[lit-ideas] Re: Another apology concerning recent papal remarks
- From: "Phil Enns" <phil.enns@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2006 12:09:27 -0400
I read Benedict's speech and I am not sure how Chris Bruce's comments
relate to the speech. Benedict is clearly arguing for critical
reflection, the use of reason in the life of faith and the engagement of
religion with science and philosophy. Benedict proudly tells the story
of a professor at the U. of Regensberg, where Benedict had taught, who
spoke up about how odd it was that the University had two faculties
devoted to something that didn't exist: God. In the speech, Benedict
does not blame atheists or agnostics for anything. In fact, the target
for the speech are liberal Christians, including most Protestants who
would split off faith from reason. He points out that the critical
project of Kant, which divides faith from reason, is the legacy of the
Reformers.
The reference to Mohammad is curious. Benedict is a careful thinker so
it isn't an accident. It seems that the speech as a whole aims, in
part, to distinguish himself from John Paul II. Where John Paul was
more mystically inclined, Benedict is more the philosopher. Hence,
Benedict emphasizes that faith must include the rational, something one
would never have heard from John Paul. Where John Paul worked hard to
build bridges with Muslims, Benedict here seems to be chastising them.
In the speech, Benedict notes that the Prophet said that there is no
compulsion in religion, and then makes his reference to the comments of
a Byzantine Emperor. It seems to me that the message is to contemporary
Muslims: Is it rational to use violence in defending the faith?
Muslims, especially the Shia'a, are extremely rationalistic and so
Benedict uses that devotion to reason against them. I am not surprised
that some Muslims were upset, but I don't see any need to apologize.
Also, I don't think it is a coincidence that Benedict quotes from a
Byzantine Emperor shortly before meeting the Eastern Orthodox Patriarch.
The emphasis on reason is used by Benedict to point out a difference
between the Eastern and Western Catholic churches, but the approving
quote of an Eastern leader shows his awareness that there can be
important similarities.
Finally, I don't think that Benedict's negative comments on critical
thinking are solely religious. In fact, at several points in the speech
he sounds Heideggerian. For instance:
"Behind this thinking lies the modern self-limitation of reason,
classically expressed in Kant's 'Critiques,' but in the meantime further
radicalized by the impact of the natural sciences. This modern concept
of reason is based, to put it briefly, on a synthesis between Platonism
(Cartesianism) and empiricism, a synthesis confirmed by the success of
technology.
On the one hand it presupposes the mathematical structure of matter, its
intrinsic rationality, which makes it possible to understand how matter
works and use it efficiently: This basic premise is, so to speak, the
Platonic element in the modern understanding of nature. On the other
hand, there is nature's capacity to be exploited for our purposes, and
here only the possibility of verification or falsification through
experimentation can yield ultimate certainty. The weight between the two
poles can, depending on the circumstances, shift from one side to the
other. ...
This gives rise to two principles which are crucial for the issue we
have raised. First, only the kind of certainty resulting from the
interplay of mathematical and empirical elements can be considered
scientific. Anything that would claim to be science must be measured
against this criterion. Hence the human sciences, such as history,
psychology, sociology and philosophy, attempt to conform themselves to
this canon of scientificity."
It isn't a great speech, but I think it is a significant one for
Christians, especially Catholics. As for atheists and agnostics, I
don't see the relevance.
Sincerely,
Phil Enns
Toronto, ON
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