Twill Shine
«The church is not restrained, in the first place, by having committed herself to any dogmatic definitions of the meaning of inspiration. Is is remarkable indeed that Origen’s almost reckless mysticism, and his accompanying repudiation of the historical character of large parts of the narrative of the Old Testament, and some parts of the New, though it did not gain acceptance, and indeed had no right to it (for it had no sound basis), on the other hand never roused the church contrary definitions. Nor is it only Origen who disputed the historical character of parts of the narrative of holy scripture. Clement before him in Alexandria, and the medieval Anselm in the West, treat the seven days’ creation as allegory and not history. Athanasius speaks of paradise as a “figure”. A medieval Greek writer, who had more of Irenaeus that remains to us, declared that “he did not know how those two kept to the letter and took the account of the temptation historically rather than allegorically, could meet the arguments of Irenaeus against them”. Further than this, it cannot be denied that the mystical method, as a whole, tended to the depreciation of the historical sense, in comparison with the spiritual teaching which it conveyed. In a different line, Chrysostom, of the literal school of interpreters, explains quite in the tone of a modern apologist, how the discrepancies in detail between the different gospels, assure us of the independence of the witnesses, and do not touch the facts of importance, in which all agree.
The church is not tied then by any existing definitions. We cannot make any exact claim upon any one’s belief in regard to inspiration, simply because we have no authoritative definition to bring to bear upon him. Those of us who believe most in the inspiration of the church will see a divine providence in this absence of dogma, because we shall perceive that only now is the state of knowledge such as admits the question being legitimately raised.»
from“The Holy Spirit and inspiration” in “Lux Mundi: a series of studies in the religion of the incarnation”, by Charles Gore (1889) 10th edn (1890), ch. VIII
Os livros. A sua cálida,
terna, serena pele. Amorosa
companhia. Dispostos sempre
a partilhar o sol
das suas águas. Tão dóceis,
tão calados, tão leais.
Tão luminosos na sua
branca e vegetal e cerrada
melancolia. Amados
como nenhuns outros companheiros
da alma. Tão musicais
no fluvial e transbordante
ardor de cada dia.
Eugénio de Andrade
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