One God, Indeed

marginal thoughts no.5
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a peek at my notes. sometimes, doodles that litter page margins are more meaningful for me.
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during our class in Ecumenism, it was floated that ecumenical persons must “respect other believers in their commitment to God in their religion of choice” and that, since belief in Christ is not universal, and since “doctrines divide”, belief in God is a point of unity towards which all can journey. intelligent theological dialogue is apparently bypassed (because it divides!) in favor of collective engagement of social issues (because it unites). although it might sound good to the ears and look pretty on paper, it seems to me too simplistic and naive approach that not only suspends the exercise of reason in favor of some feel-good emotional fix but also denies the centrality of Christ’s revelation both in orthodox missiology (cf Redemptoris Missio) and in Sacred Scripture (Mt.28:19 & Jn.17:22-23). although i agree that how two different kinds of believer acts according to their different beliefs can indeed be a point of collaboration (indeed, especially regarding common social issues), such points of agreement cannot immediately be seen as indications that their theological impetuses are the same.

Primary Sources

marginal thoughts no.4
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a peek at my notes. sometimes, doodles that litter page margins are more meaningful for me.
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from our class in Medieval Church History: the narrative of History is founded on a thorough and critical reading of primary sources. since the Church is both a divine and human institution, ecclesiastical history can only be concerned with the human dimension of the Church. in other words, Church History only deals with the story of the Church as a human institution. the professor then asked, “Why can’t we write a history of the Church as a divine institution?” and so i doodled.

Corpus Christi

marginal thoughts no.3
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a peek at my notes. sometimes, doodles that litter page margins are more meaningful for me.
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during our class in Canon Law, the professor asked: Why is there (a need for) hierarchy in the Church? instead of raising my hand, i scribbled this down with these words: …Because there is a necessary and complementary relationship between internal and external realities. That which is internal demands an external expression, and such externalities protect and preserve that which is interior. Therefore, because Christ is the one head of His mystical body, the hierarchy (atop of which is the Holy Pontiff) becomes the actualized expression of that spiritual reality.

Ecumeni-what?

marginal thoughts no.2
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a peek at my notes. sometimes, doodles that litter page margins are more meaningful for me.
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i think it is important to seriously grapple with the idea, process, and implications of ecumenism, especially when taken in the context of mission and the ongoing call for new evangelization. how can one remain faithful to the total deposit of Faith amid a pluralistic world? how can one accept and promote the Gospel in its totality while engaged in an “open dialogue” with contradicting ideas? how can one avoid diluting Faith and Doctrine while building communities of tolerance and unity? [this image was brought on by an innocent mispronunciation, but one that had taken on a new relevance after our first meeting for Ecumenism]

Tertullian

marginal thoughts no.1
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this is how i take notes. because sometimes, doodles that litter page margins are more meaningful for me.
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but seriously, here’s something that stuck with me from our course on Trinity: “Whereas in other religions man is in search of God, in Christianity God is in search of man.” woohoo.