Abstract

How is an act defined? When can what you do be identified as anact? And does a proper description of an act have repercussionson moral discourse? These questions lie behind this new work byCharles Pinches, who argues that the answers to such questions arenot only of academic interest but also reflect an erosion of moralthought and action in our present age. In this broad-ranging book Pinches lays out current moraltheories about action, detailing their deficiencies in the earlychapters but also offering the thought of Thomas Aquinas as acorrective. Pinches argues that all human acts are moral acts andthat a proper ethics must respond to and integrate an adequateaccount of human action in order to provide moral guidance inour world. Pinches gathers up the major theological themesinvolved in a responsible Christian ethic and points out a fruitfulpath ahead, enlivening his discussion at every turn with everydayillustrations. An excellent introduction to the history of moral discourse, "Theology and Action makes a valuable contribution to the searchfor a meaningful Christian ethics in today's difficult world.