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Posts Tagged ‘Reason’

Fides et Ratio

In 15 Audio on 2015/06/26 at 12:00 AM

http://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/file_index.asp?SeriesId=6138&pgnu=1

1.Part One
Host – Dr. Timothy O’Donnell, Dr. William Marshner, and Fr. George Rutler 
fides_1.mp3

2.Part Two
Host – Dr. Timothy O’Donnell, Dr. John Cuddeback, and Fr. George Rutler 
fides_2.mp3

 

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Life In a Mirage

In 08 Musings by Jack Reagan on 2013/07/19 at 12:00 AM

What is the most pernicious evil in the world today and has been for a long time, but has been rejected or denied or ignored by most people because they do not see the baneful effect of it?  Some even redefine it to fit their personal, political, or social agenda.  Even churches rarely warn against it.  In fact, the term for it is rarely heard or written about.  I  refer to what used to be called sin.

The first sin in history was almost fatal to the human race which at that time consisted of only two people.  Its devastating effects have plagued the human race ever since.

What is sin?  Since it affects everyone, we can deal with it without needing to mention religion because it is not peculiar to any particular group; it is a human problem.  Sin is an irrational act.  It is a failure of common sense.

Humans are a mixture of the rational and the animalistic or as has been said, humans are rational animals, animals who can think.  We certainly share many characteristics of animals.  In fact, Darwinian evolutionists have been attempting to convince us for more than a hundred and fifty years that we are nothing more than sophisticated monkeys.   But we also have a mind which gives us the ability to think, analyze, evaluate, ponder and abstract.  Animals cannot do this.  Thus humans can develop literature, law, music, art, and invent.  No animal has any of those talents.  A dog who came back to life after dying 50 years ago would be right at home with your dog; a normal man coming back to life after 50 years would be astonished at what he had to learn and relearn today.  Thus, the human intellect, even at the C or D  level, is outstanding compared to any animal.  That is why your dog cannot speak a single word in your language.

The intellect or mind is far more important than the body; it is meant to direct and control both itself and the body.  Thus we say that sin is an irrational action because it acts against the best interests and welfare of the person (soul and the body).  A sin is performing an act, or failing to perform one when required, which militates against some good of the body and/or the soul.

The reason that religion need not be mentioned here is that every person is endowed with a sense of moral right and wrong regardless of his religious belief or lack of it.  We instinctively know when something is morally good or bad.  This is called the Natural Moral Law which comes from the Creator.  But the Natural Moral Law is not looked upon favorably in modern society because it makes moral demands and too many “modern people” prefer evil to good.  The most concrete expression of the Moral Law is found in the Ten Commandments because they simply make sense; a society cannot function without them.  Imagine what would happen in your city if the Ten  Commandments were suspended for a week, or even a day.

While the idea of sin may be ignored or rejected, the evil effects persist regardless of our attitude towards the concept of sin.  Whenever we violate a natural law, either physical, intellectual, moral, somewhere, sometime, somehow, there will be a price to be paid.  Violate the law of gravity and you will pay the price immediately; violate the laws of learning and you will not acquire knowledge; violate the moral law regarding sex outside of marriage and all kinds of miseries will befall you.  There is simply no way to avoid or evade the consequence of irrational behavior.

Sin is also grossly deceptive.  It always promises far more than it will deliver.  In fact, sin has been defined as evil under the appearance of good.  We sin because we expect to get some reward, and we may in the short run, but sin, especially habits of serious sins will leave its mark.  We fool ourselves into thinking that moral evil will give us a better life than a moral good, but since sin is basically irrational, it cannot help but deceive the sinner.

Another aspect of sin is that vice (habits of sins) can lead to a kind of slavery.  The sinner becomes addicted to evil and cannot seem to stop sinning because the perceived benefit clouds his mind to the  adverse effects.  His mind no longer functions reasonably or with common sense.  Think of the drug addict, the serial adulterer or fornicator, the pornography addict; they are enslaved to vice and more often than not, are not even aware of it.  This is the ultimate deception of sin, slavery to the irrational.

When a people or a society reject the idea of sin, great misfortunes come to them:                                                                                     a. What used to be considered bad is now considered good and vice versa; for example, abortion used to be illegal and public prayer was never deemed inappropriate.

b. A minority of persons, sometimes just one person, can bring a whole cultural habit to a halt.  Example: Nativity scenes, public prayer by individuals, Christian prayer, display of religious symbols.  How many times has one atheist been allowed by a judge to disenfranchise thousands from participating in some religious practice because the atheists might be “offended”?

c. People develop a hardness of heart so that immorality seems to have no effect on their thought processes.  Nothing negative seems to bother them.  If you question them about violence on TV or sexually suggestive dialogue or totally humorless “humor”, the response will usually be a shrug because the moral beacon has been extinguished.

I have chosen to deal with this subject from the aspect of reason alone because, as I wrote above, morality affects everyone.  However, appealing to religious authority or orthodox Christian morality would make the case against sin even stronger.  There are those who claim that an anti-abortion attitude is merely a Catholic or Mormon doctrine.  The reality is that the anti-abortion argument can be made solely from a rational viewpoint without mentioning religion at all because abortion is in reality premeditated murder.  The pro-abortion arguments are easily refuted on the basis of reason alone.  Thus, being anti-abortion is simply being rational.

The world is awash in moral evil.  Every one of the Ten Commandments is being flagrantly violated and we are paying the price in the United States whether we realize it or not, because so much in society is going wrong.  Nothing seems to work out; no problems are really being solved; government officials do not seem to move from crisis to crisis with any effective plan to solve the problems.   Colleges have become little more than biased indoctrination centers.  The media has lost all semblance of honest and fair reporting; instead, it preaches an agenda. And on and on.

Unless we regain our grip on reality and start using our heads as nature intended and demands, collapse is inevitable.  Not a pleasant reality, but a definite historical reality.  While sin can be discussed without mentioning God, the reality is that life cannot be lived without Him. There is a Creator who designed the human person to have a relationship with Him. This has been shown over and over down the centuries whether we believe it or not. Not only that, but He has set a goal for us to be united with Him for eternity….whether you believe it or not. Whether we attain that goal depends on our choices throughout our lifetime. Sin, whether you consider it from a rational or religious point of view, militates against this goal. The deliberate habitual sinner will lose out.

The most important day of your life is the last one.   You may or may not know it’s the last day.  Your relationship to the Creator at that time will determine whether you have achieved the goal of human life or not. If you have lived in a mirage of enjoyable sin, you will not enjoy the following day.

Man Is Considered in Biological Terms or As “Human Capital”

In 07 Observations on 2013/03/08 at 9:11 AM

The Holy Father gave an address to the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace.

“Man is nowadays considered in predominantly biological terms or as ‘human capital’, a ‘resource’, part of a dominant productive or financial mechanism. Although we continue to proclaim the dignity of the person, new ideologies – the hedonistic and egotistic claim to sexual and reproductive rights, or unregulated financial capitalism that abuses politics and derails the true economy – contribute to a concept of the worker and his or her labour as ‘minor’ commodities and undermine the natural foundations of society, especially the family. In fact, the human being, …. transcendent by comparison to other beings or earthly goods, enjoys true supremacy and responsibility for himself and for creation. … For Christianity, work is fundamental for man, for his identity, socialisation, the creation of a family and his contribution to peace and the common good. For precisely this reason, the aim of access to work for all is always a priority, even in periods of economic recession.

“From new evangelisation of the social sphere, we can derive a new humanism and renewed cultural and prospective commitment”, the Pope continued. The new evangelisation “helps to dethrone modern idols, replacing individualism, materialistic consumerism and technocracy with a culture of fraternity and gratuity, and with mutual love. Jesus Christ summarised these precepts and gave them the form of a new commandment – ‘Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another’ – and here lies the secret of every fully human and pacific social life, as well as the renewal of politics and of national and global institutions. Blessed John XXIII motivated efforts to build a world community, with a corresponding authority precisely on love for the common good of the human family”.

“The Church certainly does not have the task of suggesting, from a judicial or political point of view, the precise configuration of an international system of this type, but rather offers a set of principles for reflection, criteria for judgement and practical guidelines able to guarantee an anthropological and ethical structure for the common good. However, it is important to note that one should not envisage a superpower, concentrated in the hands of the few, dominating all peoples and exploiting the weakest among them, but rather that such an authority should be understood primarily as a moral force, a power to influence according to reason, or rather as a participatory authority, limited in competence and by law”, concluded the Holy Father.

VIS 121203

Benedict XVI: Is It Rational to Believe?

In 07 Observations on 2013/02/28 at 11:11 AM

“As the Year of Faith progresses we carry in our hearts the hope of rediscovering our joy at believing and our enthusiasm for communicating the truth of faith to all. … This leads us to discover that our encounter with God brings value to, perfects and elevates that which is true, good and beautiful in mankind”, said the Pope in his catechesis during today’s general audience, held in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall.

Faith, he explained, “means knowing God as Love, thanks to His own love. The love of God … opens our eyes and allows us to know all reality beyond the limited horizons of individualism and subjectivism which distort our awareness”.

Benedict XVI dedicated his catechesis to the rationality of faith in God, emphasising that the Catholic tradition “has always rejected the so-called principle of ‘fideism’, that is, the will to believe against reason. … Indeed, although a mystery, God is not absurd. … If, in contemplating the mystery, reason sees only darkness, this is not because the mystery contains no light, rather because it contains too much. Just as when we turn our eyes directly to the sun, we see only shadow – who would say that the sun is not bright? Faith allows us to look at the ‘sun’ that is God, because it welcomes His revelation in history. … God has sought mankind and made Himself known, bringing Himself to the limits of human reason”.

“At the same time, God, with His grace, illuminates reason and opens up new horizons, immeasurable and infinite. Therefore, faith is a continuous stimulus to seek, never to cease or acquiesce in the inexhaustible search for truth and reality. … Intellect and faith are not foreign or antagonistic to divine Revelation, they are both prerequisites for understanding its meaning, for receiving its authentic message, for approaching the threshold of the mystery. … The Catholic faith is therefore rational and also nurtures trust in human reason. … Knowledge of faith, furthermore, is not contrary to reason. … In the irresistible desire for truth, only a harmonious relationship between faith and reason can show the correct path to God and to self-fulfilment”.

“A correct relationship between science and faith is also based on this fruitful interaction between comprehension and belief. Scientific research leads to the knowledge of new truths regarding mankind and the cosmos. The true good of mankind, accessible through faith, indicates the direction his path of discovery must follow. Therefore, it is important to encourage, for example, research which serves life and seeks to combat disease. Investigations into the secrets of our planet and the universe are also important for this reason, in the knowledge that man is placed at the peak of creation, not not in order exploit it senselessly, but rather to protect it and render it inhabitable.

“In this way, faith does not enter into conflict with science but co-operates with it, offering fundamental criteria to ensure it promotes universal good, and asking only that science desist from those initiatives that, in opposition to God’s original plan, may produce effects which turn against man himself. Another reason for which it is rational to believe is this: if science is a valuable ally of faith in our understanding of God’s plan for the universe, faith also directs scientific progress towards the good and truth of mankind, remaining faithful to that original plan.

“This is why it is vital for man to open himself to faith, and to know God and His plan for salvation through Jesus Christ. The Gospel establishes a new humanism, an authentic ‘grammar’ of humankind and reality”, the Holy Father concluded. “It is rational to believe, as it is our very existence that is at stake”.

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Holy Mass by Fr Reid

In 05 Homilies by Fr. Reid on 2012/03/10 at 9:11 AM

 • According to Aristotle the highest good or the greatest joy to which man can aspire is achieved in the contemplation of God, which requires the most excellent and virtuous use of that most important human faculty: reason.

• Indeed, Aristotle taught that the natural end for which man was created is the contemplation of God, which is a remarkably Catholic notion for a pagan philosopher who was born almost 400 years before Jesus Christ.

• Throughout our history Holy Mother Church has always encouraged her children to devoutly employ the gift of reason to contemplate God and the invisible realities that constitute the very beautiful mysteries of our Catholic faith. That’s why we have the Sabbath!

• The third commandment reminds us to keep holy the Sabbath. It is a day of solemn rest that is holy to the Lord. According to the Catechism, the Sabbath is meant to bring everyday work to a halt so that we might have a respite.

• The Sabbath, which we Christians celebrate on Sunday, provides time for recreation and leisure that not only gives rest, but that also renders us more capable of meditating on God. And this produces joy within us.

• You see, my friends, because we have been created as eternal creatures, because we are created to live eternally with God, we all desire something that is eternal and true.

• Contemplating our Lord gives us a foretaste of the eternity we all desire in the depths of our souls, and thus it produces joy. And living a life of joy is the vocation of every Christian.

• As the prophet Nehemiah tells us in the first reading today: “Today is the holy to the Lord your God. Do not be sad, and do not weep, . . . for rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength.”

• Moreover, when we turn to today’s Gospel, we hear our Lord proclaiming His message of glad tidings, a message of joy.

• Since the beginning of the Christmas Season, I’ve been speaking about how Jesus has revealed Himself to us through human history, how our Lord has pulled back the veil that separates heaven and earth in order to reveal His power, glory, and ultimately His mercy.

• In today’s Gospel He reveals Himself not through a miracle but simply through His joyful words. Jesus tells us that He has been anointed “to bring glad tidings to the poor”, “to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”

• In other words, Jesus has come to bring joy to the world, and as His faithful followers, we are called to do the same thing! We are to be living witnesses and examples of the joy of Christ.

• Now let us understand something before we proceed any further: the Christian sense of joy is not to be reduced to or confused with simple human happiness. Human happiness is an emotion that is transitory and fleeting, but true Christian joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit and a gift from God.

• Christian joy does not depend on one’s circumstances. Rather, it is supernatural in nature. While we can “feel” joy, it is ultimately something that we choose to participate in. It is a deep and abiding sense of peace that comes from choosing to exercise faith and hope in God.

• Because joy is something that we choose, because it is a particular orientation of one’s mind and heart, Christian joy can and should be found even in the midst of suffering.

• In fact, one of the curiosities of Christianity is that the more Christ-like we become, the more we rejoice in suffering because suffering is one of the greatest ways we can become even more Christ-like. Many of the lives of the saints attest to this fact.

• Now I mentioned earlier that joy is a benefit of observing the Sabbath day. But at the very heart of observing the Sabbath and contemplating God, of course, is our participation in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

• Thus, keeping your Sunday obligation to attend Mass is part of the basis of living a life of true joy. This is because “participation in the communal celebration of the Sunday Eucharist is a testimony of belonging and of being faithful to Christ and to his Church” (CCC2182).

• When we come together like this as a parish community, we give witness to our communion in faith and charity. We testify to God’s holiness and our hope of salvation. And we strengthen one another under the guidance of the Holy Spirit (cf. CCC 2182).

• This is the very foundation of our Christian joy! Worshipping our Lord together and contemplating the divine mysteries at Mass brings us into our Lord’s presence. It is how we come into contact with that which is eternal.

• It is at Mass that we hear our Lord speak to us through the Scriptures (and hopefully the homily). It is at Mass that we witness His life-giving sacrifice on Calvary to save us from our sins.

• And it is at Mass that our Lord feeds us with His Body and Blood in Holy Communion so that we may experience His resurrection.

• Thus, Holy Mother Church requires us participate in Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation. Unless we are excused for a grave reason, such as illness or the care of infants, intentionally missing Mass on a Sunday or a holy day of obligation is a grave sin.

• And the Church has handed down this rule to us not to make life more difficult, but because She desperately wants us to receive these manifold graces that are available to us only at Mass!

• Holy Mother Church obliges us to go to Mass so that we can experience the true Christian joy that can only be found in contemplating our Lord and the beautiful mysteries of our Catholic faith.

• So I urge you, my friends, make Sunday Mass your highest priority each week. And do it not simply because you dread the loss of heaven and fear the pains of hell, but because you love God, because you want to contemplate Him, because you want to live a life of true joy.

• My friends, true Christian joy – our ability to rejoice at all times – is our vocation and our testimony to who Christ is. It is a sign of God’s almighty power at work in a dark world and of our trust and hope in Him.

• As we are gathered together here for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, let us all pray that we may receive worthily the grace of true Christian joy and live it faithfully in the world.

• May our lives be a reflection of the eternal joy we hope to experience with our Lord in Heaven. And may the joy that we live be a means of drawing more souls to our Lord’s Kingdom.

Copyright 2010 by Reverend Timothy S. Reid

Reverend Reid is pastor of St. Ann’s Catholic  Church in Charlotte, NC

Dale Alquist – Chesterton: Apostle of Common Sense

In 15 Audio on 2012/03/08 at 9:11 AM

 

G. K. Chesterton: The Apostle of Common Sense

Host – Dale Ahlquist

Dale Ahlquist, President of the American Chesterton Society, discusses the life and work of the great 20th Century English writer, G.K. Chesterton. Chuck Chalberg appears as G.K. Chesterton in vignettes which features excerpts from Chesterton’s writings.

Please click on this link to access these programshttp://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/seriessearchprog.asp?seriesID=6140&T1=Ahlquist

1.Introduction to Chesterton

2.Wonder: G. K. Chesterton’s thoughts on the wonder of the Universe

3.The Riddles of God

4.The Signature of Man

5. Uneducating the Educated

6.Fancies and Fads

7.The “D” Word

8.Puritans and Pagans

9.The Art of Defending the Faith Part 1

10.The Art of Defending the Faith Part 2

11.Talking in Rhyme

12.Recovering the Lost Art of Common Sense

13.A Chesterton Reading Plan

Please click on this link to access these programshttp://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/seriessearchprog.asp?seriesID=6140&T1=Ahlquist

Fr. Robert Spitzer, SJ – Finding God Through Faith and Reason

In 15 Audio on 2011/09/21 at 6:00 AM

Finding God through Faith and Reason

Host – Fr. Robert Spitzer, S.J., Ph.D.

Fr. Robert Spitzer, S.J., Ph.D., lends insight into new evidence gathered from the fields of contemporary philosophy and physics which supports proof for the existence of God. The nature of the universe itself, including many constants which preserve the balance of daily operations, connotes the existence of a creator. The principle of intelligent design leads to logical conclusions about the nature of God

Please click on this link to access programshttp://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/seriessearchprog.asp?seriesID=7132&T1=Spitzer

Finding God through Faith and Reason

1. How Can You Prove Godʼs Existence?

Fr. Spitzer surveys the types of evidence as A Priori, A Posteriori, as well as publicly and privately accessible, and distinguishes between evidence that has recourse to experience or sensation and that which does not. Using the argument that to “achieve the unachievable,” as in saying “past time is infinite,” is a contradiction and therefore impossible, Fr. Spitzer concludes that there must be a “creation event” because time must be finite, and hence a creator must exist.

2. St. Thomas Aquinas’ Proof of an Uncaused Cause

In the history of life in the universe, Fr. Spitzer distinguishes between two forms of being: the Caused Causes, which rely on something else in order to exist; and the Uncaused Cause, or that which needs nothing other than itself to exist. Going back into the past and positing an infinite number of caused causes gets us nowhere in determining ultimate causality.

St. Thomas sheds light with his Proof of the Uncaused Cause: There must be at least one uncaused cause. The Uncaused Cause cannot cause itself. There can only be one Uncaused Cause (God).

3. Metaphysical Proof Part One: Proof of an Unconditioned Reality

In the history of life in the universe, Fr. Spitzer distinguishes between two realities: Conditioned Reality, or that which must have conditions fulfilled in order to exist; and Unconditioned Reality, that which does not need to have any conditions fulfilled in order to exist. If going back in the line of successive causalities or agents, there are a finite number of conditions, the final condition must also be a conditioned reality, needing something else to fulfill its conditions for existence. If there are only conditioned realities, then nothing can exist. If the cat is dependent on an infinite number of conditions to exist, it is unachievable, and will never exist. Therefore at least one Unconditioned Reality must exist.

4. Metaphysical Proof Part Proof of an Absolutely Simple Reality

Fr. Spitzer examines the Proof of an Absolutely Simple Reality. As a presupposition, he states that, “If there is no Unconditioned Reality, then no conditioned reality (that which must have conditions fulfilled) can exist.” How does one describe the coexistence of the Unconditioned Reality with all conditioned realities? The Unconditioned Reality must be defined as absolutely simple. “Simplicity” denotes Something so transparent to itself that it literally has no intrinsic or extrinsic boundaries. “Absolute Simplicity” connotes no exclusivity, only total compatibility with everything. Hence we see how God can co-exist with the created universe, permeating it with his omnipresence.

5. Metaphysical Proof : Proof of a Unique, Unrestricted Reality

Fr. Spitzer looks into the Proof of a Unique, Unrestricted Reality. It is the nature of finites and boundaries to exclude. Therefore the simpler the reality, the more inclusive. Absolute Simplicity means lacking all intrinsic and extrinsic boundaries, or excluding properties. An Unconditioned Reality cannot exclude anything from itself (Absolutely Simple). An Absolutely Simple being must be infinite and unique (one and only one).

6. Metaphysical Proof : Proof of a Continuous Creator of All Else That Is

Fr. Spitzer surveys the proof of a continuous creator of all else that is. First, there must be a last condition that the conditioned reality depends on for existence. The one Unconditioned Reality is the ultimate ground of reality for all conditioned reality. The one Unconditioned Reality is the Creator of all else that is. The Unconditioned Reality is continually thinking all reality into reality. If God stops thinking us into existence, we would become nothing. God is an absolutely simple, unique, continuous Creator of all else that is.

7. A Priori Cosmological Proof: Proof that Past Time Is Finite and Requires a Creator

Fr. Spitzer surveys the proof that past time is finite and requires a creator. Past time has occurred; it has been achieved. The notion of infinite past time is impossible, for it would constitute an “achieved unachievable.” Since past time must be finite in any possible universe, then it must have a terminus (a beginning). If past time had a beginning, then it could not have created itself.

8. A Priori Cosmological Proof : Proof that the Creator of Past Time Is Not Conditioned by Time and Is Therefore Absolutely Simple

Fr. Spitzer surveys the proof that the creator of past time is not conditioned by time and is therefore absolutely simple. Past time must always be finite in all possible universes, in all possible conditions; it must have a beginning, prior to which it is nothing (does not exist). There must be one “creator” of past time and the universe, who is necessarily timeless and completely unchangeable. The Creator of past time is trans-temporal, not conditioned by past time.

9. A Posteriori Cosmological Evidence: The Universe Is Finite in Time and Space, Implying a Creator

Citing cosmological evidence, Fr. Spitzer states that the universe is finite in time and space, implying a creator. Einstein had suspected that the universe is finite. Hubble discovered that the universe is mostly “red-shifting,” meaning that the universe is expanding! The universe is not only expanding, it is slowing down in its expansion. The universe has a finite mass, 10 to the 55 Kg. The observable universe is likely only 13.7 billion years old. What was it prior? The universe literally did not exist prior to 13.7 billion years ago. If the universe began at a Big Bang, we know it is 13.7 billion years old, and it was hence created. The intelligent design of the universe implies that the Creator must be a super-intellect.

10.Teleological Evidence : The Extreme Improbability of the Universe Being Capable of Sustaining Life

Fr. Spitzer explains the extreme improbability of the universe on its own being capable of sustaining life. An anthropic universe is capable of giving rise to and sustaining life, whereas a non-anthropic universe is incapable of giving rise to life. The universal constants in relation to each other (the speed of light, minimum lengths and time, etc.) can only have a very narrow window of values in order to accommodate life. Any value above or below that narrow window of values will never give rise to any life form. Therefore God had to arrange the constants of the universe in such a way that life is continually sustained.

11. Teleological Evidence: The Extremely Improbable Universe Betokens a Super-Intellect Designer

Fr. Spitzer cites evidence that the delicate, precise balance of life in the universe of its own nature requires an intelligent designer. Carbon is the building-block of life. Very slight variances in the resonance of the Carbon atom or Oxygen atom would preclude any bonding, precluding any life from forming. The odds against our universe developing are so great, it would be like a monkey randomly tapping keys on a typewriter to produce “Hamlet.” Hence the extremely improbable universe betokens a super-intellect designer.

12. Manifestations of God’s Absolute Simplicity: Truth, Love, Goodness, Beauty and Being 

Fr. Spitzer surveys what can be said about God through the nature of universal truth. Absolute simplicity implies no intrinsic or extrinsic boundaries. This pure acting power, or being itself, could act as a unity for every existing finite being. We know that mind can unify things, for truth is a unity. The truth itself is an unrestricted act of understanding, understanding itself and all else that is. Five transcendentals manifest Godʼs absolute simplicity: Being, Truth, Love, Goodness (Justice), Beauty. If Truth Itself, Love Itself, Goodness Itself, and Beauty Itself are all manifestations of absolute simplicity, then there can only be one Being Itself.

13. Evidence of the Human Soul: Our Desire for Perfect and Unconditional Truth, Love, Goodness, Beauty and Being

Fr. Spitzer observes that human beings have five transcendental desires for perfect, unconditional and unrestricted being, truth, love, goodness and beauty. Human beings seek unconditional truth: the perfect set of correct answers to the complete set of possible questions. We seek the unity of all forms. The five transcendental desires of the human being point directly to the existence of the soul. The soul innately longs for its creator, as St. Augustine wrote: “For Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.”

14. The Proofs in Light of Christian Faith: One God, Three Persons and the Incarnation

Fr. Spitzer notes that there is not more than one absolutely Simple Reality–only one God, and only one nature in God. But there are three Persons in One God. How can this be? Three Self-Consciousnesses are making unconditional use of the one infinite Power source. The Son’s self-consciousness entered into the thought of creation, subjecting Itself to the conditions of a finite human nature, while still making use of the infinite Power Source. The only explanation for why the Son would do this is LOVE (a perfect act of empathy), making Himself perfectly accessible to every human being.

Please click on this link to access programshttp://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/seriessearchprog.asp?seriesID=7132&T1=Spitzer