The Archaeology of Faith: A Personal Exploration of How We Come to Believe
Digital Verbum Edition
Overview
Drawing on family history and his own story, noted theologian and pastoral leader Fr. Louis J. Cameli takes readers on an archaeological exploration into the faith passed down across time and place. Beginning in his ancestral home in Italy and tracing the story through the centuries, Cameli unearths layers of faith to lead readers to a clearer understanding of their own faith as a legacy from the community of the Church.
In The Archaeology of Faith, Fr. Louis Cameli digs into his ancestry to uncover the source of his own faith and invites believers and seekers alike to examine their own faith in the context of history and within the community of the Church.
Tracing the evolution of faith from pre-Christian times in his ancestral village of Grottamare on Italy’s Adriatic coast, Cameli discovered how faith intersects with the most basic predicaments of life. While studying the rise of monasticism, he learned that faith is lived in community. As he looked at the medieval raids of Saracen pirates, Cameli found a sense of living with vulnerability. Finally, he realized that trust in God was modeled for him by the relatives who farm the same land today as their ancestors did.
As Cameli studied the rich complexity of faith in his family history, he reflected on his own life, his vocation, and the personal challenges that his beliefs pose.
Cameli is a highly respected priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago, where he has served as the Cardinal’s delegate for formation and mission and is a frequent speaker at conferences and workshops.
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- Shares Cameli's journey of Christian faith
- Traces the evolution of faith through the centuries
- Invites believers to examine their own faith in the context of history and within the community of the Church.
Part I: The Archaeology of Faith A Personal Exploration
- Cuprae Fanum: At the Temple of the Goddess Cupra
- The Arrival of the Romans
- Emidio. Bishop and Martyr and Saint
- Benedictine Presence and the Church of San Martino
- Saracen Pirates
- Working the Land
- Francis of Assisi and the Franciscans
- The Church. the State and the Challenge of Faith
- Honest Faith, the Inquisition, and the Reformation
- Teatro dell'Arancio, Orange Tree Theater: Renaissance, Scientific Revolution, Enlightenment, and Romanticism
- Immigration: Struggle. Promise and Hope
- Faith Given and Then Claimed: Early Years
- Considered Faith: Studying Faith for Understanding and Communication
- Transformed and Transforming Faith
- Elements of an Agenda for the Continuing Journey of Faith
Part II: A Theological Account of Faith Organizing and Understanding Our Experience
- Foundations of Faith: Our Capacity to Receive God's Word and Believe
- Foundations of Faith: God's Revelation and Self-Communication
- Our Response to God's Revelation: Our Act of Faith and Believing in God
- The Process of Faith: From the Act of Faith to Faith's Consummation
- Particular Aspects of Faith
Part III: Biblical Accounts of Faith Expanding Our Experience
- Nicodemus: A Believer Is Reborn
- The Samaritan Woman: The Unlikely Believer Who Became a Fervent Evangelist
- Martha: Love. Death. and New Faith in Jesus
- Thomas: The Apostle of Certain Faith
"In this finely wrought and deeply personal book, Fr. Cameli explores the many layers of the faith handed down to him and his ongoing appropriation of that faith. In generously sharing his own journey of Christian faith, he richly illumines our own.
Rev. Robert Imbelli, Associate Professor Emeritus of Theology, Boston College
I loved Louis Cameli's book for the highly readable account of his ancestral Italian home with its dense layers going back from prehistory to the saga of his own immigrant grandparents who ended up in Chicago. Cameli wisely underscores a somewhat hidden truth of Catholic Christianity, namely, that it has a name and a local habitation. This is no trip down nostalgia lane, but rather an example how, like the householder of the Gospel, one brings forth old things and new.
Lawrence S. Cunningham, John A. O'Brien Professor of Theology (Emeritus), University of Notre Dame
With the skill of a seasoned storyteller and the vulnerability of one who is along his own path toward God, Father Louis Cameli draws us in to a complex yet highly readable tale of faith. We are invited to explore, to organize, and to expand our own faith through the prism of historical, cultural, scriptural, and personal stories. The best faith stories I've heard are those shared with heart and passion and this book ranks highly among them. Enjoy The Archaeology of Faith and ponder the role of faith in your own story.
Lisa M. Hendey, Author of The Grace of Yes