The Noble Mind

“Do not be conformed to this world; but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Romans 12:2, The Holy Bible, RSV, CE

“In both East and West, we may trace a journey which has led humanity down the centuries to meet and engage truth more and more deeply. It is a journey which has unfolded—as it must—within the horizon of personal self-consciousness: the more human beings know reality and the world, the more they know themselves in their uniqueness, with the question of the meaning of things and of their very existence becoming ever more pressing.  This is why all that is the object of our knowledge becomes a part of our life.  The admonition Know yourself was carved on the temple portal at Delphi, as testimony to a basic truth to be adopted as a minimal norm by those who seek to set themselves apart from the rest of creation as "human beings", that is as those who "know themselves".

Moreover, a cursory glance at ancient history shows clearly how in different parts of the world, with their different cultures, there arise at the same time the fundamental questions which pervade human life: Who am I?  Where have I come from and where am I going?  Why is there evil?  What is there after this life?  These are the questions which we find in the sacred writings of Israel, as also in the Veda and the Avesta; we find them in the writings of Confucius and Lao-Tze, and in the preaching of Tirthankara and Buddha; they appear in the poetry of Homer and in the tragedies of Euripides and Sophocles, as they do in the philosophical writings of Plato and Aristotle.  They are questions which have their common source in the quest for meaning which has always compelled the human heart.  In fact, the answer given to these questions decides the direction which people seek to give to their lives.”

Pope John Paul II, Faith and Reason, Introduction, #1

“Men and women have at their disposal an array of resources for generating greater knowledge of truth so that their lives may be ever more human.  Among these is philosophy, which is directly concerned with asking the question of life's meaning and sketching an answer to it.”

Pope John Paul II, Faith and Reason, Introduction, #3

“On her part, the Church cannot but set great value upon reason's drive to attain goals which render people's lives ever more worthy. She sees in philosophy the way to come to know fundamental truths about human life.  At the same time, the Church considers philosophy an indispensable help for a deeper understanding of faith and for communicating the truth of the Gospel to those who do not yet know it.”

Pope John Paul II, Faith and Reason, Introduction, #5