Richard McBrien

American Catholic priest, theologian, writer (1936–2015)

Richard Peter McBrien (August 19, 1936 – January 25, 2015) was a Catholic priest, theologian, and writer, who was the Crowley O'Brien Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, U. S. He authored twenty five books, including the very popular Catholicism, a reference text on the Church after the Second Vatican Council.

Richard P. McBrien was born on August 19, 1936, the fourth of five children of Thomas H. and Catherine (Botticelli) McBrien. He taught at the Pope John XXIII National Seminary in Weston, Massachusetts. McBrien's scholarly interests included ecclesiology, the relationship between religion and politics, and the theological, doctrinal, and spiritual aspects of the Catholic Church. McBrien published 25 books and was the general editor of the Encyclopedia of Catholicism. Notre Dame Professor of Theology Brian Daley described his colleague as representing "what had been a pretty widespread point of view among Catholic theologians in the late 60s and 70s: liberal on the 'hot button' issues, but – as he saw it – still theologically defensible. By the late 80s, though, this approach had definitely become a minority voice." McBrien died after a lengthy illness at his home in Farmington, Connecticut, on January 25, 2015, at the age of 78.

McBrien was a controversial figure in the American Catholic Church, mainly because of conflict surrounding his published works and public remarks. Together with its revised, one volume edition (1994), Catholicism was a widely used reference text and found in parish libraries throughout the United States. Catholicism does not bear nihil obstat or imprimatur declarations from the Church that state the book is free of moral or doctrinal error. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Doctrine found that the book "poses pastoral problems particularly as a textbook in undergraduate college courses and in parish education programs," and "as a book for people who are not specialists in theological reasoning and argumentation, Catholicism poses serious difficulties." The USCCB also said that the book contained statements which are "inaccurate or misleading," that it exaggerates "plurality" within the Catholic theological tradition, and that it overemphasizes "change and development" in the history of Catholic doctrine even though official dogmas of the Catholic Church are, according to the Magisterium, unchangeable truths. After the USCCB criticism of Catholicism, a number of diocesan newspapers dropped his column. The review itself elaborates, "It is intended as a handy reference for students or journalists who need a quick and succinct explanation of some Catholic term or practice." It concludes by stating that some "articles are models of precision and succinctness. The better ones include Revelation, Apostolic Succession, Conciliarism, Faith, Hell, Heresy, Homosexuality, Immortality, Inerrancy, Justification, Magisterium, Mary, Purgatory, and the Vicar of Christ. These have the merit of explaining clearly and concisely what the Catholic Church believes and why."

In March 2006, the Cardinal Newman Society sent an allegation of plagiarism against McBrien to the University of Notre Dame, where he taught, the second allegation in three months. McBrien denied having plagiarized, and John Cavadini, Chair of Notre Dame’s theology department, dismissed the charges raised by the society, which he described as a "militant, right wing Catholic interest group."

McBrien served as a paid consultant for the controversial film The Da Vinci Code.

In September 2009, McBrien published an article in the National Catholic Reporter in which he criticized the practice of Eucharistic adoration by calling it "a doctrinal, theological, and spiritual step backward, not forward."

In a 1991 op ed piece, McBrien discussed "the prolonged, slow motion coup that has been under way in the church since the election of Pope John Paul II in October 1978," in which he saw "Ecclesiastical hard liners, fearful of the loss of power and privilege, attempting to reverse the new, progressive course set by Pope John XXIII." In 2012 McBrien told The National Catholic Reporter, "If there are any reasons for the bad patch the church is now going through, it is the appointments to the hierarchy and the promotions within made by John Paul and Benedict. By and large, they have all been conservative."