Theology, as a discipline, most often studies the work of individuals. More often neglected are the theological contributions of movements. A former president of the International Movement of Catholic Students, Ahern is intimately familiar with both the possibilities and the challenges of Christian social movements that wed the spiritual mission of the church to the practical task of effecting justice in the world. Ahern argues that these movements can be “structures of grace,” a term that draws on the more familiar “structures of sin”—the idea that sin is not only located in the human will, but in social institutions, attitudes, and interactions that perpetuate injustice even in the absence of malicious actors. As the book's title suggests, just as sin can reside both in human hearts and in social structures, so too can God's grace act in and through social institutions such as these movements. These structures of grace can actively counteract the structures of sin. The purpose of the work is to “be a resource for both theologians and members of Christian social movements to help them better understand what God may be doing in their midst” (8).
The twin audiences of this book—theologians and members of movements—are addressed in the book's two goals: (1) to develop a theology of structural grace and (2) to help movement members to discern God's will for them and how to follow God's will. Ahern begins by examining the histories, structures, and purposes of three Christian social movements—Jesuit Refugee Services, Young Christian Workers, and Plowshares. After this overview, Ahern draws on papal encyclicals, the documents of Vatican II, and the work of several liberation theologians to make some initial steps toward a “theology of structural grace.” While this material will be of interest to theologians, this section of the book skates over some important differences between various magisterial and liberationist accounts of structures of sin. Theologians, popes, and episcopal conferences disagree about the role of individual agency in structural sin, for example, but Ahern never explains which account of structural sin he is drawing on and why.
Similarly, in his discussion of structural grace, Ahern appears to be drawing on assumptions about structures and collective action, but these assumptions are never explicitly stated nor examined. The theology of structural grace remains a general affirmation that God's grace can indeed work through movements. Though Ahern does outline specific ways that this happens—by forming consciences of both members and nonmembers, helping to hold institutions and governments accountable, and transforming “social, political, and economic relationships” (135)—actual theories of structures and collective action would have enriched the discussion of this theology of structural grace.
Ahern's response to the second purpose of the book suggests guidelines for members to discern God's will for their movement. He also encourages members of movements to engage in practices of “self-care”—attending to the movement itself in attracting and retaining effective people, forming their own identities by telling and retelling stories from the movement's history, and attending to relationships between members of the movement. Discernment and self-care are both necessary if movements are not to fall prey to “sinful and self-destructive behavior.”
This book makes a valuable contribution to conversations about structural sin in Catholic social thought. Though the structures of sin seem intractable, God's grace can ultimately prevail against them: individuals might be powerless against the structures of sin, but when two or three or more gather and act for justice, God's grace can challenge and ultimately transform these structures of sin.
This book will be a useful resource for theologians and members of Christian social movements. The chapters reviewing the three specific Christian social movements would be particularly appropriate for undergraduate courses. This book is appropriate for both undergraduate and graduate courses and for university libraries.
