The twentieth century witnessed renewed interest in a Roman Catholic theology of the word. The contributions of Karl Rahner and sacramental theologian Louis-Marie Chauvet demonstrate the Roman Catholic conviction that the word is fundamentally sacramental: it has the capacity to bear Gods presence to humanity.Rhodora Beaton examines the work of Rahner and Chauvet to articulate the relationship between word and sacrament within the context of language, culture, and an already graced...

Fifty years ago, Dei Verbum called Catholics to reflect on the inherent unity of the "one table of the word of God and the body of Christ." Drawing from a variety of ancient and modern insights, the author proposes a fresh view of word and sacrament as interrelated facets of God's one enduring revelation. Like a table with four sides, the unity of the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist can be seen from the viewpoints of prophecy, pneumatology, language, and sacramentality...