LUX ET VERITAS

Lisa Miller continues to write truly informed pieces about religion in Newsweek magazine. I salute her essay this week (Newsweek, Feb. 11, 2010 ), wherein she investigates the internal professorial disputes at Harvard University and whether their revision of curriculum might include a course called "Reason and Faith." She notes that Harvard University includes no "Department of Religion."

At one point, she notes that "Harvard's distaste for engaging with religion as an academic subject is particularly ironic, given that it was founded in 1636 as a training ground for Christian ministers. According to the office of the president, Veritas was only officially adopted as its motto in 1843..."

Thus, I am proud to be a graduate of the divinity school at Yale University, whose motto is not simply "Veritas," but "Lux et Veritas." Light and Truth! There is a truth deeper even than rational truth. At its best, that deeper truth does not contradict rational truth; in fact, that deeper truth --Light!-- leads and inspires all good critique and all good rationality.