Aquinas in Suma Theologica (II-II, Q.20, A.4) argues that sloth leads to despair. I will briefly explore how sloth might lead to despair, using Rebecca DeYoung’s reinterpretation on the nature of sloth in her book Glittering Vices (Brazos Press, 2009). Young briefly challenges the popular notion of understanding sloth as mere laziness. She argues that the modern concept of ‘sloth’ has departed significantly from the spiritual roots with which it had connections (p. 82). Young’s aim is to retrieve the Christian notion of sloth and clarify the misunderstandings around this concept. Young clings to Aquinas, who is in the middle …

Kierkegaard tells us that the Socratic tradition understood sin as ignorance. The problem that Kierkegaard finds with such a notion is its partial definition, which “leaves unclear how ignorance is to be more precisely understood, the question of its origin, etc. ” (p. 120). In Socrates’ view, if someone sins, such sinful action happens because one does it involuntarily and out of ignorance. Sinful actions are not rooted elsewhere but in knowledge itself. In this respect, Socrates’s definition of sin has a serious issue: “If sin is ignorance, then sin does not really exist for sin is precisely consciousness” (p. …

This post is about Friedrich Schleiermacher’s First Speech titled “Defence” from his book On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultural Despisers (1799). I will summarize the main points of the speech, and at the end I will provide a brief reflection. By “cultural despisers,” Schleiermacher is speaking of the cultural elite of his time in Germany (cf. p. 10). What they despised was religion itself, or more specifically, the traditional understanding of Christian doctrine and its dogmas. Regarding the purpose of the speech, Schleiermacher is giving an apologia for his own perspective (panentheistic) on true religion in terms of the Romantic …

One important aspect I had to develop as a chaplain was increasing my self-awareness. In that regard, reflecting on what biblical character I identified with the most served this purpose. In my case, I identified strongly with is Gideon, the judge. While for some, Gideon is a courageous and strong figure; for others, he is just a flawed hero. The way we see Gideon depends a lot on the cultural lens we use. In the end, Gideon was a person of his time. He lived in a culture where the religious and the cultural were so ingrained in the social …

In this post, I will summarize the content of Jewish scholar Wolfson’s discussion regarding patristic and medieval anthropology. His essay is titled “Immortality and Resurrection in the Philosophy of the Church Fathers,” originally published in the Harvard Divinity School Bulletin in 1956, and reprinted in Harry A. Wolfson, Religious Philosophy: A Group of Essays (Massachusetts: Belknap Press, 1961): 69-83. After discussing Wolfson’s ideas, I will then be providing a brief conclusion regarding his exposition of the topic. After giving some brief examples concerning how Socrates (a dualist Greek philosopher), Jesus (a dualist first-century Jew), and Rabban Johanan, the son of …

One way to deal with the vice of envy in the church is by serving others. By helping others, God may allow those dealing with this vice to understand how he works in their lives and cares about all his people. If we would like to be healthy individuals, it is vital to understand first that God created humankind to live in a healthy community where there is no space for envy and competition. We ought to rejoice in the wellness and success of others, not fill ourselves with bitterness because God has given us different gifts and abilities for …