A Penny Catechism (for Philosophers)
EDITORIAL
Fides et Ratio (FR) “Faith and Reason,” the Holy Father’s new encyclical, is an old philosopher’s gift to Mother Church, and it calls us to our lessons.
Warm-up question: What did The New York Times say in its news section?
The Times reported that the encyclical signals “paradoxes” — we have a papacy “marked by a return to rigid conformity in doctrinal matters,” and yet we have a Pope who “still meets regularly with scholars to debate ideas….”
Hmm. Was the Times’s dumbfounded woman on the beat, Alessandra Stanley, perhaps angling for an invitation? Are there scholarship funds (not that she’d really need them)?
You May Also Enjoy
How to Eliminate the Poor... You Can Criticize Bad Bishops, But Don't You Dare Criticize the Pope Who Appointed Them... Wise Advice From a Vocations Director... What's Good for the Corporations Is Good for America... Wily Guys... A New Catholic Community... The Beat Goes On... In Vitro Clinics Are Death Camps... A Pox On Both Your Houses... "Relevant Public Authorities"?...
Calling women "sweethearts" is "sexist stereotyping" and "patronizing"?
As Pascal notes in his essay "The Art of Persuasion," people base their beliefs less on proof than on the basis of attraction.