Father James Schall, the well- known author and professor of philosophy at Georgetown University, inquires about the various orders found in the cosmos, the human mind, the human body, the city, and he seeks to reflect upon the unity of these orders.In a world in which the presence of reason and order are denied presumably in the name of science in favor of chance explanations of why things are as they are, it is surprising to find that, in the various realms open to the human intellect, we find a persistent order revealed. At first sight, it may seem that this reality can be explained by chance occurrence, but after a point, there is a growing sense that behind things there is, in fact, an order. This order can be traced in the many areas that are open to the human mind. As Aquinas has noted, the order within the cosmos points to an order outside of it, since the cosmos cannot be the cause of its own internal order. Philosophers have long inquired about the curious fact that the order of things implies not a mere relationship of one thing to another, but a hint that the universe is created with a certain superabundance. Why is the universe, and the things within it, not only ordered but, ordered with a sense of beauty? Not only is there an order in things, but also the human mind seems attuned to this order as something it delights in discovering. This relationship implies that there is some correspondence between mind and reality. What is the relationship between the mind and reality? The Order of Things explores this question. Relying on common sense and the experience available to everyone, Schall concludes that it requires more credulity to disbelieve in order than to experience it. Finally, Schall explores the fundamental cause of order, what it is like? Having looked at the order of the created universe, it is not surprising that the revelation of the Godhead is itself ordered in terms of an inner relationship of Persons.
Christianity and Life examines the issues of Contraception, Abortion, and IVF from the Catholic Church s perspective, and clearly and thoroughly explains the Church s reasons for pronouncing them harmful violations of human dignity and freedom. This short and approachable text is helpful for anyone interested in learning and sharing the Church s teachings on procreation and the dignity of human life.
The fact of pleasure is obvious to us, but its relation to reason is less understood. We are beings who laugh and run, sing and dance, but we too seldom reflect on why we do these things. Above all, we are beings who think and who want to know whether our lives make sense. In this thought-provoking study of the relationship between our reason and our experience of pleasure, popular professor and author Fr. James Schall shows how reason, religion and pleasure are not in conflict with one another. Religion has to do with how man relates to God. Catholicism is not so much a religion as a revelation. It records and recalls how God relates to man. The popular mood of our time is that neither religion nor revelation has much to do with real life. Yet when we look at things as having meaning and order, they fit together in surprising ways. This coherence should bring us joy, and teach us how reason, religion and pleasure can work together for our benefit. Schall shows us in this book why we have many reasons to think that our lives make sense, that our pleasures can be reasonable, and our reason itself is a pleasure. Ê
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.
Noting the widespread concern about the quality of education in our schools, Schall examines what is taught and read (and not read) in these schools. He questions the fundamental premises in our culture which do not allow truth to be considered. Schall lists various important books to read, and why.
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". Both reason and revelation are needed for this work, and they are eloquently and ably set forth in this book.
This engaging memoir covers fifty years of a lifetime spent in education—from student to university president. The author presents a theme of profound importance for society in general and for the future of education in particular—the loss of the liberal arts in our time, and how to regain them. When young Robert Gannon was a college freshman in the early twentieth century, it was unthinkable that there would ever be a time when Greek and Latin would not be an essential part of the college curriculum. But over the next several decades, in a world radically altered by two world wars, he saw the liberal arts retreat before the New Materialism. With wit and charm Gannon recounts colorful episodes and amusing experiences from his many years involved with education and the liberal arts. He reflects on the great impact for good that the liberal arts have had in forming generations of students, and why their loss is such a tragedy. His trenchant remarks on the state of modern education in America and its future prospects make The Poor Old Liberal Arts a spirited, enjoyable, and insightful work.
In this wise and witty book, acclaimed author James Schall illuminates a fundamental truth that will shock ceaselessly busy and ambitious Americans: human affairs are unserious. Following Plato, Schall shows why singing, dancing, playing, contemplating, and other "useless" human activities are not merely forms of escape but also indications of the freedom in and for which men and women were created. The joy that accompanies leisure, festivity, and conviviality, he demonstrates, gives us a glimpse of the eternal. On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs offers a vital message that is truly countercultural.
Fr. Schall writes profoundly and charmingly about people, places and things, giving a Christian perspective to the importance of little things and particular moments. His essays on a variety of interesting topics combine fun, substance and serious reflection.
Far Too Easily Pleased was originally published in 1976, although it is just as relevant today. Catholic Education Press is thrilled to be able to bring this book back into print. To summarize the volume we can do better than to excerpt part of Fr. Schall’s introduction to the 1976 edition: This book is intended to be a helpful stimulus to incite the reader to survey the truly exciting literature in this field and to assist in organizing personal reflection about the basic themes of game, play, wonder, rite, contemplation and festivity, themes that the theology of play naturally suggests. For it can be truly said that those who have not yet been initiated into this style of religious and cultural thought have been missing highly liberating and ennobling levels of our heritage. For those who already know what rewards are to be found in play and game, it is hoped that this book can again be a fresh and different approach to wonder and fascination, to the curiously marvelous life we have been given. James V. Schall, SJ, (1928-2019) was an American Jesuit Roman Catholic priest, teacher, writer, and philosopher. He retired in 2012 after a long tenure as a professor of political philosophy at Georgetown University Among his many books are The Universe We Think In; Political Philosophy and Revelation: A Catholic Reading; The Mind That Is Catholic: Philosophical and Political Essays; Schall on Chesterton: Timely Essays on Timeless Paradoxes and At the Limits of Political Philosophy: From “Brilliant Errors” To Things of Uncommon Importance (all CUA Press).
From Paris to San Bernardino, from Orlando to Manchester the Western world has been rocked by shocking mass murders done in the name of Islam since the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001. This chronology of these and other key events, from 2002 to 2018, offers an opportunity to analyze the ongoing conflict between Islamism and the West. Author Fr. James V. Schall, S.J., a renowned political philosopher, discusses the difficulty that Europeans and Americans have in recognizing that resurgent Islamic militancy is not just caused by "terrorists", as if terrorism were some kind of independent movement or mind-set. Violence has a source. No one undertakes it without a cause that is worth, in his mind, the risk of death. Islam is unique in its description of the world within itself, which is to live peacefully by the law of Allah, and the world outside this sphere, which is at war with Islam. The main concern of the author is the abiding existence of Islam over time and its constancy in attempting to achieve the goal of worldwide submission to Allah as a political and cultural fact.
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.
Distinctiveness of Christianity is an important read for Catholics in such precarious times. Though he begins by examining how and why there is such hostility towards the Church in our society and culture, Father Schall is careful that his analysis of Christianity in current society does not discourage. He encouragingly illustrates the fundamental doctrines and institutions that distinguish and uphold the Church, and suggests ways we can all move towards a Distinctive Spirituality that will strengthen the Church and inspire the world.
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.
The Universe We Think In arises from a tradition of realism, both philosophical and political, a universe in which the common sense understanding of things is included in our judgement about them. The scope is both vast and narrow – vast because it
We can’t be joyful without knowing why we should be joyful.That’s why celebrated Catholic author James V. Schall, S.J.,– the thinking man’s priest– presents these short but powerful chapters on the most important and joyful feasts of the Church’s liturgical year. With Fr. Schall as your guide, you’ll come to understand more deeply the point of each celebration. You’ll learn truths about the feasts that will awaken you to real joy,as you consider Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day, as well as the End Times that we encounter in the last Sundays of the liturgical year. Rather than being encyclopedic discussions of each of the feasts, these penetrating reflections generally point to something astonishingly new that you missed before, something of the meaning and depth of each feast that is almost always passed over unnoticed, except by those who think long and deeply about them. In any one of these discussions, you’ll find never-ending causes of insight into what we are and who God is. In a word, this powerful – and delightful – book affords you an enormous opportunity to consider anew the great truths of our Faith handed down to us by our beloved Mother Church, and that each year are celebrated in Her Feasts.
In this wide-ranging collection of philosophical essays, the acclaimed Catholic intellectual presents his vision of Catholic thought applied in the world. In The Mind That Is Catholic, political philosopher and Catholic intellectual James V. Schall presents a retrospective collection of his academic and literary essays written in the past fifty years. In these essays, exploring topics from war to friendship, philosophy, politics, and everyday living, Schall exemplifies the Catholic mind at its best. According to Schall, the Catholic mind seeks to recognize a consistent and coherent relation between the solid things of reason and the definite facts of revelation. It seeks to understand how they belong together, each profiting from the other. It respects what can be known by faith alone, but does not exclude the intelligibility of what is revealed. In these contemplative and insightful essays, Schall shares a lifetime of study in political philosophy, a wide-ranging discipline and perhaps the most vital context in which reason and revelation meet. “Father James V. Schall is one of the few renaissance men still among us. His knowledge of various areas of reality and human endeavor is encyclopedic.” ―Kenneth Baker, S.J., editor, Homiletic & Pastoral Review
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". Both reason and revelation are needed for this work, and they are eloquently and ably set forth in this book.
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.
James V. Schall presents, in a convincing and articulate manner, the revelational contribution to political philosophy, particularly that which comes out of the Roman Catholic tradition.
We can’t be joyful without knowing why we should be joyful.That’s why celebrated Catholic author James V. Schall, S.J.,– the thinking man’s priest– presents these short but powerful chapters on the most important and joyful feasts of the Church’s liturgical year. With Fr. Schall as your guide, you’ll come to understand more deeply the point of each celebration. You’ll learn truths about the feasts that will awaken you to real joy,as you consider Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day, as well as the End Times that we encounter in the last Sundays of the liturgical year. Rather than being encyclopedic discussions of each of the feasts, these penetrating reflections generally point to something astonishingly new that you missed before, something of the meaning and depth of each feast that is almost always passed over unnoticed, except by those who think long and deeply about them. In any one of these discussions, you’ll find never-ending causes of insight into what we are and who God is. In a word, this powerful – and delightful – book affords you an enormous opportunity to consider anew the great truths of our Faith handed down to us by our beloved Mother Church, and that each year are celebrated in Her Feasts.
The fact of pleasure is obvious to us, but its relation to reason is less understood. We are beings who laugh and run, sing and dance, but we too seldom reflect on why we do these things. Above all, we are beings who think and who want to know whether our lives make sense. In this thought-provoking study of the relationship between our reason and our experience of pleasure, popular professor and author Fr. James Schall shows how reason, religion and pleasure are not in conflict with one another. Religion has to do with how man relates to God. Catholicism is not so much a religion as a revelation. It records and recalls how God relates to man. The popular mood of our time is that neither religion nor revelation has much to do with real life. Yet when we look at things as having meaning and order, they fit together in surprising ways. This coherence should bring us joy, and teach us how reason, religion and pleasure can work together for our benefit. Schall shows us in this book why we have many reasons to think that our lives make sense, that our pleasures can be reasonable, and our reason itself is a pleasure. Ê
Fr. Schall writes profoundly and charmingly about people, places and things, giving a Christian perspective to the importance of little things and particular moments. His essays on a variety of interesting topics combine fun, substance and serious reflection.
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.
In this wise and witty book, acclaimed author James Schall illuminates a fundamental truth that will shock ceaselessly busy and ambitious Americans: human affairs are unserious. Following Plato, Schall shows why singing, dancing, playing, contemplating, and other "useless" human activities are not merely forms of escape but also indications of the freedom in and for which men and women were created. The joy that accompanies leisure, festivity, and conviviality, he demonstrates, gives us a glimpse of the eternal. On the Unseriousness of Human Affairs offers a vital message that is truly countercultural.
The engaging and inquiring mind of French philosopher Jacques Maritain reflected on subjects as varied as art and ethics, theology and psychology, and history and metaphysics. Maritain's work on the theoretical groundings of politics arose from his diverse studies. 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 morally dealt with. Schall's study will be of great importance to students and scholars of political science, philosophy, and theology.
In this book of essays, Father James V. Schall, a prolific author himself and a prominent Catholic writer, brings readers to Chesterton through a witty series of original reflections prompted by something Chesterton wrote--timely essays on timeless issues.
In his final collection of essays, Father Schall explores the life of faith across a dazzling array of subjects, from Martin Luther to bioethics. With his characteristic patience, brilliance, and careful tenacity, Father Schall interrogates profoundly what it means to try to be a citizen of the Kingdom of God in the city of Man. Never shying away from controversy, across 14 articles and 4 book reviews Father Schall investigates the critical themes of his life and scholarship: reason and revelation; the nature of modernity; literature and salvation; metaphysics and politics; and much more. Whether the reader is new to Father Schall or a longtime student, this posthumously-published collection of essays offers a profound meditation on the nature of political philosophy, and particularly what it would mean for Catholicism to offer a political philosophy. From such fundamental considerations, Schall explores ethical, literary and legal themes, displaying his typical breadth and depth of engagement with all that is real. Ultimately, Father Schall leads one on a Socratic enterprise, an education whereby one comes to question for oneself basic assumptions, and to dig deeper into the first principles as they are recalled in the orders of knowledge and being. While Father Schall has passed on to his reward, this collection of essays helps ensure that his lessons continue to guide, challenge and enrich students for generations to come.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.