KARL JASPERS FORUM

TA 1 (Muller)

Commentary 30 (on Gardner's C29 on M Adler)

RIBBING AND TONGUE IN CHEEK
22 May 2002, posted 25 June 2002
by Glenn C. Wood

Wood's response to David Herman's note on Martin Gardner's commentary 29 (on Adler (26))

<1>
I'm grateful to David Herman for the letter and note by Martin Gardner, and for the occasion to continue the precedent set for a bit of religious ribbing, tongue-in-cheek praying, with some of my off-the-cuff comments and predictions after the manner of a modern day ... converted ... Erasmus -- converted to greater fortitude where religious freedom now exists.

<2>
After having read the Martin Gardner posting, I don't see any reason to change much in my first Adler comments other than now it appears Adler's conversion did not begin with the utterance of the Lord's Prayer while he was hospitalized and with his wife's influence and Episcopal "baptism." Now it appears the conversion began with Gardner's "tongue-in-cheek" published appeal for prayers for Adler's conversion to the one true church. I'm not making light of prayer, but pointing out that light was made of the prayer. It reminds me of the historic Church doctrine that allows for the flow of the grace of God regardless of the sinfulness of the intermediaries so long as they comply with the liturgical structures of the Institution. So we now learn he did not really get to Rome through London but was translated from that road to the Roman road.

<3>
This time we are again given a by-the-way bit of proselytizing by referring the reader to Gilbert Chesterton for he produced "...the greatest of modern Catholic apologies, almost fifteen years before he joined the Church." I might say, the time is even riper for apologies (pun), so let's have them freely posted. I can at best only dream about Jaspers and myself debating with Adler and Chesterton -- pleasantly handicapped by the Notre Dame philosopher Ralph McInerney's declaration that Adler's conversion is like that of the Apostle Paul's on the road to Damascus only on the preferable road to Rome. (Bill Buckley would probably be the moderator.) I take that Notre Dame source to mean along with saint Paul we now have saint Mortimer, the latter saint being more relevant because more recent(ly recognized as useful). But I'm champing at the bit to get started on this dialogue. (I mean no disrespect for these good fellows but like to shoo away pouncing institutionists from the remains, for in the largest institutions there can be good and evil infiltrators.)

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by Glenn C. Wood