By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS Staff Journalist The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Doctrine has issued a statement criticizing the doctrinal orthodoxy of a textbook written by Sr. Elizabeth Johnson of Fordham University in which she suggests, among other things, that in order to fully understand the truth about God, we need Jesus plus Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, etc.  According to the National Catholic Reporter, the bishop's statement, authored by Donald Cardinal Wuerl, Chairman of the committee, states that the book, Quest for the Living God, contains numerous inaccuracies that are "incompatible with authentic Catholic teaching." Some of the more glaring errors in Johnson’s work cited by the bishops include her emphasis on the presence of the Holy Spirit in non-Christian religions, and the suggestion that in order for one to know the fullness of truth about God, one would need Jesus plus Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, etc., something which is blatantly against Church teaching. Her book also claims that God differs from other beings only in degree, not in kind. The bishops say her overall treatment of God as Creator "ends in pantheism" and undercuts the traditional understanding of God as "radically different from creation." Johnson's book also questions whether we can understand God as incoporeal, impassible, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, a Church teaching which the bishops claim Johnson misrepresents "so to distort it beyond recognition." Not surprising, she also advocates a new and more inclusive language about God. She argues that the all-male language about God perpetuates “an unequal relationship between women and men,” and thus has become “religiously inadequate.” The bishops counter this assertion that the male imagery about God found in scripture and tradition “are not mere human creations that can be replaced by others that we may find more suitable.” In its conclusion, the bishop's statement says the root problem with Johnson’s book is that it “does not take the faith of the church as its starting point.” “It effectively precludes the possibility of human knowledge of God through divine revelation,” the statement says, “and reduces all names and concepts of God to human constructions that are to be judged not on their accuracy … but on their social and political utility.” Sr. Johnson responded by saying she "would have been glad to enter into conversation to clarify critical points, but was never invited to do so.  This book was discussed and finally assessed by the Committee before I knew any discussion had taken place." However, as the bishops point out in their statement, this conversation could and should have taken place during the process of obtaining an imprimatur, which subjects the work to Church review before publication. Sr. Johnson did not bother to pursue this. Even though an imprimatur is not required for all books that deal with theology and Sacred Scripture, it is highly recommended because it is during this process that an author and a bishop are given the opportunity to dialogue. Had she done so, "clarifications concerning the text" could have been addressed before publication. "It would have been helpful if Sister Elizabeth Johnson had taken advantage of this opportunity," the bishops said. Instead, the book went to print and is now being used to teach undergraduate students who are likely to assume that its content represents authentic Catholic teaching. As a result, the book will now find itself on a list of other books by prominent American theologians which have been singled out for formal criticism by the Committee on Doctrine. © All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace®  http://www.womenofgrace.com