact
25. Pope Francis : The `How' and `Why' of His Impact / Johnson J. Puthenpurackal
26. The New Pope : Analysing the Shift in the Indian Media's Coverage of the Papacy /
Ananya Dutta and Gayatri Mendanha
27. "Guided by Prayer and Humility" : A Case Study on the Comments on a
Provocative Article on Pope Francis / Kuruvilla Pandikattu
Our Contributors
Dr. Kuruvilla Pandikattu SJ (born 1957-) is Professor of Physics,
Philosophy and Religion at Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune, India, since 1996. He has three
Masters' Degrees in Physics and Philosophy and two Doctorates in Philosophy and Theology
to his credit. He has been actively involved in science-religion dialogue; transhumanism;
viable human life-style and philosophical anthropology, Author of more than 36 books and
172 academic articles, Pandikattu is a Jesuit priest belonging to Dumka-Raiganj Province,
India. He has been involved in organising more than 20 national and international
conferences on science-religion dialogue. He has visited more than 15 countries and
attended more than 100 conferences on Philosophy, Theology and Science-Religion Dialogue.
He has been in the editorial board of five philosophical/religious journals. His main
topics of research are: Anthropology, Eschatology and Transhumanism.
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