In this book, distinguished theologian and political scientist James V. Schall explores Maritain's political philosophy, demonstrating that Maritain understood society, state, and government in the tradition of Aristotle and Aquinas, of natural law and human rights and duties. Schall pays particular attention to the ways in which evil appears in political forms, and how this evil can be dealt with morally.

Friendship is prominently mentioned, to be sure, in the great books, including very often the great books in political philosophy. In addition to Aristotle, whose treatise on friendship remains unsurpassed as a philosophic examination of this exalted topic, we recall Cicero's great essay De Amicitia, Plato's Phaedrus, plus numerous references in The Republic, The Laws, The Symposium, and many other central dialogues. The Gospel of John contains the great tractate on friendship at the Last Supper just before the Trial of (...) Christ, an intellectual association between politics and friendship that is itself cause of the deepest human reflection. The topic of friendship is most familiar to Augustine and Aquinas and later to Montaigne and Francis Bacon. In short, if we moderns and post-moderns might perhaps have difficulty in associating the notions of friendship and political philosophy, our intellectual tradition did not. (shrink)

The Latin word "Docilitas" in the title of this book means the willingness and capacity we have of being able to learn something we did not know. It has not the same connotation as "learning," which is what happens to us when we are taught something. Docility also means our recognition that we do not know many things, that we need the help of others, wiser than we are, to learn most of what we know, though we can discover a (...) few things by or own experience. This book contains some sixteen chapters, each of which was given to an audience in some college or university setting. They consider what it is to teach, what to read, reading places, libraries, and class rooms. They look upon the duties of a teacher or professor as mostly a delight, because the truth should delight us. In Another Sort of Learning, the subject of what a student "owes" his teacher came up. Here, we look at the other side of the question, what does a teacher or professor "do"? But a professor cannot teach unless there is someone willing to be taught, someone willing to recognize that he needs guidance and help. Yet, the end of teaching is not just the "transfer" of what is in the mind of the professor to the mind of the student. It is when both, student and teacher, behold, reflect on, and see the same truth of things that are. This common "seeing" is the read adventure in which student and teacher share something neither "owns." Knowledge and truth are free, but each requires our different insights and approaches so that we can finally realize what "teaching" and "being taught" mean to us. (shrink)

As John Henry Newman reflected on 'The Idea of a University' more than a century and a half ago, Bradley C. S. Watson brings together some of the nation's most eminent thinkers on higher education to reflect on the nature and purposes of the American university today. Their mordant reflections paint a picture of the American university in crisis. This book is essential reading for thoughtful citizens, scholars, and educational policymakers.

ExcerptSOCRATES: But if I come to my end because of a deficiency in flattering oratory, I know that you'd see me bear my death with ease. For no one who isn't totally bereft of reason and courage is afraid to die; doing what's unjust is what he's afraid of. For of all evils, the ultimate is that of arriving in Hades with one's soul stuffed full of unjust actions. Plato, Gorgias, 523d–e1 SOCRATES: Maybe you [Callicles] think this account [eschatological myth] (...) is told as an old wives' tale, and you feel contempt for it. And it…. (shrink)

ExcerptThe twelve contributors to this collection of essays are all themselves members of what might be called the “Telos Family.” Each writer gives us some account of his or her relation to the journal, its origins, its direction, and its future. Many have also known Paul Piccone, Telos's dynamic founder. Piccone's death in 2004, as well as the subsequent direction of the journal, is noted by most of the volume's contributors. Every writer indicates a fondness for the journal, its flair, (...) its scope, and its willingness to discuss things that are too often bypassed or rejected in the professional academic…. (shrink)

I.One of the most instructive passages I have ever read is found in C. S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man, about the textbook writers and the waterfalls. The story goes that the English poet Coleridge records the reaction of two ordinary tourists on first seeing a particularly lovely waterfall. One of these tourists called it “pretty,” while the other called it “sublime.” Coleridge, of course, thought the tourist calling it “sublime” was correct, while the one calling it merely “pretty” was (...) lacking in some perception or appreciation of the reality before him. There was a note of “culpability” in…. (shrink)

Initially, let me say that no man can write anything about Chesterton's Orthodoxy that will be better than reading or re-reading Orthodoxy itself. But the glory of the sun ought not to prevent us from seeing what is in its light. Indeed, if we see only the sun, we will see nothing else, which not seeing is neither the point of the sun nor of Chesterton. The temptation to “explain” Chesterton better than Chesterton explained himself is the hazard that comes (...) with loving Chesterton. Though under no illusions, I freely confess to having succumbed to this insidious enticement frequently as…. (shrink)

Contre Rousseau, Yves Simon a exposé les raisons essentielles pour l'autorité. L'obéissance, à la loi que l'autorité définit ne consiste pas simplement à s'obéir à soi. Ce n'est pas non plus un acte irrationnel. St. Thomas a montré qu'en plus de la loi éternelle et naturelle, nous avons besoin de loi humaine positive. La loi humaine est elle-même oeuvre de prudence et de commandement. Dans la tradition chrétienne, l'obéissance est une vertu. Elle est mystérieuse en ce qu'elle indique une forme (...) plus haute de rationalité et de sagesse. Celui qui obéit la loi peut comprendre à la fois sa nécessité et le fait qu'elle présente au moins une alternative valable en vue du bien commun. (shrink)

What is real and what is noble, as well as what is deranged and wrong, can often be stated briefly. Nietzsche was famous for his succinct aphorisms and epigrams. Aquinas in one of his responses could manage to state clearly what he held to be true. Ultimately, all of our thought needs to be so refined and concentrated that we can see the point. So these are "brief" essays and they are largely of a philosophical "hue." They touch on things (...) worth thinking about. Indeed, often they consider things we really need to think about if our lives are to make sense. The advantage of a collection of essays is that it is free to talk about many things. It can speak of them in a learned way or in an amused and humorous way. As Chesterton said, there is no necessary conflict between what is true and what is funny. Oftentimes, the greatest things we learn are through laughter, even laughter at ourselves and our own foibles and faults. So these essays are "brief." And they are largely of philosophical import. At first sight, taxing beer may seem to have no serious principle, except perhaps for the brewer and the consumer. But wherever there is reality, we can find something to learn. Each of these essays begins with the proposition "on"--this is a classical form of essay in the English language. Belloc, one the essay's greatest masters, wrote a book simply entitled "ON"--and several other books with that introductory "ON" to begin it. The word has the advantage of focusing our attention on some idea, place, book, person, or reality that we happen to come across and notice, then notice again, then wonder about. (shrink)

Justice is a noble virtue, yet it seems everywhere incomplete, even when it seems complete. In Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address (March 4, 1864), for instance, we read: As was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether” (Psalm 19:9). With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work (...) we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle…. (shrink)

A collection of Fr. James Schall's recent essays, Political Philosophy and Revelation offers a learned, erudite, and coherent statement on the relationship between reason and revelation in the modern world. It addresses political philosophy in the context of an awareness of other humane and practical sciences, including history, literature, economics, theology, ethics and metaphysics.

Philosophy is the quest for knowledge of the whole by a being who is himself a whole but not the whole. The quest is given with our very being. It makes us be what we are, both acting and thinking beings. It explains the constant dynamism that charges through our being whether we like it or not. Further, it incites us to know what we are in order that we might choose to be what we are. We are the only (...) beings in the universe that cannot be what we are without our own decision actually to be what we…. (shrink)

In Roman Catholic Political Philosophy author James V. Schall tries to demonstrate that Roman Catholicism and political philosophy—-revelation and reason—are not contradictory. It is his contention that political philosophy, the primary focus of the book, asks certain questions about human purpose and destiny that it cannot, by itself, answer. Revelation is the natural complement to these important questions about God, human being, and the world. Schall manages to avoid polemicism or triumphalism as he shows that revelation and political thought contribute (...) to a fuller understanding of each other. (shrink)

In Roman Catholic Political Philosophy author James V. Schall tries to demonstrate that Roman Catholicism and political philosophy—-revelation and reason—are not contradictory. It is his contention that political philosophy, the primary focus of the book, asks certain questions about human purpose and destiny that it cannot, by itself, answer. Revelation is the natural complement to these important questions about God, human being, and the world. Schall manages to avoid polemicism or triumphalism as he shows that revelation and political thought contribute (...) to a fuller understanding of each other. (shrink)

The essays in this book all touch on knowledge and its pleasures. Schall does not tarry on the effort and determination it often takes to say just what we want to say, then say it and know that we have said it. Our writing is our thinking, our thinking-through, our being pleased to know this is it... this is the point Schall, one of America's greatest essayists, makes here.

In _The Life of the Mind,_ Georgetown University’s James V. Schall takes up the task of reminding us that, as human beings, we naturally take a special delight and pleasure in simply knowing. Because we have not only bodies but also minds, we are built to know what is. In this volume, Schall, author of _On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs __,_ among many other volumes of philosophical and political reflection, discusses the various ways of approaching the delight of thinking (...) and the way that this delight begins in seeing and hearing and even in making and walking. We must be attentive to and cultivate the needs of the mind, argues Schall, for it is through our intellect that all that is not ourselves is finally returned to us, allowing us to live in the light of truth. (shrink)

In The Life of the Mind, Georgetown University's James V. Schall takes up the task of reminding us that, as human beings, we naturally take a special delight and pleasure in simply knowing. Because we have not only bodies but also minds, we are built to know what is. In this volume, Schall, author of On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs, among many other volumes of philosophical and political reflection, discusses the various ways of approaching the delight of thinking and (...) the way that this delight begins in seeing and hearing and even in making and walking. We must be attentive to and cultivate the needs of the mind, argues Schall, for it is through our intellect that all that is not ourselves is finally returned to us, allowing us to live in the light of truth. (shrink)

At its beginning, every age has been "modern." We speak of "pre-" and "post-" modern ages. We are likewise tempted to identify what is most up-to-date with what is true. But to he up-to-date is to be out-of-date. If we Find what is really true in any age, it will he true in all ages. This proposition is central to this hook. Moreover, what is true will appear in different guises, as will what is false. The "modern age" had often (...) considered itself relativist, or secular, or skeptical. It strove to divest itself of its theological and metaphysical back-grounds, only to find that the central themes from this tradition recur again and again, most often under political or even scientific forms. This book proposes to "see" these classical and revelational roots within their modern forms. But we also find the proposition that what exists is only what we make. We find no "truth" but that of our own confection. When we find only our own "truth" however, we do not really find or know ourselves. We do not cause what it is to be ourselves in the first place. The central truth that the "Modern age" does not acknowledge is that its own existence along with that of the world itself is first a gift. When we see the "modern age" in this light we can again rediscover what we really are. Hopefully, we can choose and rejoice what we are intended to be in any age as the gift of being is something that transcends all ages even while dwelling within them. (shrink)

Introduction: "A certain crime unobserved" -- On Catholic thinking -- The mind that is Catholic -- "Infinitized by the spirit" : Maritain and the intellectual vocation -- Chesterton, the real "heretic" : "the outstanding eccentricity of the peculiar sect called Roman Catholics" -- "The very graciousness of being" -- Reckoning with Plato -- On the uniqueness of Socrates : political philosophy and the rediscovery of the human body -- On the death of Plato : some philosophical thoughts on the Thracian (...) Maidens -- What is piety? -- The abiding implications of friendship -- Aristotle on friendship -- The totality of society : from justice to friendship -- The Trinity : God is not alone -- The medieval experience -- The point of medieval political philosophy -- "Possessed of both a reason and a revelation" -- Aquinas and the defense of ordinary things : on "what common men call common sense" -- Implications of Catholic thought -- The "realism" of St. Augustine's "political realism" : Augustine and Machiavelli -- "Mystifying indeed" : on being fully human -- Transcendence and political philosophy -- Mysticism, political philosophy, and play -- Things practical and impractical -- Sports and philosophy -- The real alternatives to just war -- Where does it lead? -- On choosing not to see -- The ultimate meaning of existence -- "The beginning of the real story" -- Conclusion: On being allowed to read Monte Cristo. (shrink)

A collection of essays on political philosophy, ancient philosophy, and Catholic theology, including a handful of book reviews and a short "autobiographical memoir," by a Catholic priest who taught politics at Georgetown University for decades. The book was planned and prepared by the author prior to his death but published posthumously.

The Politics of Heaven and Hell makes an invaluable contribution to the understanding of classical, medieval, and modern political philosophy, while explaining the profound problem with modernity. Christianity 'freed men from the overwhelming burden of ever thinking that their salvation will ultimately come from the political order', writes Fr. James Schall, S.J. Modernity, on the other hand, is a perversion of Christianity, which tries to achieve man's salvation in this world. It does this by politicizing everything, which results in the (...) absolute state: 'The distance from the City of God to the Leviathan is not at all far once the City of God is relocated on earth.' The best defense against this tyranny is 'the adequate description of the highest things, of what is beyond politics'"--Inside jacket. (shrink)

Introduction -- A university lecture -- Violence and God's nature -- What Is Europe? -- Modernity and the three waves of dehellenization -- Revelation and culture -- Conclusion.

La philosophie politique est une discipline théorique unique en ce qu'elle présuppose et dépend à la fois de la philosophie spéculative et pratique. Elle ouvre aussi les portes à des questions dont s'occupe la révélation à sa manière - questions sur l'amitié avec Dieu, les limites de la justice, la destinée des individus. Le Christ et Socrate ont été tués dans des cités relativement justes. Ce fait même pose naturellement et nécessairement la question de savoir s'il doit en être ainsi, (...) s'il existe un conflit intérieur entre la philosophie ou la révélation et la cité. La philosophie politique est différente parce qu'elle contient dans les lignes générales de son propre propos des questions d'économie, de politique, de métaphysique, et finalement de révélation. (shrink)

This book is an examination of the natural law foundations of political institutions, including the American Constitution. Behind every political society are found arguments of reason that justify human life and society in the first place. In a real sense, Arkes spells out Aquinas's fundamental premise that the natural law is "what is reasonable." Behind any constitution lies the idea of logic itself, of reason, of contradiction, and of good sense. These principles of good order are not established by any (...) written document but are elaborated by it. (shrink)

This book is of fundamental importance in political philosophy as well as in theology, philosophy itself, and history. The fact that it lacks an Index is unconscionable. The book consists of some one hundred six pages of precious correspondence between Strauss and Voegelin, plus a reprinting of Strauss's famous essays "Jerusalem and Athens" and "The Mutual Influence of Theology and Philosophy," with Voegelin's "The Gospel and Culture" and "Immortality: Experience and Symbol." To complete these essays and letters are perceptive, often (...) brilliant, essays by James Wiser, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Stanley Rosen, Timothy Fuller, Ellis Sandoz, Thomas Pangle, and David Walsh. It would be difficult to find a more profound and stimulating book covering the whole history and understanding of faith and reason in Western intellectual history. (shrink)