Friday, September 25, 2009

Friday evening's lecture

Fr. John M. McDermott, S.J. "Benedit XVI and the Faith-Reason Relation." Here are a few things that I jotted down during the lecture, not necessarily attributable to the lecturer -- either approximations of what he said or thoughts which his lecture brought to mind:
The separation of reason and faith is tantamount to the separation of nature and grace, and that separation leads inevitably to either fundamentalism (fideism) or liberalism (relativism).

Understanding goes deeper than knowledge, because, as the word implies, it is knowledge that is inseparable from taking a stand.

Augustine's "You made us for yourself O Lord and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee" correlates with Thomas Aquinas' "God leaves a wound in the human heart which only He can heal."

Or (again Thomas): "The light of faith makes it possible to see what is believed." Now there is an important insight!

Or, Ratzinger/Benedict: The mystery can be seen only by someone who lives it."
More anon.

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