The Christian faith is supposed to be one of good news. Sadly, the way many Christians speak to others, it seems to be anything but good news. Jesus came to save the world, not to condemn it (cf. Jn. 3:17); why, then, do so many Christians seek any and every way they can to condemn others in the name of the Lord? The good news has turned sour. The good news has become bad news as the proclamation of the... Read more
In the Mystical Theology, Dionysius explained how we must take away all that we hold to which stands between us and the truth if we want to truly apprehend the truth for ourselves. We must let the truth reveal itself to us in a form which we can receive instead of trying to rationalize our way to the truth. The form which we receive can change, as our ability to apprehend the truth can change. This is why the revealed... Read more
The world was created by God to be good by nature. “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Gen. 1:31a RSV). Everything which exists is good because of that existence. Everything which exists, in accordance to the nature given to it, is also good. Wherever goodness is found, the presence of God is to be found, giving his bountiful grace so that such goodness not only is preserved but is able to be... Read more
The writings of St. Clement of Alexandria have long been criticized and censored by those who thought they were scandalous. He was a convert, a philosopher, a humanist, a catechist, and a major patristic theologian who often reflected upon and engaged the views of a diverse group of thinkers, many of whom he contested but nonetheless thought their ideas were important enough to mention to his readers. He wanted Christians to know what was being said by Christians, non-Christians, and... Read more
While the truth must present itself to us, instead of us trying to establish and create it for ourselves, we can speak of it in various symbolic ways, even as we can and do encounter it through several such symbols. That is, as we grasp after the transcendent and we encounter it, we take back with us the various ways it reveals itself to us, giving us the means by which we can speak of it. In our love for... Read more
Abraham, the great patriarch and prophet, was called by God to live the life of a migrant: Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I... Read more
When asked by a scribe which commandment was the greatest of all, Jesus said that it was love – love for God first, and then love for one’s neighbor: Jesus answered, “The first is, `Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, `You shall love your... Read more
The truth is something which is revealed, and not something which we create or establish through our intellectual pursuits. This does not mean such pursuits are worthless. They are to be used to help us understand what has been revealed. What we can establish is a derivative representation of the truth, but such a representation is true so long as we do not hold it as absolute: we must let it participate in and unite with the absolute truth itself... Read more
The contamination and pollution of nature, caused by human sin, can be seen defacing the world over. Consumeristic greed enjoys the bounties of the world, the fruits of nature, while ignoring the needs of nature itself. Waters are polluted. The food which we eat is contaminated. The air we breathe is filled with various toxic fumes. The rain which comes down to water the ground is acidic, destroying what it touches. Climate changes, with excessive heat melting the polar ice... Read more
Hans Urs von Balthasar famously taught that we should hope that everyone will be saved. As I have explained in my book, The Eschatological Judgment of Christ, Balthasar’s hope was only that, a hope, not a certainty that all would be saved. He was hopeful that God’s desired end, the salvation of all, could happen, but he stood against those who thought they knew this would happen: he was not a universalist. Likewise, contrary to the way some might think... Read more
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