RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN THE THOUGHT OF THE REVEREND JOHN COURTNEY MURRAY, S. J. AND AMERICAN CATHOLIC CATECHETICS

Statement of the Problem. This study described the late Jesuit John Courtney Murray's concept of religious freedom and indicated to what extent his thought can enrich and expand the view of religious freedom found in the United States' Roman Catholic Bishops' statements on catechetics since 1965.;Methodology. The various uses and meanings of freedom in Murray and the documents were compared and analyzed in order to provide the necessary framework to investigate how Murray's ideas of freedom can expand and clarify the discussion of freedom in catechesis and be appropriated in subsequent catechetical documents.;Findings. The results of the research indicated that Murray's sensitivity to the American scene lends itself to a deeper investigation of the influences affecting the religious life and attitudes of American Catholics especially as they pertain to freedom while his approach to the problem of God can help in confronting the major religious question facing humanity today. It further noted that Murray's study of religious freedom and his insights into the authority-freedom relationship within the Church can be inculcated into catechetical design and training both as a tool for understanding the Church's position and as an example of the development of doctrine. Finally, the results of the research posited that freedom was not an adequately treated concept in the catechetical documents and that Murray's concepts of freedom can contribute to the whole catechetical endeavor and should be incorporated into subsequent catechetical documents.;The research involved three tasks. The first was to examine the life and works of Murray as they pertained to this investigation of the concept of religious freedom as well as his generic concept of freedom as it is related to issues of personal, religious, ecclesiastical, social, and educational concern. The second task was to discuss and to categorize contextually the concepts of freedom in selected catechetical documents of the Roman Catholic Bishops of the United States since 1965. The final task was to illustrate how the concepts of freedom in Murray and in the bishops' documents either converged or differed, and how Murray's concepts can be appropriated to enrich the concepts of freedom in the bishops' consideration of the catechetical endeavor.