Can We Save the Catholic Church?. Hans Kung

As the Year of Faith draws to a close, radical Catholic theologian and visionary Hans Küng presents the Church with an urgent and controversial call to arms. Can the Church Still be Saved promises what Catholics have long been yearning for: modern responses to a modern world.Fifty years ago, the world’s bishops gathered for the Second Vatican Council in the hope they could, in the words of Pope John XXIII, ‘open the windows of the Church and let some fresh air in.’ It was a gathering of real optimism; Hans Küng and our current Pope were both there.In Can the Church Still be Saved?, Kung relates how after fifty years and two Popes, the Church has only turned back the clock, becoming ever more conservative. Refusing to open dialogue on celibacy for male priests; the role of women in the priesthood; homosexuality and gay marriage; or the use of contraception even to prevent AIDS in Africa, the Papacy is losing touch. Now, amid widespread disillusion over child abuse, the future of Catholicism is in crisis.Küng calls for a complete renewal of the Church, setting out a radical and inspiring programme of action. As grassroots support grows – both in the UK and internationally – Can the Church Still be Saved makes a compelling case for structural reform and for a proper dialogue on the modern world.