Theology Test

1. What are the 4 fundamental truths about all humans at all times?

We desire truth and find in ourselves nothing but uncertainty

We seek happiness and find only wretchedness and death

We are incapable of not desiring truth and happiness

We are incapable of either certainty or happiness

1. What is the opposite of theism?

   1. Why is this the case?

Idolatry:

If you do not know the true God, you must sooner or later find some false god to worship.

To be human is to worship

1. Why does Kreeft compare roses and people?

Roses can only be rosey because that’s how they are; humans can be inhuman through their actions

If we were like roses then we could only be human but we have free will, so sometimes we act inhuman

1. How is suffering a negative event in the physical world but also potentially a positive event in the spiritual world?

There is dignity in the act of suffering. Because we know we are wretched, we can offer up our suffering and it brings us closer to God in the spiritual world, giving us access to it.

Through your own suffering, you are able to help others through their suffering because you are experienced in suffering (provided you have been able to process the suffering in the right way)

What does it mean to be “metaphysically better and morally worse than we dream?”

We are metaphysically better than we dream because we "dream" that we were made in the image of apes (and we are better than apes) but in reality we were made in the image of God, and we are morally worse than we dream because of our sins against God (who we have been made in the image of)

Man cannot undervalue his body enough and overvalue his soul enough

Ex:

How does Pascal talk about our past, present, and future, and how we relate to them vs. how we should relate to them?

We are always thinking of the past (maybe wishing that it lasted longer or that we did something differently) or the future (planning what we are going to do). Because we are always caught up in those states, we never truly live in the present and thus waste our life away.

“Men cannot live without joy. That is why it is necessary that a man deprived of spiritual joys goes over into carnal pleasures.” - What does this mean?

If we do not have level 4 happiness, we get caught up in level 1 and 2 to compensate for that

material =1

pride =2

1. Why is there a difference between de jure justice and de facto justice?

De Jure Justice is perfect natural law that God has revealed to us, but De Facto Justice is our knowledge and use of that revealed law to us, and because we are wretched, we misunderstand de jure justice which leads to de facto justice

1.  What is the relationship between right and might? Why is this relationship this way?

• Right without might is helpless,

• might without right is tyrannical.

  You need might to support right (because there are always evil people around trying to disrupt what is right)

What is the relationship between reason and passions?

Reason and passion both must work together because human reason is inherently flawed.

1. Why does he compare scientific discoveries to knowledge of whether the soul is immortal?

• Scientific discoveries are nothing compared to knowing the soul is immortal

• if we are immortal then morality and theology matters much more than science

 Why is sin worse than death?

• Sin distances us from God spiritually,

• it kills us/keeps us away from him

• in death we can still be with God in heaven

• sin kills that relationship with him

• Sin is like a second death, but for your soul

1. Why do we need to know the Bad News before the Good News? What is it?

We need to know the bad news (that we are fallen) before the good news because otherwise we are so full of pride that we are not open to receiving the good news

1. Why are we so busy? Where did all the time go?

We are so busy because we are trying to distract ourselves from the reality of death and all of the time went into useless distractions

1. What is the “if-only syndrome?” What is the delusion at the heart of this syndrome?

The if only syndrome is the idea that if we only had this one thing then we would be happy. The delusion at the heart of this syndrome is the idea that if we distract ourselves enough, then we will find true happiness.

How is indifference the opposite of love?

Love is passion and seeking someone and wanting what is good for them, while indifference is none of this, complete emptiness

1. What is the issue with most people who attack Catholicism?

Most people who attack catholicism do not try what Catholicism preaches and therefore attack it incorrectly and don't understand it.

They haven’t thoroughly tested its teachings and traditions to know they don’t “work”.

1.  What is the most important thing we can do when it comes to faith in God?

You must seek/desire God actively - you can believe and not seek, which is worse than not believing but seeking.

What does this pensee mean?

This pensee means that we do not focus on what really matters (our end/death), but instead all of our distractions

1. What should be the main goal of education?

Education should bring people closer to God and give them the tools to seek him and help others

Why does God hide?

• God hides because not everyone wants a relationship with him he will not force those who do not want him to have him.

• He is revealed enough for the righteous to find him and concealed enough for the wicked to ignore him

1. Why don’t Pascal and Kreeft think we would be converted if we saw a miracle?

Miracles give us only physical evidence which hearts who do not want God ignore

1. How does Christianity fit humanity’s greatness and wretchedness?

• Christianity fits humanity's greatness by acknowledging that we are good as we are created in God's image but we are also wretched.

• We are sinners, but God came down to save us. This addresses both our goods and bads

1. What is the main thing keeping most people from belief? How can that be fixed?

The main thing that keeps most people from belief are their passions/their emotional opinions that God isn't real or whatever they believe.

This can be fixed through living morally because "good behavior gives you clear eyes." If you act good it will lead to goodness and therefore God.

1.  How is loving Christ like being part of a body?

because we would be completely changed if we did not love him, just like a body would be completely changed if it did not have its arm

Why is the goal Catholic religion, not theology?

The goal is Catholic religion because it is far more important than theology to the actual lived relationship with God.

Why is it “true that there is something painful in beginning to practice piety(the quality of being religious or reverent)?” Where does this pain come from? How does the juxtaposition of God and sin cause pain?

The pain comes from our dependence on sin. The juxtaposition of God and sin causes pain because God saving us is often painful, but overall it does more good than harm. God’s grace sometimes makes us uncomfortable because it turns us away from sin. 

Why do the sections on Christ and the Church pack less punch than most of the other sections?

These sections pack less of a punch because it is easier for us to relate and see ourselves in the earlier sections, such as the one about greatness and wretchedness. The Church section feels more distant and faith-based.