Word: freedom
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...grown up in a society that promotes democracy and human rights, but warned that "the power to destroy does remain," embodied in social ills such as drug abuse, homelessness and poverty, racism violence degradation of girls and women, and - no surprise here, at this point in his visit - false freedom and "relativism...
...fears did not prove to be completely right. The practical part of Benedict's speech began with a definition of freedom that would warm even an atheist's heart: "In regard to faculty members at Catholic colleges universities, I wish to reaffirm the great value of academic freedom. In virtue of this freedom you are called to search for the truth wherever careful analysis of evidence leads you." But then he turned the corner. "Yet... any appeal to the principle of academic freedom in order to justify positions that contradict the faith and teaching of the Church would obstruct...
Both advocates of untrammeled academic freedom and obedience to orthodoxy could claim a victory. "We're thrilled," says the Newman Society's Reilly. "It's exactly what we expected. that's right at the heart of our concerns about higher education." But Patricia McGuire, the President of Washington's Trinity College, who has frequently taken issue with Reilly, says the Pope's message is consistent with a 1990 document by John Paul II. Says McGuire, "I do not hear a new message...
...fact, the message that expressed itself most urgently today was in the philosophical, rather than the policy-setting part of the talk, and it dealt with the definition of freedom, which is becoming a recurring theme on this trip, as Benedict repeatedly stresses that it is found only in faith. "While we have sought diligently to engage the intellect of our young, perhaps we have neglected the will," the Pope mused. Because free will, if rightly tutored and exercised, does not involve "an opting-out" of belief, "but an opting...
...those who think that definition of freedom may be fine for a priest but constricting for an academic whose findings contradict Church teachings, Benedict had an answer: it's time to reconsider what you mean by truth. "Truth means more than knowledge," he commented. "Only in faith can truth become incarnate and reason truly human." And "the truths of faith and reason never contradict one another." There may be some Catholic educators who have trouble with that simple equation. But for now, they're probably happy that the Pope is bandying words rather than taking action...