Faith & Reason: June 2011 Archives

The Pontifical Council for Culture has been doing some good work in promoting serious dialogue among those who work in science, the humanities and theology. You may be familiar with the Council's "Science, Theology and the Ontological  Quest" (STOQ Project). The most recent collaboration has been with NeoStem in organizing a forthcoming conference dealing with the theme of "Adult Stem Cells: Science and the Future of Man and Culture." Regenerative medicine is now on the front burner for dialogue and research among scientists, theologians and pastors. This field of study has wide applications for work in culture, law, theology, pastoral practice, scientific research and practical application for all peoples on the planet.

The Council for Culture is working also with the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers to give a united front and clear witness to the importance of this topic to all interested parties.

The Pope's "Together in Christ" two day visit of Croatia was significant for several reasons. For him, and I think for all of us who were either physically in Zagreb or tuned via the media, time spent with the Croatians was monumental because it clearly exhibited the "dynamism of communion." (What visit of a pope is insignificant, the wag asks?) In his own words, the Benedict reviews the events he and the world lived with him in this way:

• "the experience of finding ourselves together united in the name of Christ,
• the experience of being Church, which is manifested ... around the Successor of Peter. 
• 'Together in Christ' referred in a particular way to the family (... the occasion of my visit was the First National Day of Croatian Catholic Families...

It was very important for me to confirm in the faith especially these families that the Second Vatican Council called "domestic churches" (cf. Lumen Gentium, 11). 

In today's Europe [and one can extend this to the globe], nations with a strong Christian tradition have a special responsibility to defend and promote the value of the family founded on marriage, which remains decisive both within the field of education as well as in the social sphere."

The past week the news has been consumed by the Anthony Weiner fiasco. His mis-use of Twitter is obviously very regrettable and it ought to cause each of us on Net to pause and ask ourselves: Are we doing good --are we responsible-- by having a digital presence? What can be learned from Weiner (his own political fate has yet to be decided)? One lesson to learn: don't let virtual replace the dignity of the personal relationship. The the thrill Weiner may have had for a second has vanished all-too-quickly to be real.