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Second Paper Assignment
At the conclusion of his treatment of the Trinity in his
Introduction to Christianity, Ratzinger notes that "talking about God discloses what man is" (190). In his first encyclical,
Deus Caritas Est, he discusses the relationship among eros,
agape, and logos. From your reading of the encyclical, and the relevant sections of the
Introduction to Christianity, how, in fact, do these three relate one to another both with respect to God's own nature (Deus in se or God as He is in Himself) and with respect to what is sometimes called the "economic" Trinity (Deus
ad nos or God in relation to us)?
If, in fact, trinitarian reflection enhances (as he seems to claim)
theological anthropology, i.e., our theological understanding of what man is, what do these terms reveal about human
nature? Finally, address the relationship between the two parts of the
encyclical ("The Unity of Love" and "Caritas, the Practice of Love"):
Is the connection organic or contrived, and how (offer supporting
textual evidence for your argument)?
6-7 page paper due on April 3 |