Sirach
About
The seventeen New Testament volumes in the successful Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture series have been widely acclaimed. The series recently expanded to include readable yet substantive Old Testament commentaries that integrate the best of contemporary biblical scholarship with the traditional understanding of the Old Testament books as prophesying and prefiguring Christ.
In Sirach, André Villeneuve makes a lesser-known deuterocanonical book accessible to readers. Drawing connections between Sirach, ancient Jewish and Christian commentaries, the theology of St. Thomas Aquinas, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Villeneuve demonstrates that Sirach is a treasure trove of enduring wisdom that continues to speak to every age.
Written from a standpoint of faith in the Holy Spirit's inspiration of Scripture, CCSS Old Testament commentaries are designed for preaching, teaching, and applying Scripture to Christian life today. They include quotations from Church documents, Church Fathers, and saints and are packed with features that make them particularly useful to those doing ministry in Catholic parishes. General editors for the series are Mary Healy (Sacred Heart Major Seminary), Mark Giszczak (Augustine Institute), and Peter S. Williamson (Sacred Heart Major Seminary).
Endorsements
"This commentary is a gift to the Church, drawing from the best scholarship but communicating Sirach's enduring value to contemporary disciples in understandable language. Dr. Villeneuve respects Sirach as an inspired book while emphasizing that its teaching needs to be understood in light of its Christian fulfillment. He shows in very helpful ways how the enduring wisdom of Sirach is relevant for believers today. An impressive work indeed."
Ralph Martin, STD, director of Graduate Theology Programs in the New Evangelization, Sacred Heart Major Seminary
"More than certainly brilliant biblical scholarship, this book is also beautiful and accessible. Reading it felt more like worship than study."
Barbara Nicolosi, columnist, National Catholic Register
"Years ago, André Villeneuve taught me about the nuptial origins of the Church in the covenant with Israel. His love for Israel and for the Church is evident again in this marvelous commentary on Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus, the book of the Church. From questions of liturgy (temple worship) to politics (foreign domination), Villeneuve is a trustworthy guide to Sirach's wisdom for today."
Fr. Raymond J. de Souza, National Catholic Register
Praise for the CCSS Series
"The New Testament volumes in this series have served me as a constant resource: deeply scholarly, firmly in touch with the Catholic tradition, and impressively readable and teachable. But among Christians today, the Old Testament often is neglected or treated as unintelligible--with the result being a tragic impoverishment of faith. Giszczak's inaugural Old Testament volume is evidence that the same qualities that have set this series apart will be on display in its commentaries on the Old Testament. All Catholics should have these trustworthy volumes at hand."
Matthew Levering, James N. Jr. and Mary D. Perry Chair of Theology, Mundelein Seminary
The Author
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André Villeneuve
André Villeneuve (PhD, Hebrew University of Jerusalem) is associate professor of Old Testament and biblical languages at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, Michigan. He received his Licentiate in Sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical...
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