Theology: December 2010 Archives

Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro, the literature editor the Italian bi-weekly journal La Civiltà Cattolica published an article "Towards a 'Cybertheology'?" which will appear in the January 1st issue. Father Spadaro's summary: 

Lord of the universe.jpg
The intelligence of faith in the era of the Net - The Internet has become part of everyday life for many people, and for this reason it increasingly contributes to the construction of a religious identity of the people of our time, affecting their ability to understand reality, and therefore also to understand faith and their way of living it. The Net and the culture of cyberspace pose new challenges to our ability to formulate and listen to a symbolic language that speaks of possibility and of signs of transcendence in our lives.  Perhaps the time has arrived to consider the possibility of a cybertheology also understood as the intelligence of faith in the era of the Net. It would be the fruit of faith that releases from itself a cognitive boost at a time in which the logic of the Net influences the way we think, learn, communicate and live.

Note of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

On the trivilization of sexuality regarding

certain interpretations of Light of the World

Following the publication of the interview-book Light of the World by Benedict XVI, a number of erroneous interpretations have emerged which have caused confusion concerning the position of the Catholic Church regarding certain questions of sexual morality. The thought of the Pope has been repeatedly manipulated for ends and interests which are entirely foreign to the meaning of his words - a meaning which is evident to anyone who reads the entire chapters in which human sexuality is treated. The intention of the Holy Father is clear: to rediscover the beauty of the divine gift of human sexuality and, in this way, to avoid the cheapening of sexuality which is common today.

Some interpretations have presented the words of the Pope as a contradiction of the traditional moral teaching of the Church. This hypothesis has been welcomed by some as a positive change and lamented by others as a cause of concern - as if his statements represented a break with the doctrine concerning contraception and with the Church's stance in the fight against AIDS. In reality, the words of the Pope - which specifically concern a gravely disordered type of human behaviour, namely prostitution (cf. Light of the World, pp. 117-119) - do not signify a change in Catholic moral teaching or in the pastoral practice of the Church.


Where is heaven?

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Heaven does not belong to the geography of space, but to the geography of the heart. And the heart of God, during the Holy Night, stooped down to the stable: the humility of God is Heaven. And if we approach this humility, then we touch Heaven. Then the Earth too is made new. With the humility of the shepherds, let us set out, during this Holy Night, towards the Child in the stable! Let us touch God's humility, God's heart! Then his joy will touch us and will make the world more radiant. Amen.

Pope Benedict XVI
Christmas Homily, 2007
The Pope met yesterday with the members of the International Theological Commission in plenary session, a bi-annual meeting, though I think the Pope only meets in a plenary session with the ITC once a year. I am familiar with several members of the group and I can attest to their diligent and honest work in theology for the good of the entire Church. The work of the ITC deals with some of the most interesting theological and philosophical questions these days. The ITC is working on questions of theological methodology, the question of one God for the 3 monotheistic religions and question of the Church's social doctrine in the context of Christian doctrine. The ITC documentation is published in various languages and useful for one's own theological reflection. There are several important points the makes about the vocation of a theologian and the nature of theology. He reminds us, namely, that a theologian does not work in a solitary way, that faith and reason are intrinsically linked and that theology is outward thinking and acting. Benedict XVI's address to the ITC follows:

I receive you with joy at the end of your annual plenary session. I would like first of all to express my heartfelt gratitude for the words of homage that, on behalf of all, Your Eminence, in his capacity of president of the International Theological Commission, addressed to me. The work of this eighth "quinquennium" of the commission, as you recalled, addresses the following very weighty topics: theology and its methodology; the question of the one God in relation to the three monotheistic religions; the integration of the social doctrine of the Church in the wider context of Christian doctrine.

"For the love of Christ impels us, once we have come to the conviction that one died for all; therefore, all have died. He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised" (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). How can we not make our own this beautiful reaction of the Apostle Paul to his encounter with the risen Christ? In fact this experience is at the root of the three important topics on which you reflected in your plenary session that has just ended.

About the author

Paul A. Zalonski is from New Haven, CT. He is a member of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation, a Catholic ecclesial movement and an Oblate of Saint Benedict. Contact Paul at paulzalonski[at]yahoo.com.

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This page is a archive of entries in the Theology category from December 2010.

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