Category Archives: John Paul II

The Swerve: Modernity & The Creation Of Contemporary Life

Posted on March 27, 2012 by William Holland

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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Swerve: Modernity & The Creation Of Contemporary Life

The Wager: God & Tyranny

Posted on December 20, 2011 by William Holland

If the deaths of Kim Jong II, Christopher Hitchens and Vaclav Havel can be surmised briefly it is this:  no mere Machiavellian calculus is sufficient concerning the scales by which men discern the movement of Nations. The end of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Ethics, International Relations, John Paul II, Morality, Politics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The Wager: God & Tyranny

The Limits Of Political Accommodation: Herodian Strategy For Survival In An Age Of Absolutes

Posted on December 13, 2011 by William Holland

The Roman Catholic Church has a very long distinguished history of playing a Machiavellian hand with secular leaders.  Witness the long tenure of John Paul II in Poland regarding both his strategy to break the Warsaw Pact along with hardened … Continue reading →

Posted in Abortion, Ethics, John Paul II, Morality, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Limits Of Political Accommodation: Herodian Strategy For Survival In An Age Of Absolutes

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

Posted on November 28, 2011 by William Holland

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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Identity & Personhood In Ancient Rome: The Specificity Of Christian Ethics vs. The Eros Of Selfish Property

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

Posted on September 24, 2011 by William Holland

‘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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Spinoza, Kant, Solomon Maimon & Jewish Secularization In 18th Century Europe

Sex & The City: The Social and Political Impact Of Militant Feminism

Posted on August 12, 2011 by William Holland

I was always dismayed when people use any kind of moral equivalency.  An example is the ‘Wall of Apartheid’ (originally coined by Jimmy Carter) throughout the West Bank in Israel.  Anyone with even a modicum of knowledge of the politics … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Conservatism, Economics, Ethics, Feminization Of Men, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Identity Development, Islam, Israel, John Paul II, Marriage Preparation, Morality, Near East, Pope Benedict XVI, Sexual Ethics, The Demise Of The Black Family, Theology | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Sex & The City: The Social and Political Impact Of Militant Feminism

Holy Ignorance

Posted on May 19, 2011 by William Holland

How can one study the failure that is political Islam and Protestantism?  The former dwells on an archaic vision that simply cannot address contemporary issues while the latter remains permanently entangled in the cultural morass of exalted personal autonomy.  For … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatism, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Islam, John Paul II, Morality, Mysticism, Politics, Pope Benedict XVI, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Holy Ignorance

Civilization

Posted on May 16, 2011 by William Holland

John Armstrong is a resident philosopher at Melbourne Business School in Australia, he has written an ambitious book (‘In Search Of Civilization’) that sets out to restore the confidence once reposed in the term ‘Civilization’.  If ever Matthew Arnold had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatism, Education, John Paul II, Literature, Philosophy, Poets, Politics | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Civilization

The Social Crisis of the Working Class

Posted on May 10, 2011 by William Holland

Charles Murray of the American Enterprise Institute in Washington remains the single most significant sociologist since the passing of Seymour Martin Lipset.  His latest is titled ‘The State of White America’.  This is a startling account of reversal of America’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Tocqueville, Conservatism, Constitution, Education, Eric Voegelin, Ethics, Feminization Of Men, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Harry Jaffa, Identity Development, International Relations, Islam, John Paul II, Marriage Preparation, Morality, Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer, Sexual Ethics, Sociology, The Demise Of The Black Family, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The True Spirit Of A Counterrevolutionary: Whittaker Chambers A Tormented Man

Posted on November 16, 2010 by William Holland

Most readers of this very blog are not old enough to remember the vapid ideological atmosphere that gripped the 1930’s as examined throughout the writings of Norman Podhoretz or Irving Kristol.  Both men ruthlessly examined the shape and commitment of … Continue reading →

Posted in Eric Voegelin, Ethics, Identity Development, International Relations, Islam, John Paul II, Morality, Philosophy, Politics, Raymond Aron, Satan/Evil, Terrorism, Theology | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment