tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27612445.post5983314580909550453..comments2024-03-23T12:05:23.537-05:00Comments on The Wild Reed: A Return to the SpiritMichael J. Baylyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03087458490602152648noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27612445.post-55612777580400493512009-11-12T07:19:24.285-06:002009-11-12T07:19:24.285-06:00You raise many excellent points, Philip. Thanks fo...You raise many excellent points, Philip. Thanks for that. I too am looking forward to reading both books.<br /><br />Peace,<br /><br />MichaelMichael J. Baylyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03087458490602152648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27612445.post-481679106691134482009-11-12T00:42:47.545-06:002009-11-12T00:42:47.545-06:00Armstrong's and Cox's books are two more b...Armstrong's and Cox's books are two more books I have to add to my must-read list! <br /><br />I do agree that in Christianity there has been a prevailing sense of legalism that has distorted the original intention of the Gospel that Jesus Christ proclaimed. It has infiltrated the Church, infecting most of its leaders in failing to employ compassion and reason to understand the intricacies and variations of human sexuality in a spiritually attuned yet enlightened manner. So, we must stop seeing the Faith as rules that we have to follow and rather see it as a path of trust towards following the Lord, Jesus Christ. <br /><br />However, I do think it's dangerous when we start chipping away at certain beliefs of Christianity. These are the aspects of Fr. Hans Kung's and other progressive Catholic thinkers that I don't usually agree with. Yes, some doctrines have gotten in the way of truly engaging humanity in a comprehensive and compassionate way. But I don't think this can call for a discrediting of all the beliefs that the Church holds as true and divinely inspired. <br /><br />For me, what we profess in the Nicene Creed is still the core of the Christian Faith. That Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word of God, was born, suffered, died upon the Wood of the Cross, and rose from the dead for the sake of our salvation. To me, that is the essence of Christianity, that God loved us so much that He came to dwell among us in the form of Jesus Christ and so achieve our redemption upon the Cross in the ultimate testament of unconditional love (not by atoning to an angry God, but by loving all of humanity unto the very end). <br /><br />To me, the divinity of Christ, and the centrality of the Paschal Mystery are undeniably fundamental to the foundations of Christian understanding. Everything else falls away if we identify Jesus as just a "prophet" or an enlightened "man of God." <br /><br />He was the definitive and ultimate revelation of God because God chose to assume our own likeness. Not subjecting or trivializing other religions as expressions of faith. I just believe that Chrisitanity, particularly Catholicism with its understanding of the Eucharist and the Church, is the fullness of religious expression. So, perhaps I'd fit into Karl Rahner's train of thought then. <br /><br />Still, your post brings out numerous good points and revelations, many that are extremely pertinent for today! However, I just don't know if trivialing or watering down the Faith is a way to go about counteracting fundamentalism within Christianity. Again, Jesus said He came not to do away with the Law (the Ten Commandments) but to fulfill and perfect it.Phillip Clarknoreply@blogger.com