De Omnibus Dubitandum Est.

... is it always a violation of justice in a postlapsarian world to deprive some people of the truth?  Professor Janet Smith asks does everyone have the right to truth?  Evildoers sacrifice many of their rights. For instance, we deprive prisoners of their freedom of movement. When the community is under attack and resources are needed, private property can be taken to defend life and property. And, of course, the person poised to murder forfeits his right to life, which is why a policeman can fire his weapon with the intent to kill. Why, therefore, should we imagine that everyone enjoys an inviolable right to truth in all communications? Isn’t giving the truth to a Nazi like returning a loaded weapon to a madman? Does he have any right to the truth? By her analysis, something analogous holds for communication. In a sinless world our words and gestures serve only to convey the truth, but in a fallen world they promote civility, encourage, console, and on some occasions stymie t...

Following the canonisation's of John XXIII and John Paul II, I have picked up John Paul II's book Crossing the Threshold of Hope once again. It was perhaps the first book I read that made me think again about being a Catholic, back when the post conciliar lack of direction had left me with the idea that Christianity was very confusing and mostly to do with sitting on cushions, singing bland songs, and colouring in. I found the book lying around a caravan in Hampshire on holiday about 30 years ago and flicking through its pages expecting it to be another bland, meaningless exposition of the non-judgementalism which has masqueraded as the faith for numerous years, I was in fact hugely surprised at what was revealed. A vibrant, challenging discussion of faith, packed full of intellectual considerations and answers to the very questions I most cherish. For a bit of context, as to why this was such a formative book for me, consider the title of this blog which is the t...

My friend Blake shared this today. I found it incredibly moving and felt I had to share it with you all. An extraordinarily well spoken young man who makes a point about the quintessential truth of the Bible far more eloquently than I feel I could. It's not so much about literalism, it's about the sensus plenior : the truth it contains when you walk it's paths, know its ways and understand its message. The truth of the Bible is not recorded in the way the news reports facts today, it is far more subtle, but its truth is only more potent because of that. In the film, Douglas encourages us to Tweet and blog about it, so that's what I am doing. Surely this young man will go far! Well done indeed sir!

This is the second of my posts talking about the theology of the Sunday readings. This post relates to the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B). If you want to know how and why this came about, please read the first post here . This Sunday is the feast of St. Martha of Bethany and also  the third anniversary of my daughter Ruth's death on 29th July 2009. It is a difficult day and we always go to Mass and listen carefully to what God is telling us through sacred Scripture. The theme this Sunday could best be described as: The Bread of Life The readings are: First Reading: 2 Kings 4: 42-44 Psalm: 144: 10-11, 15-18; Response: v. 16. Second Reading: Ephesians 4: 1-6 Gospel: John 6: 1-15 First, a little preliminary survey of each of the books. I will post the same, or similar prelims week on week, for each book as we encounter them. 2 Kings  is the second part of the Deuteronomist's chronicle of the rueful story of Israel's decline fr...