Governing Perfection

Donald Prudlo's book "Governing Perfection" explores the idea that holiness is possible for those charged with governance and is a fulfillment and type of Christus Rector omnium. He examines the thought of Aristotle, Machiavelli, Thomas Aquinas, and Nietzsche and confronts the bloat of bureaucracy and the intoxicating nature of power. Prudlo also presents a historical presentation of the concept of Romanitas, a style of governance inherited from ancient Rome, and emphasizes the specific administrative genius that emerges from the monastic orders. He also gives the reader a portrait of Leo IX's reinvigoration of the ancient practice of synodality and the centrality of the papacy to internal ecclesial reform. The book is an important contribution to the history of the papacy, ecclesiology, and its relevance to legal ordering, and administration within governance as affected by multiple legal and cultural traditions.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 300 pages
Publication date: 20 September 2024
Publisher: St Augustine's Press

God administrated in the beginning, and Donald Prudlo emphasizes the importance of administration for achievement. In his book, Prudlo seeks to restore the idea that holiness is not only possible for those charged with governance in the institutional Church but is also a fulfillment and type of Christus Rector omnium, or Christ, Ruler of all. Prudlo examines the thought of Aristotle, Machiavelli, Thomas Aquinas, and Nietzsche, among others, and explores the notion of order in governance. He confronts the bloat of bureaucracy and the intoxicating nature of power. Prudlo investigates the responses of saints of the Christian tradition to the problems inherent in authority and administration, which are living examples of the reality of grace building upon nature. He also presents a historical presentation of the concept of Romanitas, a style of governance inherited from ancient Rome. Prudlo gives close attention to four early popes, Damasus I, Leo I, Gelasius I, and Gregory I, and emphasizes the administrative genius that emerges from the monastic orders, including the Pachomian solution and the Benedictine Rule. He also describes Leo IX's reinvigoration of the ancient practice of synodality and the centrality of the papacy to internal ecclesial reform. In the context of an inquiry into monastic and papal administrations, readers encounter the beginnings of the Roman Curia.

Weight: 522g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781587313301