Holy Week  2012

Every attempt to expel the truth that Christians exist to proclaim 

reenacts the drama that reveals it.

 

"The Church lives again the life of Christ."

Christopher Dawson 

 

At home and abroad, Christian faith is under assault and the faithful are being subjected to physical attacks, political intimidation, and satirical caricature. One is tempted to draw a sword and use it on the ear of the High Priest's servant. But bluster is no substitute for perseverance, as Peter discovered to his chagrin. And perseverance is needed, for moments such these recur in history. They are, in fact, the inner theme of history itself, and, as such, welcome opportunities for Christians to both rediscover the riches of faith and rise to the challenge of proclaiming it afresh. It is a daunting challenge, but, providentially, we have been provided with the resources for taking full advantage of the opportunity it presents us. 


We are today the inheritors of 20th century theological and anthropological achievements of truly historic proportions. By drawing on the anthropological work of René Girard, and the theological accomplishments of Benedict XVI, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Henri de Lubac, John Paul II, and others, we can participate in a rediscovery of the depth, meaning, and historical centrality of Christianity and, in the process, make the greatest possible contribution to the society we will bequeath to our children and their children. 

 

By assimilating these extraordinary contributions to Christian self-understanding, the 21st century Church can awaken to its unparalleled historical responsibilities, re-evangelize the Christian faithful, and remind a besieged Western culture of the indispensability of its religious patrimony. 

 

In the face of so lofty a task, it is tempting to dismiss as insignificant and ineffectual the modest opportunities most of us have to make our small contributions. In addition to the theological and anthropological resources mentioned above, however, we now have networking resources, which allow us to draw inspiration from one another, to replicate and broadcast to a wider audience information, insights, and commentary that brings Christian faith and bedrock biblical moral principles to bear on the cultural and social controversies of our time.    

 

Since my traveling and speaking is on hold while I work on a writing project, we are today relying more heavily on the new social media. So I want to ask those who use Facebook to "like" the Cornerstone Forum Page, comment on any of our posts that interest you, and share them with friends you think might also be interested. Likewise, please "follow" us on Twitter, "favor" the posts you like, and retweet them to your followers. We "like" and "follow" a number of individuals and organizations we admire on Facebook and Twitter. By replicating our efforts with the social media, we can gradually change the terms of the public debate in small but not insignificant ways. For too long the public square has been monopolized by those who blithely ignore the anthropological and moral realities that faithful Christians distinguish themselves today by refusing to abandon. Please join us in this effort. Thank you so much.  

  

Like us on Facebook      Follow us on Twitter 

  

With gratitude and affection,

Gil - Signature - yellow

 Gil Bailie

 

A Word to Our Supporters:

 

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The Cornerstone Forum

According to then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, the coincidence of
theology and anthropology constitutes "the truly most exciting part of Christian faith."

The Cornerstone Forum is a product of that excitement and an effort to communicate it to others.