The Beauty Dialogues, Part 5

Today Morgan Meis continues his periodic exchanges on the nature of beauty with Image founder Gregory Wolfe. Dear Greg, In your last letter, you asked me not to hesitate in taking a “real swing” at you, philosophically speaking. (Or were you suggesting that this tête-à-tête must inevitably culminate in the back of an alley somewhere?) [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/goodletters/2017/05/beauty-dialogues-part-5/

Preaching the End of the World

I learned the news that guitarist Chris Cornell’s death had been declared a suicide on Thursday, May 18—which also happened to be the fourth day in a row I had not managed to get over to the pharmacy to pick up my antidepressant prescription. Which meant that I had not taken my medicine for at [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/goodletters/2017/05/preaching-end-world/

Analogical Reasoning, and Reasoning from Plausibility

(Using the Example of my Paper, “Biblical Evidence for Marian Apparitions”) Dimensions are used as an analogy to the Holy Trinity. This is a drawing of the first four dimensions. On the left is zero dimensions (a point) and on the right is four dimensions (A tesseract). Drawing by “NerdBoy1392” [Wikimedia Commons /  Creative Commons [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/davearmstrong/2017/05/analogical-reasoning-and-reasoning-from-plausibility.html

Dialogue with a Protestant: Authority of the Jerusalem Council

The Conversion of St. Paul (1600), by Caravaggio (1571-1610) [public domain / Wikimedia Commons] *** Joshua Scott is a Protestant who responded to my challenge to interact point-by-point with one of my articles. He chose to wrangle with the section on the Jerusalem council from my book, The Catholic Verses (2004), and some additional material [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/davearmstrong/2017/05/dialogue-protestant-authority-jerusalem-council.html

Poetry Friday: “The Key”

I love this poem for its exuberance. The fat bee, “big as a blackberry,” bumping heavily against the pane. The impossibility of an acorn’s power. The very idea of “infant waterfalls.” Each vivid, particular thing of beauty from the natural world that Friman presents to us bears itself simply and humbly– yet appears remarkable when [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/goodletters/2017/05/poetry-friday-key/

Catholic Sinners & Corruption: the “Jesus, Paul, & Revelation” Retort

The Kiss of Judas, by James Tissot (1836-1902) [public domain / Wikimedia Commons] *** There are about 5,100 Catholic bishops in the world. Jesus picked twelve disciples, yet one of them betrayed Him. That’s an 8% ratio of “bad apostles / bishops.” Another denied Him three times, but he repented, so (to be gracious) we [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/davearmstrong/2017/05/catholic-sinners-corruption-jesus-paul-revelation-retort.html

Conciliar Infallibility / Council of Constance & John Hus’ Execution

Jan Hus before the Council of Constance (1883), by  Václav Brožík (1851-1901) [public domain / Wikimedia Commons] *** My Presbyterian (OPC) friend John E. Taylor started this discussion on Facebook, in relation to my paper, Why Do Protestants Reject the Notion of “One True Church”? His words will be in blue. *** Dave, the record of [Read More...]

from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/davearmstrong/2017/05/conciliar-infallibility-council-constance-john-huss-execution.html