Isaura

http://sentimentoingenuo.tumblr.com

https://www.goodreads.com/isauravdc

Isaura’s Bookshelves

to-read‎ (453)
currently-reading‎ (36)
read‎ (908)
did-not-finish‎ (26)
0‎ (2562)
1‎ (894)
anna‎ (269)
2proc‎ (220)
0-5‎ (54)
blinked‎ (45)
notion‎ (21)

ongoing‎ (12)
standby‎ (12)
headway‎ (7)
skimmed‎ (2)
manga‎ (396)
i-should-care‎ (280)
poetry‎ (181)
bd‎ (168)
right-in-the-spot‎ (145)
5‎ (113)
soc-framing‎ (89)

nevertheless-intrigued‎ (86)
life-framing‎ (72)
feed-on-information‎ (69)
escapism‎ (48)
punch-in-the-guts‎ (31)
theatre‎ (27)
feed-on-ling‎ (26)
feed-on-lang‎ (18)
simping-the-gays‎ (15)
fr‎ (605)
en‎ (185)

roupão‎ (133)
pt‎ (73)
nl‎ (37)
es‎ (24)
oth‎ (18)
yt‎ (4)
recs‎ (2)
recommended‎ (1)

Stats | More…

Isaura is Currently Reading

Isaura is currently reading

Magnifica Humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence

by Pope Leo XIV

bookshelves: currently-reading, en

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Isaura said: " (read from the POV of a non-theist from a Catholic culture)

8/6/2026, after reading the introduction:
The Pope uses the stories of Babel and the rebuilding the walls of the city of Jerusalem in Nehemiah as metaphors for the choice that face us in our (read from the POV of a non-theist from a Catholic culture)

8/6/2026, after reading the introduction:
The Pope uses the stories of Babel and the rebuilding the walls of the city of Jerusalem in Nehemiah as metaphors for the choice that face us in our use our technology. Babel stands for building through/for self-affirmation to the detriment of others, a power that dominates others, "the idolatry of profit that sacrifices the weak, a uniformity that neutralizes differences, and the pretense that a single language — even a digital one — can translate everything", while the "way of Nehemiah" stands for building for the common good, each bringing what they have to offer to the project for the benefit of all, while seeing diversity as a possibility and a resource rather than as a source of division or conflict. The Pope defends this second course of action.

But that very tension between a false universalism and diversity is also in the text. The Pope simultaneously addresses Christians and "all men and women of goodwill". But the path he traces is fundamentally Christian: it requires communing with God, having a relationship with God. This is all quite meaningless for many non-Christians, though we can all make an effort of translating what that would mean for us. But for a project that aims to include all humanity in its diversity, each according to their abilities and personhoods, this is quite a steep excluding, Babel-like fake universalizing step straight off the bat. I should probably not expect an encyclical to be an action guide for all humanity (it's the first I'm reading), and the Pope's job is to serve Catholics first and other Christians second, but it's interesting that pre-Vatican 2 pretense to universalism is not completely gone, and mostly that this tension doesn't really seem to have been dealt with (I'm interested if anyone has thoughts on the matter).

Anyway, none of this removes from the interest of the read, I look forward to getting more familiar with the Social Doctrine of the Church and encyclicals, and there are some very good passages:

"If we focus only on contingencies, we risk letting the succession of emergencies dictate the direction of our path."

"In the abstract, technology in and of itself is not a solution to humanity’s problems, just as it is not inherently evil. In practice, however, technology is never neutral, because it takes on the characteristics of those who devise, finance, regulate and use it. Therefore, the primary choice is not between a “yes” or “no” to technology, but rather between constructing Babel or rebuilding Jerusalem; between a power that claims to dominate the heavens and a people who work together in the presence of God to rebuild the walls of fraternal coexistence."

"Building for the common good means accepting the limits and weakness of humanity without considering them an error to be corrected. Today, the human desire for fullness of life is at risk of being misled by deceitful goals, such as the prospect of a technology that promises to free us from all weakness, and models of wellbeing that leave behind entire populations. [...] As a result, while some pursue the illusion of unlimited self-assertion, many are deprived of basic necessities."

"No one can single-handedly bear the weight of the challenges the world is facing, just as no one is so weak that they cannot play their part." ...more "

Jun 08, 2026 05:57AM · see review

Isaura is currently reading

Poesia completa de Alberto Caeiro

by Fernando Pessoa

bookshelves: poetry, pt, currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

progress:

(50%)
— Jun 01, 2026 09:11AM

May 16, 2026 04:42AM

Isaura is currently reading

Em silêncio

by Adeline Casier

bookshelves: currently-reading, fr, bd

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Isaura said: " Franchement il y avait moyen de trouver un portugais pour relire les parties en portugais "

progress:

(page 60 of 160)
— May 12, 2026 02:31AM

May 12, 2026 02:30AM · see review

See all 36 books that Isaura is reading…

Isaura’s Quotes

“Experience cannot beat logic, and interpretations of observational evidence which are not in line with the laws of logical reasoning are no refutation of these but the sign of a muddled mind (or would one accept someone’s observational report that he had seen a bird that was red and non-red all over at the same time as a refutation of the law of contradiction rather than the pronouncement of an idiot?).”
― Hans-Hermann Hoppe, The Economics and Ethics of Private Property: Studies in Political Economy and Philosophy

“Some people talk about other people’s failures with so much pleasure that you would swear they are talking about their own successes.”
― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

tags: aphorism, aphorisms, condemn, criticism, criticize, deplore, enemies, enemy, envious, envy, failure, failures, gossip, humor, humour, jealous, jealousy, please, pleasure, quotation, quotations, quote, quotes, satire, success, successes, swear

93 likes

“Finally you get to the age when a book’s power to make you think becomes the first thing you notice about it.”
― Clive James, Latest Readings

10 likes

“We must not allow our pride to be the motivation behind our apologetics; rather, philoverity, the love of truth must be the full and complete motivation. For pride corrupts truth.”
― Criss Jami, Healology

tags: apologetics, arrogance, corruption, defense-of-religion, love-of-truth, motivation, philoverity, pride, reasonable-faith, truth

1 likes

“What a paradox it is, the sane causes more problems than the insane! It is! The real problems of the world do not come from the insane but, the sane!”
― Ernest Agyemang Yeboah