In Ethics of the Word beloved priest and author James F. Keenan, S.J., discusses the power of the Word in the Catholic Church. In the ongoing wake of the priest abuse scandals, Father Keenan argues that we need new ways to build trust and open communication in the Church on all levels-from bishops to parishioners. Keenan's engaging style blends stories, Scripture, and theology to show readers the importance of both speaking and listening. The book covers topics ranging from difficult confrontations to apologies to the language of faith, hope, and love.

Chapter 1 Acknowledgments Chapter 2 Introduction: As I See and Hear It Chapter 3 Part 1: A Church in Need of Living the Truth in Love Chapter 4 Chapter 1: Ethics Inside the Church: Looking Back, Looking Forward Chapter 5 Chapter 2: Proposing an Ethics of the Word Chapter 6 Chapter 3: Learning an Ethics of the Word Chapter 7 Chapter 4: Silence in the Ethics of the Word Chapter 8 Part 2: The Humanity of our Discourse Chapter 9 Chapter 5: The Human Voice Chapter 10 Chapter 6: Memory Chapter 11 Chapter 7: Conscience Chapter 12 Chapter 8: A Critical Challenge: Recovering Christian Dialogue Chapter 13 Chapter 9: Modeling Christian Dialogue: The First International Cross-Cultural Discourse on Theological Ethics (Padova, Italy, July 2006) Chapter 14 Part 3: Forms of Christian Discourse Chapter 15 Chapter 10: Teaching Chapter 16 Chapter 11: Conversations Chapter 17 Chapter 12: Civil Discourse Chapter 18 Chapter 13: Being Called Chapter 19 Chapter 14: Taking Vows Chapter 20 Chapter 15: Apologizing Chapter 21 Chapter 16: Appreciating the Limits of Language Chapter 22 Chapter 17: Reporting the Truth to Hurt Another Chapter 23 Chapter 18: Lying and the Obligation to Get the Story Right Chapter 24 Part 4: Words Chapter 25 Chapter 19: Beautiful Words, Good Words Chapter 26 Chapter 20: Words of Death and Gratitude Chapter 27 Chapter 21: Challenging Words Chapter 28 Chapter 22: Words of Life Chapter 29 Chapter 23: Words of Greeting and Farewell Chapter 30 Part 5: Faith, Hope, and Love Chapter 31 Chapter 24: The Language of Faith Chapter 32 Chapter 25: The Language of Hope Chapter 33 Chapter 26: The Language of Love