Nihil Obstat Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 For the same reason God did not send books from heaven but prophets Some of His prophets, saints, and doctors wrote books. Why would they write books? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortify ii Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 Some of His prophets, saints, and doctors wrote books. Why would they write books? Books are aids at best, not to be sought by themselves. God can reveal knowledge to the illiterate that is lost to the scholar of books. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Books are aids at best, not to be sought by themselves. God can reveal knowledge to the illiterate that is lost to the scholar of books. Certainly God can reveal Himself to the illiterate. It is just as certain that He can reveal Himself to the literate, and one way that this can be done is when one faithfully studies the saints and doctors, not as a barren scholarly pursuit, but with devotion and prayer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortify ii Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 Certainly God can reveal Himself to the illiterate. It is just as certain that He can reveal Himself to the literate, and one way that this can be done is when one faithfully studies the saints and doctors, not as a barren scholarly pursuit, but with devotion and prayer. Losing something akin to a Guru or Shaykh is one of the unfortunate contemporary predicaments of contemporary Western Catholicism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Losing something akin to a Guru or Shaykh is one of the unfortunate contemporary predicaments of contemporary Western Catholicism. The concept of a guru has never really been a part of western Christianity. Perhaps more so among the eastern hermits. For orthodox Christians, we look to the great saints and faithful hierarchs for guidance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortify ii Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 The concept of a guru has never really been a part of western Christianity. Perhaps more so among the eastern hermits. For orthodox Christians, we look to the great saints and faithful hierarchs for guidance. A guru or shaykh is simply an advanced soul that guides their disciples on the path of their own advancement. Prophets like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, etc. all fulfilled this function, and of course Christ embodied it par excellence. Cerebralizing and reducing knowledge to an object of discursive study and reading is an unfortunate Western tendency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 As I said, in western Christianity that role has passed to the great saints and hierarchs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortify ii Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 As I said, in western Christianity that role has passed to the great saints and hierarchs. A guide must be living and advanced, otherwise no sense in learning from your equal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 A guide must be living and advanced, otherwise no sense in learning from your equal. Which is why great saints and hierarchs are perfect for the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anastasia13 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 As much as I agree with Mortify about the importance of just spending time with God and how illiterates can still learn, I believe books do have a place. All scripture is given by inspiration, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. Even in seminary (and other schooling), the relationship with God helps us have the power for witness (Acts 1:8), but books still offer skills in ministry and life that help people have tools that the Spirit may use. Scripture has even been described as a love letter from God to us, and the context helps is stay doctrinally sound as we grow in knowledge and wisdom.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anastasia13 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 (edited) Or we could just bring back old fashioned torching? That is also interesting. Edited July 14, 2014 by Light and Truth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fides' Jack Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Because knowledge is more than rote memorization. What about understanding? What about it infusing all you do and possessing your life? One can regurgitate answers without having it inform their lives and it's unfortunate a student's success in Catholic education in America depended on rote memorization and nothing deeper. I think a common misunderstanding about previous catechism education is that the only thing going on was rote memorization. That's simply not true. And I agree that sole rote memorization doesn't work for everybody - some temperaments are different, and some ages are different. However, as someone who has gone through the rote memorization that you're talking about, I can say that it does work for what it's supposed to do. If that's the only source of catechetical instruction, then there's a problem, but it's not hurting anything in and of itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Credo in Deum Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Does any knowledge, whether learned from face to face teaching or from a book, guarantee any positive results if the person does not live their life according to the knowledge they acquired? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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