Updating the Faith

I know that reading Papal Encyclicals is not currently chic, but I have to talk about a site I've gone to many times, as I tracked down quotes. Papal Encyclicals Online. It's really a rather remarkable site. I like it because it has links to documents that will astonish you. Click those innocent links, especially Church Councils. Bet you haven't heard of most of them.

Why, you might ask, is the mad, Catholic, liberal searching through Papal Encyclicals Online? Well, because I believe that no matter how bad, or even outright evil a pope may have been, the fact was that at his consecration, he was given the Holy Spirit to guide the church. So, even the most bad pope, could do a good thing.

We go back to look at these to find what it is that helped define who we are at this time. I never look for the answers in the Encyclicals, but I do from time to time find the Holy Spirit popping out in the most surprising places. All throughout history. Think of St. Athanasius, one of the most difficult people , and probably a violent man, has set forth extraordinary doctrine of the Incarnation.