Category Archives: Antiquity

The Swerve: Modernity & The Creation Of Contemporary Life

Posted on March 27, 2012 by

Just as contemporary historians and philosophers are finally beginning to ride astride the findings of Catholic theologians on distinguishing variable modes of the Enlightenment (Hans Urs von Balthasar, John Courtney Murray, Henri De Lubac and Gertrud Himmelfarb) all come to … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquity, Hans Urs von Balthasar, John Paul II, Philosophy, Shakespeare, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Identity & Personhood In Ancient Rome: The Specificity Of Christian Ethics vs. The Eros Of Selfish Property

Posted on November 28, 2011 by

This blog has dealt sufficiently with the concept of ‘The Specificity of Christian Ethics’ at great length, it cannot be ignored how secular life itself is a perversion of Christianity.  This insight will move into greater relief as the West … Continue reading →

Posted in Abortion, Antiquity, Ethics, Identity Development, John Paul II, Sexual Ethics, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How The Secular World Began

Posted on September 26, 2011 by

Just as contemporary historians and philosophers are finally beginning to ride astride the findings of Catholic theologians on distinguishing variable modes of the Enlightenment (Hans Urs von Balthasar, John Courtney Murray, Henri De Lubac and Gertrud Himmelfard) all come to … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquity, Identity Development | Tagged , ,

Spinoza, Kant, Solomon Maimon & Jewish Secularization In 18th Century Europe

Posted on September 24, 2011 by

‘The Road to Modernity’ by Gertrud Himmelfarb, the wife of Irving Kristol and mother of Fox News contributor and founder/editor of Washington’s ‘The Weekly Standard’ William Kristol is the most significant public contribution to any understanding of the European Enlightenment … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquity, Conservatism, John Paul II, Philosophy, Politics, Pope Benedict XVI, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What Has Athens To Do With Jerusalem?

Posted on August 14, 2011 by

The North African Catholic Church throughout the last remaining centuries before the fall of Rome was the most fertile intellectual region before the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.  I don’t say that in a cavalier way, for the Church … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Tocqueville, Antiquity, Arab Spring, Conservatism, Constitution, Ethics, Harry Jaffa, Identity Development, International Relations, Islam, Morality, Politics, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Alexis de Tocqueville: Letters Home & Gustave de Beaumont Travel Diaries

Posted on August 14, 2011 by

This blog has tackled the subject of Alexis de Tocqueville extensively.  I mention him because a handful of American scholars have finally decided to tackle what our American Founders and Framers instinctively understood:  the American Revolution would succeed and be … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Tocqueville, Antiquity, Conservatism, Identity Development, International Relations, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

The Morality Of Political Realism: Fortitude For The American Imperium

Posted on August 14, 2011 by

What are we witnessing in the political and therefore spiritual morass that is a craven European Union, especially geopolitically and strategically?  ”Idealism” is a tough sell in American Foreign Policy, but most often it has been alloyed to the social … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Tocqueville, Antiquity, Arab Spring, Arnold Toynbee, Conservatism, Constitution, Identity Development, International Relations, Islam, Morality, Near East, Pakistan, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Neal Stephenson: Natural Law & The Consequences Of Modernity

Posted on April 4, 2011 by

Neal Stephenson wrote “In the Beginning Was the Command Line” in 1999.  Its best to view his writings as a mixture of James Michener, Huxley and H.G. Wells.  Although committed to the craft of science fiction, he is not unfamiliar … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Tocqueville, Antiquity, Conservatism, Constitution, Morality, Philosophy, Politics | Tagged , , , , ,

Why England Succeeded In Possessing An Enlightened Economic Model Over Other Western Monarchies

Posted on August 7, 2010 by

Imprimus.  Latin for ‘ideas have consequences.’ For anyone who studied at University after circa 1985, you missed the greatest education curriculum ever produced since antiquity, namely the trivium and quatrivium.  Within either the trivium or quatrivium, if you studied any … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquity, Arnold Toynbee, Frontier, Identity Development, International Relations, Islam, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , ,

Sun Tzu: A Critique Of Flaws In Chapter One ‘Laying Plans’

Posted on August 3, 2010 by

Sun Tzu is the greatest military commander the Orient ever produced.  Reading his texts over the years has increased my admiration for him and his success.  But he is not infallible.  The United States Marine Corps in building on British … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquity, China, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , ,