Monday, October 15, 2012
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Scaling for a Christian Community
Fr. Bouyer contrasted in his The Church of God two ideals of ecclesial "membership," the Church of believers and the Church of numbers. Might it be that the Church can be both, if we observed the proper scale to the local Churches (and parishes)? What is the ideal size of a [neighborhood] parish? How many people can a priest be a spiritual father to? Should he not be able to remember the names of all his spiritual children? How many Sunday liturgies can be said in a temple? Can we eventually achieve the Eastern ideal of one? (Given the time necessary to train priests, it seems that celebrating more than one Sunday liturgy at the [main] altar of a temple is a pastoral necessity.
How big should a local Church [diocese] be, in terms of both members and size? In the Western patriarchate at least, auxiliary bishops are given titles to dioceses that do not really exist any longer. What if, instead, the archdiocese was broken up? What if we had more bishops, instead of auxiliary/titular bishops, and more metropolitans (and provinces)? (Is attendance at an ecumenical council limited to metropolitans, in practice or in law?)
How big should a local Church [diocese] be, in terms of both members and size? In the Western patriarchate at least, auxiliary bishops are given titles to dioceses that do not really exist any longer. What if, instead, the archdiocese was broken up? What if we had more bishops, instead of auxiliary/titular bishops, and more metropolitans (and provinces)? (Is attendance at an ecumenical council limited to metropolitans, in practice or in law?)
What is the basis for the inequality in status (and power?) between the metropolitan and the suffragan bishops, besides the link between his diocese and the political capital? I need to read up more on Church governance and the sacrament of Holy Orders.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Friday, October 12, 2012
St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral
Светлая Суббота 2012 г. Bright Saturday 2012
I didn't have the opportunity to visit the cathedral when I was in NYC in August, so I am glad to see its interior in the video. A little too westernized, the icons?
Another video
I didn't have the opportunity to visit the cathedral when I was in NYC in August, so I am glad to see its interior in the video. A little too westernized, the icons?
Another video
CWR: History’s View of Vatican II by Michael J. Miller (via Insight Scoop)
The who, what, where, when, and why of the Council
The Second Vatican Council: An Unwritten Story by Roberto de Mattei - it is supposed to be published by Loreto? I don't see it in the catalog.
Over at Chiesa:
The Five "Conciliar" Days of the Pope
With six statements on Vatican II, fifty years after its beginning. Followed by a commentary by Pietro De Marco on the "external paradigm" that influences the interpretation and reception of that event
The who, what, where, when, and why of the Council
The Second Vatican Council: An Unwritten Story by Roberto de Mattei - it is supposed to be published by Loreto? I don't see it in the catalog.
Over at Chiesa:
The Five "Conciliar" Days of the Pope
With six statements on Vatican II, fifty years after its beginning. Followed by a commentary by Pietro De Marco on the "external paradigm" that influences the interpretation and reception of that event
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Pope Benedict's Homily at Opening Mass of the Year of Faith
Zenit: Pope Benedict's Homily at Opening Mass of the Year of Faith
"Through Christ, God is the Principal Subject of Evangelization in the World"
Greeting by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I
"We Join in the Hope that the Barrier Dividing the Eastern Church and the Western Church Will be Removed" [2012-10-11]
Rome Reports
Bartholomew I recognizes before the Pope the capacity of uniting of the Second Vatican Council
"Through Christ, God is the Principal Subject of Evangelization in the World"
Greeting by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I
"We Join in the Hope that the Barrier Dividing the Eastern Church and the Western Church Will be Removed" [2012-10-11]
Rome Reports
Bartholomew I recognizes before the Pope the capacity of uniting of the Second Vatican Council
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Dr. Shinya Yamanaka
Tuesday, October 09, 2012
Byzantine, Texas: The Liturgy in 13th century Constantinople
The chanting is splendid, but are the vestments accurate? I'm not understanding the headgear. I think that is supposed to be the emperor, rather than the bishop? NO barrier or ciborium or altar?
Misc.
Cultural Identity and Dress: The Case of Late Byzantine Court Costume
The chanting is splendid, but are the vestments accurate? I'm not understanding the headgear. I think that is supposed to be the emperor, rather than the bishop? NO barrier or ciborium or altar?
Misc.
Cultural Identity and Dress: The Case of Late Byzantine Court Costume
Monday, October 08, 2012
Installation Mass of Archbishop Cordileone
Last Thursday.
Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone Mass of Installation Video
San Francisco's new archbishop seeks to rebuild God's house
Archbishop is 'collaborator' in helping lead the faithful to holiness
Archbishop Cordileone: 'Francis, rebuild my house'
In homily, Archbishop Cordileone calls for 'rebuilding from within'
More from Catholic SF.
NC Reporter: Cordileone's installation in San Francisco includes demonstrations
Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone Mass of Installation Video
San Francisco's new archbishop seeks to rebuild God's house
Archbishop is 'collaborator' in helping lead the faithful to holiness
Archbishop Cordileone: 'Francis, rebuild my house'
In homily, Archbishop Cordileone calls for 'rebuilding from within'
More from Catholic SF.
NC Reporter: Cordileone's installation in San Francisco includes demonstrations
Sunday, October 07, 2012
More from the Holy Father on the Liturgy
Zenit: ON THE ECCLESIAL NATURE OF LITURGICAL PRAYER
The Liturgy is the Act Whereby We Enter Into Contact with God
(The previous audience: On the Sacred Liturgy as a School of Prayer.)
From 2003:
The Liturgy is the Act Whereby We Enter Into Contact with God
(The previous audience: On the Sacred Liturgy as a School of Prayer.)
From 2003:
Two New Doctors of the Church
Rome Reports: St. Hildegard of Bingen and St. John of Avila are now Doctors of the Church. Pope also welcomes the Synod of Bishops
Zenit:
POPE BENEDICT XVI'S HOMILY AT OPENING MASS OF SYNOD OF BISHOPS
"The Holy Spirit Has Nurtured in the Church a New Effort to Announce the Good News"
DECREE GRANTING PLENARY INDULGENCE FOR YEAR OF FAITH
SPECIALIST IN DOGMATIC THEOLOGY PROMOTES PASTORAL OF "AUTO-EVANGELIZATION"
Father Antonio Aranda Lomena Set to Attend Synod on the New Evangelization
Zenit:
POPE BENEDICT XVI'S HOMILY AT OPENING MASS OF SYNOD OF BISHOPS
"The Holy Spirit Has Nurtured in the Church a New Effort to Announce the Good News"
DECREE GRANTING PLENARY INDULGENCE FOR YEAR OF FAITH
SPECIALIST IN DOGMATIC THEOLOGY PROMOTES PASTORAL OF "AUTO-EVANGELIZATION"
Father Antonio Aranda Lomena Set to Attend Synod on the New Evangelization
Saturday, October 06, 2012
How much of this is still true? From 1975: Some differences between Greek and Russian divine services and their significance
by Basil Krivoshein
Archbishop of Brussels and Belgium
How old is the inclusion of the Beatitudes in the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom?
by Basil Krivoshein
Archbishop of Brussels and Belgium
How old is the inclusion of the Beatitudes in the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom?
St. Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor of the Church
Jimmy Akin, Newest Doctor of the Church: Her Visions, Her Writings, and Her Secret Language
St. Hildegard of Bingen: A Visionary for All Time by Brennan Pursell
St. Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor of the Church by Leroy Huizenga
From the Wednesday audience talks by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010-
St. Hildegard: Cloistered Nun and Mystic
A Continuing Reflection on St. Hildegard
Back when I was in the seminary, a "cranky" (but lovable) Jesuit remarked that if St. Thérèse_of_Lisieux could be declared a Doctor of the Church, why not St. Ignatius of Loyola? We should honor St. Thérèse for her holiness and her "little way" has been influential as a model for our understanding Christian spirituality and by extension the lay vocation, but as a teacher (not necessarily as a writer) does she rank with the other Doctors of the Church? (Someone might claim that in terms of influence on contemporary Catholics, St. Thérèse surpasses them.)
Zenit: POPE TO PRESIDE OVER OPENING MASS FOR SYNOD
Sts. Hildegard of Bingen and John of Avila to be Honored by Pontiff
The corpus of St. Hildegard of Bingen is apparently larger, and she was also an authorized preacher. She did have an impact on the local church(es) of her time period. But is she so influential now? St. John of the Cross continues to be influential as a teacher of Christian spirituality. (The same is true of St. Teresa of Avila.)
I can't help but shake the suspicion that besides being influenced by his German heritage, the pope may be acceding to political pressures and considerations, the demand for women to be "better represented." While some women may have been especially gifted as teachers, one should distinguish between extraordinary and ordinary gifts, and how the office of theologian (or bishop) is tied more to the latter than to the former. Those who have a special mission from God (and the accompanying talents) should not be prevented by the bishops from following it, but this does not mean that women in general should be encouraged to be theologians.
Some may say that the rejection of scholasticism has been beneficial to the Church and allowed for the renewal of older methods of doing theology, but I would argue that the application of reason to understanding revealed truth has never been absent from theology, though it has been complemented by general life in Christ, prayer, and even mystical experiences.
Was St. Paul a sexist, limited by his culture? How should his stricture be understood? Some have limited to the confines of the temple. Anyone who teaches Christian doctrine, female or male, must do so with the permission of the bishop (via his priests) and under his supervision. One can argue for the strict separation of male and female spheres (and roles) in political society, but can this also be done for ecclesiastical society? There is also a somewhat relevant distinction between teaching of morals (and leadership) and teaching of other subjects. The teaching of morality for men should be left to men, because the roles of men and women are different within the family and society as a whole. But what of the teaching of things not pertaining to morality? The best argument for the this to be left to men as well is that while it does not touch upon morality itself, it is ideally an exercise for male communing, once boys come of age. (There is also the question of giving males their proper roles within the community as a whole, and protecting these assignments from encroachments by women. Women in general do not want as a husband a male who is perceived to be a loser, but this is what happens when women displace men.)
Are Saints Teresa of Avila and Hildegard of Bingen the exceptions that then prove the rule? I do not think that it will be possible to find an equal representation of men and women among the Doctors of the Church, though some may want this. Margaret Schatkin or Sister Vassa Larin could be examples from today - but it must be noted that both are single, one a religious. It would seem that those who have consecrated their lives to God as virgins and religious have a greater claim to be teachers of theology than lay women, because their function is no longer one of the political economy but of the ecclesiastical economy. Some may claim that this is unfair, that women should not have to choose between one or the other, that they can have it all, but it is a question of serving God as He sees fit.
Women do not teach their children on their own authority, but do so as willed by their husband. It is true that some men care nothing for how prospective wives will behave and raise their children; but those who do care look for someone who agrees with them and will follow them. Similarly, traditionally women do not manage or represent the household unless they are delegated that authority by their husband (or father). Arguably a catechists task is one that is proper to the laity or to the parents, and they do participate in the sensus fidei.
So how much of a catechist's task is proper to the laity or to parents, and how much is a delegation by the bishop? This is in contrast to the one who preaches in a parish, for to do so he must have permission (and authority) from the bishop? Is the task of the theologian is different, but
is the nature of the theologian's authority different from that of the catechist? Some have explained St. Paul's dictum by distinguishing the teaching authority of the apostles and their successors from that of authority of the lay teacher.
Apparently the title "Doctor of the Church" should be understood as referring to the Church Universal, but can this be problematic with respect to fostering a more ecumenical ecclesiology?
Cistercian Publishers has a translation of St. Hildegard's homilies.
St. Hildegard of Bingen: A Visionary for All Time by Brennan Pursell
St. Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor of the Church by Leroy Huizenga
From the Wednesday audience talks by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010-
St. Hildegard: Cloistered Nun and Mystic
A Continuing Reflection on St. Hildegard
Back when I was in the seminary, a "cranky" (but lovable) Jesuit remarked that if St. Thérèse_of_Lisieux could be declared a Doctor of the Church, why not St. Ignatius of Loyola? We should honor St. Thérèse for her holiness and her "little way" has been influential as a model for our understanding Christian spirituality and by extension the lay vocation, but as a teacher (not necessarily as a writer) does she rank with the other Doctors of the Church? (Someone might claim that in terms of influence on contemporary Catholics, St. Thérèse surpasses them.)
Zenit: POPE TO PRESIDE OVER OPENING MASS FOR SYNOD
Sts. Hildegard of Bingen and John of Avila to be Honored by Pontiff
The corpus of St. Hildegard of Bingen is apparently larger, and she was also an authorized preacher. She did have an impact on the local church(es) of her time period. But is she so influential now? St. John of the Cross continues to be influential as a teacher of Christian spirituality. (The same is true of St. Teresa of Avila.)
I can't help but shake the suspicion that besides being influenced by his German heritage, the pope may be acceding to political pressures and considerations, the demand for women to be "better represented." While some women may have been especially gifted as teachers, one should distinguish between extraordinary and ordinary gifts, and how the office of theologian (or bishop) is tied more to the latter than to the former. Those who have a special mission from God (and the accompanying talents) should not be prevented by the bishops from following it, but this does not mean that women in general should be encouraged to be theologians.
Some may say that the rejection of scholasticism has been beneficial to the Church and allowed for the renewal of older methods of doing theology, but I would argue that the application of reason to understanding revealed truth has never been absent from theology, though it has been complemented by general life in Christ, prayer, and even mystical experiences.
Was St. Paul a sexist, limited by his culture? How should his stricture be understood? Some have limited to the confines of the temple. Anyone who teaches Christian doctrine, female or male, must do so with the permission of the bishop (via his priests) and under his supervision. One can argue for the strict separation of male and female spheres (and roles) in political society, but can this also be done for ecclesiastical society? There is also a somewhat relevant distinction between teaching of morals (and leadership) and teaching of other subjects. The teaching of morality for men should be left to men, because the roles of men and women are different within the family and society as a whole. But what of the teaching of things not pertaining to morality? The best argument for the this to be left to men as well is that while it does not touch upon morality itself, it is ideally an exercise for male communing, once boys come of age. (There is also the question of giving males their proper roles within the community as a whole, and protecting these assignments from encroachments by women. Women in general do not want as a husband a male who is perceived to be a loser, but this is what happens when women displace men.)
Are Saints Teresa of Avila and Hildegard of Bingen the exceptions that then prove the rule? I do not think that it will be possible to find an equal representation of men and women among the Doctors of the Church, though some may want this. Margaret Schatkin or Sister Vassa Larin could be examples from today - but it must be noted that both are single, one a religious. It would seem that those who have consecrated their lives to God as virgins and religious have a greater claim to be teachers of theology than lay women, because their function is no longer one of the political economy but of the ecclesiastical economy. Some may claim that this is unfair, that women should not have to choose between one or the other, that they can have it all, but it is a question of serving God as He sees fit.
Women do not teach their children on their own authority, but do so as willed by their husband. It is true that some men care nothing for how prospective wives will behave and raise their children; but those who do care look for someone who agrees with them and will follow them. Similarly, traditionally women do not manage or represent the household unless they are delegated that authority by their husband (or father). Arguably a catechists task is one that is proper to the laity or to the parents, and they do participate in the sensus fidei.
So how much of a catechist's task is proper to the laity or to parents, and how much is a delegation by the bishop? This is in contrast to the one who preaches in a parish, for to do so he must have permission (and authority) from the bishop? Is the task of the theologian is different, but
is the nature of the theologian's authority different from that of the catechist? Some have explained St. Paul's dictum by distinguishing the teaching authority of the apostles and their successors from that of authority of the lay teacher.
Apparently the title "Doctor of the Church" should be understood as referring to the Church Universal, but can this be problematic with respect to fostering a more ecumenical ecclesiology?
Cistercian Publishers has a translation of St. Hildegard's homilies.
The Writing of Church History
A study group was considering starting Epic; is much of Church History written from a Latin perspective triumphalistic or ultramontane, or a version of Whiggism, resulting in more of a history of the Western Patriarchate, with the non-western churches an afterthought?
A Catholic version of Whiggism, in so far as Catholicism is equated with European civilization and its material advances are attributed in some way to the Catholic faith. Intellectual advances in science and knowledge may originally have been due to the mingling of the Christian focus on the Logos and Greek rationalism. But I am thinking more of the rise of the nation-states and empires - do we want to impute this "success" to the supposed Christian faith of those nation- and empire-builders?
We may not want to go so far as to embrace the ideology of those who declaim the appearance of the Constantinian Church, but what Church history would not incorporate an analysis of Church-state relations (not just in the former Western Roman Empire, but in the Eastern as well), making some sort of normative judgment on what existed? (I think the Church can be an effective means of localism, but has it ever been able to bring that about in the political sphere, apart from some sort of collapse?)
As for the non-Western churches, is it too early to reconsider their histories as part of that of the Church as a whole, as if their apparent separation from the Bishop of Rome was that, only apparent? Do we need a formal restoration of communion going beyond acts of doctrinal agreement first? In the past those non-Western churches not currently in full communion were viewed as heretical and schismatic and treated as such in works of Church history. But is it not only charitable but historically accurate to see the tragic separation as a result of [linguistic] misunderstanding and hardening due to a lack of proper fraternity charity and ill feeling because of other events?
Church history potentially can be more unified than generic world history, as it is centered on Christ and His Church. But can we rightly look forward to histories being written reflecting the diversity of the local Churches, a proper multiculturalism because it is grounded in Christ and the live that He gives to us?
A Catholic version of Whiggism, in so far as Catholicism is equated with European civilization and its material advances are attributed in some way to the Catholic faith. Intellectual advances in science and knowledge may originally have been due to the mingling of the Christian focus on the Logos and Greek rationalism. But I am thinking more of the rise of the nation-states and empires - do we want to impute this "success" to the supposed Christian faith of those nation- and empire-builders?
We may not want to go so far as to embrace the ideology of those who declaim the appearance of the Constantinian Church, but what Church history would not incorporate an analysis of Church-state relations (not just in the former Western Roman Empire, but in the Eastern as well), making some sort of normative judgment on what existed? (I think the Church can be an effective means of localism, but has it ever been able to bring that about in the political sphere, apart from some sort of collapse?)
As for the non-Western churches, is it too early to reconsider their histories as part of that of the Church as a whole, as if their apparent separation from the Bishop of Rome was that, only apparent? Do we need a formal restoration of communion going beyond acts of doctrinal agreement first? In the past those non-Western churches not currently in full communion were viewed as heretical and schismatic and treated as such in works of Church history. But is it not only charitable but historically accurate to see the tragic separation as a result of [linguistic] misunderstanding and hardening due to a lack of proper fraternity charity and ill feeling because of other events?
Church history potentially can be more unified than generic world history, as it is centered on Christ and His Church. But can we rightly look forward to histories being written reflecting the diversity of the local Churches, a proper multiculturalism because it is grounded in Christ and the live that He gives to us?
Friday, October 05, 2012
Thursday, October 04, 2012
Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
Michael Moreland on Alasdair MacIntyre
Remarks for Civitas Dei Medal Presentation to Alasdair MacIntyre
Villanova University Inaugurates Civitas Dei Medal Recognizing Exemplary Contributions to Catholic Intellectual Tradition
Inaugural recipient Alasdair MacIntyre, professor emeritus at the University of Notre Dame, known for his contribution to the history of philosophy, moral philosophy, political theory, and the philosophy of religion
Villanova University Inaugurates Civitas Dei Medal Recognizing Exemplary Contributions to Catholic Intellectual Tradition
Inaugural recipient Alasdair MacIntyre, professor emeritus at the University of Notre Dame, known for his contribution to the history of philosophy, moral philosophy, political theory, and the philosophy of religion
Zenit: ON THE GOOD DONE OUTSIDE THE CHURCH COMMUNITY
"We must all be always able to appreciate and esteem each other"
"We must all be always able to appreciate and esteem each other"
St. Augustine writes in this regard: “Just as in the ‘Catholica,'” that is in the Church, “we can find that which is not Catholic, so also outside of the ‘Catholica’ there can be something Catholic” (“On Baptism Against the Donatists,” PL 43, VII, 39, 77). For this reason the members of the Church must not be jealous but rejoice if someone outside the community does something good in Christ’s name, as long as he does it with the right intention and with respect. It can also occur that in the Church herself sometimes there is a failure to value and to appreciate, in a spirit of profound communion, the good things done by various ecclesial groups. We must all, however, be always able to appreciate and esteem each other, praising the Lord for the infinite “imagination” with which he works in the Church and in the world.
Monday, October 01, 2012
Sunday, September 30, 2012
A review of Savonarola: The Rise and Fall of a Renaissance Prophet
by Donald Weinstein at Lapham's Quarterly (via the Pittsford Perennialist)
An excerpt.
Hm, review at America Magazine. The author writes on Rick Santorum.
by Donald Weinstein at Lapham's Quarterly (via the Pittsford Perennialist)
An excerpt.
Hm, review at America Magazine. The author writes on Rick Santorum.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Je m'appelle Bernadette trailer
Bande-Annonce "Je m'appelle Bernadette" (Partenariat Hôtels Vinuales)
(via MER)
(via MER)
Friday, September 28, 2012
Kallistos Ware, We Must Pray for All: The Salvation of the World According to St Silouan
"If those in hell are not deprived of God’s love, if they are embraced also by the love of the saints, may it not still be possible for them to respond to this love that surrounds them on every side? Is there not still a hope that they may ultimately be saved? St Isaac certainly seems to have believed in universal salvation:[7] as a member of the Church of the East, dwelling safely beyond the confines of the Byzantine Empire, he had no reason to fear the anti-Origenist anathemas of the Fifth Ecumenical Council (553)."
"If those in hell are not deprived of God’s love, if they are embraced also by the love of the saints, may it not still be possible for them to respond to this love that surrounds them on every side? Is there not still a hope that they may ultimately be saved? St Isaac certainly seems to have believed in universal salvation:[7] as a member of the Church of the East, dwelling safely beyond the confines of the Byzantine Empire, he had no reason to fear the anti-Origenist anathemas of the Fifth Ecumenical Council (553)."
CWR: Unity of Faith in a Diversity of Traditions
Pope Benedict XVI’s plan for enriching cooperation among the Churches of the Middle East
Pope Benedict XVI’s plan for enriching cooperation among the Churches of the Middle East
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Orthodox Items
Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America: 2012 Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in North and Central America
Metropolitan Hilarion concludes his working visit to Greece
Metropolitan Hilarion celebrates at Agia Sophia in Athens
“Spiritual But Not Religious” and the Path to God by Fr. Andrew S. Damick
ROCOR:
Kursk: Celebrations in the Kursk Metropoliate
Jerusalem: Bishop Peter of Cleveland celebrates Divine Liturgy at the Church of Holy Royal Martyr Alexandra of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission of the Moscow Patriarchate
Metropolitan Hilarion concludes his working visit to Greece
Metropolitan Hilarion celebrates at Agia Sophia in Athens
“Spiritual But Not Religious” and the Path to God by Fr. Andrew S. Damick
ROCOR:
Kursk: Celebrations in the Kursk Metropoliate
Jerusalem: Bishop Peter of Cleveland celebrates Divine Liturgy at the Church of Holy Royal Martyr Alexandra of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission of the Moscow Patriarchate
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Mere Comments: Russian Monastery Choir on US Tour (includes tour schedule - there is a stop in San Francisco on October 22)
“Christ is in Our Midst” by Anthony E. Clark, Ph.D.
A Catholic pays a visit to a Russian Orthodox Church in Beijing.
(via Insight Scoop)
A Catholic pays a visit to a Russian Orthodox Church in Beijing.
(via Insight Scoop)
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
More on Ecclesial Movements
Will bishops who come from the ecclesial movements be prepared to properly shepherd local Churches? To come up with strategies necessary to revitalize parish life?
Why is a strong parish life necessary for Christians? Certainly it's been part of the history of Christianity, notably for the Early Church, and much weight must be given to its historical reality and importance as a guide for action. Still, some may go so far as to claim that what is needed now are movements tied either to the workplace or to one's profession. If one has time to meet with other members of the movements after work, then they have time to meet with other members of the parish - but only if other members of the parish are willing to commit to deepening their witness to Christ, that is true.
Ecclesial movements can be seen as a temporary band-aid solution and outlet for evangelization efforts because circumstances in many areas prevent a thorough revitalization of the parish, but ecclesial movements are nonetheless ordered to strengthening the life of the local Church at that level. I am not convinced in the long run that many converts will be made in the workplace by ecclesial movements, especially if the nature of the work goes against the "evangelical simplicity" of the Christian life.
What needs to be done is a more thorough explanation of why parish life is necessary for the Christian, one that will draw upon moral theology (and the order of charity), the science of politics (which will elucidate in relation to human goods the nature of the lay vocation, especially with regards to the word, "world," and how it is to be understood), and an exploration of the Church's liturgy as public prayer.
Perhaps it would be better to say that a healthy, vibrant parish life would be the "natural" result of the laity living out their vocation well. But as I've mentioned before, in many parts of the industrialized world, the political economy itself presents obstacles. But we must also look at the culpability of Christians, or the part they have played in the diminishing of parish life, too.
Ian Ker on ecclesial movements
Alba House: New Ecclesial Movements: Communion and Liberation, Neo-Catechumenal Way,
Charismatic Renewal by Tony Hanna (more info)
New City Press: Ecclesial Movements and Communities by Brendan Leahy
Response by Guzman Carriquiry to the paper "On Being Christian in the World"
(I was unable to find a copy of his "The Ecclesial Movements in the Religious and Cultural Context of the Present Day" online.)
Joseph Ratzinger:
The Theological Locus of Ecclesial Movements (pdf)
The Ecclesial Movements: A Theological Reflection on Their Place in the Church
Some of his essays on the topic have been collected here - New Outpourings of the Holy Spirit
(the introduction by Bishop Stanislaw Rylko)
Related:
Pontifical Council for the Laity
Why is a strong parish life necessary for Christians? Certainly it's been part of the history of Christianity, notably for the Early Church, and much weight must be given to its historical reality and importance as a guide for action. Still, some may go so far as to claim that what is needed now are movements tied either to the workplace or to one's profession. If one has time to meet with other members of the movements after work, then they have time to meet with other members of the parish - but only if other members of the parish are willing to commit to deepening their witness to Christ, that is true.
Ecclesial movements can be seen as a temporary band-aid solution and outlet for evangelization efforts because circumstances in many areas prevent a thorough revitalization of the parish, but ecclesial movements are nonetheless ordered to strengthening the life of the local Church at that level. I am not convinced in the long run that many converts will be made in the workplace by ecclesial movements, especially if the nature of the work goes against the "evangelical simplicity" of the Christian life.
What needs to be done is a more thorough explanation of why parish life is necessary for the Christian, one that will draw upon moral theology (and the order of charity), the science of politics (which will elucidate in relation to human goods the nature of the lay vocation, especially with regards to the word, "world," and how it is to be understood), and an exploration of the Church's liturgy as public prayer.
Perhaps it would be better to say that a healthy, vibrant parish life would be the "natural" result of the laity living out their vocation well. But as I've mentioned before, in many parts of the industrialized world, the political economy itself presents obstacles. But we must also look at the culpability of Christians, or the part they have played in the diminishing of parish life, too.
Ian Ker on ecclesial movements
Alba House: New Ecclesial Movements: Communion and Liberation, Neo-Catechumenal Way,
Charismatic Renewal by Tony Hanna (more info)
New City Press: Ecclesial Movements and Communities by Brendan Leahy
Response by Guzman Carriquiry to the paper "On Being Christian in the World"
(I was unable to find a copy of his "The Ecclesial Movements in the Religious and Cultural Context of the Present Day" online.)
Joseph Ratzinger:
The Theological Locus of Ecclesial Movements (pdf)
The Ecclesial Movements: A Theological Reflection on Their Place in the Church
Some of his essays on the topic have been collected here - New Outpourings of the Holy Spirit
(the introduction by Bishop Stanislaw Rylko)
Related:
Pontifical Council for the Laity
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Rorate Caeli: SSPX-Rome: Important - Father Schmidberger speaks on conditions and current status of negotiations with Rome
Updated: video with subtitles
Updated: video with subtitles
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Competing with Joseph Ratzinger?
Soon to be published by Liturgical Press: Jesus of Nazareth: What He Wanted, Who He Was by Gerhard Lohfink - the English translation of a book originally printed in German, I guess.
On the mailing from LitPress, there is the blurb: "If you read only one book about Jesus this year..."
with praise from Daniel J. Harrington, SJ, author of Jesus: A Historical Portrait
I can't find any reviews or critiques by trusted Catholic theologians.
Volume 3 of Joseph Ratzinger's work on Christ will be released in time for Christmas this year.
Related: Book Review of Jesus and Community by Gerhard Lohfink 1982, Fortress Press
Edit.
Jesus and human imagination by Raymond A. Schroth | Sep. 25, 2013
Christological heresy and Pelagianism?
On the mailing from LitPress, there is the blurb: "If you read only one book about Jesus this year..."
with praise from Daniel J. Harrington, SJ, author of Jesus: A Historical Portrait
I can't find any reviews or critiques by trusted Catholic theologians.
Volume 3 of Joseph Ratzinger's work on Christ will be released in time for Christmas this year.
Related: Book Review of Jesus and Community by Gerhard Lohfink 1982, Fortress Press
Edit.
Jesus and human imagination by Raymond A. Schroth | Sep. 25, 2013
Christological heresy and Pelagianism?
Chiesa: Vatican Diary / The pope's favorites
"They are the cardinals, the bishops, the priests whom Benedict XVI has wanted to add to the participants in the upcoming synod. Three of them are from Opus Dei. And another three from Communion and Liberation"
Let us pray to the Holy Spirit that those attending the synod will be enlightened. Surely He can overcome deficits in learning and experience?
"They are the cardinals, the bishops, the priests whom Benedict XVI has wanted to add to the participants in the upcoming synod. Three of them are from Opus Dei. And another three from Communion and Liberation"
Let us pray to the Holy Spirit that those attending the synod will be enlightened. Surely He can overcome deficits in learning and experience?
Some thoughts occasioned by Bp. Wcela’s essay on female deacons (via Fr. Z)
A canonical treatment of the question, not a theological response to the ordination of [female] deaconesses in the East and explanations of the practice current in Orthodoxy.
A canonical treatment of the question, not a theological response to the ordination of [female] deaconesses in the East and explanations of the practice current in Orthodoxy.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Vengeance and Justice
Something of note: Ed Feser has written something on vengeance and its relation to justice - Justice or Revenge?
Thursday, September 20, 2012
The theology of Abp. Joseph Augustine DiNoia, O.P. by Michael J. Miller (via Insight Scoop)
"The documents of the Second Vatican Council have lasting value because they were produced and approved by an Ecumenical Council under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The interpretations of those documents by enthusiasts who emphasized “renewal” and ignored “tradition” were not necessarily the same thing."
"The documents of the Second Vatican Council have lasting value because they were produced and approved by an Ecumenical Council under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The interpretations of those documents by enthusiasts who emphasized “renewal” and ignored “tradition” were not necessarily the same thing."
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Ecclesia in Medio Oriente
English (pdf) - via FT
Vatican summary
Ecclesia in Medio Oriente: Keys to understanding the new papal document
Related:
Pope's Address Upon Signing Apostolic Exhortation on Mideast [2012-09-14]
It "can be read and understood in the light of this Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross"
Pope's Presentation of "Ecclesia in Medio Oriente"
"A guide to follow the various and complex paths where Christ goes before you" [2012-09-16]
Pope's Address at Ecumenical Meeting in Beirut
"Let us work without ceasing so that the love of Christ may lead us little by little into full communion with each other
Vatican summary
Ecclesia in Medio Oriente: Keys to understanding the new papal document
Related:
Pope's Address Upon Signing Apostolic Exhortation on Mideast [2012-09-14]
It "can be read and understood in the light of this Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross"
Pope's Presentation of "Ecclesia in Medio Oriente"
"A guide to follow the various and complex paths where Christ goes before you" [2012-09-16]
Pope's Address at Ecumenical Meeting in Beirut
"Let us work without ceasing so that the love of Christ may lead us little by little into full communion with each other
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Being
James Chastek, What am I trying to signify by “being”? and Simultaneity and the First, Second, and Third Way
I've been thinking of the question of being in relation to Duns Scotus and univocity, but since my handle of metaphysics is that of a beginner, I am just jotting some notes for later reference. Can there be a concept of being without first some sort of assent that a particular thing is/exists? How can one know any sensible thing without first sensing it? While essence is not the same as existence for contingent beings, does our conception of a thing necessarily have a reference to the judgment that it has existed? Is our conception of being then dependent upon some "being" having an effect upon our senses? A being is, first, that which has acted upon our senses, either directly or via something else?
If so, can our conception of being be univocal in this way, while it is equivocal when we try to reason out how material creatures differ from immaterial beings and God? Being is univocal in accordance with this sort of preliminary definition, but equivocal with a more "scientific" definition?
I've been thinking of the question of being in relation to Duns Scotus and univocity, but since my handle of metaphysics is that of a beginner, I am just jotting some notes for later reference. Can there be a concept of being without first some sort of assent that a particular thing is/exists? How can one know any sensible thing without first sensing it? While essence is not the same as existence for contingent beings, does our conception of a thing necessarily have a reference to the judgment that it has existed? Is our conception of being then dependent upon some "being" having an effect upon our senses? A being is, first, that which has acted upon our senses, either directly or via something else?
If so, can our conception of being be univocal in this way, while it is equivocal when we try to reason out how material creatures differ from immaterial beings and God? Being is univocal in accordance with this sort of preliminary definition, but equivocal with a more "scientific" definition?
Friday, September 14, 2012
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Something from 1936? Any updates in scholarship since then? St. Isidore and mediaeval science by Floyd Seyward Lear
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Zenit: POPE'S MESSAGE ON 10 COMMANDMENTS
"God has given us the Commandments to educate us to liberty and genuine love"
"God has given us the Commandments to educate us to liberty and genuine love"
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Some discussion of women in the diaconate at ByzCath. Both men and women can serve others - but is it the case that women deacons were raised to Holy Orders? Does the deacon have a place in the hierarchy of authority? (Or is it the case that the diaconate, for both men and women, is a separate Holy Order from that of the presbyterate, as one commentor claims?)
While it may convince some that the priest is male because he represents Christ, what about the question of why is Christ male? Arguing that He is male because He is the Bridegroom while the Church is the Bride may be sufficient for some, but isn't the difference in role not something accidental?
While it may convince some that the priest is male because he represents Christ, what about the question of why is Christ male? Arguing that He is male because He is the Bridegroom while the Church is the Bride may be sufficient for some, but isn't the difference in role not something accidental?
Tomás Luis de Victoria, Ave Regina Caelorum
Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548-1611) Ave Regina caelorum a 8
Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548-1611) Missa Ave Regina caelorum
Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548-1611) Missa Ave Regina caelorum
Forte's joining the fray is significant, and in some ways surprising.
It is significant because he is one of the best-known Italian bishops, including at the international level, and enjoys a substantial following among his brother bishops, who in fact appointed him as their representative at the worldwide synod on the new evangelization that will be held in Rome in October. Of the four selections he is the only one without the scarlet, the other three being all cardinals: Angelo Bagnasco, Giuseppe Betori, and Angelo Scola.
It is surprising because Forte has always been considered a theologian of the progressive camp, the camp that most opposes, and not only in Italy, the passage from "for all" to "for many."
At the memorable ecclesial conference in Loreto in 1985, which marked the ascent in the leadership of the Italian Church of then-auxiliary bishop of Reggio Emilia Camillo Ruini, Forte was fighting for the other and the winning side, together with the president of the episcopal conference at the time, Anastasio Ballestrero, and Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini. And it was he who gave the introductory theological presentation.
This is why he has not rarely ended up in the crosshairs of his more conservative theologian colleagues.
For example, in a 2004 article Fr. Nicola Bux, an adviser – both then and now – to the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, singled out Forte as one of the "promulgators" of a "weak and derivative theology" concerning the resurrection of Jesus, reduced "to an 'etiological legend,' or an artifice in support of the worship that the Judeo-Christians were conducting on the site of Jesus' burial."
But Forte's taking the field is even more surprising because it marks in him a change of judgment with respect to the past.
Monday, September 10, 2012
Behavior psychology and Mass Marketing... as Tools of Evangelization?
Full and Active Participation: The Challenge of “Porta Fidei” and the Promise of Right Brain by Deacon Dominic Cerrato (via Insight Scoop)
the Motu Proprio Porta Fidei
Given all that has been said to promote the Year of Faith effectively along with its associated catechetical programs, a new marketing approach needs to be crafted that puts joy before the law. It must lead with the contagious love of Jesus Christ, demonstrating how, by attending these various efforts, the participants will share in that joy by experiencing that love. One way this new marketing approach can be crafted is through the Right Brain Research of Dr. Charles T. Kenny. 22 Right Brain has discovered that a brand is created when people make an emotional connection that transforms the specific product or service into an implicit promise. This promise drives their perceptions, the way they feel, their behavior, and their expectations. By understanding this emotional connection as it relates to the product or service, a highly effective marketing effort can be crafted. The Right Brain approach, inasmuch as it seeks to fulfill a deeply felt emotional need, corresponds directly to the kind of dynamic that moves passive participation to active participation.
Historically, marketing approaches tended to be more left brain. Where left brain describes an analytical approach often expressed through a logical argument, right brain keys in on the emotional benefit for the consumer. As explained in St. Thomas’ ethics, and as illustrated by Fr. Barron’s baseball analogy, these two approaches are by no means mutually exclusive. Quite the opposite: they are inclusive and complementary insofar as the joy (right brain) makes possible a fuller appreciation of the law (left brain). The left brain acts to balance, control, and explain actions that are driven by emotional needs seated in the right brain. All human behavior is an interplay of the left brain and the right brain, a beautiful and synergistic interconnectedness.
Motivating people to participate in a catechetical event is subject to the same universal laws of human behavior and psychology that govern any great brand campaign. These include appealing to one or more of the 47 emotional needs discovered by Right Brain Research, and overcoming one or more of the emotional barriers (i.e., fears) that prevent people from responding. In their commercials, the Catholics Come Home advertising appeals to such emotional needs as: love and acceptance, affiliation, community, hope, intimacy, immortality, and redemption. In those same commercials, they also help people overcome such emotional barriers as: fear of rejection, guilt, fear of judgment, and fear of inadequacy. This achievement can be duplicated using Right Brain Research in the promotion of all catechetical programs.
the Motu Proprio Porta Fidei
I need to read Bellarmine.
And how he explains the separation between temporal authority and spiritual authority.
What Barack Obama Could Learn from St. Robert Bellarmine by Gerald J. Russello
What Barack Obama Could Learn from St. Robert Bellarmine by Gerald J. Russello
3. Laws affect persons. Bellarmine was adamant in his “On Laymen,” part of a series of works called the Controversiae, published between 1586-89, that “from the fact that political authority is temporal and its end is external peace and that man does not make judgments on internal matters, it is rightly inferred that it can oblige only to perform temporal and external acts but not that it cannot bind in conscience.” This is a crucial point that secularists often overlook, since they have a utilitarian or agnostic view of the law. For them, regulations like the HHS mandate simply preserve “health care” or “equality,” and affect only external actions. For them, such laws do not touch religious belief, which is considered only an internal matter and not one concerned with action.
Sunday, September 09, 2012
Cardinal Burke's Address to the Kenyan Canon Law Convention
Zenit: CARDINAL BURKE TO KENYA CANON LAW CONVENTION
Someone wrote in linking to this, "The ever amazing Cardinal Burke on how to remake society in a Just and Christian mold...organically." I think that may be an overestimate of its practical usefulness with respect to civic reform.
Canon law is necessary instrument for the life of the Church. But a conference on canon law is not the same as a symposium on the lay vocation or "spiritual" theology, but one should not take the cardinal's remarks on the universal call to holiness (borrowing heavily from John Paul II) as being complete, nor a program for the renewal of political community.
Someone wrote in linking to this, "The ever amazing Cardinal Burke on how to remake society in a Just and Christian mold...organically." I think that may be an overestimate of its practical usefulness with respect to civic reform.
Canon law is necessary instrument for the life of the Church. But a conference on canon law is not the same as a symposium on the lay vocation or "spiritual" theology, but one should not take the cardinal's remarks on the universal call to holiness (borrowing heavily from John Paul II) as being complete, nor a program for the renewal of political community.
Saturday, September 08, 2012
The Right to Citizenship
A follow-up to this post.
Why is there not a universal, natural right to citizenship?
1. What is required for one to be able to order the community, or legislate, well? [Civic] prudence and the moral virtues.
2. What about being able to judge other people well, according to their character (rather than the platform that they espouse)? This requires experience, familiarity with virtue, and right opinion regarding moral precepts and the good, at least, if not knowledge.
These are not inborn traits; they must be acquired and they are contingent, not necessary. As a result, there can be no natural right since no one is "naturally" qualified to rule or to have some share in it. Some notion of [natural] individual dominion or sovereignty is inadequate to back up the claim that such a right exists. In accordance with distributive justice, then, the work of the whole should be done by all the members of whole only if they are qualified to do it, not simply because they are members.
One might appeal to Aquinas' discussion of law as a counter-argument in favor of all being naturally entitled to citizenship:
But not all participate in the ordering in the right way - some order, some are ordered. And even those who order may not do so equally, for example the members of the family. While the wife (and to a lesser extent their children) may contribute to the deliberation of the household, the husband is the authority. I do not think Aquinas would dispute this point. There appears to be a significant difference between an individual directing himself and an individual being a part of a group. The differences between the members and the consequences of these on their relationships to one another (~social dynamics) are such that the group is not reducible to the totality of the individuals who comprise it. The act of legislation may be attributable to the community as a whole, but it is not necessary that all members of the community are equally the author of that act - there may be justified degrees of participation. While it may be proper that all members of a community be consulted concerning potential legislation (especially regarding its impact on the community), this does not entail that all should be legislators.
While I am sympathetic to the claim that the best constitution (or the one most amenable to Christian fraternity) is that of a republic, it is an ideal and not one that comes about naturally. The paideia that is required must be in place in order to bring a republic into being and to sustain it. Nowadays, it is not as important question as the problem of size and scale, a more pressing matter, not only because of the lack of ecological sustainability.
If it is not in accord with distributive justice that those who do not have the requisite virtue have a share in rule, and it is not unjust to prevent them from having it, could a valid consequentialist argument be made that if they were to have a share in rule that a worse state of affairs would result (e.g. there would be more disagreement and conflict, or the quality of the legislation would decrease as more compromises would have to be made to satisfy the demands of opposing factions)?
An additional question that needs to be addressed is whether men and women are equally suited to rule. But perhaps a more important consideration is the relationship of a man to his family as the husband and father and to other men as a member of a group.
Why is there not a universal, natural right to citizenship?
1. What is required for one to be able to order the community, or legislate, well? [Civic] prudence and the moral virtues.
2. What about being able to judge other people well, according to their character (rather than the platform that they espouse)? This requires experience, familiarity with virtue, and right opinion regarding moral precepts and the good, at least, if not knowledge.
These are not inborn traits; they must be acquired and they are contingent, not necessary. As a result, there can be no natural right since no one is "naturally" qualified to rule or to have some share in it. Some notion of [natural] individual dominion or sovereignty is inadequate to back up the claim that such a right exists. In accordance with distributive justice, then, the work of the whole should be done by all the members of whole only if they are qualified to do it, not simply because they are members.
One might appeal to Aquinas' discussion of law as a counter-argument in favor of all being naturally entitled to citizenship:
Now to order anything to the common good, belongs either to the whole people, or to someone who is the viceregent of the whole people. And therefore the making of a law belongs either to the whole people or to a public personage who has care of the whole people: since in all other matters the directing of anything to the end concerns him to whom the end belongs.The act of legislating belongs to the community as a whole in directing itself to its good - "since in all other matters the directing of anything to the end concerns him to whom the end belongs." This could be further explained by an appeal to dominion or sovereignty (though Aquinas does not do so in the Summa Theologiae).
But not all participate in the ordering in the right way - some order, some are ordered. And even those who order may not do so equally, for example the members of the family. While the wife (and to a lesser extent their children) may contribute to the deliberation of the household, the husband is the authority. I do not think Aquinas would dispute this point. There appears to be a significant difference between an individual directing himself and an individual being a part of a group. The differences between the members and the consequences of these on their relationships to one another (~social dynamics) are such that the group is not reducible to the totality of the individuals who comprise it. The act of legislation may be attributable to the community as a whole, but it is not necessary that all members of the community are equally the author of that act - there may be justified degrees of participation. While it may be proper that all members of a community be consulted concerning potential legislation (especially regarding its impact on the community), this does not entail that all should be legislators.
While I am sympathetic to the claim that the best constitution (or the one most amenable to Christian fraternity) is that of a republic, it is an ideal and not one that comes about naturally. The paideia that is required must be in place in order to bring a republic into being and to sustain it. Nowadays, it is not as important question as the problem of size and scale, a more pressing matter, not only because of the lack of ecological sustainability.
If it is not in accord with distributive justice that those who do not have the requisite virtue have a share in rule, and it is not unjust to prevent them from having it, could a valid consequentialist argument be made that if they were to have a share in rule that a worse state of affairs would result (e.g. there would be more disagreement and conflict, or the quality of the legislation would decrease as more compromises would have to be made to satisfy the demands of opposing factions)?
An additional question that needs to be addressed is whether men and women are equally suited to rule. But perhaps a more important consideration is the relationship of a man to his family as the husband and father and to other men as a member of a group.
Friday, September 07, 2012
IERS
Interdisciplinary Encyclopedia of Religion and Science
Just started to look at the website; Finalism and “The Aristotelian-Thomistic Concept of Nature and the Contemporary Debate on the Meaning of Natural Laws,” (pdf) by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti at the Pontifical Athenaeum of the Holy Cross.
See also the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences.
Just started to look at the website; Finalism and “The Aristotelian-Thomistic Concept of Nature and the Contemporary Debate on the Meaning of Natural Laws,” (pdf) by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti at the Pontifical Athenaeum of the Holy Cross.
See also the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences.
Thursday, September 06, 2012
Wednesday, September 05, 2012
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
Zenit: On the Law of God
"It leads man out of the slavery of egoism and brings him into the 'land' of true freedom and life"
"It leads man out of the slavery of egoism and brings him into the 'land' of true freedom and life"
In the Liturgy of the Word this Sunday the theme of God’s Law, of his commandment emerges. This is an essential element both in the Jewish and Christian religions. In the latter the Law of God finds its complete fulfillment in love (cf. Romans 13:10). God’s Law is his Word that guides man on his life’s journey, it leads him out of the slavery of egoism and brings him into the “land” of true freedom and life. For this reason in the Bible the Law is not seen as a burden, an oppressive limitation, but as a precious gift of the Lord, the witness of his paternal love, of his will to be near his people, of being their ally and writing a history of love with them.
Monday, September 03, 2012
Sunday, September 02, 2012
John Paul II on the Right to Citizenship
A reader left a link to Javier Hervada's The Principles of the Social Doctrine of the Church in the combox. It's been a while since I've looked at the essay. Professor Hervada is probably a good man (indeed I owe him for an act of generosity), and I may have even recommended his introduction on this blog at some point, but I wanted to call attention to one part which is probably problematic:
Given Professor Hervada's institutional affiliation one would expect that he not be critical of the opinion of a Roman pontiff. But there is something to be said about ultramontanism being an obstacle to the reforming of the Church.
(Is there a basis for the charges given by certain groups and personages against John Paul II?)
I was reminded how weak our current conception of citizenship is because a friend mentioned that he had passed the citizenship test not too long ago - a test based merely on "knowledge" rather than on demonstrated virtue.
The concept of dominion is used as a theoretical foundation for rights. Something I'll have to remember when reviewing his book on rights.
6. THE NATURAL RIGHTS OF THE HUMAN PERSON. One characteristic of the human person is self-mastery. This dominion has two aspects. First, control by reason and will over the other faculties makes a person's acts free and responsible; second, his being and the natural ends proper to it entitle the person to rights and liberties, as well as to duties, in his relations with others. These rights (and duties) a-e called natural rights (or fundamental rights--an expression much used by John XXIII) or inalienable rights of the human person (as John Paul II often calls them).So Professor Hervada is not offering his own opinion or giving his own synthesis of liberalism with CST - rather, he is citing a speech given by Pope John Paul II. Does Pope John Paul II endorse universal democracy as the most just form of government as well? I would argue that this opinion goes against an Aristotelian-Thomistic political theology, and probably against the dominant Catholic theological opinion before the 20th century.
Usually these rights are stated in general terms; it then belongs to the interpreter to explain them more precisely. The main fundamental rights are as follows (MM 11-27; UN--Address of John Paul II to the 36th General Assembly of the United Nations, Oct. 2. 1979):
...
18) the right to citizenship.
Given Professor Hervada's institutional affiliation one would expect that he not be critical of the opinion of a Roman pontiff. But there is something to be said about ultramontanism being an obstacle to the reforming of the Church.
(Is there a basis for the charges given by certain groups and personages against John Paul II?)
I was reminded how weak our current conception of citizenship is because a friend mentioned that he had passed the citizenship test not too long ago - a test based merely on "knowledge" rather than on demonstrated virtue.
The concept of dominion is used as a theoretical foundation for rights. Something I'll have to remember when reviewing his book on rights.
Saturday, September 01, 2012
CST and the United States
Catholic intellectuals and their quest to show how CST transcends the platform of both major political parties in the United States:
The Idol of Liberty
The Role of Government and the Battle over Catholic Social Teaching
The Unity of the Catholic Moral Vision
Let's get beyond the lecturing and start building some real community. Appeals to solidarity and the common good are rather useless if there is very little community to begin with; rather it is a mass aggregate of individuals who are strangers to one another. If they really got to know one another, you might be surprised how many divisions might appear, and while this may not be "ideal," it would be a necessary corrective, much to the dismay of those who live on sentimentalism.
The Idol of Liberty
The Role of Government and the Battle over Catholic Social Teaching
The Unity of the Catholic Moral Vision
Let's get beyond the lecturing and start building some real community. Appeals to solidarity and the common good are rather useless if there is very little community to begin with; rather it is a mass aggregate of individuals who are strangers to one another. If they really got to know one another, you might be surprised how many divisions might appear, and while this may not be "ideal," it would be a necessary corrective, much to the dismay of those who live on sentimentalism.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Too Little, Too Late?
That title could be applied to a lot of actions. Here's to not squandering it.
Rorate Caeli: For the record: a new motu proprio creating a Pontifical Academy of the Latin Language
Edit.
Latin rebirth in schools
Latin is about to undergo a renaissance in schools under plans being drawn up by the Vatican.
Rorate Caeli: For the record: a new motu proprio creating a Pontifical Academy of the Latin Language
Edit.
Latin rebirth in schools
Latin is about to undergo a renaissance in schools under plans being drawn up by the Vatican.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Insight Scoop: Vatican II and the Ecclesiology of Joseph Ratzinger
The Introduction to Joseph Ratzinger: Life in the Church and Living Theology—Fundamentals of Ecclesiology with Reference to Lumen Gentium by Fr. Maximilian Heinrich Heim
The Introduction to Joseph Ratzinger: Life in the Church and Living Theology—Fundamentals of Ecclesiology with Reference to Lumen Gentium by Fr. Maximilian Heinrich Heim
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
An allusion to a "remnant" Church?
Maybe, maybe not?
Pope suggests it’s best to be ‘honest’ and leave the Church if you don’t believe: HLI priest
Zenit: ON BELIEVING IN JESUS, BREAD OF LIFE
"In those words is foretold the paschal mystery of Jesus"
Pope explains how doubt was created in Judas
From earlier this year: John Allen, A Pope of Ironies
Pope suggests it’s best to be ‘honest’ and leave the Church if you don’t believe: HLI priest
Zenit: ON BELIEVING IN JESUS, BREAD OF LIFE
"In those words is foretold the paschal mystery of Jesus"
Pope explains how doubt was created in Judas
From earlier this year: John Allen, A Pope of Ironies
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Feast of St. Augustine of Hippo, 28 August
The Scriptural Roots of St. Augustine's Spirituality | Stephen N. Filippo | IgnatiusInsight.com
Dominicana: St. Augustine: Ever Ancient and Yet Ever New!
The extended trailer for Restless Heart:
A review of the movie.
Dominicana: St. Augustine: Ever Ancient and Yet Ever New!
The extended trailer for Restless Heart:
A review of the movie.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Byzantine, Texas: The explosive growth of Orthodoxy in Guatemala
Even though she is patroness of the Americas, is there much devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe outside of Mexico (and Mexican immigrant communities)?
Does Orthodoxy have better safeguards against syncretism? Is it because of a better model of inculturation? Or just better catechesis?
Even though she is patroness of the Americas, is there much devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe outside of Mexico (and Mexican immigrant communities)?
Does Orthodoxy have better safeguards against syncretism? Is it because of a better model of inculturation? Or just better catechesis?
Can we define what we mean by modernity, please?
Irony of Ironies: Vatican II Triumphs Over Moribund Modernity by Samuel Gregg
You don't need to reach the bottom of the essay to guess that the author is associated with the Acton Institute. Defenders of the liberal [dis-]order are apt to credit liberalism or capitalism with the development of new technology, the increase in longevity and decrease in morality, and so on, as if these developments could only happen because of the concentration of capital in the hands of the few.
You don't need to reach the bottom of the essay to guess that the author is associated with the Acton Institute. Defenders of the liberal [dis-]order are apt to credit liberalism or capitalism with the development of new technology, the increase in longevity and decrease in morality, and so on, as if these developments could only happen because of the concentration of capital in the hands of the few.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Metropolitan Hilarion in town?
Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk will visit USA to take part in celebrations on the occasion of 200th anniversary of Fort Ross
He will be celebrating the Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas tomorrow, at Holy Virgin Cathedral on Tuesday.
Fort Ross 2012 Bicentennial
Diocese of the West
From February: An Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev
IEC 2012: Br. Alois Löser, Dr. Maria Voce, Liturgy of Word and Water - June 11, 2012
He will be celebrating the Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas tomorrow, at Holy Virgin Cathedral on Tuesday.
Fort Ross 2012 Bicentennial
Diocese of the West
From February: An Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev
IEC 2012: Br. Alois Löser, Dr. Maria Voce, Liturgy of Word and Water - June 11, 2012
Friday, August 24, 2012
Clarifications on the Political Common Good
Solidarity, subsidiarity, and principled sanity by Carl E. Olson (via Insight Scoop)
A lot of people have made use of a picture of Inigo Montoya from Princess Bride and the quotation, "You Keep Using That Word, I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means," with reference to some disputed term or other. I think it would be humorous to make one of these photos with "common good."
Is the definition of the common good (along with subsidiarity), as put forth by contemporary CST and used by Mr. Olson, helpful? Yes, but primarily with reference to the modern nation-state. He cites the Compendium: "The common good of society is not an end in itself; it has value only in reference to attaining the ultimate ends of the person and the universal common good of the whole of creation. " The political common good, as "traditionally" understood by Thomists and Aristotelians, is not the same as the instrumental good defined by John XXIII and adopted into contemporary CST. The common good, the good of the community, is an end in itself - desirable for its own sake and not merely as a means to an end desired for itself. This does not mean that it is not subordinate to a "higher" end or good, like the supernatural common good (and man's ultimate end), God Himself. The common good, as defined within contemporary CST, may be an instrumental good to the political common good, but it is not identical to the political common good:
Can the second part of this section be harmonized with the first? If the common good is the "social and community [communal] dimension of the moral good [the life of virtue]" then is it the same as "the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more fully and more easily"?
As for Fr. Barron's essay -- "Now in Catholic social theory, subsidiarity is balanced by solidarity, which is to say, a keen sense of the common good, of the natural and supernatural connections that bind us to one another, of our responsibility for each other." Solidarity may be identified with the virtue of social justice (or legal justice), or with civic friendship, or both, depending on, of course, its definition. The Compendium:
Is the whole greater than the sum of its parts when we consider the [political] community and its members? Is legal justice distinct from civic friendship? I will have to address these questions at some other time. At some point I will also have to rewrite the discussion of how one cannot talk about common good if a community is mostly absent and the potential for community must be developed first, addressing the need for a common culture and a single identity, one people. Taking the United States as one nation, or polity, is a problem, because the scale is too big and the relationship between all of its members to one another too tenuous for the most part. Talking about the common good (and subsidiarity and solidarity) when the current political order (taken broadly as to referring not only to the federal government but also the culture and social order), or constitution in the Aristotelian sense, mitigates against it.
A lot of people have made use of a picture of Inigo Montoya from Princess Bride and the quotation, "You Keep Using That Word, I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means," with reference to some disputed term or other. I think it would be humorous to make one of these photos with "common good."
Is the definition of the common good (along with subsidiarity), as put forth by contemporary CST and used by Mr. Olson, helpful? Yes, but primarily with reference to the modern nation-state. He cites the Compendium: "The common good of society is not an end in itself; it has value only in reference to attaining the ultimate ends of the person and the universal common good of the whole of creation. " The political common good, as "traditionally" understood by Thomists and Aristotelians, is not the same as the instrumental good defined by John XXIII and adopted into contemporary CST. The common good, the good of the community, is an end in itself - desirable for its own sake and not merely as a means to an end desired for itself. This does not mean that it is not subordinate to a "higher" end or good, like the supernatural common good (and man's ultimate end), God Himself. The common good, as defined within contemporary CST, may be an instrumental good to the political common good, but it is not identical to the political common good:
The principle of the common good, to which every aspect of social life must be related if it is to attain its fullest meaning, stems from the dignity, unity and equality of all people. According to its primary and broadly accepted sense, the common good indicates “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more fully and more easily”.This instrumental good is explained as such by proponents of the New Natural Law Theory, for example. And yet there is use of language usually associated with the traditional [definition of the] common good:
The common good does not consist in the simple sum of the particular goods of each subject of a social entity. Belonging to everyone and to each person, it is and remains “common”, because it is indivisible and because only together is it possible to attain it, increase it and safeguard its effectiveness, with regard also to the future. Just as the moral actions of an individual are accomplished in doing what is good, so too the actions of a society attain their full stature when they bring about the common good. The common good, in fact, can be understood as the social and community dimension of the moral good.An explanation of how the common good is common, though it may have been better to explain how it is common or shared - not as belonging to them, like property (in which case common would be said in praedicando), but as a shared end. And in the next paragraph:
A society that wishes and intends to remain at the service of the human being at every level is a society that has the common good — the good of all people and of the whole person [347] — as its primary goal. The human person cannot find fulfilment in himself, that is, apart from the fact that he exists “with” others and “for” others. This truth does not simply require that he live with others at various levels of social life, but that he seek unceasingly — in actual practice and not merely at the level of ideas — the good, that is, the meaning and truth, found in existing forms of social life. No expression of social life — from the family to intermediate social groups, associations, enterprises of an economic nature, cities, regions, States, up to the community of peoples and nations — can escape the issue of its own common good, in that this is a constitutive element of its significance and the authentic reason for its very existence[348]
Can the second part of this section be harmonized with the first? If the common good is the "social and community [communal] dimension of the moral good [the life of virtue]" then is it the same as "the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more fully and more easily"?
As for Fr. Barron's essay -- "Now in Catholic social theory, subsidiarity is balanced by solidarity, which is to say, a keen sense of the common good, of the natural and supernatural connections that bind us to one another, of our responsibility for each other." Solidarity may be identified with the virtue of social justice (or legal justice), or with civic friendship, or both, depending on, of course, its definition. The Compendium:
Solidarity is also an authentic moral virtue, not a “feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so many people, both near and far. On the contrary, it is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good. That is to say to the good of all and of each individual, because we are all really responsible for all”[418]. Solidarity rises to the rank of fundamental social virtue since it places itself in the sphere of justice. It is a virtue directed par excellence to the common good, and is found in “a commitment to the good of one's neighbour with the readiness, in the Gospel sense, to ‘lose oneself' for the sake of the other instead of exploiting him, and to ‘serve him' instead of oppressing him for one's own advantage (cf. Mt 10:40-42, 20:25; Mk 10:42-45; Lk 22:25-27)”[419].I've already written about subsidiarity (as well as the contemporary notion of common good) and how these terms probably are better understood as reactions to the growth of the modern nation-state and polities that are too big for their own good, and the concomitant political and economic centralization. This may have been a conscious formulation for the first theorists, but those currently presenting CST as a basis for seeking political solutions may be unaware of the original contextual background of the terms.
Is the whole greater than the sum of its parts when we consider the [political] community and its members? Is legal justice distinct from civic friendship? I will have to address these questions at some other time. At some point I will also have to rewrite the discussion of how one cannot talk about common good if a community is mostly absent and the potential for community must be developed first, addressing the need for a common culture and a single identity, one people. Taking the United States as one nation, or polity, is a problem, because the scale is too big and the relationship between all of its members to one another too tenuous for the most part. Talking about the common good (and subsidiarity and solidarity) when the current political order (taken broadly as to referring not only to the federal government but also the culture and social order), or constitution in the Aristotelian sense, mitigates against it.
The Purpose of Education: A Catholic Primer by Stratford Caldecott
Discussing primarily the formation in the intellectual virtues, rather than in the moral virtues.
His Beauty in the Word is published by Angelico Press.
Discussing primarily the formation in the intellectual virtues, rather than in the moral virtues.
His Beauty in the Word is published by Angelico Press.
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