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Evangelical Catholicism

Evangelical Catholicism
Catholic theology, spirituality and praxis insisting on the centrality of Jesus Christ

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Articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Articles

Big Mouth Strikes Again
2007-06-18 05:13:00
I stumbled upon the following blusteringly brash remarks over at the Cafeteria is Closed:I know I know - because (a lot of) German theologians have a history of being whiny *******. (see also: Luther, Martin). Honestly, the word "theologian" makes me shudder the same way the word "liturgist" does. Now, obviously there are many good people who have these professions, but the major part of destruction comes from these two groups. I'd say that Pope Benedict is an atypical German theologian, maybe because he's Bavarian. I remember from my time in Austria the endless stream of whiny theologians, given ample space in the media. Even then, not Catholic, I thought, well if you dislike Church teaching so much, just bloody leave.German philosophy/theology in general tends to be a very painful matter. A common reaction to prolonged exposure is a certain discomfort with life, expressed maybe by "That's it, f*** it all."One often encounters such obviously uninformed commentary in the Catholic...
More About: Philosophy , Theology , Big Mouth , Mouth

Who's conceptually confused, Mahony or Neuhaus?
2007-06-16 04:06:00
Father Richard John Neuhaus has a post up today entitled "Who Speaks for the Church?" at the First Things On the Square blog. Neuhaus proffers scattered criticism of Roger Cardinal Mahony's presentation on immigration reform at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Without offering us any remedy for what he perceives to be the deficiencies in the Cardinal's presentation, Neuhaus consistently misrepresents Mahony, suggesting to me that Neuhaus has not carefully considered the force of the Cardinal's message. This all amounts to a disservice rendered by Neuhaus. He underestimates the knowledge and resource of his readers in this latest On the Square post by means of his irresponsible distortion of Mahony's message and accusation of Mahony being "conceptually confused" in his view of national sovereignty.Allow me to first fill-in the details conveniently left out in Neuhaus' post. The "account" to which Neuhaus refers was Cardinal Mahony's lead talk at the Fifth John ...
More About: Immigration , Once , Concept , Haus , Conceptual

The birds and the bees... how do you tell your children?
2007-06-14 18:32:00
I am working from home today, because I have a bad back pain and I was watching Rachael Ray's show, because I only have a handful of channels (that is the only reason why I would watch it). Her show today was about how to talk to children about S-E-X and I remembered of the time I found out what sex was all about. I was twelve and I was walking to school. One of my best friends was also my neighbor so she saw me walking to school and ran to meet me. She was laughing and covering her mouth and asked me: "do you really know where babies come from?" And at this point all I knew was that babies came whenever our mom and dad kissed each other, so she proceeded to tell me what REALLY happened, physically speaking. I guess that she just had the "sex talk" with her parents. My reaction? "Ewwwww!!" And I promised myself I would never go through that, so I was not going to get married... EVER!My parents never really talked to me about sex. We had many talks about modesty and waiting until ma...
More About: Family , Children , Birds , Bees , Tell

Catholics, Stop Supporting Amnesty International
2007-06-14 03:36:00
According to BBC news, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace is urging all Catholics to discontinue any monetary support for Amnesty International due to the organization's recent turn toward the promotion of abortion rights. BBC reports:The Vatican has urged all Catholics to stop donating money to Amnesty International , accusing the human rights group of promoting abortion. The Vatican also said it was suspending all financial aid to Amnesty over what it said was the group's recent change of policy on the issue. Amnesty said it was not promoting abortion as a universal right. But the group said that women had a right to choose, particularly in cases of rape or incest. "No more financing of Amnesty International after the organisation's pro-abortion about-turn," said a statement from the Roman Catholic Church's Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Zenit also reports on the issue, though it notes that it is Renato Cardinal Martino, the President of the Ponti...
More About: Stop

In search of the simple life (Part 1)
2007-06-13 17:53:00
I graduated Summa Cum Laude from College three years ago. I had a job lined up with one of the top ten Fortune 500 companies a semester before graduation. With relatively low experience in my field, my salary was still higher than 71% of the population in the U.S. In terms of how we view human achievement in contemporary society, one could say that I was quite successful at only 22 years of age. I thought so as well.It was not long until the experiences I lived in Venezuela came back to haunt me. Growing up in a third world country can be quite a challenge for someone with a Christian conscience and who also happens to be ?blessed? with more resources than most people. Poverty and destitution are there and you can?t avoid them. You can?t escape them. Living in a small town in Louisiana for the past seven and a half years had made it easy for me to forget the sufferings of many. Having moved to Houston recently has been a tremendous wake-up call for me. Big cities are also a challeng...
More About: Life , Spirituality , Search , Simple , Part

Catholics Against Rudy...all the way?
2007-06-12 18:47:00
There's a new online initiative going by the name Catholics Against Rudy . Slated to launch on July 4th, the site will focus on Rudy Giuliani's pro-choice views. Steve Dillard, one of the founders of Catholics Against Rudy, has unequivocally stated, "You cannot, in good conscience as a faithful Catholic, vote for Rudy Giuliani." This statement clearly extends beyond the more balanced statement of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger's memo to Cardinal McCarrick in 2004 as outlined in Ratzinger's nota bene section.Republican presidential hopeful Sam Brownback, a conservative darling among many pro-life Catholics, has already explicitly stated that he would support whoever earns the Republican nomination for the 2008 Presidential Race, even if that means publicly supporting Giuliani. I have posted on Brownback's pro-life backpedalling here. If Giuliani were to earn the Republican nomination, a very likely scenario, will Catholics Against Rudy continue its campaign beyond the Republican prima...
More About: Politics , Pro-Life

Catholics Against Rudy...all the way?
2007-06-12 18:47:00
There's a new online initiative going by the name Cath olics Against Rudy . Slated to launch on July 4th, the site will focus on Rudy Giuliani's pro-choice views. Steve Dillard, one of the founders of Catholics Against Rudy, has unequivocally stated, "You cannot, in good conscience as a faithful Catholic, vote for Rudy Giuliani." This statement clearly extends beyond the more balanced statement of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger's memo to Cardinal McCarrick in 2004 as outlined in Ratzinger's nota bene section.Republican presidential hopeful Sam Brownback, a conservative darling among many pro-life Catholics, has already explicitly stated that he would support whoever earns the Republican nomination for the 2008 Presidential Race, even if that means publicly supporting Giuliani. I have posted on Brownback's pro-life backpedalling here. If Giuliani were to earn the Republican nomination, a very likely scenario, will Catholics Against Rudy continue its campaign beyond the Republican prima...
More About: Politics , Pro-Life

Poll
2007-06-11 16:10:00
I am asking this question, because one of the Catholic bookstores here in Houston, Veritas, has a very politically charged book collection on their Social/Political section and they all happen to be Republican-party-oriented. They have Ann Coulter's books front and center and I was, of course, concerned. I know many Catholics, including our friends, who happen to like her, which is why I was concerned. If there would be a similar public person to Ann Coulter on the Democratic side endorsed by Catholics, I would be concerned as well, because Catholic bookstores are not the place to push political agendas.I proceeded to ask the two men in the register: "Why do you carry Ann Coulter's books in a Catholic bookstore? They replied, "because we like her and we agree with her and she is very pro-life." They proceeded: "in fact, we had her as a guest in a Foundation for Life meeting." I told them that Ann Coulter does not have a place in a Catholic bookstore. She promotes hate and racism. ...
More About: Politics , Poll

The Many Faces of Pope Benedict XVI
2007-06-10 21:48:00
Yesterday, Benedict XVI was also "in awe" of George W. Bush and especially of the sheer force of the hot air that passes for the President's foreign policy.
More About: Faces , Pope , Pope Benedict

The Many Faces of Pope Benedict XVI
2007-06-10 21:48:00
Yesterday, Bene dict XVI was also "in awe" of George W. Bush and especially of the sheer force of the hot air that passes for the President's foreign policy.
More About: Faces , Pope , The Man , Benedict

President Bush meets Pope Benedict for the first time
2007-06-10 06:55:00
According to President Bush , Pope Benedict XVI expressed his concerns about the fate of Christians in Iraq. At the same time, the pontiff claimed that he was watching the immigration legislation in the U.S. very closely. Other topics discussed were world hunger and AIDS.I am really glad to see the immigration issue be brought up, even though is not the president who is blocking this bill, but the party as a whole. Just absolutely sad. Immigration raids and deportations will probably keep increasing as they have in the past few weeks. Of course, they have not been covered by the news in English, because they are too busy figuring out whether Paris Hilton will end up in jail or not.Sorry. Just too frustrated on a Saturday night after realizing how the hope of millions of becoming legal residents is being crushed by a group of politicians who do not understand the true concept of family and life at all of its stages. Enough is enough.
More About: Politics , President Bush , Time

Video of man jumping into the popemobile
2007-06-07 00:43:00
Courtesy of the Times Online.
More About: Video , Jump , Mobi , Ping , Bile

Video of man jumping into the popemobile
2007-06-07 00:43:00
Courtesy of the Times Online.
More About: Video , Jumping

Brownback backpedals
2007-06-07 00:31:00
Cross-posted at Vox NovaI couldn't help but notice that, having spelled out his pro-life worldview and having insisted that the Republican party is "pro-life" by principle, Sam Brownback was a bit unprepared for the professorially attired and frequently interrupting Wolf Blitzer: Would Brownback support a pro-choice Republican nominee for the U.S. presidency (i.e. Rudy Giuliani)? Without explicitly stating that he would support Giuliani and without any hint of qualification, Brownback explicitly stated that he would support whichever candidate earns the Republican nomination. So, let's do a little deduction using one hypothetical, yet plausible premise (P2):P1: Brownback will support the Republican nominee for the U.S. presidency.P2: Rudy Giuliani is the Republican nominee for the U.S. presidency.P3: Rudy Giuliani is a pro-choice politician.Conclusion: Brownback will support a pro-choice politician for the U.S. presidency.Why do I point this out? Because I have curiously followed ...
More About: Pedal

New Blog
2007-06-06 15:47:00
One of our readers, Irenaeus, is currently an evangelical protestant who may convert to Catholicism or to Orthodoxy in the future. His blog, CatholiDoxies deals with the struggles associated with this process of discernment. Show Irenaeus your support and tell him why he should convert to Catholicism... because we have the Pope! :)
More About: Blog

The Ressourcement Movement in Catholic Theology (Part 1)
2007-06-06 00:26:00
Adapted from my guest post at Per Caritatem Historical ContextIf one were pressed to isolate a single trend with the contemporary Cath olic theological milieu whose powerful impact and enduring presence has most affected Catholicism from the top of the episcopal hierarchy down to the anonymous layperson in the pew, one would most certainly conclude that the ressourcement movement of twentieth century Catholic theology would be the only viable and worthy candidate for isolation. What began as a loose trend among a few Catholic scholars in the early twentieth century to rediscover the authentic thought of Thomas Aquinas burgeoned into a sweeping ecclesial tour de force emanating renewal and reform throughout academia and the Catholic Church itself. Indeed, the current shape of Catholic theology, spirituality and ecclesial perspective is by and large a direct product of the ressourcement movement.?Ressourcement? is a difficult word to define. There is no English equivalent to this Frenc...
More About: Theology , Part , Esso

The Ressourcement Movement in Catholic Theology (Part 1)
2007-06-06 00:26:00
Adapted from my guest post at Per Caritatem Historical ContextIf one were pressed to isolate a single trend with the contemporary Catholic theological milieu whose powerful impact and enduring presence has most affected Catholicism from the top of the episcopal hierarchy down to the anonymous layperson in the pew, one would most certainly conclude that the ressourcement movement of twentieth century Catholic theology would be the only viable and worthy candidate for isolation. What began as a loose trend among a few Catholic scholars in the early twentieth century to rediscover the authentic thought of Thomas Aquinas burgeoned into a sweeping ecclesial tour de force emanating renewal and reform throughout academia and the Catholic Church itself. Indeed, the current shape of Catholic theology, spirituality and ecclesial perspective is by and large a direct product of the ressourcement movement.?Ressourcement? is a difficult word to define. There is no English equivalent to this Frenc...
More About: Theology , Part

Convent sacked and occupied in Iraq
2007-06-01 18:35:00
H/T: Amy WelbornIt took place yesterday in Dora quarter; in a convent of the Chaldean sisters ofthe Sacred Heart. Local sources tell AsiaNews that Shiite groups are suspected,as they mimic the fierce Sunni campaign of persecution against Christians in thecapital. Today the first session of the Chaldean Church Synod opens in al Qosh.(more...)
More About: Iraq , Sacked

"True religion is individualistic"
2007-05-30 18:37:00
I have been traveling a bit in the past three weeks and one of my coworkers on this job happens to read a bit of philosophy, history, and religion, so our conversations during lunch are quite interesting. He happens to be very intrigued about the degree I am pursuing in theology and always asks me about why I am a Catholic and if my belief has been confirmed. Anyway, we started talking about religion and his search for the "true religion" and he proceeded to tell me that after so much searching and reading he had concluded that "true religion is individualistic." He referred to organized religion, but more or less to how the true search for God can only take place within an individual. He just does not believe that a religion should tell you how to find and understand God.I will write my thoughts later about what he said, but I would like to know how you would response to such claim?
More About: Religion , True Religion , True

Patriotism as a Virtue
2007-05-30 10:12:00
It seems to me that a clarification between the oft abused and misused notions of "patriotism" and "nationalism" is in order. There appears to be some confusion among readers of Vox Nova as to whether or not any or all of us here reject patriotism. I, for one, take patriotism to be a virtue, not least of all because of the word's etymological roots in the Latin patria, which means "fatherland" (the related Latin word for "father" is pater). M.Z. Forrest has already hinted at the crucial importance of the concept of patria here. When we consider our patria, the notion of "patrimony" ought to follow closely. Our patria, in its broad diversity and wide scope, instills in us values, spiritual principles and cultural identity. Even when we reflexively critique these values, prinicples and identity, they nevertheless serve to continually supply us with critical content. The reverence we hold for our patria is analogous to the reverence we hold for our pater (father) and mater (mother).Be...
More About: Patriotism , Virt , Virtue , Trio

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