Description: Harrington describes this text as "the greatest Christian sermon ever preached or written" and its author as "the patron saint of preachers." The basic theological point of the sermon is that Christ is both the perfect sacrifice for sins and the priest who offers himself as a sacrifice.
Brief description: Daniel J. Harrington, SJ, PhD, (1940-2014), was professor of New Testament at Boston College and the Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Massachusetts. He wrote numerous scholarly works, including What Are We Hoping For? New Testament Images, The Gospel of Mark, Jesus Ben Sira of Jerusalem: A Biblical Guide to Living Wisely, and The Letter to the Hebrews, all published by Liturgical Press. He served as editor of New Testament Abstracts from 1972 until his death.
Review Quotes: Daniel Harrington's contribution The Letter to the Hebrews in the New Collegeville Bible Commentary is a fresh look at a difficult piece of Biblical literature. The Letter to the Hebrews presents several problems for the reader. Harrington's contribution is a clear, balanced and readable commentary that analyzes the contents from the point of view of a written sermon. His treatment of the thorny issues of Christ's priesthood, the priesthood of Christian priests and the sacrificial nature of Christ's death is ecumenically and theologically solid. The reader will profit much from meditating with this text.James Puglisi, SA