recognition – Same & Other

July 2, 2016June 28, 2016

A Vision of Dominion: The Quadrivium on Numbers and Naming

Arithmetic, the first of four Quadrivium subjects, sheds light on the nature of our humanity. When contextualized by scripture, this study can even assist us in the task of realizing the true meaning dominion. Arithmetic Arithmetic is the study of number. While it concerns counting, adding, and subtracting, it is ultimately about the meaning of unity and relationship. This is one … Continue reading A Vision of Dominion: The Quadrivium on Numbers and Naming

September 25, 2015September 25, 2015

Encountering the Incongruous: The Role of Memory in Prayer

Memories are not just about the past. They are images, narratives, promises, and ideas which we carry with us in the present moment. How I understand who I am and what I am doing right now is dependent upon memory. Memory is complex because we are not indifferent to that which we “treasure up” in our hearts … Continue reading Encountering the Incongruous: The Role of Memory in Prayer

April 19, 2015April 21, 2015

An Encounter with Personhood

To recognize one’s other as a self is to know a person as a person. Such knowledge goes infinitely further than tolerance or political equality. This post explores how ethical knowledge informs an experience of personhood. Personhood is ultimately a grander and more encompassing pursuit than that of tolerance or human rights alone. For Thomas Aquinas, there are two primary modes of knowledge: the theoretical and the practical. Theoretical knowledge … Continue reading An Encounter with Personhood

March 13, 2015March 27, 2015

The Poetic Creature: Images and Originals Part VI.A

We have begun to explore how man is a double creature, a being who is natural and yet transcendent. The last post listed a number of ways in which this might be the case. This post will begin to explore numbers 2, 3, and 7. We can do this by first asking: What does ‘poetry’ … Continue reading The Poetic Creature: Images and Originals Part VI.A

March 7, 2015March 27, 2015

Other Kinds of Speech: Images & Originals Part V.B

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim his handiwork. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the … Continue reading Other Kinds of Speech: Images & Originals Part V.B

March 6, 2015March 27, 2015

Other Kinds of Speech: Images and Originals Part V.A

February 26, 2015March 27, 2015

In Him: Images and Originals Part IV

Recognition is a fundamental element of art and life. We delight in seeing, in being seen, and in seeing afresh. This is the reality of good art and the false allure of mere entertainment. But the possibility of recognition is present in small ways every day. For myself it is there when rising in the morning with … Continue reading In Him: Images and Originals Part IV

February 23, 2015March 27, 2015

The Problem of Universals: Images and Originals Part III.B

The ideal audience for this blog will not wish to read this post. This is for my more problematic readers. Of course, seeing that this blog is about four days old, I am taking some poetic license when I use the terms reader or audience. My ideal audience, those who will get the most out of … Continue reading The Problem of Universals: Images and Originals Part III.B

February 14, 2015March 27, 2015

Double Vision: Images and Originals Part II

In the first post, the idea of ‘form’ (also called a ‘look’) was introduced. A ‘look’ or ‘form’ was described as a dual entity: ◊ one which makes something what it is (the look of a bee is what makes a bee a bee) ◊ and it is that which allows us to recognize what a thing is; … Continue reading Double Vision: Images and Originals Part II

February 13, 2015March 26, 2015

The Being of a Bee: Images and Originals Part I

Confronted with the question of sameness, first year Arithmetic students considered yesterday what it means that bees of different shapes, sizes, and beauty, are all still bees. Bumble, Carpenter, Honey, etc… They all look like bees, for they all are, and yet they are each different. What does it mean for us to recognize sameness and otherness? Prompted by … Continue reading The Being of a Bee: Images and Originals Part I