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2022-02-27T10:09:28-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Does God Exist, Part Two

Last updated on: February 27, 2022 at 10:09 am By David Schloss

In my previous article, I began a series on Thomas Aquinas’s five ways or arguments for the existence of God. Aquinas’s first way is an argument from motion or change. Things move from potency to act; for example, a seed exists potentially as a tree, and a tree exists in act in relation to the seed. We saw that such a chain could not proceed on infinitely. Aquinas argues that an infinite regress of change would eliminate a first cause... Read more

2022-02-26T15:14:24-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Does God Exist? Thomas Aquinas’s Five Ways, Part One

Last updated on: February 26, 2022 at 3:14 pm By David Schloss

As both a saint and a doctor of the Church, Thomas Aquinas is arguably the most significant figure in Catholic theology. No less significant are Aquinas’s contributions to philosophy and science. Aquinas’s opus is the Summa Theologica (Summary of Theology). It is a compendium of Catholic theology and philosophy. While the Summa contains several arguments for the existence of God, the most enduring of these are the quinque viae or five ways. The five ways are logical arguments, and, as... Read more

2022-02-20T10:10:14-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Senses of Scripture

Last updated on: February 20, 2022 at 10:10 am By David Schloss

“Three basic questions may be asked of any text: What does it say? What does it mean? How does it impact me?” – Edward L. Hayes. The Bible is not a book. Rather, the Bible is a library containing seventy-three books. Like any library, the books of the Bible are written by several authors writing at different times and for various reasons. In addition, the Bible contains many different genres of literature, such as history, prophecy, and poetry. All of... Read more

2022-02-16T06:53:39-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Is It Possible To Be Holy?

Last updated on: February 16, 2022 at 6:53 am By David Schloss

“I have no faith in human perfectibility. I think that human exertion will have no appreciable effect upon humanity. Man is now only more active – not more happy – nor more wise, than he was 6000 years ago.” – Edgar Allan Poe Perhaps one of the most intriguing and challenging sayings of Christ is His commandment to be perfect. (Matthew 5:48). As Catholics, we are to follow Christ, but is it possible for human beings to be perfect? This... Read more

2022-02-13T09:36:26-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Problem of Predestination

Last updated on: February 13, 2022 at 9:36 am By David Schloss

“For those whom He foreknew, He [God] also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” – Romans 8:29-30 Predestination refers to the belief that God directs human beings to their supernatural end, either salvation or damnation. That is to say, God has already decided who will be saved and who will be damned. Predestination, therefore, presents a theological dilemma. How does theology in general and Catholicism,... Read more

2022-02-09T08:33:45-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Moses and the Messiah

Last updated on: February 9, 2022 at 8:33 am By David Schloss

Are Catholics bound to the precepts of the Old Testament, or does the New Testament do away with the old? Moreover, why does it appear that Catholicism selectively adheres to portions of the Old Testament while ignoring others? In the following exposition, I will identify three precepts of the Torah that make up the structure of the old law. I will then seek to show that through Christ, Catholics adhere to the Mosaic law. The Torah The Mosiac law is... Read more

2022-02-06T09:34:38-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Laws of God and Man

Last updated on: February 6, 2022 at 9:34 am By David Schloss

“All the laws of heaven and earth are unable to prevent man from his crimes. Surely relaxing the laws of heaven and earth shall not dispose man to better behavior.” – Doctor Samuel Johnson. The question of morality is one of significant import to philosophy and theology. Specifically, where do our ideas of right and wrong come from? Are these ideas innate and thus part of human nature, or are they social constructs of our creation? In this work, I... Read more

2022-02-02T06:54:44-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Violence and Scripture

Last updated on: February 2, 2022 at 6:54 am By David Schloss

Anyone familiar with the Bible is acquainted with the depictions of violence and slavery. Too often, critics of religion cite these unsavory acts as evidence that religion is dangerous, and if God exists, He is violent. This paper intends to discuss these difficult passages, particularly as they appear in the Old Testament. I will also place such violence in the broader context of the ancient world. Lastly, I will show the link between violence and justice and the need for... Read more

2022-01-30T10:51:19-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Four Dogmas of Mary

Last updated on: January 30, 2022 at 10:51 am By David Schloss

“Behold your mother.” What follows is an introduction to Mary. I will review the four dogmas of the Catholic Church concerning Mary and seek to address some criticisms of Mariology in Catholic theology. Finally, I will show how Mary remains a model for Catholics. Mary of Nazareth Approximately fifteen miles west of the Sea of Galilee, in the northern district of present-day Israel, lies the City of Nazareth. At the time of Mary’s birth, around 18 BC, Nazareth had a... Read more

2022-01-26T06:59:35-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Raising the Heart to Heaven

Last updated on: January 26, 2022 at 6:59 am By David Schloss

“For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven; it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.” – Saint Therese of Lisieux. To be a person of faith is to pray. But what exactly is prayer? Is worship the same as prayer? Are there different types of prayer, and what purpose does it serve to pray? The subject of worship and prayer is so rich as... Read more

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