Category Archives: Spe Salvi

As we move into the 1800s, Pope Benedict XVI offers his view of the emergence of and attraction to communism in his analysis of (t)he transformation of Christian faith-hope in the modern age. The 1% devised a new form of … Continue reading →

Continuing our discussion with Pope Benedict XVI in Spe Salvi on The transformation of Christian faith-hope in the modern age. We’re getting deep into philosophy with him, but stay with us–it’s only the French Revolution and a leading German philosopher of the … Continue reading →

We continue in the vein of the transformation of Christian faith-hope in the modern age (16-23) … 18. At the same time, two categories become increasingly central to the idea of progress: reason and freedom. Progress is primarily associated with … Continue reading →

17. Anyone who reads and reflects on these statements attentively will recognize that a disturbing step has been taken: up to that time, the recovery of what (humankind) had lost through the expulsion from Paradise was expected from faith in … Continue reading →

Many commentators have wondered at the Benedict papacy of 2005-2013. In some Catholic circles, his election was greeted with joy, if not glee. His encyclicals remain largely untouched by his fanboys and fangirls. If some people expected a law-n-order pope, … Continue reading →

Regular readers here know of my skepticism for Rod Dreher’s Benedict Option. I think his political blinders help him totally misread the monastic impulse in Christianity. Read a bit of the namesake pope and tell me what you think as … Continue reading →

We continue exploring with Pope Benedict XVI the question, Is Christian hope individualistic? Today, as was true in paragraph 13, we are assisted by the Jesuit Henri de Lubac: 14. Against this, drawing upon the vast range of patristic theology, de … Continue reading →

This paragraph and the two sections that follow address the question: Is Christian hope individualistic? 13. In the course of their history, Christians have tried to express this “knowing without knowing” by means of figures that can be represented, and … Continue reading →

Looking to eternity, Pope Benedict XVI detects some trepidation in some people. I suppose in some there is the fear of hell, of eternal punishment. He doesn’t seem very concerned about that in his treatise on hope. Singer-songwriter Billy Joel’s … Continue reading →

Continuing with the question: Eternal life – what is it? 11. Whatever precisely Saint Ambrose may have meant by these words, it is true that to eliminate death or to postpone it more or less indefinitely would place the earth and … Continue reading →

10. We have spoken thus far of faith and hope in the New Testament and in early Christianity; yet it has always been clear that we are referring not only to the past: the entire reflection concerns living and dying … Continue reading →

We are coming to the end of Pope Benedict XVI’s deep exploration of the concept of faith-based hope in the New Testament and the early Church. With him, we turn our gaze to the Letter to the Hebrews. 9. In order … Continue reading →

This has been admittedly slow-going. Reminds me of reading Hans Küng or Karl Rahner in grad school. Nevertheless, we continue on the relationship between the present and the future … 8. This explanation is further strengthened and related to daily … Continue reading →

7. We must return once more to the New Testament. In the eleventh chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews (v. 1) we find a kind of definition of faith which closely links this virtue with hope. Ever since the Reformation … Continue reading →

Speaking of the revelation of Jesus in the Holy Spirit … 6. The sarcophagi of the early Christian era illustrate this concept visually—in the context of death, in the face of which the question concerning life’s meaning becomes unavoidable. The … Continue reading →