Catholic Theology

The objective of this research was determinate the differences in behavior risk (addictive behaviors, sexual behavior, suicide attempt and antisocial behavior) between adolescents with high and low academic performance. The sample studied was formed by 1000 teenagers between 14 and 22 years old, 485 males and 515 females, students of public high schools. Has been used a measure the academic performance and many instruments for evaluating different risk behavior for this study. The results indicated differences in risk behavior of adolescents with high and low academic performance.

There is the verbal paradigm and there is the nonverbal unseen spiritual paradigm. This paper advocates a spiritual view. Sacred scripture tells us we can only please God if we try very hard (diligently) to seek Him. If you believe God is present here and now and surrounds you with Himself, you can pray that what you ask will be granted "only if it serves your purpose and brings you glory, in Jesus's name."  When you read sacred scripture, you are struck in every verse by the writers' constant awareness of God. This is in stark contrast with the secular life in which one merely seeks the good life in harmony with one’s neighbour but without any awareness of God. When a child is very young she is aware of God, then from pre-school to university, the secular worldview is taught, and the secular media and the secular workplace prohibit God, or place faith in a negative light.

Our lack of awareness of Being results in bewildering experience. The intrinsic inner radiance, the inner light of Being arises out of primordial luminous spaciousness, the unbound openness of unbound pure potentiality. When this primordial ground of Being is veiled and obscured by the lack of experiential awareness, we can be locked into dualistic experiences, and consequently the non-dual nature of the field of Being is experientially foreclosed. The sense of indivisibility of all phenomena and awareness is experientially foreclosed. The capacity to see into, feel into and see through the lucidity of phenomena as the very field of Being becomes foreclosed and densified. We then live contained in mind alone. There is no experience of the field of Being. Without the field of Being we easily become things and objects both to our self and to others.

What is your view after reading this paper? Email your views to collegemhc@gmail.com

THE HEART OF THE MATTER:
The idea that every conceived human being is naturally evil, guilty, a sinner, or sinful, is itself child abuse and a blasphemous charge against God.

While the author cannot speak for churches of Christ, common among them are unique ways of understanding sacred scripture, believed to have been written by apostles and prophets of the Lord before the destruction of Jerusalem (70 A.D.) and circulated among the early Christian communities (e.g. A letter called First Clement in about 95 A.D., refers to at least ten New Testament books), then collected as a volume by the self-identified Christian community of the second century A.D. or earlier, e.g. the list of Marcion (140 A.D.)

Also see MEANING THERAPY here
https://issuu.com/collegeofmentalhealth/docs/meaning_therapy3

en colaboración con Javier Ortega, Beatriz Rodriguez-Antolin y Nicolas Zambrana

Este libro está dirigido a todos los juristas de habla española sensibilizados con el actual proceso de globalización, que tan directamente afecta al Derecho. También interesará a aquellos estudiantes de las Facultades de Derecho españolas e iberoamericanas que quieran dar sus primeros pasos en el conocimiento del Derecho desde esta nueva perspectiva global

The political reality of many countries in the Muslim World is untenable and reforms and change is absolutely necessary. This article argues that use of force and violence for political change is making things worse as one can witness in Syria and Iraq. The article advances a Qur'ānic perspective on the desirability of peace as a goal and peaceful means as instruments of change. The article acknowledges that the Qur'ānic sanction for use of force to defend religious freedom prcludes the advocacy of pacifism but nevertheless the article does make a strong case for privileging peace over use of force.

This Informative Book: Prophet Muhammad: The Last Messenger in The Bible by Kais Al Kalby opens the minds of Muslims and non-Muslims to many astonishing facts found in the Bible and the Quran regarding Allah's plan in revealing the truth throughout the Ages. God; as a compassionate creator; gave choices to man to guide him towards a way of life in which he can become successful in his life.

This book delves into the scriptures with precision and wisdom to bring forth lost pearls and prophecies that have been overlooked for centuries. There is no denying the truth once it is visible and this book brings visibility to the truth that Prophet Muhammad, peace upon him, was to come as the last Prophet of God as stated by earlier prophets, including but not limited to Jesus and Elijah, peace be upon them both. Even shows Prophet Muhammad's coming in the buddhist and Hindu texts as well as the Zoroastrians and other religious texts. Easy and fascinating, too, by showing word-for-word translations side-by-side with several languages. Transliterations and the actual script of the languages for your comparison and further investigation. Kalby hides nothing! This gives a refreshing understanding of the depth of the original meanings and the poetry of the times.

MESSAGE TO THE GOSPEL READER:

Dear young man, what good will it do you if all the people are saved and you are doomed? If everyone on earth became Muslim because of learning about what you have found in the Gospel, and they entered Paradise and were saved from Hell, but you did not benefit from that, and you continued to adhere to distorted Christianity until you died following it – God forbid – then, by your Lord, what benefit could you hope for then? What is in store for you is something else.

Forget about the Muslims and the Christians, and think: what are you waiting for, now that you have seen the truth and you learned about the Prophethood of the Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) in your own scripture?
Do you not know that the messages of Allah to His slaves, and His guidance to the people of earth, were not completed, and the blessing was not perfected, until Allah sent His Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to complete what his fellow Prophets (such as Abraham, Jesus, Moses) had brought before him of the call to the Lord of the Worlds?

Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion” [Quran 5:3].

It was narrated from Jaabir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “My likeness and that of the Prophets is that of a man who built a house and completed and perfected it, except for the space of one brick. The people started to enter it and admire it, saying: Were it not for the space of this brick.” The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “I am that brick; I have come to complete (the mission of) the Prophets.” Agreed upon.

Do you not know that Allah took a covenant from the Prophets and from the believers who followed them, that they would believe in the final Prophet of Allah, Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), if they lived to see his message and news of his Prophethood reached them, and they came to know of his religion and his book?

Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And (remember) when Allah took the Covenant of the Prophets, saying: ‘Take whatever I gave you from the Book and Hikmah (understanding of the Laws of Allah, etc.), and afterwards there will come to you a Messenger (Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)) confirming what is with you; you must, then, believe in him and help him.’ Allah said: ‘Do you agree (to it) and will you take up My Covenant (which I conclude with you)?’ They said: ‘We agree.’ He said: "Then bear witness; and I am with you among the witnesses (for this)’” [Quran 3:81].

There are many of your fellow Christians who were guided, who hastened to follow the truth that they found in their scripture, and no threat scared them and no temptation deterred them – men and women, Arabs and non-Arabs, leaders and common folk; let them be a beacon on your path.

Do you not know that if you believed in your former religion, then the truth became clear to you and you believed in the religion of Islam, and followed its Messenger, the last of the Prophets and Messengers, you would have a double reward? Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Those to whom We gave the Scripture (i.e. the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel), etc.) before it, - they believe in it (the Quran).

And when it is recited to them, they say: ‘We believe in it. Verily, it is the truth from our Lord. Indeed even before it we have been from those who submit themselves to Allah in Islam as Muslims’ (like Abdullah bin Salam and Salman Al-Farisee, etc.).

These will be given their reward twice over, because they are patient, and repel evil with good, and spend (in charity) out of what We have provided them.

And when they hear AlLaghw (dirty, false, evil vain talk), they withdraw from it and say: ‘To us our deeds, and to you your deeds. Peace be to you. We seek not the ignorant’”
[Quran 28:52-55].

It was narrated from Abu Moosa al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “There are three who will be given a double reward: a man from among the people of the Book who believed in his Prophet, then lived to see the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and followed him and believed in him– he will have a double reward; and a slave who fulfils his duty towards Allah and towards his master – he will have a double reward; and a man who had a slave woman whom he fed and fed her well, and taught her and taught her well, then he set her free and married her – he will have a double reward.”.

Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3011) and Muslim (154).
Finally, the Lord, may He be glorified and exalted, said in the Last Testament, i.e., the Qur’an (interpretation of the meaning):

“O mankind! Verily, there has come to you the Messenger (Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)) with the truth from your Lord, so believe in him, it is better for you. But if you disbelieve, then certainly to Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. And Allah is Ever All-Knowing, All-Wise.

O people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians)! Do not exceed the limits in your religion, nor say of Allah aught but the truth. The Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), was (no more than) a Messenger of Allah and His Word, (‘Be!’ - and he was) which He bestowed on Maryam (Mary) and a spirit (Rooh) created by Him; so believe in Allah and His Messengers. Say not: ‘Three (trinity)!’ Cease! (it is) better for you. For Allah is (the only) One Ilah (God), Glory be to Him (Far Exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allah is All-Sufficient as a Disposer of affairs.

The Messiah will never be proud to reject to be a slave to Allah, nor the angels who are near (to Allah). And whosoever rejects His worship and is proud, then He will gather them all together unto Himself.

So, as for those who believed (in the Oneness of Allah - Islamic Monotheism) and did deeds of righteousness, He will give their (due) rewards, and more out of His Bounty. But as for those who refuse His worship and were proud, He will punish them with a painful torment. And they will not find for themselves besides Allah any protector or helper.

O mankind! Verily, there has come to you a convincing proof (Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)) from your Lord, and We sent down to you a manifest light (this Quran).

So, as for those who believed in Allah and held fast to Him, He will admit them to His Mercy and Grace (i.e. Paradise), and guide them to Himself by a Straight Path”
[Quran’ 4:170-175].

We ask Allah to guide you to that which is best in this world and the hereafter, and to open your heart to guidance and the religion of truth.

This essay was published in The Bible and Early Trinitarian Theology, edited by Christopher A. Beeley and Mark E. Weedman, for the CUAP Studies in Early Christianity (Washington DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2018); this is the uncorrected proofs. Exploring the humanity and divinity of Jesus, the Son's relation to the Father, and the agency of the Holy Spirit, it is one of five essays suggesting Johannine contributions to trinitarian discussions in the early church.

popolo ebreo si è fatto dell'universo demoniaco ma ci contenteremmo, da teologi, di prendere atto dei principali insegnamenti dei testi biblici sui demoni, cercando tuttavia per quanto possibile, con l'aiuto delle scienze storiche, a comprenderne la loro genesi.

We have two ways of knowing. Our mind knows forms, things, both subtle and gross. Faces, hands, buildings, trees, math formulas, mind knows subject and the mind knows otherness. The mind knows dualities, the mind knows me and you, us and them, and this and that. Mind knows time, mind knows the past, the present and the sense of the future. The mind knows things and entities, the mind knows beings, infinite numbers of beings and things. The mind knows difference. The mind thinks conceptually, feels affectively, imagines through imagery, the mind has sense and the mind has memory. The mind knows dualistically.

"This book will probably be the most difficult piece of reading you will ever read because in this book I demonstrate with overwhelming proof that Christianity is the great lie foretold in The Bible . You will be tempted to shut down, stop reading, to turn away from it in total denial. The "god" behind this false religion, The Dragon, has a firm hold on the mind of humanity and this lie is so powerful that if possible could even deceive the elect of YHUH (YAHUAH ALAUHYM)... if possible". - Rev Sha'ul
Chapter 1 - From Dagon to The Dragon, The Spirit behind Christianty
Chapter 2 : The Great Deception
Chapter 3: The Great Apostasy
Chapter 4: The Pagan History of the Christian Church
Chapter 5 : How Christianity was created
Chapter 6: The Foundation and Birth of Christianity
Chapter 7: How the new "god" was created and called "Jesus"
Chapter 8: Christianity is born with a new "god" called "Jesus"
Chapter 9: The name "Jesus"
Chapter 10 : Easter replaced Passover (Pasach)
Chapter 11: The Sabbath is changed to Dies Solis (Day of the Sun aka Sunday)
Chapter 12:  Dies Natalis Solis Invicti (Christmas)

In the summer of 2013 at the Tibetan Center in Poolesville, Maryland the great Lama YangThang Rinpoche gave instruction on the practice of the great compassion, or as he described the practice, as being the practice of Absolute Compassion. The instruction was to extend the light of awareness into the world and into the cosmos. Extending the light of awareness into the present moment of a person, extending the light of awareness into the past time of the person and extending the light of awareness into the future time of the person. This truly is the great practice of the great compassion and everyone can practice this extension of the light of awareness. This very proactive praxis brings forth the light within us and fills us with the light of the field of awareness. It is great to practice this vast practice. Of course it takes a boldness of intention and passion of heart. Extending the light of our innermost awareness into the present of those we love, and into the past of those we love, and then extending the light into their future of those we love is self-liberating. The light of awareness illuminates experience, metabolizes experience, opens us into un-bound awareness, undoes fixated-ness, and brings forth luminous intensity. The light of awareness is pure potentiality. The same practice can be used with those whom we hate or dislike or whom disgust us. This practice of extending the light of awareness deepens our own experience of becoming aware of awareness. As we practice extending the light of awareness, awareness itself completely opens up for us and deepens our experience in depth and breath. In time we begin to experience the true secret of this praxis. Timeless awareness begins to be experienced by us and sustained by us. Timeless awareness is the

It's a research paper. This study helps us to understand how archaeology can illuminate biblical studies. However, archaeology does not have the final word on the interpretation of the Bible. The Bible has to be interpreted in its totality. Archaeology claims that the walls of Jericho did not exist at the arrival of Joshua. But ch.6 of Joshua itself has enormous textual variants between MT and  LXX. Before advocating archaeological discoveries, we need to be patient enough to understand what actually the text speaks. This is not a detailed study on Ch. 6 of Joshua. It is only an overview on the contributions of Archaeology as well as on the biblical understanding of Joshua's conquest of Jericho.

Nearly two billion Christians and over 1.5 billion Muslims believe in him, yet Jesus is perhaps the most misunderstood and misrepresented person in history.
This book explores and demystifies Jesus – his life, teachings, personality and mission. It highlights commonalities but also examines differences between Christianity and Islam.

This book explains where and how the Qur’an challenges the traditional Church narrative.In doing so, it presents the reader with a compelling and clear understanding of Jesus and his true message.

The book also demonstrates why the Qur’an is the ‘missing link’, that all important ‘bridge’ connecting Judaism and Christianity, uniting all of the Abrahamic faiths.

Fully referenced and packed with up-to-date research, yet written in a readable style, this book will change your perspective on Jesus and his message forever!

Published, The Bible and Interpretation, June 22, 2018
http://www.bibleinterp.com/articles/2018/06/and428022.shtml
While Sessions’s appeal to biblical authorization has failed, the larger question is why. Is it that the Bible has been interpreted adequately and rejected by modern society? Or, might it be that a flawed interpretation of a Biblical text has been wielded to support a problematic ordinance, calling for a closer look this notorious passage from Romans? Indeed, the latter is the case, and here’s why.

This chapter on later Platonic traditions focuses on Denys, otherwise known as Ps-Dionysius the Areopagite. A late fifth- to early sixth-century theologian dependent on Plotinus, Damascius, and, above all, Proclus, assumed to have been converted by St Paul and possessing his spiritual wisdom, Denys was influential throughout  Catholic theology. The chapter places Denys’s innovations against the background of Christian engagement with Neoplatonism after Augustine. After tracing Denys’ influence from the ninth to the sixteenth centuries, his role in modernity via Pierre de Bérulle and neo-scholasticism is considered. We conclude with his importance for some postmodern Catholic thinkers.

The moral enhancement (or bioenhancement) debate seems stuck in a dilemma. On the one hand, the more radical proposals, while certainly novel and interesting, seem unlikely to be feasible in practice, or if technically feasible then most likely imprudent. But on the other hand, the more “sensible” proposals – sensible in the sense of being both practically achievable and more plausibly ethically justifiable – can be rather hard to distinguish from both “traditional” forms of moral enhancement, such as non-drug-mediated social or moral education, and non-moral forms of bioenhancement, such as “smart drug” style cognitive enhancement. In this essay, I argue that bioethicists have paid insufficient attention to an alternative form of moral bioenhancement—or at least a likely candidate—that falls somewhere between these two extremes, namely the (appropriately qualified) use of certain psychedelic drugs.

This is a revised issue of REL Issue No. 1

The tomb of the manicurists Niankhkhnum and Khnumhotep, Fifth Dynasty, Old Kingdom Egypt, is regarded as exceptional either in its size and architecture or most noticeably in its lively portraits of intimacy between the two owners. The portraits confused the Egyptologists as being unprecedented in the Egyptian tombs. They looked for clues either in iconography or texts and came by three explanations; either they are twins, or conjoined twins, or they are in a homosexual relation. The last speculation has been passed to press and since then the issue of discovering homosexuality in ancient Egypt did not cease of popping up in books, journals, media and web-sites. This paper investigates the hidden symbolization rather than the visual interpretation. The intimate relationship shall be ascertained in view of the pictorial narrations of Predynastic Egypt. The spirituality of the scenes shall be judged by the ancient Egyptian conception of the soul. Question: Are they two or one? This question has never been raised in Egyptology and shall be answered for within the sphere of god Khnum.

Es un panorama general de las lecturas interesantes en teología para los que se inician. Principalmente, para las personas de habla castellana.
Aunque fue acabado en 1998, todavía puede tener interés y servir de orientación. Contiene mucha bibliografía y largas notas bibliográficas sobre Santo Tomás de Aquino, San Agustín, Guardini, De Lubac, Congar, Von Balthasar, Ratzinger

In his extant letters and speeches, Emperor Constantine often referred to God. However, these references were seldom theological elaborations on the concept of God. Instead, they were usually limited to the use of certain ambiguous titles of God. Accordingly, this article examines the emperor’s concept of God with the help of the so-called title-theology. Arguably, Constantine’s understanding of God developed from inclusive “pagan” henotheism to a qualified Christian monotheism, yet so that it retained the promise of accommodating various views of God. Vagueness in theological matters served the purpose of establishing the widest possible religious consensus in the Roman Empire. At the same time, this calculated vagueness also enabled different interpretations of Constantine’s theological utterances and perhaps contributed indirectly to the Trinitarian controversies within the Christian church. A comparison between Constantine’s concepts of God and that of Nicaea shows both a significant agreement and the existence of different underlying incentives.

Since the time of Harnack, it has become a commonplace among many Augustinian scholars that Augustine’s teaching on predestination is in insoluble tension with his insistence on the importance of maintaining ecclesial communion.  This tension arises from ambiguities concerning the relationship between God’s decree of predestination and his foreknowledge of each person’s ultimate destiny.  This paper will offer a critical assessment of three possible ways of resolving this tension.

The doctrine of the Trinity is central to mainstream Christianity. But insofar as it posits “three persons” (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), who are “one God,” it appears as inconsistent as the claim that 1+1+1=1.

Much of the literature on “The Logical Problem of the Trinity,” as this has been called, attacks or defends Trinitarianism with little regard to the fourth century theological controversies and the late Hellenistic and early Medieval philosophical background in which it took shape. I argue that this methodol-ogy, which I call “the Puzzle Approach,” produces obviously invalid arguments, and it is unclear how to repair it without collapsing into my preferred methodology, “the Historical Approach,” which sees history as essential to the debate. I also discuss “mysterianism,” arguing that, successful or not, it has a different goal from the other approaches. I further argue that any solution from the Historical Approach satisfies the concerns of the Puzzle Approach and mysterianism anyway.

I then examine the solution to the Logical Problem of the Trinity found in St. Gregory of Nyssa’s writings, both due to his place in the history of the doctrine, and his clarity in explicating what I call “the metaphysics of synergy.” I recast his solution in standard predicate logic and provide a formal proof of its consistency. I end by considering the possibilities for attacking the broader philosophical context of his defense and conclude that the prospects for doing so are dim. In any case, if there should turn out to be any problem with the doctrine of the Trinity at all, it will not be one of mere logical inconsistency in saying that “These Three are One.”

El capítulo pretende presentar la teología del espacio litúrgico en los escritos de Joseph Ratzinger. Explora su obra buscando las referencias al espacio celebrativo cristiano, así como los fundamentos eclesiológicos, bíblicos y litúrgicos de dicha reflexión teológica.

The third printing of The Christology of the Fourth Gospel (Eugene: Cascade Books, 2010) updates my first Johannine monograph with five outlines of new paradigms comprising my overall theory: the Dialogical Autonomy of the Fourth Gospel (pp. xxxv-lxxxix).

Wenn in dieser Ausgabe von "Theologisches" zu Karl Rahner auch seine Stellung zur Evolutionstheorie untersucht werden soll, mag dies nur den zu überraschen, der nicht um den extremen Einfluß dieser zunächst naturwissenschaftlich scheinenden Theorie auf alle Bereiche unseres Geisteslebens weiß.

Kürzlich erschien in Theologisches eine Artikelserie [1] über Willigis Jäger, den die Glaubenskongregation disziplinieren musste. Einer der "Eckpfeiler" der häretischen Ideen dieses Zen-Meisters und exklaustrierten Benediktiners - und vielleicht Ursache, die ihn den Glauben verlieren ließ- ist die Evolutionstheorie. An anderer Stelle [2] wurde das Verhältnis namhafter Naturwissenschaftler zu Religion und Naturwissenschaft referiert - der Einfluß der Evolutionstheorie ist offenbar. Es ist nicht schwer, Äußerungen wie die folgende aus einem Lehrbuch für Medizinstudenten zu finden: "Die kontinuierliche Evolution der pflanzlichen und tierischen Arten seit der Entstehung des Lebens ist heute wohlbewiesene Grundlage unseres Weltbildes" [3]. Sofern es ein einheitliches Weltbild in einer multikulturellen Gesellschaft gibt, ist die Evolutionstheorie sicherlich dessen Grundlage - allerdings nicht die Grundlage des meinen als Schüler Christi und zwar nicht nur, weil ich der Bibel höhere Autorität einräume als säkularer Weisheit, mag sie auch noch so glänzend erscheinen, sondern auch weil ich gerade als Naturwissen¬schaftler die Evolutionstheorie schlichtweg für falsch halte und ich denke, dass ihre weite Verbreitung gerade wegen ihrer dem erbsündigen Menschen hochwillkommenen weltanschaulichen Konsequenzen geschieht[4].

Vielerorts bezieht sich Rahner auf die Evolutionstheorie, z.B.:

"Theologisches zum Monogenismus" Schriften zur Theologie I. Einsiedeln: Benzinger 1954
"Zur Theologie des Todes" Quaestiones disputatae, Freiburg: Herder 1958
"Theologische Anthropologie und moderne Entwicklungslehre" 1960
"Erbsünde und Evolution" Concilium 3 1967
"Die Christologie innerhalb einer evolutiven Weltanschauung"[5] (abgekürzt "Christologie")
"Das Problem der Hominisation"[6] (abgekürzt "Hominisation")

Karl Rahner stand der Evolutionstheorie positiv gegenüber. Hier soll untersucht werden, welche evolutionären Ansichten sich bei Rahner finden und was dazu fachlich zu sagen ist: was war zu seinen Lebzeiten schon bekannt, was wissen wir heute. Dann werden die theologischen Folgerungen Rahners dargestellt und kommentiert.


Rahners evolutionäre Vorstellungen

Die Materie hat sich auf das Leben und den Menschen hin entwickelt (Christologie 192), der Zufall ist für den Naturwissenschaftler kein sinnvolles Wort (Christologie 196) – heute würde man dies wohl "gelenkten Zufall" nennen, anscheinend kann Gott gar nicht anders, als durch von Ihm aktiv gelenkte Evolution zu schaffen, denn "eine Wesensselbsttranzendenz aber ist ebensowenig wie die (einfache) Selbsttranszedenz ein innerer Widerspruch, sobald man sie geschehen läßt in der Dynamik der inneren und doch nicht eigenwesentlichen Kraft des absoluten Seins, in dem, was man theologisch Erhaltung und Mitwirkung Gottes mit dem Geschöpf nennt, in der inneren und bleibenden Getragenheit aller endlichen Wirklichkeit in Sein und Wirken, in Werdesein, in Selbstwerdesein, kurz in Selbsttranszendenz, die zum Wesen alles endlich Seienden gehört" (Christologie192). Glücklicherweise, möchte man hinzufügen, hat die Evolution nach Rahner notwendig "Einbahnigkeit und Gerichtetheit" (Christologie 198) und der Mensch kann seine Evolution heute sogar steuern (Christologie 196).

Es halten sich nach Rahner in der biologischen Evolution neben den neueren und höheren Formenkreisen auch die Vertreter der niedrigeren, von denen die höheren Formenkreise sich herleiten (Christologie 207).

Er spricht von einer "Homogenität von Materie und Geist die der Naturwissen¬schaftler erwarten würde", ist scheinbar dagegen wegen der "Wesensverschiedenheit" beider (Christologie 186), stimmt dem aber dann doch zu, da im Menschen die Grundtendenz der Selbstfindung der Materie im Geist durch Selbsttranszendenz zu ihrem definitiven Durchbruch käme (ibidem).

Ein wirkliches "Werden" sei kein "Anderswerden" sondern ein "Mehrwerden" im Sinne einer Selbsttranszendenz und Selbstüberbietung (Christologie 191, vgl. 192)[7]: Die Evolution ist ihm offenbar aus philosophischen Gründen sogar eine Notwendigkeit.

Die Naturgeschichte kommt in der Geistesgeschichte des Menschen zum Ziel (Christologie 192), der Mensch trägt neben dem Geist noch die Naturgeschichte der lebendigen Materie in sich (Christologie 195)– das entspricht etwa dem, was man heute "Evolutionäre Psychologie" nennt: evolutionäre Welterklärungen beschränken sich nicht auf tierisches oder pflanzliches Leben und den menschlichen Körper, sondern beziehen auch menschliches Verhalten, Fühlen und Denken mit ein. Dabei ist grundlegende Annahme, dass Gene für ein Verhalten des Gesamtorganismus sorgen, das ihre eigene Weitergabe optimiert: "Traurig, aber leider wahr: Evolutionspsychologisch gesehen ist die hohe Gewaltbereitschaft in Banden keineswegs abnormal, wenn die Voraussetzungen Armut, mangelnde Ausbildung und ein passender Anlaß zusammenkommen. (…) wenn jemand nichts hat, sind für ihn die Aussichten, tot zu sein, ein Leben lang keine Frau beziehungsweise keinen sozialen Status zu besitzen, im Grunde genommen völlig gleichwertig. Entwicklungsgeschichtlich muss jemand sein eigenes Leben als wertlos betrachten, wenn er keine Aussicht auf Nachwuchs hat. Und je weniger Chancen er in der Zukunft sieht, um so größere Risiken nimmt er bereitwillig auf sich."[8]


Theologische Folgerungen Rahners

Dass der Mensch von der Erde stammt, ist bisher theologisch zu wenig verstanden worden (Hominisation 24).
Es ist sinnvoll und kein schlechter und auf die Dauer unhaltbarer Kompromiß zu sagen, der Mensch stamme dem Leib nach aus der Materie, dem Geist nach jedoch nicht (Hominisation 44). Die Materie ist durch Gott so geschaffen, dass sie die Potenz zum Hervorbringen des Geistes schon trägt und dieser dann im Menschen sich manifestiert (Hominisation 49- 55). Die Erschaffung der Seele ist "kein exzeptionelles außergewöhnliches Vorkommnis" sondern ein Wirken durch Zweitursachen (Hominisation 60ff), die Rahner "Ermöglichung der aktiven Selbsttranszendenz des endlich Seienden durch sich selbst" nennt. Die unsterbliche Geistseele des Menschen scheint Rahner "schrittweise" entstanden = evolviert (Hominisation 57) und Gott hätte entsprechend der Phylogenese die erste menschliche Seele dem Nachkommen einer Tiermutter gegeben. Er holt die von Aristoteles stammende scholastische Lehre der Sukzessivbeseelung hervor, um dies plausibel zu machen (Hominisation 79- 84) (Lebensrechtler wird es nicht freuen, dass so Frühabtreibung tendenziell legitimiert wird).

Der evangelikale Theologe Junker stuft in einer Übersichtarbeit über evolutionäre theologische Konzepte Rahners Theologie als "konsequent evolutionistische Sichtweise" ein. Solche Theologen "(plädieren) dafür, das Evolutionskonzept in jeder Hinsicht anzuerkennen und die biblische Botschaft entsprechend neu zu interpretieren. (…) Der Glaube (wird) in evolutionäre Termini übersetzt. Die Evolutionsfaktoren werden als voll ausreichend angesehen, um die Lebensvielfalt, den Menschen eingeschlossen, hervorzubringen" [9]

Konsequent deutet Rahner zentrale biblische Wahrheiten entweder evolutionär um oder leugnet sie:

"Nach der Evolutionslehre ist nur ein Polygenismus denkbar, wenn man nicht ein besonderes unmittelbares Eingreifen Gottes in den Evolutionsprozeß postulieren will. Die Frage nach einem Mono- oder Polygenismus der Menschheit ist theologisch relevant, denn die Zeugen des Neuen Testamentes stellen Jesus Christus, den Erlöser, in die eine von Adam herkommende Menschheitslinie (Monogenismus) und dem ersten Adam gegenüber (Röm 5,12ff). (…) Die (…) Enzyklika Humani generis von Pius XII. aus dem Jahre 1950 kritisiert die Polygenismus- Auffassung:  (…)

Anmerkungen
[1] Thomas Wittstadt, Diese kosmische Religion kennt keinen Erlöser, Theologisches, Jahrgang 33, Nr 8/9 S. 387- 404, Nr. 10 S. 461- 480, Nr. 12 S. 601- 614
[2] Elmar Anwander, Namhafte Naturwissenschaftler zum Verhältnis von Religion und Naturwissenschaft, Theologisches, Jahrgang 34, Nr. 1 S. 15- 30
[3] Manfred Schweiger, Monika Hirsch-Kaufmann, Biologen für Mediziner, Pharmazeuten und Chemiker, Stuttgart Thieme 1987, S. 224
[4] ein mutatis mutandis analoger Fall, dass naturwissenschaftliche Kriterien aus außernaturwissenschaftlichen Gründen nicht respektiert werden, ist die Arzneimittelsicherheit der "Pille": sie ist zwar nicht gerade giftig und Nebenwirkungen sind insgesamt selten, es sind aber so viele Fälle von Komplikationen und selbst Todesfällen bekannt bei Fehlen eines medizinischen Nutzens, dass jedes andere Medikament schon zehnmal vom Markt genommen wäre … die "Pille" aber nicht. Weil sie dem (erb-)sündigen Menschen hochwillkommen ist, um zu betreiben, was Paulus πpορνeιa Unzucht nennt.
[5] Karl Rahner, Die Christologie … , in: Schriften zur Theologie Band V, 183- 221
[6] Karl Rahner, Paul Overhage, Das Problem …, Quaestiones disputatae 12/ 13, Freiburg Breisgau 1961
[7] der Satz, dem ich dies entnehme, ist im Grunde aufgrund der vielen rahnereigenen Neologismen und der insuffizienten Syntax unverständlich, wie so viele Sätze Rahners. In der Psychiatrie habe ich viele Patienten mit manischen oder schizophrenen Psychosen gesehen, die vergleichbare Sprach- und Denkstörungen zeigten. Aber es ist bei Rahner eine Geisteskrankheit nicht so manifest wie in Nietzsches Schriften dessen zerebrale Syphilis.
[8] William F. Allman, Mammutjäger in der Metro, Wie das Erbe der Evolution unser Denken und Verhalten prägt, Heidelberg – Berlin Spektrum 21999, S. 197
[9] Reinhard Junker, Leben durch Sterben?, Studium Integrale, Neuhausen- Stuttgart 1994, S. 23 + 49-59.

"This paper will first examine the book’s stylistic disunity, historical context, and Cyrus notations.  The second section will present arguments for unity, which include tradition, manuscript evidence, and support from the New Testament.  In the end, arguments against a unified Isaianic authorship contain anti-predictive suppositions, which undermine biblical claims of a single writer.  Likewise, textual evidence supports the historical tradition that Isaiah was written in the eighth century by one author" (taken from the introduction).

This paper critiques the framing of the pneumatological underpinning of ecclesiology as an Orthodox-Catholic conversation. The context for the Joint Commission for Orthodox-Catholic dialogue warrants the use of the metaphor " two lungs of the church " by official church leaders, ecclesiologists and theologians to speak of the Spirit's work in and between both communions. However, I want to call attention to the pneumatological and ecclesiological problems in the use of the image " two lungs of the church. " If the Holy Spirit breathes upon and through the Body of Christ, reading the Spirit's operation in the church (pneumatological-ecclesiology) cannot ignore, and much less dismiss or absorb (either explicitly or implicitly), the charismas outside of the Roman Catholic Church and Orthodoxy. Protestant denominations, such as Baptists, Brethren, Evangelicals, Presbyterians, Pentecostals and Charismatics are also contexts for studying the Spirit's work in the churches. The paper concludes by proffering a mapping of recent pneumatological contributions of other Christian denominations and churches to invite theologians to assist in reframing or reconceptualizing a more appropriate anatomic metaphor for the Spirit's work in and among the churches together.

This scholarly examination of the biblical foundation of Baptism is a contribution to the Orthodox and Catholic Churches’ titanic effort toward their sacramental union. Despite their mutual agreement to proceed to a common understanding of the tradition of the first millennium, this understanding is primarily meant to cover the Patristic interpretation of the undivided Church. However, in view of the fact that: (a) the biblical foundation of Christian theology remains a sine qua non for all theologies in both the Orthodox and the Catholic tradition, and (b) the Church’s foundational doctrine remains the Nicaea-Constantinople Creed, it is of utmost importance to examine whether Eucharistic theology, commonly agreed to be the foundational theological principle of the official theological dialogue, can be reconciled with Baptismal theology.
My conclusion is that the Christian Baptism is so important for the unity of the Church that this initiatory rite almost forms the sole act of Christian identity, which even precedes the main sacrament par excellence of the Church, the Eucharist. Certainly, the ethical dimension of the Baptismal theology, which is not so evident (or prominent) in the Eucharistic theology, can definitely serve as a corrective of a “new paradigm” of a Baptismal/Eucharistic theology

In this Master's thesis, Fr. Ian lays out a theology of Christian transformation whereby Christians are brought into relationship with God and discover his will. The work integrates insights from Catholic and Orthodox theology as well as both post and pre-Vatican II developments in Spiritual Theology.

William of Ockham frequently mentions a distinction between two modes of cognition: in se and in alio. The aim of this chapter is to show that this distinction raises some important problems for his philosophy of mind and more broadly for his nominalism. The main issue is the possibility of an externalist theory of mental contents. For, Ockham affirms that no material substance is cognized in se. But if only accidents are cognized in se does this mean that material substances are necessarily cognized in alio? How could this “something else” lead us to the cognition of something we have never experienced? The difficulty here is how we should understand his view concerning the acquisition of simple substance concepts like “man” or “horse.” On the one hand it seems that we have no direct acquaintance with substances. On the other hand, he says that these concepts, equivalent to simple natural kind terms in the mind, directly refer to singular substances thanks to external relations of causality and likeness, on which their signification is based. This chapter suggests that the evolution of Ockham’s theory of concepts during his career is probably the key for our understanding of this crucial distinction.

For much of my personal and professional life I have had an enduring interest in the distinction between mind and awareness. As my education unfolded over these many years, I have been happy to recognize that this distinction between mind and awareness is of serious consideration in continental phenomenology, in forms of psychoanalytic understanding such as the object relations work of Donald Winnicott, as well as in many forms of the experiential psychotherapies such as Gestalt, experiential focusing, in Ericksonian hypnosis, structural family therapy, archetypal psychotherapy, existential psychotherapy, existential psychoanalysis to name a few. When I began to extend my interest based on continental phenomenology into the eastern wisdom traditions, I found the same distinction within the Hindu Tantric tradition of Kashmir Shavism. Later in my life I found the same distinction within the Tibetan non-dual Nyingma tradition of Dzogchen. In my study of the Qi Gong tradition, I had the good fortune of being able to study for a number of years with Dr. Yan Xin who is a most remarkable healer and who has this same distinction of mind and awareness in his form of Daoist Qi Gong. From an historical view point, this distinction of mind and awareness was central in gnostic philosophy and gnostic theology. In contemporary Jungian archetypal psychology there is a similar distinction between the knowing of mind of ordinary life world of lived experience and the knowing of the archetypal dimension of lived experience, as well as the knowing of the primordial awareness dimension of pure potentiality. I have also had this interest in and through the phenomena of my own knowingness, the knowing of self, the knowing of others and of knowing of the encompassing nature of Existential Being. I have had for as long as I can remember, the sense of the explicit experience of my mind as explicit thoughts, and explicit feelings and explicit sensations and explicit imaginative imagery, and at the same time a subtle sense of tacit or implicate or implicit sense of intuitive knowing. In this way I have always felt I had two ways of knowing.

Quote as:
Salvatore, Armando. 2007. The Public Sphere: Liberal Modernity, Catholicism, and Islam, New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

This book explores conceptual and institutional developments of the notion of the public sphere in the West and in the Islamic world, tackling historic ruptures spanning the formation and transformation of the Euro-Mediterranean world. Set against an imploding grammar of socio-political life, the modern liberal public sphere appears in a new light.

A paper on the ongoing development of Roman Catholic recognition of ecclesial reality in other Christian churches. This paper was prepared prior to the publication of Dominus Iesus, the CDF's August 2000 instruction on the unicity and salvific universality of Jesus Christ and the Church, and has not been revised in light of the extensive discussion of the topic that occurred in the years following.

The Congregation for Clergy promulgated on December 8, 2016 a new Program of Priestly Formation/Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis entitled "The Gift of the Priestly Vocation." While maintaining the division of seminary formation into the human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral found in the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation/Pastores Dabo Vobis, the Ratio Fundamentalis distinguishes four pedagogical periods of preparation (propaedeutic, discipleship, configuration, and pastoral) ordered towards the affective maturation and preparation of candidates for priestly ordination. Since "Pastores Dabo Vobis" asserts in §82 that “[e]very aspect of priestly formation can be referred to Mary,” and the Program of Priestly Formation incorporates verbatim this selfsame text (§112), this study seeks to concretely identify Mary’s presence and mission in seminarians’ human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation during the propaedeutic, discipleship, configuration, and pastoral stages of training.

Mary’s presence and mission involve the Church and all of its members, resulting from the absolute Christian mystery of the Incarnation. As members of the Church through baptism and in formation for the ministerial priesthood of Jesus Christ, Mary’s presence and mission intimately concern and can assist priestly formators, spiritual directors, and seminarians to realize the vision of priestly formation proffered in the Ratio Fundamentalis.