ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the role which rational criticism plays in the assent of Catholic Divine Faith. It outlines based upon two conclusions which Ferreira makes regarding the nature of Divine Faith in her book, Doubt and Religious Commitment. The chapter presents a critical analysis of Ferreira’s statement that John Henry Newman’s analysis of certitude and doubt in the Grammar of Assent serves as a model for his understanding of Divine Faith. It discusses the validity of Ferreira’s conclusion that the certitude of Divine Faith does not require a rebellion against reason and is not a form of irrational dogmatism will be investigated. Ferreira’s interpretation gives the impression that Newman holds that there are two forms of Christian Faith, or at least two ways of religiously adhering to the revealed doctrines of Christian Faith. The certitude of Catholic Divine Faith is not based exclusively upon rational processes.
