MAURICE BLONDEL'S DIAGNOSIS OF EXTRINSICIST "MONOPHORISM": AN ENDURING CRITIQUE OF CHRISTIAN INTEGRALISM
Pensando - Revista de Filosofia, Vol. 13, n.30, 2022 • Pensando - Revista de Filosofia
Autor: Peter James Bernardi
Abstract:
In the early decades of the twentieth century French Catholics were sharply divided over what strategy the Church should adopt to re-Christianize society. Under the pseudonym “Testis,” Maurice Blondel sharply criticized a Catholic alliance with the proto-fascist, nationalist movement of Action Francaise, whose leader was the notorious unbeliever Charles Maurras. This alliance had received a qualified endorsement in a series of articles published by the French Jesuit Pedro Descoqs. In contrast, Blondel defended the Catholic social democrats who sought social justice for the workers. Applying his philosophy of action, Blondel criticized the Catholics Maurrassians on three fundamental grounds, especially their extrinsicist [“monophorist”] understanding of the nature-grace relationship. Balthasar considered Blondel’s "Testis" essays to be "the most penetrating analysis of [what is called] Catholic integralism [intégrisme] that . . . represents an ever recurrent temptation for militant Catholics." Blondel’s diagnosis of this integralist mentality was also evoked by Yves Congar, O.P., at the close of the Second Vatican Council: "If one had to characterize in a word the Council's approach, I would appeal to the ideal of knowledge that Maurice Blondel proposed and that he defended against what he termed rather strangely 'monophorism', that is a reified conception of knowing.” Given the contemporary resurgence of Christian nationalist movements, Blondel’s diagnosis has lost none of its relevance.
ISSN: 2178-842X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26694/pensando.v13i30.13783
Texto Completo: https://periodicos.ufpi.br/index.php/pensando/article/view/4032/3486
Palavras-Chave: Maurice Blondel, Modernism (Christian Theology)?Catholic Church, Integralism, Christian Nationalism, Action Francaise, Nature-Grace Relationship Debates.
Pensando - Revista de Filosofia
A revista objetiva ser um espaço editorial de rigorosa discussão filosófica aberto à participação de pesquisadores das mais diferentes regiões do país e do mundo, sem qualquer restrição de ordem temática e teórica, em nível de pós-graduação stricto sensu (doutorado).
La revista pretende ser un espacio editorial de discusión filosófica rigurosa abierta a la participación de investigadores de las regiones más diferentes del país y del mundo, sin ninguna restricción de orden temático y teórico, a nivel de postgrado stricto sensu (doctorado).
This journal claims to be a publishing space of rigorous philosophical debate opened to the collaboration of researchers from worldwide with no restriction of themes and theoretical views, by accepting papers only at the level of graduate studies.
Buscamos ainda disponibilizar a tradução de artigos filosóficos ligados às necessidades da graduação e pós-graduação em filosofia no país, bem como a publicização de filósofos que não são contemplados editorialmente no Brasil.
También buscamos poner a disposición la traducción de artículos filosóficos relacionados con las necesidades de estudiantes de pregrado y posgrado en filosofía en el país, así como la publicación de filósofos que no están cubiertos en Brasil.
The journal also aims to publish Portuguese and Spanish translations of philosophical works related to the needs of philosophy undergraduate and graduate studies in our country, as well as papers of relevant philosophers who were not still published in Brazil.
Queremos também, por fim, ser um espaço para a discussão sobre o ensino de filosofia em seus diferentes graus de ensino, visando sua melhoria através da discussão crítica de alternativas acadêmicas relacionadas ao tema.
Finalmente, también queremos ser un espacio para la discusión sobre la enseñanza de la filosofía en sus diferentes grados de educación, con el objetivo de mejorar a través de la discusión crítica de las alternativas académicas relacionadas con el tema.
The journal claims also to be a place for serious debates concerning teaching philosophy in its several levels, by aiming to improve its practice through the critic discussion of relevant alternatives to the subject.
Publicamos artigos em português, inglês, francês, espanhol e italiano. A publicação e o processo editorial é totalmente gratuito.
Publicamos artículos en portugués, inglés, francés, español e italiano. El proceso de publicación y editorial es completamente gratuito.
We publish papers in Portuguese, English, French, Spanish, and Italian. There is no charges or cost for submission and publication.
QUALIS CAPES 2017-2020: A2