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Friday, April 17, 2020

What does it mean to be Catholic?

In this video:


Franciscan apologist Casey does a good job of summarizing the second principle: mediation. This exposes a fundamental flaw in Catholic theology. 

However, his first principle is terribly confused, although it goes to the rationale for Catholic sacramentality:
In order for God to be present in these 7 ordinary objects and ritual, we must first accept that it is even possible for an infinite God to be contained by time and space. The foundation for this belief is of course the Incarnation. God is capable, and so chooses, to make God's spiritual presence known in the material world…This is a major divergence from the classical Protestant worldview which has tended to focus much more attention on the complete otherness and transcendence of God. Thus the created world, is not seen to have any direct connection to God, or bear any inherent goodness. 
i) That's a very dubious and even contradictory model of how God relates to time and space. If God is not a physical being, then it's just not possible for God to be "contained" by time and space. I can see how, from a Catholic standpoint, it's appealing to think a wafer contains God. Pop the cork and ingest God! But God can't be bottled like a genie. 

ii) The Incarnation doesn't imply that God is contained by time and space. Rather, it's a type of relation or union.

iii) Protestant theology doesn't deny that God is capable, and so chooses, to make his spiritual presence known in the material world. The question is the mode of presence. For instance, a painter isn't physically present in his painting. Yet the painting is a pervasive representation of the painter. He chose what to paint, the style, composition, and color scheme. Every brushstroke is his. A painting reflects the painter. For instance, many paintings by Dante Rossetti reveal his passion for beautiful women. 

iv) So there's such a thing as indirect or mediated presence. For instance, God makes himself "present" when he answers prayer. Not that he's physically present, but an example of God's involvement in our lives.

v) Calvinism, for one, has a doctrine of meticulous providence. That's the polar opposite of "the complete otherness and transcendence of God." Rather, God is directing every event behind-the-scenes to achieve his goals for creation. 

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