Jose Granados

The Sacramental Theology of Marriage offers a comprehensive vision of the dogmatic theology of marriage. It takes into account biblical and patristic sources, the teaching of the Magisterium (with particular emphasis on the Councils of Trent and Vatican II), and the most important contemporary theological contributions. It begins with a vision of the sacrament of marriage as the sacrament that integrates the order of creation into the order of sacraments. This dual dimension of marriage justifies the division of the book into two parts: marriage as a sacrament of creation and marriage as a sacrament of redemption instituted by Christ. To describe the coordinates of marriage in creation, the book refers to St. Augustine (the goods of marriage), St. Thomas Aquinas (the ends of marriage), and modern personalism as reflected in the Second Vatican Council (the gifts of marriage). The book also draws on the theology of St. Bonaventure, who emphasized the institution of marriage by God in creation. The presentation of marriage as a sacrament of the new law is rooted in the way Christ lived the various meanings of the body. Marriage's foundation in the body and in the experience of love sheds new light on the key milestones of its sacramentality: its matter and form, its signification, the grace it transmits, its liturgy and ministers, its indissolubility, its role in building up the Church, and the path of holiness it opens to the spouses. In all of this, marriage emerges as a pivotal sacrament for articulating Christianity's relationship to the cosmos and to society. The Sacramental Theology of Marriage includes modern philosophical and theological explorations of the language of the body and the meaning of love (including the proposal of St. John Paul II). It also outlines the main principles for the pastoral care of marriage and family.

Introduction to Sacramental Theology presents a complete overview of sacramental theology from the viewpoint of the body. This viewpoint is supported, in the first place, by Revelation, for which the sacraments are the place where we enter into contact with the body of the risen Jesus. It is a viewpoint, secondly, which is firmly rooted in our concrete human bodily experience, thus allowing for a strong connection between faith and life, creation and redemption. From this point of view, the treatise on the sacraments occupies a strategic role. For the sacraments appear, not as the last of a series of topics (after dealing with Creation, Christ, the Church), but as the original place in which to stand in order to contemplate the entire Christian mystery. This point of view of the body, which resonates with contemporary philosophy, sheds fruitful light on classical themes, such as the relationship of the sacraments with creation, the composition of the sacramental sign, the efficacy of the sacraments, the sacramental character, the role of the minister, or the relationship of the sacrament with the Church as a sacrament. As a result of this approach, the Eucharist takes on a central role, since this is the sacrament where the body of Jesus is made present. The rest of the sacraments are seen as prolongations of the eucharistic body, so as to fill all the time and space of the faithful. This foundation of the theology of the sacraments in eucharistic theology is supported by an analysis of the patristic and medieval tradition. In order to support its conclusions, Introduction to Sacramental Theology examines the doctrine of Scripture (especially St. John and St. Paul), the main patristic and medieval authors (St. Augustine, Hugh of St. Victor, St. Bonaventure, St. Thomas Aquinas...), the response of Trent to the protestant challenges, up to modern authors such as Scheeben, Rahner, Ratzinger, or Chauvet, including the teaching of Vatican II about the Church as a kind of sacrament.

The Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia has given rise to different interpretations. Any in-depth study of its theological conclusions will undoubtedly require time and patience. What cannot wait, however, is attending to the practical questions it has raised. After all, no one can abstain from acting: priests hearing confessions, bishops who need to give guidelines on pastoral activity to their priests, and families working in the field of pastoral care. Accompanying, Discerning, Integrating: A Handbook for the Pastoral Care of the Family According to Amoris Laetitia is intended to offer sure practical guidelines on this important matter of the Church's pastoral activity.

The Educational Covenant is a refreshing challenge to the modern utilitarian understanding of education in our culture. It positively provokes educators and evangelizers alike to take a closer examination of what it means to educate (blurb, Mary Cohen, Associate Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Denver)Taking Christ as its pedagogical model, The Educational Covenant explores the real mission of authentic education: to reveal the human person, to embrace a horizon greater than the human person, and ultimately to form hearts, minds, and bodies to pursue our human destiny as beings on a journey to God. The authors make a colossal contribution to the future of education, producing a thought-provoking, realistic must-read for parents, teachers, religious, and anyone entrusted with the care and education of hearts (Mr. Carl A. Anderson)The Disciples of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary introduce readers to the vision of education as teaching the art of life .... I strongly recommend The Educational Covenant for all educators, teachers and parents who desire to better understand the beauty of their vocation (Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila, Archbishop of Denver)The book includes a Foreword from Most Reverend Samuel J. Aquila, Archbishop of Denver and articles from: - Fr. Jose Noriega, Professor of Moral Theology at the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, S. T. D.- Fr. Jose Granados, Professor of Sacramentality and Marriage at the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, Rome, Italy, S. T. D.- Fr. Luis Sanchez, Professor of New Testament at the University of San Damaso, Madrid, Spain, S. T. D.- Fr. Juan de Dios Larru, Professor of Moral Theology at the University of San Damaso, Madrid, Spain; Dean of the spanish section of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute, S. T. D.- Fr. Carlos Granados, Professor of Old Testament at the University of San Damaso, Madrid, Spain, S. T. D.- Fr. Juan Antonio Granados, Principal of the Stella maris School, Madrid, Spain, S. T. L.- Fr. Leopoldo Vives, Professor at the spanish section of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute. - Fr. Ignacio de Ribera, Professor at the Catholic University of America, Washington D. C., Ph. D.- Fr. Luis Granados, Professor at the University of San Damaso, Madrid, Spain, S. T. D.

THE FIFTH CANDLE OF ADVENT. Meditations for each day This book offers a meditation for each day of the Advent guiding us in our journey toward Christmas. The Advent Wreath has four candles that we light as Christmas approaches... They remind us that it is time to put before God the shadows that inhabit our life: a project full of uncertainties, the bumps we are hitting in our relationship, a disease... But on the horizon of Advent the hope of a fifth candle remains, the only one capable of lighting our night. This candle must be lit by God. The great mystery of Advent is not our path, but the path of God towards us, a God that comes. He is always coming to meet us... In Advent we prepare to recognize the light of that candle which will shine on the night of Christmas. Its brilliance will fill us with wonder because of its smallness. These meditations are meant to be a path of hope and to help us recognize the light of that fifth candle as we keep our eyes opened to receive it.

A thoughtful, accessible work on the beauty of love and the splendor of the body, inspired by Pope John Paul II. Christianity has long been regarded as viewing the body as a threat to a person's spiritual nature and of denying its sexual dimension. In 1979, Pope John Paul II departed from this traditional dichotomy and offered an integrated vision of the human body and soul. In a series of talks that came to be known as "the theology of the body," he explained the divine meaning of human sexuality and why the body provides answers to fundamental questions about our lives. In Called to Love, Carl Anderson, chairman of the world's largest catholic service organization, and Fr. Jose Granados discuss the philosophical and religious significance of "the theology of the body" in language at once poetic and profound. As they explain, the body speaks of God, it reveals His goodness, and it also speaks of men and women and their vocation to love. Called to Love brings to life the tremendous gift John Paul II bestowed on humanity and gives readers a new understanding of the Christian way of love and how to embrace it fully in their lives.