Vatican expert Sandro Magister, on his Chiesa website May 19, allowed Fr. Giovanni Scalese, former professor of philosophy and rector at the Collegio alla Querce in Florence to explain Pope Francis thinking in the article "The four postulates of Pope Francis."
Magister's overviews of it says:
"Scalese observes among other things that by virtue of these historicist, Hegelian-tinged postulates, Pope Francis continuously argues against the abstractness of “doctrine,” contrasting it with a “reality” to which one must adapt.
As if forgetting that reality, if it is not illuminated, guided, ordered by a doctrine, 'risks turning into chaos.'”
The article by former professor of philosophy says the postulates of Pope Francis’ thought are:
"- time is greater than space;
- unity prevails over conflict
- realities are more important than ideas
- the whole is greater than the part.
"In 'Evangelii Gaudium' 221, Francis calls them “principles.” Personally I maintain instead that they can be considered 'postulates,' a term that in the Zingarelli dictionary of the Italian language designates a 'proposition devoid of evidence and not demonstrated but all the same admitted as true in that it is necessary for founding a procedure or demonstration.'”
The problem with Francis' thinking is that he allows his own abstract personal ideas to be his dogmas while over and over again arguing against the abstractness of “dogmas” and "dogmatic morals" which he contrasts with what he calls “reality”
According to Scalese, Francis thinking is not based on "Catholic doctrine founded on divine revelation", but his own abstract personal ideas that appear to be founded on "Hegelian-tinged postulates."
As G K Chesterton said those who claim not to have dogmas are ignorant of their own dogmas. He said all humans have dogmas. Only turnips don't have dogmas.
It appears Francis' "Hegelian-tinged postulates" are his dogmas and how he bases seeing "reality."
We need to pray, if this is true, that the Pope will start seeing reality with Catholic doctrine founded on divine revelation.
The former professor of philosophy ends his article with the following conclusions:
"'Another observation that could be made at the end of this reflection is that the presentation of these four postulates demonstrates that, in human action, it is inevitable to allow oneself to be led by some principles that are abstract by their nature. It is therefore useless to polemicize about the abstractness of 'doctrine,' opposing to it a “reality” to which one should simply adapt. Reality, if it is not illuminated, guided, ordered by some principles, risks turning into chaos.
"The problem is: which principles? It is genuinely not clear why the four postulates that we have considered should be able to legitimately orient the development of social coexistence and the construction of a people, while the same legitimacy may not be extended to other principles, which are continually confronted with their abstractness and their at least potentially ideological character.
"That Christian doctrine runs the risk of becoming ideology cannot be denied. But the same risk is run by any other principle, including the four postulates of 'Evangelii Gaudium'; with the difference that these are the result of human reflection, while Catholic doctrine is founded on divine revelation.
"May that not happen today which happened to Marx, who, while he taxed with ideology the thinkers who had preceded him, did not realize that he was elaborating one of the most ruinous ideologies of history."
Click to view Fr. Giovanni Scalese's"The four postulates of Pope Francis" article:
http://chiesa.espresso.repubblica.it/articolo/1351301?eng=y
Magister's overviews of it says:
"Scalese observes among other things that by virtue of these historicist, Hegelian-tinged postulates, Pope Francis continuously argues against the abstractness of “doctrine,” contrasting it with a “reality” to which one must adapt.
As if forgetting that reality, if it is not illuminated, guided, ordered by a doctrine, 'risks turning into chaos.'”
The article by former professor of philosophy says the postulates of Pope Francis’ thought are:
"- time is greater than space;
- unity prevails over conflict
- realities are more important than ideas
- the whole is greater than the part.
"In 'Evangelii Gaudium' 221, Francis calls them “principles.” Personally I maintain instead that they can be considered 'postulates,' a term that in the Zingarelli dictionary of the Italian language designates a 'proposition devoid of evidence and not demonstrated but all the same admitted as true in that it is necessary for founding a procedure or demonstration.'”
The problem with Francis' thinking is that he allows his own abstract personal ideas to be his dogmas while over and over again arguing against the abstractness of “dogmas” and "dogmatic morals" which he contrasts with what he calls “reality”
According to Scalese, Francis thinking is not based on "Catholic doctrine founded on divine revelation", but his own abstract personal ideas that appear to be founded on "Hegelian-tinged postulates."
As G K Chesterton said those who claim not to have dogmas are ignorant of their own dogmas. He said all humans have dogmas. Only turnips don't have dogmas.
It appears Francis' "Hegelian-tinged postulates" are his dogmas and how he bases seeing "reality."
We need to pray, if this is true, that the Pope will start seeing reality with Catholic doctrine founded on divine revelation.
The former professor of philosophy ends his article with the following conclusions:
"'Another observation that could be made at the end of this reflection is that the presentation of these four postulates demonstrates that, in human action, it is inevitable to allow oneself to be led by some principles that are abstract by their nature. It is therefore useless to polemicize about the abstractness of 'doctrine,' opposing to it a “reality” to which one should simply adapt. Reality, if it is not illuminated, guided, ordered by some principles, risks turning into chaos.
"The problem is: which principles? It is genuinely not clear why the four postulates that we have considered should be able to legitimately orient the development of social coexistence and the construction of a people, while the same legitimacy may not be extended to other principles, which are continually confronted with their abstractness and their at least potentially ideological character.
"That Christian doctrine runs the risk of becoming ideology cannot be denied. But the same risk is run by any other principle, including the four postulates of 'Evangelii Gaudium'; with the difference that these are the result of human reflection, while Catholic doctrine is founded on divine revelation.
"May that not happen today which happened to Marx, who, while he taxed with ideology the thinkers who had preceded him, did not realize that he was elaborating one of the most ruinous ideologies of history."
Click to view Fr. Giovanni Scalese's"The four postulates of Pope Francis" article:
http://chiesa.espresso.repubblica.it/articolo/1351301?eng=y
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