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The Deist Minimum

From the January 2005 Print Edition

As Christianity spread throughout the Greco-Roman world, it became apparent that the biblical doctrines concerning God, morality, and future retribution had similarities with the philosophical speculations of the Platonists, Aristotelians, and Stoics. The Fathers and medieval theologians had no . . . . Continue Reading »

The Rebirth of Apologetics

From the May 2004 Print Edition

Over the centuries, Christian theology has exerted itself to keep the proper balance. Faith, besides being a gracious gift of God, is also a free and responsible decision on the part of the believer. God’s grace does not circumvent or suppress our native powers, but guides them so that they may . . . . Continue Reading »

The Population of Hell

From the May 2003 Print Edition

Sometimes the complaint is heard that no one preaches about hell any longer. The subject of hell, if not attractive, is at least fascinating, as any reader of Dante’s Inferno or Milton’s Paradise Lost can testify. Equally fascinating, and decidedly more pressing, is the question of how many of . . . . Continue Reading »

The Jesuit Enigma

From the April 2002 Print Edition

Passionate Uncertainty:Inside the American Jesuitsby peter mcdonough and eugene c. bianchiuniversity of california press, 380 pages, $29.95 At a press conference one day last summer, a newspaper correspondent asked me how I could combine being a Jesuit with being a cardinal. I at first imagined that . . . . Continue Reading »