August 8 marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Raymond E. Brown, S.S. Brown combined the best in many areas—priest, teacher, preacher, ecumenist, writer, and scholar. He was hailed by Cardinal Roger Mahony as “the most distinguished and renowned Catholic biblical scholar to emerge in this country ever.”
Daniel Harrington, biblical scholar himself, in a tribute in America 29 August, 1998, entitled “A Teacher for Us All,” outlined Raymond Brown’s life and major contributions to the Church and to biblical scholarship:
Brown was a teacher for us all. He taught thousands of people about the Bible and its interpretation through his nearly 49 books and hundreds of articles, his lectures at seminaries and universities and his personal example.”
Harrington continues: he was a true minister of the word, and his books and writings “are distinguished by comprehensiveness, clarity of thought and expression, fairness towards others, intellectual integrity, theological concern and pastoral sensitivity.”
High praise indeed, for a scholar remembered and still missed ten years after his death.
Peter Schineller, S.J.
