Aρχή

his is the first post.  I talk about religion (among other things) from a rational perspective, based upon evidence that both my interlocutors and I agree is reliable.  The big mistake many Christians make when trying to lead others to Faith is by appealing to an authority that their unbelieving friend does not recognize.

I believe that my faith in the Holy Catholic Church, led on earth at the moment by Pope Benedict XVI, is well founded.  I believe her doctrines are true and worthy of belief, and that the world is a much better place on account of her.  I also believe that a perfectly rational person faced with the same evidence that most people reading this blog have access to should come to the same conclusion, that what the Catholic Church teaches is true.  I used to believe in her (the Church) because she agreed best with the Bible: being a former Protestant, the Bible was my first assumption, my ἀρχή.  But now one of the best reasons for believing that the Bible is divinely inspired for me is that it is the Church's book, and the historical evidence points towards the Church.  The Bible needs to be interpreted, and throughout History, the Church, led by the Spirit of Truth, has been figuring out what it means for each new age.

 Raphael's "Disputation of the Holy Sacrament" (1509, C.E.)

I am starting this blog because I frequently get the feeling that I've looked up the reasons for a belief that I have, perhaps even remember the outline in general, but I cannot remember exactly how I reached the conclusion.  Only that I did, and it seemed rational at the time I investigated.  This is a natural failure of memory more than anything else, one the blog will help.  This is true in a lot of areas, not just religion:  I can remember proving that any triangle inscribed in a semicircle will be a right triangle and I could prove it again, but I don't remember exactly how at the moment.

Refutation by Tasteless Art (No one knows nor cares, C.E.) 

An example from religion: I was talking to an atheist the other day who asked me, "Why Christianity?  Why not Zoroastrian dualism, or Buddhism, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, etc.?"  Now I remembered I'd read what seemed like a very good refutation of dualism (the eternal struggle between two equally powerful deities, one evil and one good) in C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, but what was it again?  It's nice to have a resource like this to refer back to my own intellectual (and I hope on the whole rational) journey and milestones along it.

So, ground rules:  I will attempt through the post labels to distinguish between four kinds of posts: (1) my personal beliefs, but not necessarily that of the Church (like Evolution, Politics, Economics, whether Vice President Biden is a good Catholic, etc.), (2) defenses of the Church's policies (which are sometimes flawed: e.g. Spanish Inquisition, allowing itself to become the State Church of Rome), (3) artistic posts exploring music, art and liturgy, and (4) defenses of the divinely inspired teachings and doctrines of the Church through reason.  I'm going to let the latter dominate the content because it is the most important to me.

If you're going to comment, please do so by backing up your factual assertions with facts.  If another commenter asks you a direct question, answer it directly, do not respond at all, or I will delete your original comment.  Use a screen name and stick to it: no anonymous comment sniping.  I reserve the right to delete anyone's comments, for any reason.  But follow these ground rules and I invite you to share your views in the comments and in emails as my guests here.  When I use terms like "he," "his" and "man" in a general context, this applies to both men and women of the human race.  It is a compact way of writing, not in itself a declamation against feminism, and certainly not implying any intrinsic inequality between the sexes.  For in Christ there is no male or female.

St. Peter said in his first scriptural letter:

Rembrandt's "The Stoning of St. Stephen" (1625, C.E.)

"Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame. For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong." 


I'm going to try, and no doubt fail at times, to keep to this standard of inquiry, sanctifying my heart toward Christ through the process.  I hope to provide an effective encouragement for fellow believers on the one hand, and a respectful rebuke to the enemies of Christ's Body the Church, as well as to her sincere but mistaken members and allies, on the other.

2016 UPDATE: The methods, purposes and goals of the blog have been expanded. See this blog post's conclusion for details.