On “Idols of the Mind”
A Philosophical Happy Hour thinking through the challenges posed by Francis Bacon’s Idols of the Mind. The concept of idols as a philosophical problem is one that has captured the attention of a wide variety of thinkers, from early modern philosophers such as Descartes and Francis Bacon to 20th century phenomenologists such as Jean-Luc Marion. […]
Trivium Courses (2026)
In 2026, the Lyceum Institute will offer the first three of six courses in our core Trivium curriculum, providing an entryway into a truly “liberal” education: We are also aiming to introduce regular occasions throughout the year for practicing dialectical disputation and rhetorical presentation, though plans for this are still taking shape. The three core […]
Latin Courses (2026)
In 2026, the Lyceum Institute will offer four Latin Courses: our three Foundations Courses, teaching students the fundamentals of Latin, including common vocabulary and basics of grammar (comprising morphology and syntax), an an intermediate selected readings course on St. Thomas Aquinas’ De aeternitate mundi, which will focus on some of the specific nuances of Scholastic […]
Greek: Plato’s Apology [Winter 2026]
Announcement of our Winter 2026 Greek Course, reading Plato’s Apology—can we discover the depths of Plato’s thinking in the original language? Description Details This course includes eight weekly readings, lectures, and live class sessions. The class sessions are recorded but must be attended. All required texts will be provided in PDF format. Public pricing from […]
On Gratitude and Debts
A Philosophical Happy Hour on gratitude and the repayment of gifts—that is, the satisfaction of debts for the gratuitously-given—through the insight of St. Thomas Aquinas. The virtue of gratitude, St. Thomas Aquinas tells us, “always inclines, insofar as possible, to pay back something greater” than one has received. In a world of diminished personal bonds, […]
On Human Uselessness
A Philosophical Happy Hour on Jacques Ellul’s “Meditation on Inutility”, challenging us to think about the uselessness of human action. For this week’s Philosophical Happy Hour, we will take up a specific short text to read and discuss: the postscript to Jacques Ellul’s Politics of God and Politics of Man, titled “a meditation on inutility”. […]
Maritain Musings
I would like to draw attention to two episodes of the American Maritain Association’s podcast, Maritain Musings, hosted by our own Dr. Matthew Minerd. The first features friend of the Lyceum Institute, Dr. Jim Jacobs, Director of Philosophy Programs at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana. Together with Dr. Minerd, Dr. Jacobs discusses the […]
On Making Distinctions
A Philosophical Happy Hour on distinctions, the doctrine of their kinds, and the importance making them correctly. The failure to make good distinctions characterizes the stupidity of our age. Observe the social networks and see how few distinctions are proposed, how unquestioning the categories, how obstinate every adherent to his or her ideology! How many […]
Felicitates de Quodlibet, II.4
A Philosophical Happy Hour on… whatever! The fourth installment in our Felictates de Quodlibet series for 2025, in which we talk about whatever we want, so long as it is interesting, and for as long as we are interested. Or, to put this otherwise: do you have a philosophical question—any question whatsoever—you want seriously to […]
On Morality, Law, and the Exercise of Choice
A Philosophical Happy Hour on the relationship between morality and law, and what falls to our exercise of choice. St. Thomas Aquinas defines law as an ordinance of reason ordered to the common good, promulgated by one who holds responsibility for the community. This broad but precise definition allows us to distinguish kinds of law […]
