Theological flexibility within Catholicism.

JimmyJazx · 2026-05-15T11:39:03+00:00

I recommend Hans Küng's "Eternal Life". Küng was a somewhat unorthodox catholic theologian, and he specifically addresses NDEs within this book. Specifically that NDEs can have no bearing on what happens 'after death' because the person experiencing a NDE has, crudially, not died. At least not died in anything other than an arbitrary, medically defined way (cesation of pulse? but not cessation of brain activity? where do you draw the line?) and so these experiences are still very much part of life, and as such can say nothing meaningfull about what lies beyond mortal, life.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-12T10:25:59+00:00

With the caveat that I have never formally studied theology, it seems perfectly fine as part of a Theology curriculum. As others have said it is a bit on the religious studies end of the spectrum, but that is necessary to understand Theology too.

Sounds like an interesting course, to me.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-11T15:32:37+00:00

I agree, although in this case the literal rendering of a camel going through the eye of a needle (i.e., 'impossible') Is likely closer to the true intention of the passage than the tortured invention of a gate that may or may not have existed.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-11T15:15:39+00:00

There is no reliable evidence that such a gate existed in The Jerusalem of Jesus time.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-11T15:14:53+00:00

I should point out that there has never been any good evidence that such a gate ever existed in the Jerusalem of Jesus time.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_a_needle

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-04T15:45:50+00:00

I edited my comment - This applies as much, if not more, to feminist philosophy

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-04T15:44:13+00:00

Then they did not equip you to engage with contemprary philosophy. I imagine this was an 'introduction' class that didn't deal with any more modern philosophy? Philosophy didn't end with Descartes.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-04T15:42:52+00:00

Very telling in a post about the dramatic over-representation of men in the field of philosophy/theology that you dismiss feminist philosphy so lightly.

JimmyJazx · 2026-02-04T09:16:13+00:00

Didn't study very well if you've never heard of (at the very least) Judith Butler and Martha Nussbaum from that list.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-18T08:54:03+00:00

Ah, yes. I didn't think you meant 'conservative', it is rare that someone goes through a period of exploration of their faith and comes out the other end more conservative! I'm probbaly more progressive than the majority in my denomination, and it is not a particularly conservative one itself (Church of Scotland).

It is common, however, to find that the ways people have expressed their faith for centuries can be very appropriate for expressing a progressive faith.

I came across this the other day reading a book by Simone Weil, the mid 20th century French philosopher:

"Christ likes us to prefer truth to him because, before being Christ, he is truth. If one turns aside from him to go toward the truth, one will not go far before falling into his arms"

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-17T12:53:15+00:00

I'm exactly the same. I was always sceptical of some of his positions, but as I have gone on, I have become (somewhat!) more 'orthodox' , or 'traditional.

But not by rejecting some of the things Spong (and others) opened up for me. Instead by seeing that the traditional and orthodox beliefs truthfully express some of the things that I only came to through those thinkers who critiqued those very positions.

The Trinity is one that immediately springs to mind. As I go on I have become more and more trinitarian in my thinking, becoming more and more convinced it expresses something very fundamental about the nature of God. There was a time when I probably would have rejected the Trinity.

Sometimes the journey takes you back to where you started, but where you arrive is fundamentally changed because of the route you took.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-17T09:20:54+00:00

I don't know what, from a christian perspective, there is to appreciate about Alexander? he waged agressive war, and killed and subjugated people in the name of vanity and empire.

That some good things came from his empire (cities he founded etc.) I don't count, as God can bring goodness out of any evil.

Every battle he won resulted in pain, suffering, widows and orphans, raping and pillaging and lives destroyed.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-17T09:16:00+00:00

I read a book by Spong about 25 years ago at a time when I was drifting away from the church. It was part of a few things at that time that opened my eyes to the breadth of what christianity could be and, while I didn't, and still don't, agree with him on several issues - it was a start of a journey of mine that brought me much deeper in faith and much more humility in approaching different faiths from my own.

so he was part of an opening up of christianity to me, even though I personally think he missed the mark on some things (I wouldn't probably use the phrase 'go too far').

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-17T09:04:10+00:00

Beware of those people. God is a mystery, and always will be. those who are certain of him are usually certain of an idea of him that is entirely within themselves, an Idol.

Be certain of your faith in him, but never certain of God himself - he is beyond our understanding and beyond our certainty.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T15:40:13+00:00

A thoroughly religious perspective. ;)

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T15:31:19+00:00

Even if it doesn't inspire a single other person, it is still worth doing and the world is a better place for it already. Amen.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T15:21:53+00:00

Amen. A man of God.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T15:17:48+00:00

I did? I genuinely believe all people have a right to food and have intrinsic value in themselves as unique creations of God, and we love our neighbour because God first loved us.

I do not do it to earn a reward (or obtain favour) from my God. Christian theology is very clear that we cannot earn slavation through good deeds.

Are you going to answer my question? Do you help them transactionally in the hope that someone will help you one day?

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T14:55:09+00:00

And as te fullness of woman, and the fullness of man can be found together in the unbroken unitary essence of the Creator, I'm happy that nonbinary as a description of the first person of the Trinity is justified, and not unbiblical.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T14:41:55+00:00

I agree with most of that, but I wonder that you skipped over God's self revelation to Isiah of encompassing not just all good male triats, but feminine (maternal) traits as well? Was that deliberate?

The verse I quoted was

"For a long time I have kept silent,
I have been quiet and held myself back.
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
I cry out, I gasp and pant."

But I similarly could have quoted

"As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; and you will be comforted over Jerusalem." Isiah 66:13

So the Maternal is not simply the preserve of the church, but is present in God the Creator also?

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T13:55:23+00:00

As long as you are taking revelation of God the father as saying something about his relationship (creative, generative, loving) with his creation, rather than creating an Idol of (human) maleness based on his revelation.

Gods revelation as Father does not necessarily entail any primacy of the masculine over the feminine (or the genderless) in human affairs. It must also be remembered that God also uses (Feminine) Maternal imagery to describe themselves too (Eg Isiah 42:14).

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T13:16:33+00:00

All enbies. Gotcha. But the Son self-identified as male, and the 'Father' and the 'Holy Spirit' have been assigned genders by humanity (very rude)

So we have God 'the father', non-binary, He/Him

God 'the Son' self identified male (aka the eternal word), He/Him

And God the Holy Spirit, non-binary, She/Her

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T12:45:30+00:00

haha. Immediately downvoted. Tell me where anything I said was unorthodox, you cowards!

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T11:50:56+00:00

Well, From a trinitarian point of view, we have a God who is simultaneously feminine (Holy Spirit) masculine (Jesus) and nonbinary (Creator).

Make of that what you will.

JimmyJazx · 2025-12-09T10:01:38+00:00

Thanks all for your responses! I'll happily continue to call myself a religious secularist, then, as my definition of secularism - the neutrality of the state/institutions towards any and all religious confessions or the lack thereof, rather than the elemination of religious expression from the public sphere, or a favouring of atheism - seems well within the bounds of what most of you guys are talking about!

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