Welcome to Theological Studies
Founded and sponsored by the Society of Jesus, Theological Studies is a Catholic scholarly journal that serves the Church and its mission by promoting a deeper understanding of the Christian faith through the publication of research in the theological disciplines and through reviews of noteworthy books. The journal has been in continuous publication since 1940.
About This Website
In keeping with the Society of Jesus’s commitments to serve the global Church, the journal is pleased to provide this site as a resource for scholars who do not have ready access to our journal. It contains articles and book reviews from 1940 up to the last five years, which can be accessed here free of charge. Articles or reviews published in the last five years are available by subscription, or a per article charge, at SAGE Journals. Article submissions by authors must be made via SAGE, where you will also find the latest formatting and style guides. For your convenience, they are also available on this website.
In the Current Issue
From the Editor’s Desk
As this issue goes to press, just over a month has passed since Robert Francis
Prevost was elected pope, taking the name Leo. While it is certainly too early
to ascertain the precise direction this pontificate will chart for the life of the
church and its engagement with the world, the absence of certainty has done little to
quell the widespread tide of speculation. Indeed, almost immediately following Pope
Leo XIV’s introduction shortly after noon on May 8, 2025 from the iconic balcony
overlooking St. Peter’s Square, ecclesial observers and pundits began meticulously
scrutinizing every facet of his past and present ministry.
The Council of Nicaea 325: Reassessing the Role of Eusebius of Caesarea
This article offers a comprehensive interpretation of the Council of Nicaea, in light of Eusebius of Caesarea’s role in the so-called Arian crisis. Given the historical-theological orientation of the study, it begins with hermeneutical caveats regarding the sources. It then examines the outbreak of the crisis, Eusebius’s theology before the controversy, the Ossius embassy, the Council of Antioch, and the Council of Nicaea itself. The article argues, first, that the key theological issue at stake was the strict eternity of the Son, which Eusebius of Caesarea denied; second, that Eusebius—not Arius—was the principal adversary of Alexander of Alexandria; third, that the Nicene theological discussions primarily revolved around Eusebius’s faith; and, fourth, that the homoousios implied the strict eternity of the Son.
The Role of Scripture at and Around the Council of Nicaea
This article argues that the Council of Nicaea, which has borne responsibility for moving the church away from a primarily scriptural mode of speaking, is, in fact, thoroughly grounded in what we might call “the symbolic universe of Scripture.” The events and documents that preceded, were contemporaneous with, and followed Nicaea all chart their own ways through that universe, even when they appear to have departed it. Today, the council beckons and helps guide the church, in particular its theologians, to live again in the world that Scripture produces.
From Nicaea to Africa: Legacy, Inspiration, and Cultural Contextualization of Theology
This article explores the connection between the Council of Nicaea and the church in Africa through two main perspectives: geography and the contributions of African theologians as well as theological and christological developments. The first part highlights Africa’s geographical and cultural significance to Nicaea, examining the involvement of African theologians in the council’s outcomes. The second, more detailed section analyzes how themes rooted in Nicaea have continued to influence African Christianity even as modern theological discussions do not explicitly and consistently reference the council. Taken together, these sections trace the enduring impact of Nicaea on the evolution of African theological thought.
Nicaea and Rethinking the “Thinkability” of the Presence of God
On the Council of Nicaea’s 1700th anniversary, can its creed still be confessed by contemporary Christians in a culture full of “buffered selves” (C. Taylor) and suspicious of long-ago metaphysical worldviews and appeals to transcendence? This essay retrieves the “thinkability” and “experienceability” of the Nicene Creed by (1) considering its place in its usual performative liturgical setting, (2) recalling its provocative historical solution and the still-remaining ontotheological problem, (3) retrieving as much as possible the experience of revelation and salvation that the creed articulates, and (4) applying a performance hermeneutic that considers the creed as analogous to a musical score that needs performance-over-time for its meaning to be thinkable, experienceable, and revelatory.
The Place of Nicaea in Buddhist-Christian Theology
Several themes are as fundamental in Buddhist thinking as they are in the ancient and modern debates about the teaching of the Council of Nicaea (325). This article argues that if the interreligious dialogue urged by Vatican II had been more energetically sustained, a Buddhist-Christian conversation about the legacy of Nicaea could have been a significant ecumenical event, overcoming the monopoly of Eurocentric perspectives.
Celebrating Nicaea: The Idea of Creation in the Early Church and Its Relevance for a Recent Ecumenical Initiative Toward a Feast of Creation
This article argues that the idea of creation provided the early church with an integrative framework by which to contemplate nature. Rather than being understood merely as backdrop to the spiritual life, nature was taken as the site in which the drama of the divine economy was revealed. A retrieval of this stance could have value for the contemporary church. This will be explored with reference to a recent ecumenical initiative for a “Feast of Creation” across worldwide communions.