Euclid The study of Euclid’s Elements serves as an excellent example of the contemplative learning process. Proposition 5, an early proposition in the text, marks a turning point for most students, where they must not only identify a chain of equalities (something akin to a hypothetical syllogism), but do so in transposition. Whereas students needed only identify equality by imposing … Continue reading The Poetics of Faith and Learning, Part 1
Back in Nashville after attending a Medieval Conference in Kalamazoo, MI, visiting good friends in Holland, MI, and spending two days in Chattanooga with my kids, I am in the process of making that strange and sometimes difficult transition into summer. It is not quite like turning a ship around because many of the same … Continue reading Transitio
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love Endures forever… …to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt his love endures forever Psalm 136 vs.1 & 10 (NIV) Psalm … Continue reading On Our Preference for the First Born: The Literal
Part III.a When I began working on this series, I wanted to respond to the idea that “rioters simply need to get a job.” There is a certain naivete in suggesting that the right job could alleviate despair and serve as a sufficient source of human fulfillment. At the same time, many of us draw … Continue reading A Word on Hope: Vocation in Light of the Baltimore Riots, Part III.a of III
This post continues an exploration of vocation. In part I, work (or career) was distinguished from our universal vocation to personhood. Yet, personhood, our primary vocation, is not realized in abstraction. In accord with its nature, personhood exists and develops in a social context. One such context is work. Work is an arena in and … Continue reading A Word on Hope: Vocation in Light of the Baltimore Riots, Part II of III
Day Laborers by Steve Houston. The riots in Baltimore are about race, equality, and economics, but ultimately, the problem goes deeper than civil or social reform. There is a crisis of hope, and the human person can only truly flourish in the context of hope. While civil and social reform aim at the protection of human dignity, such … Continue reading A Word on Hope: Vocation in Light of the Baltimore Riots, Part I of III
Same & Other 