Humility: Wellspring of Virtue, or Cowardice in Disguise?
A Philosophical Happy Hour on the nature of humility and its status in contemporary society. What is Humility? For reasons personal, professional, and perhaps preposterous, I’m attempting to learn French. However, I must confess: I am having a rough go of it. Though I’ve a bit of a knack for picking up languages, I nonetheless […]
Lecutre: Self-Sufficiency of Happiness in the Nicomachean Ethics
In 2024, the Lyceum Institute this thoughtful interpretation of a perennial difficulty in interpreting Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, presented by Joseph M. Cherny, PhD Candidate at the Center for Thomistic Studies at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, TX. Mr. Cherny asks: how is happiness self-sufficient? Does it find fulfillment in one good, or a […]
On Angelic Beings
A Philosophical Happy Hour on why we should care about angelic beings and seek understanding of their existence. Nearly every culture in human history has voiced belief in supernatural beings—forces beyond our reckoning that possess powers to shape and change the world. Indeed, any honest inquiry into the world, the cosmos, shows us wonders beyond […]
On What Could Be
A Philosophical Happy Hour on the distinction of potentiality and possibility in both being and knowing. When we speak about what “could be”, we often unthinkingly use the words “possible” and “potential” as though they were interchangeable. Yet beneath this ordinary use lies a subtle but nevertheless important distinction: a distinction that reaches into the […]
On Limits to the Freedom of Expression
A Philosophical Happy Hour on an issue of perennial contention in liberal democracies everywhere: where do we draw the lines around the freedom of expression? In his dissent from the Supreme Court’s 7-2 ruling in Abrams et al. v. United States, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. wrote this since-famous line: “the ultimate good desired is better […]
The Death and Evolution of Education – Epilogue: Building New Institutions
This is the epilogue to a four-part series on the Death and Evolution of Education, which seeks to explain why we cannot rely upon the university to provide the intellectual formation necessary for the common good, but must “evolve” a new approach to learning. Part I: Introduction can be found here, Part II: The Hostile […]
On the Recovery of Time
A Philosophical Happy Hour exploring the experience of time, its loss, and the possible paths to its recovery. Imagine yourself outdoors and alone—truly alone. No friends, no family, no strangers. No living human being in sight, no voice close enough to be heard (or ears to hear). No phone; no connection to anything but the […]
A New Kind of School
Today’s needs for education are no longer being met. It is time for a new kind of school: one rooted in the wisdom of ancient traditions but adapted to the digital age. This video introduces the Lyceum Institute’s unique conception of education for the 21st century.
Seminar: Steps toward Dialectical Logic [Fall 2025]
Announcement of our Fall 2025 seminar, “What Kind of Certainty?: Steps Toward Dialectical Logic”—have we overlooked an important Aristotelian text and tradition in our understanding of reasoning? Description Details All Lyceum Institute seminars include weekly readings, lectures, and live discussion sessions. The discussion sessions are recorded. This seminar includes extensive readings, but does not require […]
Seminar: The Opportunities of Technology [Fall 2025]
Announcement of our Fall 2025 seminar, “The Opportunities of Technology”—how can we redeem the technological from its current abused status? Description Details All Lyceum Institute seminars include weekly readings, lectures, and live discussion sessions. The discussion sessions are recorded. This seminar includes extensive readings, but does not require advanced philosophical knowledge (nor does it have […]
