the complexity of our times

[John Raymaker]

Hugh, thanks for evaluating our text. With AI and high tech taking over so much of humans' industrial tasks (e. g. robots can now produce cars without ANY humans being directly involved in their production). Rahner has been one of the great theologians who helped Catholicism make the transition from a pre-Vatican II stance to a post-Vatican stance that still resonates today.

Leo XIV is another pathbreaker. Lonergan basically concentrated on our knowing-doing operations, on our three degrees of coming to verified knowledge and on how humans could, should follow up on that with responsible actions. Yesterday, I asked Lowell how his take on CWL 15 and 21 might be implemented by developing his own views on the extent that CWL 15 and 21 do not  quite fit the bill as presently diffused in Lonergan circles. 

Good thinkers like Rahner and Lowell certainly have insights that complement Lonergan's "GEM-FS" approach. I think the college of cardinals elected the new pope because he has demonstrated in his career the extraordinary, praiseworthy ability to implement gospel values, the GOOD news  to the BAD news of ongoing conflicts, wars and self-serving. In the background, lurk 1) the ever-growing secularization of many global societies and 2 the hope that nations that still embody a sincere quest and need for spiritual values to solve present dilemmas will eventually succeed in not giving up on ideals, on an ethical spirituality. The global interfaith movement has been helpful and partly effective in dealing with the second set of problems. 

The GEM-FS method can be applied, needs to be systematically applied to address our huge problems such as global warming, But ONLY IF humans could agree on how to implement the GEM-FS basics. Unfortunately, the cartesian, dualitstic mindset is all too influential. Robots can now builld cars but AI and cartesian dualism lack the potential human ability to ehically, spirituallly transcend this-worldly limitations, 

John