One of the major figures of twentieth-century Catholic theology, Henri Cardinal de Lubac was known for his attention to the doctrine of the church and its life within the contemporary world. In Corpus Mysticum de Lubac investigates a particular understanding of the relation of the church to the eucharist. He sets out the nature of the church as communion, a doctrine that influenced the thinking of the Second Vatican Council.

With the publication of Corpus Mysticum, this important text of contemporary Catholic ecclesiology and sacramental theology is available for the first time in an English translation. Its publication fills a significant gap in the range of de Lubac's works available to English-speaking scholars. It will be an important resource in the widespread and ongoing ecumenical discussions among Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox theologians.

His Eminence Henri Cardinal de Lubac, SJ (1896?1991), a French Jesuit, is considered to be one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century. He is the author of a number of books, including Catholicism and Theology in History.

Gemma Simmonds CJ is lecturer at Heythrop College, University of London. Richard Price is Lecturer at Heythrop College, University of London.

'This translation of Corpus Mysticum is a gift to medieval historians, liturgists, ecclesiologists, and any Christian interested in a profoundly prophetic reading of one of the central mysteries of her or his religion. This is one of a very few books that has formed our present consciousness of who we are as Catholics and Christians. To preserve access to it will significantly aid our attempts to move into a future to some extent already foreshadowed in de Lubac's study of the past.' ?Gary Macy, University of San Diego