Requiem for the Natural

Prof. Paul Griffiths has published his inaugural lecture as the Warren Chair of Catholic Theology here at Duke Divinity School. It is a provocative piece from Augustinian eyes and presents some challenges to the way Catholic theology typically treats questions of human nature and desire (especially in the Thomist tradition). It gives us plenty to ponder.

My own impression at this point is (as he often tells me): "that's not quite right." But I've learned that successfully disagreeing with this theologian is a rare thing indeed.

Pax Christi,

Providence is Golden

A philosophy professor of mine once told a story from when he was an undergraduate at Notre Dame. He would routinely go to pray at the Grotto (a replica of the one at Lourdes) and began to notice that the leaves surrounding the statue of Mary would turn a golden hue before any of the others showed a hint of their autumn shades. This, of course, was halfheartedly rumored to be a miracle among many of the more pious students; just as the Grotto at Lourdes was the home of a famous miracle. As it turns out, there was a perfectly rational explanation for such a phenomenon: because of the particular formation of the surrounding trees, it just so happened that the leaves around Mary's statue were exposed to more direct sunlight each day than those in the adjacent areas (or something like that). Not much of a miracle in the end.

However, as my professor pointed out, we should in fact be more astonished because of the non-miraculous nature of the phenomenon. That God was able to achieve such a "fitting" spectacle through the precise arrangement of countless natural, secondary causes makes for a more beautiful symphony. The conductor is far more impressive when a wave of his hand sets all of the other musicians in motion as a perfect and harmonious collaboration; than if he were to leave his stand, commandeer one of the instruments, and play a solo piece that drowned out the music of the orchestra.

Pax Christi,