The Light of Christ: An Introduction to Catholicism

Thomas Joseph White, OP

1. Revelation and Reason

 Human Search for an Unknown God

 Apostolic Christianity is based on divine revelation: John 1:14

 Revelation: uncovering or unveiling
 Jesus is a person, not an argument
 Faith based on the acceptance of testimony of witnesses
 Reason plays a role, but does not fully revealed God to us
 “Christian revelation is not opposed to reason. It surpasses reason. But it
contradicts conventional ideologies.”

 Religious Pluralism and “The True Philosophy”

 Christianity was in conflict with ancient Greco-Roman religion from the

beginning
 Romans assimilated religions of conquered peoples, adding gods to the pantheon,
to promote stability and peace
 Christianity (like Judaism) made unique truth claims
 Philosophers also critical of pagan cults
 St. Paul used this critique to argue for Christianity
 But philosophy had its limits: the Cross of Christ “foolishness to the Greeks,
scandal to the Jews” (1 Corinthians 1:23)

 Skepticism and the Usefulness of Belief

 Modern secularism rejects such metaphysical claims

 Anticipated some ancient philosophers: skepticism and Epicureanism
 While claiming to guard human happiness, religious skepticism actually based on
fear, despair; Newman on reason without faith
 Augustine: extremes of skepticism and credulousness; between them is “faith
seeking understanding”
 Not opposition between faith and reason, but between reductive, skeptical reason
and “magnanimous, studious reason that engages in faith”

 Scripture

 Christ the Eternal Wisdom of God did not write a book

 Aquinas: the Bible is primarily about the discovering of a person; Scripture
reveals who Christ is, who God is personally
 Balthasar: Scripture safeguards the “form of Christ”
 The Bible contains certain historical truths, but also different genres
  Limits of biblical scholarship; helps us avoid “irrational notions of inspiration”, as
in Islam, Mormonism, fundamentalist Christianity
 The Bible is divinely inspired writing by human authors
 Catholic Church’s teaching on scriptural inspiration: Dei Verbum from Vatican II
 Three theological criteria for understanding Scripture: scriptural unity,
consonance with tradition, analogy of faith
 Traditional “senses” of Scripture: literal and spiritual (moral, typological,
anagogical)
 Avoidance of simplistic approach to Scripture
 The Bible is a books of human authors as well as of the Holy Spirit
 Austin Farer: the Bible is like a soldier’s love-letter

 Teaching Authority: Teaching and the Magisterium

 Irenaeus of Lyon (c. 175 A.D.): importance of Catholic tradition, authority of the
bishop of Rome
 Church needs tradition and teaching authority because the Bible doesn’t interpret
itself
 Tradition is multi-layered: contains dogmas and doctrines, but also teachings of
saints and theologians, as well as practices of the Church (sacraments, liturgy,
devotions, art, etc)
 Critics of Catholic tradition end up inventing their own traditions
 “God has established in the Church from the beginning a living stream of
apostolic tradition that is continuously maintained and safeguarded by divinely
instituted authority.”
 The Church is not above Scripture, but guided by the Holy Spirits is able to
resolve disputes over its interpretation
 A concrete governmental process, founded by Christ and the apostles, oversees
this: the office of bishops (episcopacy) centered around the bishop of Rome
(papacy) exercising magisterium (teaching authority) which maintains the unity of
the Church

 Infallibility

 “If God has revealed himself, then what he has revealed is true, and the Church
can come to know over time in a definitive way what God has revealed.”
 If the Church cannot teach infallibly, then we must say “God has revealed
himself, but the Church can never say with assurance what God has revealed.”
 Ultimately occurs through the office of the bishop of Rome; not any other group
or system
 Not everything the pope says (including theological judgments) is necessarily
infallible; the papal office is essentially “conservative” (in the sense of
conservation)
 Authoritative teaching is a charism of the office, not dependent upon theology
(though can be aided by theology)
 The Intellectual Form of Faith: Theology

 First Christian theologians not academics but believers trying to understand

reality in light of the mystery of Christ
 Early Church Fathers had three motivations for theology: explaining Christianity
to newcomers, defending it against detractors, and responding to doctrinal
controversies (heresies)
 Theology is natural to the intellectual life of any serious Christian
 Spiritual development through intellect and will
 Theology is a science, as it has an object of study: the mystery of God made
available in divine revelation
 No conflict between theology and any other science
 Seeks to understand who God is; what is at stake is our knowledge and experience
of divine love
 Theology equips us to share our faith (apologetics), but it is ultimately about
happiness: “What grim stoicism and utilitarian efficacy cannot deliver, the work
theology can: the serenity of rest in God himself.”
 “I’m spiritual but not religious”: false attempt to abandon intellect for spiritual
experience
 “Dogma is the guardian of mystery.”
 Religious practice leads to liturgical worship, because Catholicism involves the
whole person
 Prayer and asceticism are part of the Catholic intellectual life, lead to holistic
integrity: every facet of life coming into the light of Christ
 De-Christianization means re-paganization and people living morally divided
lives: the grace of Christ aids the integration of the human person
 Christian intellectual life includes worship, prayer, search for God’s mercy, and
pursuit of Christian virtue, external practices (sacraments, liturgy, devotions,
participation in the ordered life of the Church)
 Conversion to a life of integrity
 “Without genuine knowledge, no real love is possible.” Study of theology can
lead to greater love of God: “Intellectual engagement with the Christian faith is
essential to our personal relationship with Christ.”