Christ And the Pharisees: Other Short Works

A prolific author of about fifty books and a thousand articles, Leonardo Castellani (1899-1981) is widely revered as one of the greatest modern Argentine writers. Yet until now, English-speaking audiences have had almost no access to his remarkable body of work-a lacuna decisively changed by the present anthology. A student of Cardinal Billot's, a pugilist for orthodoxy at a time of progressive disarray, and a faithful old-school Jesuit who fell afoul of his superiors and suffered years of marginalization, Castellani was at the same time unafraid to poke holes in conventional pieties and complained about unhealthy trends in the Church years before the Vatican II debacle brought many latent weaknesses to light. Above all, Castellani was a supremely observant reader of Scripture and one of its finest modern commentators, capable of breathtaking insights into familiar texts. All these characteristics are on full display in this entertaining and enlightening little volume, an ideal introduction to the wide scope of Castellani's genius.