[Apologetics] The Catholic Mindset

[Stephen Korsman]

  The Catholic Mindset<http://sda2rc.blogspot.com/2009/02/catholic-mindset.html>
via Seventh-day Adventist to Roman Catholic <http://sda2rc.blogspot.com/> by
Hugo Mendez on 2/2/09

The Catholic mindset works from the concrete to the abstract. It appreciates
the fact that ancient Christians transmitted many norms and practices from
the time of the apostles, without always possessing a full understanding of
their theological basis.

Think of it: centuries before Nicaea, Christians used Trinitarian formulae
in their liturgical rites and services. Only in the course of centuries,
however, did they come to synthesize Trinitarian theology, elucidating the
relationships of its persons, and discovering its cohesive principles (e.g.,
the fully divine essence of each). Similarly, theologians asked, "why is it
that the newly baptized are not assigned penitential works, but those that
have fallen into post-baptismal sin are?" A concept of "temporal punishment"
provided a suitable framework for understanding the practice. Again,
theologians asked, "in what sense are the dead relieved by the Eucharistic
sacrifice?" The doctrine of purgatory grew from these questions. In all
these cases, an implicit faith expressed in concrete practices preceded the
explicit articulation of the same faith.

The Protestant Reformers, however, often approached matters quite
differently, reasoning from the abstract to the concrete. The primitive
structure of the Christian liturgy as a sacrificial event, in which the
Eucharist itself was the oblation, was discarded since it violated the
doctrinal sensitivities of the Reformers. The ancient rite of infant baptism
was also discarded since it failed to correspond to the soteriological views
of more radical sects (salvation by explicit faith). Catholics were shocked
by the Reformer's ease in attacking these institutions of immemorial origin.
Gone were the days in which liturgical and canonical norms were valid
evidences for theological opinions (as they were for the fathers, and later,
the scholastics). Formerly, the universality and apostolic origin of a
practice was sufficient justification for its existence.

To this day, the contrast between these inverse approaches continues to
frustrate interfaith dialogue. To debate intelligently with Protestants,
Catholics must reason from the abstract to the concrete (e.g., because of
temporal punishment, we do penance), when, in fact, the abstract doctrine
arose out of reflection on the concrete practice. This concession places an
unnatural strain on the Catholic party. The distinction between these two
approaches also guarantees that one party may not find a given theological
conclusion as compelling as it proves to the other. Since the abstract
framework was secondary (historically) to the concrete practice, the
Protestant may find the Catholic reply unsatisfying, where the Catholic
finds it entirely satisfying, if even too elaborate at times. The Catholic
seeks to understand the basis for a recognized practice; the Protestant
seeks a basis to justify the practice (which process will naturally be more
demanding).

For example, imagine a situation in which a Protestant asks a Catholic, "why
do you practice penance?" To the Catholic mind, the "why" question is a
matter of theological speculation; he will audibly name thinkers who had
disparate opinions over the question, and begin to trace the growing
consensus in later eras of the Church. The Protestant, in turn, is
bewildered; he was seeking a consistent rationale that preceded the
establishment of the practice, and may be critically examined in an effort
to judge the legitimacy of the practice. There is a disparate sense of
urgency between the two parties: the Catholic believes he is answering a
largely historical question; the Protestant, in turn, believes he is issuing
a theological challenge. The tone of the conversations and the expectations
of its contributors are radically different. An appreciation of this fact
would hep everyone engaged in the conversation.
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