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)?
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One sign of rationalist orthodoxy is a marked disdain for particularist loyalties. Surely human beings will grow up and overcome these things!
I guess what I'm asking of the Catholic commentariat is a change in tone: drop the self-satisfied condescension and provide catechesis that persuades.
The National Catholic Reporter is mighty worried about the possibility of the Society of St. Pius X reconciling with Rome.