According to Oberman, “Luther’s critique of Aristotle concerns the disregard of that fundamental nominalist axioma , the demarcation line between the realms of reason and faith. Provided that this distinction is respected, Aristotle is not merely useful but indeed to be respected. In a Latin sermon probably preached to the Wittenberg confratres on Christmas Day, 1514, Luther formulates this subtle balance beautifully: ‘Pulchra haec Philosophia, sed a paucis intellecta, altissimae Theologiae utilis est.’” The choices for interpretation the Reformation are that it “is held responsible for the disintegration of the medieval synthesis and was . . . the breeding ground of atheism and fideism” or “it discovered the personal God of biblical revelation and ultimately made possible a secular culture no longer relegated to the realm of limited subsistence.”
I would hope for some third alternative.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Dreadful Christ of Pär Lagerkvist
It’s dangerous to meet a god,” says the disgraced Pythia in Pär Lagerkvist’s The Sibyl. Her observation…
The Possibility of Possibility
"Might could” is a Southern expression meaning “maybe I could” or “I might be able to,” conveying…
The False Promise of No Contact
Around the time nineteen-year-old Alice began cutting ties with her family, she announced on social media that…
