Originally published at The Catholic Thing
Logicians have identified – and demolished – what they term a “circular argument.” Basically, to propose an example, a circular argument goes something like this:
The synodal Church is the Church foreseen by the Second Vatican Council.
Why?
Because the Second Vatican Council foresaw the synodal Church.
In a circular argument, the conclusion is in the premise – and that’s that.
For anyone proposing this particular argument, it doesn’t matter that Lumen gentium (“The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church”) never uses the term synodal as it is used here and doesn’t remotely suggest what the circular argument assumes. Yet the Gregorian University in Rome announced Monday that it will hold a three-day conference at the conclusion of the current synod titled, “From the Council to the Synod. Rereading a Church’s journey 60 years after Lumen Gentium (1964-2024).”
Lest anyone think this is intended merely as a historical overview, the “rereading” that will take place will tell “the story of the Church’s journey, which the congress intends to reread, taking the circularity between the Synod and the Council as the criterion for interpretation: rereading the Synod in the light of the Council and the Council in the
