THE LIGHT OF THY FACE: STUDIES IN FORM & SPLENDOR
“Et resplenduit facies
ejus sicut sol” – “And His face
did shine as the sun” (Mt 17.2)
On this Second Sunday of
Lent, dedicated to the Transfiguration of Our Lord, I am pleased to inaugurate
this blog, Lux vultus tui
(“the light of thy face”): Studies in Form and Splendor, part of a broader project of trying to
understand revelation through the two aspects of “form” and
“splendor” that make up the “thou” who is Jesus Christ. The final aim of this blog is
to perceive all things through the light of Christ’s face, that is, as unities
of form and splendor reflecting to greater or lesser degree the form and
splendor of the Creator. In particular, my goal is to probe questions of great
relevance for the Church and the world today through this, if you will, “hermeneutic of
form and splendor.”
I dedicate this blog to Benedict XVI, theologian; Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, Vicar of Christ (2005-2013); servant in the vineyard of the Lord; with immense gratitude and filial affection for his writings, his pontificate, and his life of prayer for the Church.
I dedicate this blog to Benedict XVI, theologian; Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, Vicar of Christ (2005-2013); servant in the vineyard of the Lord; with immense gratitude and filial affection for his writings, his pontificate, and his life of prayer for the Church.
TOPICS
Among the topics I
envision addressing:
- the fides quae
creditur or “object of belief,” that is, what Christians believe, particularly in relation to
contemporary discussions of the depositum fidei (“deposit of the Faith”) and its transmission
- as a corollary: the
correct interpretation of the Second Vatican Council and the post-conciliar Magisterium, especially in
relation to the preceding Magisterium, the conciliar texts, and the disunity of
ecclesial voices in the fifty years since the opening of the council
- the fides qua
creditur or “act of belief,” that is, how Christians, or would-be Christians, believe
- liturgy and prayer, that is, how Christians worship God, and how we can worship Him more effectively, including
questions about “organic” development, rupture, “reform of the reform,” and retrieval
of ancient rites and uses (e.g. the usus antiquior of the Roman rite)
- evangelization, especially the “New Evangelization” of
post-Christian cultures
- the Logos (“verbum” and “ars”) and legitimate culture, that is, how Christianity has, does, and can
transform cultural production, especially the visual arts, and culture more
broadly
- Church and Polis, including what a Christian society should look like, and how
Christians should live in non-Christian, post-Christian, and increasingly, anti-Christian
societies
POSTS
I envision several kinds
of posts comprising the primary content of this blog:
- critical readings of short or excerpted key texts (which might just
as easily be images, films, etc.)
- abstracts of longer key texts
- pensées, i.e. “thoughts” or “scribblings” on various
topics
- essays, or constructive theoretical works
- translations into English of short theoretical and creative
works
- annotated links to content elsewhere online
and, possibly:
- original artworks (short stories, poems, paintings, drawings)
This is not a newsblog or
a personal blog.
GETTING ORIENTED
For a basic orientation
to this blog and its title, please see “About this blog” in the bar above.
To get some sense of the
theoretical framework for this project, see “Key Texts.”
Central to this project
is the appreciation, advancement, and production of works of art that are, in a
broad sense, “icons” of the radiant face of Christ. On the pages “Sounds,”
“Images,” “Words,” and “Films” I offer a few examples.
This blog is for
everyone—irrespective of creed or education—who finds these concerns of
interest and/or importance. While some of the language can be technical, I will
try to define everything as clearly as possible for as broad as possible an
audience. Feel free to ask clarifying questions in a comment.
