Ricochet is the best place on the internet to discuss the issues of the day, either through commenting on posts or writing your own for our active and dynamic community in a fully moderated environment. In addition, the Ricochet Audio Network offers over 50 original podcasts with new episodes released every day.
The University of Our Lady and the Welcoming Church
As Catholics, we dedicate June to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As Catholics we venerate and hold in high regard the Blessed Virgin Mary. As a so-called Catholic University, and perhaps the most well-known one worldwide, one would think the University of Notre Dame would be one to promote this great month. Well, color one shocked:
Happy #PrideMonth! We celebrate all LGBTQ+ identities and reaffirm our commitment to being a welcoming, safe and supportive place for ALL members of the Notre Dame family.
We see you. We're glad you're here. You are an important member of our community. pic.twitter.com/b0ou28Iia8
— University of Notre Dame (@NotreDame) June 1, 2023
It is disgraceful that this Catholic University “celebrates” all LGBTQ+ identities. It seems they have bowed to the progressive Left as just about every other institution has.
The Church exists for the salvation of souls – on Christ’s terms.
Does UND even attempt to make disciples of Jesus Christ and to teach them to observe all that He has commanded? The use of the word “welcoming” has been co-opted by the lefties and turned into acceptance of the liberal culture without any of the message of “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
Perhaps rather than pride, UND could look for humility and honor Our Lady by wishing us a Happy Sacred Heart of Jesus month.
It is almost like they are saying: “Hey, LA Dodgers, hold my beer.”
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.
Published in Religion & Philosophy
You are fortunate.
I agree except I’m unsure what you refer to about the Iranians. You certainly appear to have moved to a religious belief that would foster a Christian era wholly as authoritative as what we see in today’s Islam or our on version of secular humanism we are mired in.
Popes are only infallible on matters of faith and morals; they could say that so and so’s doctrine is at odds with Church teaching, but they could not infallibly label a person.
And I don’t think Twitter is the best forum for homilies, especially when it might seem as if you want to single out a specific group as needing forgiveness. The UND administration was probably justing wanting to do a little virtue signalling for the sake of competing for grants and students. They probably think they are being prudent. Doesn’t mean we have to admire them.
I mean, Our Lord did say to the lawyer (St. Matthew 37-38, KJV):
(My emphasis.)
This implies, at least to me, that we are to use our reason, and Our Lord was in favor of using reason to understand G-d and His way for us. And to me this would include how we govern ourselves until the Lord returns.
“It is the glory of G-d to conceal a thing. To search it out is the glory of kings.”
I went to many different Protestant churches as a child, including Baptist ones, and the only times I heard anything like Jerry’s viewpoint were from Jack Chick cartoons, or second-hand accounts of Bob Jones University. That said, many do believe that there are elements of Christianity that one must simply take on faith, but not that reason and logic are inherently suspect or pagan concepts.
All foundations can be changed or destroyed, or made irrelevant; to say otherwise is a matter of faith. :P
As for Notre Dame, in exactly what way is it affiliated with the Catholic Church, beyond initial establishment and tradition? I’ve wondered why they don’t either reign in the faculty/administrators or simply cut ties or funding towards them, and whether its a matter of power or discretion?
Your mileage may vary. Protestant views and doctrines vary wildly, and so my experience with the Protestants I know might be very different from yours. There are probably regional differences as well. Also, class might affect the kind of Protestants you are exposed to: in my case, I live in a small town and have good relations with my neighbors despite political and religious differences. There’s a wide range of educational backgrounds, much more than one might find in a more homogeneous suburb.
Jack Chick tracts are still around. I found my most recent one in a porta-potty in a nearby state park where I take daily walks. I thought the setting perfectly appropriate for its level of theology.
Yes, of course it is a matter of faith: “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.” So unless I believe that Jesus is lying, I conclude that the Church’s foundations cannot be destroyed.
As for Notre Dame, I don’t know the answer. I think it might be that their affiliation with the Catholic Church was, as you mention, their initial establishment and tradition. The same is true for the College of St. Thomas here in Minnesota: it was founded as a Catholic institution, and for a long time the archbishop was on its board, but those days are long gone. It has an excellent Catholic Studies program (or so I’ve been told), but otherwise is secular.
Have we reached a point where we can now identify a new heresy, the heresy of the normalization of homosexuality?
Oh contraire. Luther, Calvin, and I assume Zwingli, though I’m speculating on Zwingli, they were most definitely anti-reason. Hers just a quick quote:
I think you need to read up on Protestant founding documents.
And yet he uses reason himself, employing premises on behalf of conclusions. Funny, that. Also funny how Calvin, a reader of philosophy as well as theology, gives reasoned arguments. Funny how C. S. Lewis is one of the great Christian philosophers of his century. The bit of Melanchthon translated for the first time here is a lovely argument for a classical education.
One almost wonders if a bit of Luther quoted out of context should be less than decisive.
Early Protestantism was extremely skeptical of reason. That quote is not an anomaly. There is no wiggle room in that quote. It’s pretty definitive and a famous quote. Look it up. It wouldn’t be famous if it were out of context
Oh, yes it would. How many famous quotes even are taken in context?
There is endless wiggle room. Do you really look at that line and not wonder if–just possibly–“Reason” might be a term used in a context that defines it in some such way? If “Christ is foolishness to the Greeks” and if believers should “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy,” but in context, why should I assume Luther means more about reason than Paul without at least seeing the surrounding paragraphs.
What “Early Protestantism”–itself a diverse group–is skeptical of is the ability of reason to know G-d without G-d’s help. And you still have Luther and Calvin using reason–making arguments, with premises matched to their conclusions. And you see Calvin describing how much reason can do to prove some things about G-d.
It’s not new, Manny.
But Calvin believed we are totally depraved, and therefore we’re incapable of sound reason. That doesn’t sound very….reasonable.
Sound reason is good. We’re incapable of it by ourselves. Reason without revelation can prove some things about G-d. Reason healed by faith can do more. Seems reasonable enough. Maybe even largely correct.
Early Protestantism was consciously anti scholasticism. Your last paragraph is exactly right. That’s what it means to be theologically anti reason. The Catholic Church believes you can know God through reason, though you need divine revelation to know the details.
And not just Calvin. Luther too.
You have a funny way of using the term “anti-reason.”
Reason 100% agrees with faith, only we tend to do reason wrong without faith, and . . . that’s anti-reason?
Well, I was referring to the last 50-ish years. How far back are you referring to as not new?
Or just not say anything, which can be more powerful a response, especially since Pride month is so bogus anyway.
Lots of work to do- you are very wrong. Try reading After the Natural Law by John Lawrence Hill- or something like it.
Spell it out Jerry, what does Pope JP2 contradict in 1 Cor 1?
Good advice. What are the odds they will do this?
You are free to give up your liberty, Arizona Patriot. Start with your right to speak your mind and your guns.
University of Not a Dame.
If you really want to know what went wrong, a good start is the fantastic series of lectures by Peter Kreeft (based on his Socrates Children books). Below is the 1st:
#3(Aristotle vs Kant on Epistomology) and #4 (Augustine vs Sartre on the Difference God Makes) would also be useful.
Oh I started that and after a couple of episodes forgot about it. Thanks for reminding me about it. It is very good. Actually what happened is that baseball season started and I spend my evenings watching baseball now. I will have to go back to it but I don’t know how I can fit it into my schedule.
Class of 85 here.
When I was there, liberals were numerous, but so were conservatives. I remember Mario Cuomo was heralded as a catholic savior by a lot of people, but certainly not by all.
My brother is a C.S.C. priest* and he spent almost a decade working as an assistant dean there. My brother is a flaming liberal. I like to say he’s the black sheep of the family.
I went for a visit a few years ago, right before the corona and was shocked at how big the campus is now.
Universities get lots of basically free money from student loans. They can charge whatever they want and the loans dangled in front of students are accepted without question. This has ruined every university in the country, and for most has fostered the rise of really bad ideologies and politics.
I just watched “What is a Woman” which is free for 24 hours and it convinced me that it doesn’t much matter what this school or that school are doing anymore. The damage is done and it is permanent. We are done as a society. We have nothing left but old men to shake their fists at the storm while their rotten kids destroy everything that they inherit.
*C.S.C. = Congregation of the Holy Cross, which in Latin comes out to those letters. It’s the order that founded and owns Notre Dame and also St. Edwards University in Austin, both founded by the same man, Fr. Edward Sorin.