Ecce Verbum
Observe Aristotle on the Magnanimous Man: “he therefore to whom even honour is a small thing will be indifferent to other things as well... haughty towards men of position and fortune, but courteous towards those of moderate station... He will not compete…
True Christian virtue of magnanimity vs magnanimity in pagan aristotelian conception
Aristotle thought of man in relation to man, not in relation to God
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men" p.77-80
#virtue #moraltheology
Aristotle thought of man in relation to man, not in relation to God
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men" p.77-80
#virtue #moraltheology
Ecce Verbum
The attributes of God 2. God is good and merciful It follows from the holiness of God that He is infinitely good and merciful. What exactly do the qualities of goodness and mercy mean in relation to God? It is not about being morally good (holiness), but…
The attributes of God
3.God's Justice and Mercy are inseparable
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermon 6 on the Song of Songs
"Happy is the man then in whose soul the Lord Jesus once sets these feet of his. There are two signs by which you may recognize such a one, for he cannot but bear upon him the imprint of these divine footsteps. These signs are fear and hope, the former presenting the imprint of judgment, the latter that of mercy. Truly, the Lord takes pleasure in them that fear him, and in them that hope in his mercy, for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, hope the growth of wisdom. Its perfection charity reserves to itself. If all this be true, then obviously this first kiss, given to the feet, brings forth no small fruit. But of one thing you must beware, that you do not neglect either of these feet. If, for instance, you feel deep sorrow for your sins along with the fear of the judgment, you have pressed your lips on the imprint of truth and of judgment. But if you temper that fear and sorrow with the thought of God's goodness and the hope of obtaining his pardon, you will realize that you have also embraced the foot of his mercy. It is clearly inexpedient to kiss one without the other; a man who thinks only of the judgment will fall into the pit of despair, another who deceitfully flatters God's mercy gives birth to a pernicious security."
3.God's Justice and Mercy are inseparable
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermon 6 on the Song of Songs
"Happy is the man then in whose soul the Lord Jesus once sets these feet of his. There are two signs by which you may recognize such a one, for he cannot but bear upon him the imprint of these divine footsteps. These signs are fear and hope, the former presenting the imprint of judgment, the latter that of mercy. Truly, the Lord takes pleasure in them that fear him, and in them that hope in his mercy, for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, hope the growth of wisdom. Its perfection charity reserves to itself. If all this be true, then obviously this first kiss, given to the feet, brings forth no small fruit. But of one thing you must beware, that you do not neglect either of these feet. If, for instance, you feel deep sorrow for your sins along with the fear of the judgment, you have pressed your lips on the imprint of truth and of judgment. But if you temper that fear and sorrow with the thought of God's goodness and the hope of obtaining his pardon, you will realize that you have also embraced the foot of his mercy. It is clearly inexpedient to kiss one without the other; a man who thinks only of the judgment will fall into the pit of despair, another who deceitfully flatters God's mercy gives birth to a pernicious security."
Internet Archive
St. Bernard on the Song of Songs : St Bernard of Clairvaux, Edited by Darrell Wright : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet…
Famous commentary by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux on the Old Testament book, The Song of Songs, or Canticle of Canticles.
Ecce Verbum
Photo
Christian virtue of humility vs humility in the pagan world
The gods of the ancient world gave poor examples of morality
"He who gathers virtues without humility is like the man who carries dust against the wind." (St. Gregory)
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men" p.80-85
#virtue #moraltheology #humility
The gods of the ancient world gave poor examples of morality
"He who gathers virtues without humility is like the man who carries dust against the wind." (St. Gregory)
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men" p.80-85
#virtue #moraltheology #humility
What is an act of Faith
According to Catholic teaching, the act of faith is an act of reason, because it is the recognition of the truth revealed by God, and the recognition of truth is a matter of reason. Reason is therefore important in the act of faith. According to the profession of faith prescribed by St. Pius X: "faith is the true consent of reason".
According to Protestants*, the act of faith is not an act of reason, but of will, because it consists in trusting in the forgiveness of sins (this trust is justifying).*(This is only a generalization, as we have many different Protestant factions that may understand faith slightly differently). Protestantism reduces the essence of faith to trust in the salvation obtained by Christ ("only effective if..."), and this is a matter of will, not reason. (However, Fr. Sieniatycki does not claim that, according to Protestants, the awakening of this trust is not preceded by any acts of reason). However, this can be seen more clearly in the words of Martin Luther.
According to modernists, the act of faith is an act of will and feeling, because by feeling the presence of God within oneself, a person comes into contact with Him and has childlike trust and love for Him.
Reason also precedes the act of faith itself, because in order to awaken rational faith, a person must first know whether God is credible and be sure that a given truth has been revealed by God. God's trustworthiness and the fact of revealing a given truth are premises that must precede the act of faith
The will also influences the act of faith, because it prompts the mind to examine religious matters. Since revealed truth may pose difficulties on the part of reason, reason itself, without the influence of the will, cannot agree to a given truth, because reason necessarily agrees only to visible truths.
The Church clearly teaches that the act of faith is a voluntary act. It comes from reason, but at the command of the will, because the freedom of an act flows from the will. The Holy Scripture promises believers a reward and threatens unbelievers with punishment, and a person can only be rewarded or punished for voluntary deeds.
Grace is necessary for divine faith. The act of faith requires many sacrifices and efforts from the mind and will. This cannot be done without God's grace. For the will to cope with all this, it must have a strong desire to believe, and it is a dogma of faith that this kind of affect of faith is impossible without grace.
Reason needs grace when examining the premises of faith. Also, in the act of faith itself, grace is needed for the act to be supernatural and for the will, which voluntarily commands consent to reason, to be willing to give this order, despite the heavy consequences for it.
Divine faith is necessarily connected with truth, so it is absolutely impossible to have theological faith in a false proposition or in an unrevealed truth. Belief in heresy or unrevealed truth is a purely human act and cannot be supported by grace. So it is not a theological faith.
Confidence is the strong adherence of the mind to a certain proposition as true, without fear of making mistakes. The act of faith excludes voluntary doubt, but does not exclude involuntary doubt. Since reason has no evidence of the truth to which it clings, involuntary doubts may arise in it.
Faith is certainty and has the highest certainty because it is based on the highest motive of certainty, which is the truthful and infallible God. Therefore, it is a mistake to call faith an accumulation of probabilities or to treat it as something uncertain.
Faith is the firm acceptance of a statement as truth because of someone else's testimony. Therefore, it differs from an opinion, which is an acceptance of a statement as true, but combined with the possibility of error. It differs from knowledge, which is the acceptance of a proposition as truth for its visibility, not for its testimony.
🔗 continued
Outline of Catholic Dogmatics, fr. dr. M. Sieniatycki
#dogma #fidesetratio
According to Catholic teaching, the act of faith is an act of reason, because it is the recognition of the truth revealed by God, and the recognition of truth is a matter of reason. Reason is therefore important in the act of faith. According to the profession of faith prescribed by St. Pius X: "faith is the true consent of reason".
According to Protestants*, the act of faith is not an act of reason, but of will, because it consists in trusting in the forgiveness of sins (this trust is justifying).*(This is only a generalization, as we have many different Protestant factions that may understand faith slightly differently). Protestantism reduces the essence of faith to trust in the salvation obtained by Christ ("only effective if..."), and this is a matter of will, not reason. (However, Fr. Sieniatycki does not claim that, according to Protestants, the awakening of this trust is not preceded by any acts of reason). However, this can be seen more clearly in the words of Martin Luther.
According to modernists, the act of faith is an act of will and feeling, because by feeling the presence of God within oneself, a person comes into contact with Him and has childlike trust and love for Him.
Reason also precedes the act of faith itself, because in order to awaken rational faith, a person must first know whether God is credible and be sure that a given truth has been revealed by God. God's trustworthiness and the fact of revealing a given truth are premises that must precede the act of faith
The will also influences the act of faith, because it prompts the mind to examine religious matters. Since revealed truth may pose difficulties on the part of reason, reason itself, without the influence of the will, cannot agree to a given truth, because reason necessarily agrees only to visible truths.
The Church clearly teaches that the act of faith is a voluntary act. It comes from reason, but at the command of the will, because the freedom of an act flows from the will. The Holy Scripture promises believers a reward and threatens unbelievers with punishment, and a person can only be rewarded or punished for voluntary deeds.
Grace is necessary for divine faith. The act of faith requires many sacrifices and efforts from the mind and will. This cannot be done without God's grace. For the will to cope with all this, it must have a strong desire to believe, and it is a dogma of faith that this kind of affect of faith is impossible without grace.
Reason needs grace when examining the premises of faith. Also, in the act of faith itself, grace is needed for the act to be supernatural and for the will, which voluntarily commands consent to reason, to be willing to give this order, despite the heavy consequences for it.
Divine faith is necessarily connected with truth, so it is absolutely impossible to have theological faith in a false proposition or in an unrevealed truth. Belief in heresy or unrevealed truth is a purely human act and cannot be supported by grace. So it is not a theological faith.
Confidence is the strong adherence of the mind to a certain proposition as true, without fear of making mistakes. The act of faith excludes voluntary doubt, but does not exclude involuntary doubt. Since reason has no evidence of the truth to which it clings, involuntary doubts may arise in it.
Faith is certainty and has the highest certainty because it is based on the highest motive of certainty, which is the truthful and infallible God. Therefore, it is a mistake to call faith an accumulation of probabilities or to treat it as something uncertain.
Faith is the firm acceptance of a statement as truth because of someone else's testimony. Therefore, it differs from an opinion, which is an acceptance of a statement as true, but combined with the possibility of error. It differs from knowledge, which is the acceptance of a proposition as truth for its visibility, not for its testimony.
🔗 continued
Outline of Catholic Dogmatics, fr. dr. M. Sieniatycki
#dogma #fidesetratio
Classification of theological statements
Theology is a scientific reflection on the entire doctrine revealed by God and transmitted by the Church. Not all theological statements have the same importance, hence we distinguish the so-called theological degrees.
Since theology, supervised by the Magisterium of the Church, not only collects and explains the truths revealed directly by God, but also draws further conclusions from them, we distinguish several degrees of theological certainty (notae theologicae).
The first and most important category includes truths of faith (De fide statements): 1. De fide divina (the truth of divine faith) 2. De fide divina et catholica definita (the truth of the divine and Catholic faith) - the so-called dogmas 3. De fide ecclesiastica (the truth of the church faith).
The first type (de fide divina) includes all truths of faith formally revealed by God, which are found in the sources of Revelation (Holy Scripture and Tradition). We believe in them for the sole authority of the infallible God who revealed them.
In the scope of the second type (de fide divina et catholica definita) there are truths of faith that come from the scope of the first type, but are also presented to believers by the Church. We believe in them for the sake of the authority of God and the authority of the Church.
All truths of faith that are revealed by God and as such are given by the Church to believers are called dogmas. Due to the fact that the Church gives them through solemn or ordinary teaching, we distinguish solemn and ordinary dogmas.
A solemn dogma is any truth of faith presented to believers through a solemn dogmatic definition, which may be given by the Council or by the Pope speaking ex cathedra.
Ordinary dogma is any truth of faith presented to believers through ordinary teaching, i.e. other documents of the Magisterium and legal church authorities implementing universal teaching. The Church is infallible in administering solemn and ordinary dogmas.
The infallibility of the Church in defining these truths is necessary because they are statements that require divine faith to accept them as certain, and this would not be prudent if there was a risk of error on the part of those who define them. God's assistance ensures infallibility.
The third category (de fide ecclesiastica) are truths that are not directly revealed by God, but are closely related to Revelation, and in order to ensure the consistency of faith, the Church also remains infallible when stating them. We believe in them with ecclesiastical faith.
These truths include all dogmatic facts and theological conclusions (conclusion from two truths: the truth revealed by God and the truth available by the natural light of reason), which are definitively given by the Church.
Denying all types of truths from this first category is the so-called heresy, the conscious and persistent confession of which excludes from the Church and constitutes the matter of a grave sin against the Holy Spirit.
The second category are theological statements (sententia), which are not truths of faith, but contain a high degree of certainty: 1. Proxima fidei (close to faith) 2. Certa (certain) 3. Communis (universal) 4. Probabilis (probable).
Statements close to faith (proxima fidei) are those that are almost unanimously recognized by theologians as truths of faith, but have not been finally confirmed by the Magisterium (Teaching Office of the Catholic Church). Denying them is an attitude close to heresy and constitutes sin.
Certain statements (certa) are those that have not been yet confirmed by the Magisterium, but their truthfulness (as strictly resulting from Revelation) is based on scientific (rational) certainty provided by theology under the supervision of the Church. Denying them is called error.
Common opinions (communis) are those statements that belong to the set of voluntary religious views, but their certainty is based on the consent of the majority of Catholic theologians in harmony with the Church.
🔗part 2, sources
🔗BVI's commentary
#dogma
Theology is a scientific reflection on the entire doctrine revealed by God and transmitted by the Church. Not all theological statements have the same importance, hence we distinguish the so-called theological degrees.
Since theology, supervised by the Magisterium of the Church, not only collects and explains the truths revealed directly by God, but also draws further conclusions from them, we distinguish several degrees of theological certainty (notae theologicae).
The first and most important category includes truths of faith (De fide statements): 1. De fide divina (the truth of divine faith) 2. De fide divina et catholica definita (the truth of the divine and Catholic faith) - the so-called dogmas 3. De fide ecclesiastica (the truth of the church faith).
The first type (de fide divina) includes all truths of faith formally revealed by God, which are found in the sources of Revelation (Holy Scripture and Tradition). We believe in them for the sole authority of the infallible God who revealed them.
In the scope of the second type (de fide divina et catholica definita) there are truths of faith that come from the scope of the first type, but are also presented to believers by the Church. We believe in them for the sake of the authority of God and the authority of the Church.
All truths of faith that are revealed by God and as such are given by the Church to believers are called dogmas. Due to the fact that the Church gives them through solemn or ordinary teaching, we distinguish solemn and ordinary dogmas.
A solemn dogma is any truth of faith presented to believers through a solemn dogmatic definition, which may be given by the Council or by the Pope speaking ex cathedra.
Ordinary dogma is any truth of faith presented to believers through ordinary teaching, i.e. other documents of the Magisterium and legal church authorities implementing universal teaching. The Church is infallible in administering solemn and ordinary dogmas.
The infallibility of the Church in defining these truths is necessary because they are statements that require divine faith to accept them as certain, and this would not be prudent if there was a risk of error on the part of those who define them. God's assistance ensures infallibility.
The third category (de fide ecclesiastica) are truths that are not directly revealed by God, but are closely related to Revelation, and in order to ensure the consistency of faith, the Church also remains infallible when stating them. We believe in them with ecclesiastical faith.
These truths include all dogmatic facts and theological conclusions (conclusion from two truths: the truth revealed by God and the truth available by the natural light of reason), which are definitively given by the Church.
Denying all types of truths from this first category is the so-called heresy, the conscious and persistent confession of which excludes from the Church and constitutes the matter of a grave sin against the Holy Spirit.
The second category are theological statements (sententia), which are not truths of faith, but contain a high degree of certainty: 1. Proxima fidei (close to faith) 2. Certa (certain) 3. Communis (universal) 4. Probabilis (probable).
Statements close to faith (proxima fidei) are those that are almost unanimously recognized by theologians as truths of faith, but have not been finally confirmed by the Magisterium (Teaching Office of the Catholic Church). Denying them is an attitude close to heresy and constitutes sin.
Certain statements (certa) are those that have not been yet confirmed by the Magisterium, but their truthfulness (as strictly resulting from Revelation) is based on scientific (rational) certainty provided by theology under the supervision of the Church. Denying them is called error.
Common opinions (communis) are those statements that belong to the set of voluntary religious views, but their certainty is based on the consent of the majority of Catholic theologians in harmony with the Church.
🔗part 2, sources
🔗BVI's commentary
#dogma
Ecce Verbum
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Cooperation of Church and state in nurturing virtue in society; complete separation of Church and state is not possible
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men", p.89-91
#virtue #socialteaching
🔗source
Fr Joseph Rickaby "Four Cardinal Virtues, addresses to young men", p.89-91
#virtue #socialteaching
Ecce Verbum
The attributes of God 3.God's Justice and Mercy are inseparable St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermon 6 on the Song of Songs "Happy is the man then in whose soul the Lord Jesus once sets these feet of his. There are two signs by which you may recognize such a…
The attributes of God
4.God is a just judge who rewards good and punishes evil
Justice can be understood in many ways. In the Bible, the adjective righteous very often simply means a person who behaves well or is holy, i.e., someone who has God's grace. Justice understood in this way is synonymous with holiness.
Of course, also in a broader sense, God is just, but the Church more often uses the word "holy" to describe this feature. However, justice in the strict sense means "a constant and lasting will to give to everyone what is due to him by law"
The truth of faith that God is just refers to justice in this strict sense. God's justice in giving fair reward to creatures is expressed in two main dimensions: natural (temporal) and supernatural (eternal).
In the natural dimension: Since He gave existence to creatures and intended them for a certain purpose, it is proper to His wisdom to give creatures what they absolutely need in order to exist and be able to achieve the goal assigned to them. The expression of justice is God's Providence at work.
In the natural and supernatural dimension: God is responsible (due to His truthfulness and faithfulness) in keeping His promises, to administer the promised reward and the due punishment justly, i.e. not to give reward lesser than the merit and not to punish beyond one's guilt.
With this approach mercy is not contrary to justice, because it only means rewarding beyond merit or punishing less than deserved, and this does not violate justice, but is indeed something higher than justice.
God is just in rewarding and punishing, both temporally and eternally, which means that He never punishes more than a person owes, nor does he reward less than a person deserves.
This does not mean, however, that he cannot pour out his reward more abundantly than he should, and forgive punishment, which is clearly visible in the supernatural (eternal) order, i.e. in the order of grace. Those who accept His grace receive, in addition to just reward, much mercy.
Those who reject graces for the rest of their lives will receive only just reward, since they did not want to take advantage of the gift of mercy. Even though it is difficult to see just reward in this life, His just judgments will be clearly revealed to us in eternity.
Therefore, the truth that "God is just" should be referred primarily to God's judgment, and this is what the sentence refers to: "God is a just judge who rewards good and punishes evil." It is at the Last Judgment that justice will be fulfilled in all of creation.
It is worth adding that an error contrary to the truth of faith about God's justice is the claim that all God's punishments are aimed only at the correction of the sinner, because the penalty of eternal damnation excludes the possibility of correction and is pure justice.
The justice of God is clearly confirmed in numerous places by Sacred Scripture and Tradition (God's Revelation). St Paul writes: "Finally there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day" [2 Tim 4:8]
Also in the letter to the Romans he announces "the just judgment of God, who will reward everyone according to their deeds" [Rom 2:5]. "Whoever gives you a cup of water to drink, because you are Christ's, will not lose his reward" [Mark 9:1]
Revelation confirms God's justice also in punishment. This is proven by the announcement announced in many places in Holy Scripture. punishment of eternal damnation: "they will gather ... those who practice iniquity and throw them into the fiery furnace" [Mt 13, 41-42]
Gnostics separated the just God of Old Covenants from the gracious God of the Gospel. The Fathers of the Church showed that the Gospel also proclaims God's justice in rewarding and punishing.
St Irenaeus, in his work Adversus haereses, defended the thesis that the world is ruled by a just God who punishes the wicked and blesses the pious.. Moreover, ancient Christians widely believed in the punishment of eternal damnation.
🔗continued
4.God is a just judge who rewards good and punishes evil
Justice can be understood in many ways. In the Bible, the adjective righteous very often simply means a person who behaves well or is holy, i.e., someone who has God's grace. Justice understood in this way is synonymous with holiness.
Of course, also in a broader sense, God is just, but the Church more often uses the word "holy" to describe this feature. However, justice in the strict sense means "a constant and lasting will to give to everyone what is due to him by law"
The truth of faith that God is just refers to justice in this strict sense. God's justice in giving fair reward to creatures is expressed in two main dimensions: natural (temporal) and supernatural (eternal).
In the natural dimension: Since He gave existence to creatures and intended them for a certain purpose, it is proper to His wisdom to give creatures what they absolutely need in order to exist and be able to achieve the goal assigned to them. The expression of justice is God's Providence at work.
In the natural and supernatural dimension: God is responsible (due to His truthfulness and faithfulness) in keeping His promises, to administer the promised reward and the due punishment justly, i.e. not to give reward lesser than the merit and not to punish beyond one's guilt.
With this approach mercy is not contrary to justice, because it only means rewarding beyond merit or punishing less than deserved, and this does not violate justice, but is indeed something higher than justice.
God is just in rewarding and punishing, both temporally and eternally, which means that He never punishes more than a person owes, nor does he reward less than a person deserves.
This does not mean, however, that he cannot pour out his reward more abundantly than he should, and forgive punishment, which is clearly visible in the supernatural (eternal) order, i.e. in the order of grace. Those who accept His grace receive, in addition to just reward, much mercy.
Those who reject graces for the rest of their lives will receive only just reward, since they did not want to take advantage of the gift of mercy. Even though it is difficult to see just reward in this life, His just judgments will be clearly revealed to us in eternity.
Therefore, the truth that "God is just" should be referred primarily to God's judgment, and this is what the sentence refers to: "God is a just judge who rewards good and punishes evil." It is at the Last Judgment that justice will be fulfilled in all of creation.
It is worth adding that an error contrary to the truth of faith about God's justice is the claim that all God's punishments are aimed only at the correction of the sinner, because the penalty of eternal damnation excludes the possibility of correction and is pure justice.
The justice of God is clearly confirmed in numerous places by Sacred Scripture and Tradition (God's Revelation). St Paul writes: "Finally there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day" [2 Tim 4:8]
Also in the letter to the Romans he announces "the just judgment of God, who will reward everyone according to their deeds" [Rom 2:5]. "Whoever gives you a cup of water to drink, because you are Christ's, will not lose his reward" [Mark 9:1]
Revelation confirms God's justice also in punishment. This is proven by the announcement announced in many places in Holy Scripture. punishment of eternal damnation: "they will gather ... those who practice iniquity and throw them into the fiery furnace" [Mt 13, 41-42]
Gnostics separated the just God of Old Covenants from the gracious God of the Gospel. The Fathers of the Church showed that the Gospel also proclaims God's justice in rewarding and punishing.
St Irenaeus, in his work Adversus haereses, defended the thesis that the world is ruled by a just God who punishes the wicked and blesses the pious.. Moreover, ancient Christians widely believed in the punishment of eternal damnation.
🔗continued
Ecce Verbum
The Code of Chivalry * Medieval Codes of Chivalry usually contain universal ideals and can be useful when comparing how our ideas about chivalry and/or honor have changed with time. Some of them have become culturally outdated and wouldn't be as useful anymore…
Creating Chivalry
Cluniac Monks introduced religion into the concept and ceremony of chivalry.
Medievalist Maurice De Wulf wrote, “Once the knight came into contact with Christian morality, he was no longer an egotistic, ambitious, and brutal warrior; he learned to be loyal and generous; he became a born defender of the Church, the champion of the weak, the opponent of violence. Whenever conferences were called to discuss peace, the monks urged charity and forgiveness upon the nobles, who frequently repented in tears; or, indeed, the very men who had pillaged on the previous day would forthwith set out on long pilgrimages to St. James of Compostella or to Rome or Jerusalem to expiate their crimes. ..The union of the martial spirit with the religious, and the alliance between the feudal system and the Church became indissoluble.” (2)The proponents of the Crusades were all Cluniacs; Urban II was himself a Cluniac monk. The ceremonies and customs of the peerage became Christianized, and the concept of the knight as imitation Christi, that perennial ideal of Christendom, was born out of the Cluniac movement, which was the first voice in Christendom to insist that the martial spirit of the barons be bounded by a chivalric code and harnessed to the service of God and the Church.
🔗source
#chivalry
Cluniac Monks introduced religion into the concept and ceremony of chivalry.
Medievalist Maurice De Wulf wrote, “Once the knight came into contact with Christian morality, he was no longer an egotistic, ambitious, and brutal warrior; he learned to be loyal and generous; he became a born defender of the Church, the champion of the weak, the opponent of violence. Whenever conferences were called to discuss peace, the monks urged charity and forgiveness upon the nobles, who frequently repented in tears; or, indeed, the very men who had pillaged on the previous day would forthwith set out on long pilgrimages to St. James of Compostella or to Rome or Jerusalem to expiate their crimes. ..The union of the martial spirit with the religious, and the alliance between the feudal system and the Church became indissoluble.” (2)The proponents of the Crusades were all Cluniacs; Urban II was himself a Cluniac monk. The ceremonies and customs of the peerage became Christianized, and the concept of the knight as imitation Christi, that perennial ideal of Christendom, was born out of the Cluniac movement, which was the first voice in Christendom to insist that the martial spirit of the barons be bounded by a chivalric code and harnessed to the service of God and the Church.
🔗source
#chivalry
Unamsanctamcatholicam
Four Contributions of the Cluniacs – Unam Sanctam Catholicam
The law of nature in the philosophy of St. Augustine
St Augustine did not recognise the existence of natural law as a sui generis separate legal order, implicitly distinguishing only the lex aeterna and the lex temporalis. Eternal law is not possible for man to investigate on his own in its entirety given the frailty of human nature (and therefore of human reason) after the fall of Adam.
Only in part are all human beings able to decode the content of the divine law by means of their reason (thanks to illumination) and this part constitutes precisely the lex naturalis - a reflection of the lex aeterna, which does not escape the cognitive abilities of man. Moreover, it is an immanent part of rational man (whether Christian or pagan).
On the essence of the law of nature in St Augustine's philosophy, Victor Kornatowski writes as follows: "standing below and encompassing the eternal law, the law of nature consists of the principles of morality written by Providence in the rational soul. Man, coming into the world, brings these principles with him, and when he reaches rational age, he discovers and becomes aware of the law implanted by God, which is for him an inner light, and the completion of which is Christ".
Thus, God can present to man the lex aeterna (i.e. His will and the truth about the ideal order of the world; norms of an immutable nature) only by means of illumination, since man himself has deprived himself of the natural possibility of knowing it through original sin. The content of the law of nature, on the other hand, is reduced by St Augustine to religiously conceived morality.
In view of this, maintaining St Augustine's quasi-tribulation of law, it is divided, according to him, into: (1) divine law (the whole), (2) the part of divine law which, through illumination, man is able to know by reason, and (3) statute law.
If the law of nature were not contentually identical to the divine law, then one would have to condemn God's command to Abraham to kill his son Isaac, or the command to King Saul through the prophet Samuel to slaughter the Amalekites one of the indigenous peoples of the land of Canaan.
Finally, the prohibition to kill other people (in principle) is decoded - thanks to illumination - by means of reason from the divine law and recognised by people as a natural law (deriving from the general principle - "do not do unto others as you would have them do unto you"). However, given that God is absolutely just, a conclusion undermining His ontological absolute would be unwarranted.
Sources
E.L. Fortin, St Augustine, [in:] L. Strauss, J. Cropsey, History of Political Philosophy, Warsaw 2010,
s. 190-193.
W. Kornatowski, The social and political thought of St. Augustine, Warsaw1965, p. 213.
R. Regout, La doctrine de la guerre juste de Saint Augustin à nos jours d'après les théologiens et les
canonistes catholiques, Paris 1934, pp. 39-44, after: A. Wielomski, Augustinian theology of law [in:].
M. Cisek, Ł. Święcicki (eds.), Crime and punishment in political and economic thought, Warsaw 2018, p. 45.
#naturallaw
St Augustine did not recognise the existence of natural law as a sui generis separate legal order, implicitly distinguishing only the lex aeterna and the lex temporalis. Eternal law is not possible for man to investigate on his own in its entirety given the frailty of human nature (and therefore of human reason) after the fall of Adam.
Only in part are all human beings able to decode the content of the divine law by means of their reason (thanks to illumination) and this part constitutes precisely the lex naturalis - a reflection of the lex aeterna, which does not escape the cognitive abilities of man. Moreover, it is an immanent part of rational man (whether Christian or pagan).
On the essence of the law of nature in St Augustine's philosophy, Victor Kornatowski writes as follows: "standing below and encompassing the eternal law, the law of nature consists of the principles of morality written by Providence in the rational soul. Man, coming into the world, brings these principles with him, and when he reaches rational age, he discovers and becomes aware of the law implanted by God, which is for him an inner light, and the completion of which is Christ".
Thus, God can present to man the lex aeterna (i.e. His will and the truth about the ideal order of the world; norms of an immutable nature) only by means of illumination, since man himself has deprived himself of the natural possibility of knowing it through original sin. The content of the law of nature, on the other hand, is reduced by St Augustine to religiously conceived morality.
In view of this, maintaining St Augustine's quasi-tribulation of law, it is divided, according to him, into: (1) divine law (the whole), (2) the part of divine law which, through illumination, man is able to know by reason, and (3) statute law.
If the law of nature were not contentually identical to the divine law, then one would have to condemn God's command to Abraham to kill his son Isaac, or the command to King Saul through the prophet Samuel to slaughter the Amalekites one of the indigenous peoples of the land of Canaan.
Finally, the prohibition to kill other people (in principle) is decoded - thanks to illumination - by means of reason from the divine law and recognised by people as a natural law (deriving from the general principle - "do not do unto others as you would have them do unto you"). However, given that God is absolutely just, a conclusion undermining His ontological absolute would be unwarranted.
Sources
E.L. Fortin, St Augustine, [in:] L. Strauss, J. Cropsey, History of Political Philosophy, Warsaw 2010,
s. 190-193.
W. Kornatowski, The social and political thought of St. Augustine, Warsaw1965, p. 213.
R. Regout, La doctrine de la guerre juste de Saint Augustin à nos jours d'après les théologiens et les
canonistes catholiques, Paris 1934, pp. 39-44, after: A. Wielomski, Augustinian theology of law [in:].
M. Cisek, Ł. Święcicki (eds.), Crime and punishment in political and economic thought, Warsaw 2018, p. 45.
#naturallaw
Audio
The Role of Positive Human Law According to Aquinas | Fr. Wojciech Giertych, O.P
This lecture was given on January 26th, 2024, at the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. About the speaker: Fr. Wojciech Giertych, O.P. was born in 1951 in London, UK. He studied history in Poznań, Poland, entered the Polish Province of the Dominican Order in 1975, and was ordained in 1981. He then worked in Kraków, Poland as formator and professor of moral theology, and has been an invited professor of the PUST since 1994. He has been a member of the General Council of the Dominican Order since 1998. He has served the Order as Socius for Central and Eastern Europe and then Socius for Intellectual Life. Since 2005 he has been the Theologian of the Papal Household and lives in the Vatican.
via The Thomistic Institute
🔗source
This lecture was given on January 26th, 2024, at the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. About the speaker: Fr. Wojciech Giertych, O.P. was born in 1951 in London, UK. He studied history in Poznań, Poland, entered the Polish Province of the Dominican Order in 1975, and was ordained in 1981. He then worked in Kraków, Poland as formator and professor of moral theology, and has been an invited professor of the PUST since 1994. He has been a member of the General Council of the Dominican Order since 1998. He has served the Order as Socius for Central and Eastern Europe and then Socius for Intellectual Life. Since 2005 he has been the Theologian of the Papal Household and lives in the Vatican.
via The Thomistic Institute
🔗source
Audio
Freedom Under the Law - Early Christian Views | Sarah Byers
from The Thomistic Institute
08:45 10/15/2018 | 83.7 MiB | 01:00:57
This lecture was the first one given for our conference on "Christianity and Freedom." It was held on Sept. 22nd, 2018 at Yale and brought together academics from diverse disciplines to discuss the meaning and evolution of the Christian idea of freedom. Lecturers considered the theme from the perspective of Augustine, Origen, Ambrose, Dante, Thomas Aquinas, Nicolas of Cusa, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Servais Pinckaers, and John Paul II.
🔗source
from The Thomistic Institute
08:45 10/15/2018 | 83.7 MiB | 01:00:57
This lecture was the first one given for our conference on "Christianity and Freedom." It was held on Sept. 22nd, 2018 at Yale and brought together academics from diverse disciplines to discuss the meaning and evolution of the Christian idea of freedom. Lecturers considered the theme from the perspective of Augustine, Origen, Ambrose, Dante, Thomas Aquinas, Nicolas of Cusa, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Servais Pinckaers, and John Paul II.
🔗source
Ecce Verbum
What is Dogma? an overview, p.1 by William Edward Addis, 1893 Dogma, in its theological sense, is a truth contained in the Word of God, written or unwritten--i.e. in Scripture or Tradition--and proposed by the Church for the belief of the faithful. Thus dogma…
What is Dogma?
an overview, p.2
The Church was not established by Christ so that God would reveal through her new truths that he had not yet revealed. The Church is only supposed to guard the truths already revealed and infallibly instruct about them, so it is not true that God reveals a new truth through the definition of the Church.
Dogma is truth revealed by God and given as such for belief by the Church, either through the Church's solemn definition or through daily teaching. They are not dogmas of truth strictly connected with the revealed ones, such as dogmatic facts or theological conclusions.
Dogmatic facts and conclusions are not dogmas. Although they may be infallibly defined by the Church, they are not revealed by God. Other teachings proclaimed by the Church are not dogmas: religious teachings of popes in encyclicals, decisions of Roman congregations, etc.
Dogmas speak about God in imperfect human concepts, but what corresponds to them is actually in God, although in a far more perfect way than these concepts express. Dogmas are not symbols of any feelings, nor metaphors, nor guidelines for life, but they are objective truth about God.
Modernists claim that dogmas are not free from errors and contradictions. According to them, there are also visible scientific and historical errors in the holy books. Pope Pius X states that the above sentences are tantamount to attributing a lie to God himself.
After the death of the Apostles, there were and will be no new revelations. These truths, which the Church has declared as revealed, cannot undergo any significant change in content and meaning. New formulas or names may be created to better express revealed truths, but these formulas cannot change the meaning.
Christ, when sending the Apostles to teach the world, defined for them and his successors what they were to teach until the end of the world. Christ (personally and through the Holy Spirit) revealed to all the Apostles everything that God decided to reveal to people, so after their death there is no new revelation.
The apostles clearly order their successors to preach not their ideas, but the teaching deposited with them by the Holy Spirit. This is explained by St. Vincent: "What is a deposit? What has been entrusted, not what has been invented. What you received, not what you made up.”
The Church proclaims the immutability of dogmas, but allows their development. The stability and development of dogmas is explained by St. Vincent: “Let it be more clearly understood what was previously believed, although it was darker. Let posterity be glad that they have understood what ancient times worshiped.”
The new dogma does not differ in content from the previously proclaimed one. The same truth is presented in greater detail in the new one, emphasizing certain points. This is because throughout history new heresies attack again the same truth, but in a different way.
Often, truths are not revealed 'explicite', but 'implicite', and these truths need to be analyzed for them to come to light. This analysis was often left undone for a long time because they were not directly attacked by heretics, and the implicit belief in these truths was sufficient in a given era in the Church.
source: Outline of Catholic Dogmatics, fr. dr. M. Sieniatycki
#dogma
an overview, p.2
The Church was not established by Christ so that God would reveal through her new truths that he had not yet revealed. The Church is only supposed to guard the truths already revealed and infallibly instruct about them, so it is not true that God reveals a new truth through the definition of the Church.
Dogma is truth revealed by God and given as such for belief by the Church, either through the Church's solemn definition or through daily teaching. They are not dogmas of truth strictly connected with the revealed ones, such as dogmatic facts or theological conclusions.
Dogmatic facts and conclusions are not dogmas. Although they may be infallibly defined by the Church, they are not revealed by God. Other teachings proclaimed by the Church are not dogmas: religious teachings of popes in encyclicals, decisions of Roman congregations, etc.
Dogmas speak about God in imperfect human concepts, but what corresponds to them is actually in God, although in a far more perfect way than these concepts express. Dogmas are not symbols of any feelings, nor metaphors, nor guidelines for life, but they are objective truth about God.
Modernists claim that dogmas are not free from errors and contradictions. According to them, there are also visible scientific and historical errors in the holy books. Pope Pius X states that the above sentences are tantamount to attributing a lie to God himself.
After the death of the Apostles, there were and will be no new revelations. These truths, which the Church has declared as revealed, cannot undergo any significant change in content and meaning. New formulas or names may be created to better express revealed truths, but these formulas cannot change the meaning.
Christ, when sending the Apostles to teach the world, defined for them and his successors what they were to teach until the end of the world. Christ (personally and through the Holy Spirit) revealed to all the Apostles everything that God decided to reveal to people, so after their death there is no new revelation.
The apostles clearly order their successors to preach not their ideas, but the teaching deposited with them by the Holy Spirit. This is explained by St. Vincent: "What is a deposit? What has been entrusted, not what has been invented. What you received, not what you made up.”
The Church proclaims the immutability of dogmas, but allows their development. The stability and development of dogmas is explained by St. Vincent: “Let it be more clearly understood what was previously believed, although it was darker. Let posterity be glad that they have understood what ancient times worshiped.”
The new dogma does not differ in content from the previously proclaimed one. The same truth is presented in greater detail in the new one, emphasizing certain points. This is because throughout history new heresies attack again the same truth, but in a different way.
Often, truths are not revealed 'explicite', but 'implicite', and these truths need to be analyzed for them to come to light. This analysis was often left undone for a long time because they were not directly attacked by heretics, and the implicit belief in these truths was sufficient in a given era in the Church.
source: Outline of Catholic Dogmatics, fr. dr. M. Sieniatycki
#dogma