A philosophical reflection on the tensions between progress and tradition and their resolution through continuity All too often, the notions of progress and tradition alike are swallowed into the ideologies that make of them principles both absolute and opposed to one another.  Put otherwise, when progressivism and traditionalism come to prevail, we often lose not […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on… whatever! The second 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 […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on the use of language to convey thinking: from daily conversation, to professional presentation, let us ask after the habits of speaking well. How does one learn to speak well?  Many courses are offered with proposed solutions—from the WikiHow to MasterClasses and entire college majors.  Yet it seems, upon brief reflection, […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on the nature of a leader, the act of leading, and the concept of leadership in society. Entering into this Happy Hour post, I saw two paths before me: the first and more immediately attractive was the literary road—to think of Hector and Achilles, Odysseus, Aeneas, Virgil in Dante or Satan […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on… whatever! Renewing 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 discuss with other […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on why the study of signs constitutes the recovery of genuine philosophy and may result in the infusion of philosophical habits into culture. Few words common in modern “intellectual” environments sound as sophisticated or are used as carelessly as “semiotics”.  Given that it is often associated with French structuralism or deconstructionism, […]

We have completed our 2025 catalog and preliminary schedule for all seminars and courses!  While the unpredictability of life means these offerings are subject to change, we nevertheless have a very exciting line-up to offer: Seminar Catalog winter (q1 1/11–3/8) » Ethics: The Good Life [Registration open!] » Semiotics: Thought and Contributions of John Deely […]

Few persons who have completed high school are entirely incapable of writing. But it is one thing to possess an elementary capacity for writing and another to write with skill. Learning the skill of writing—or what we might term the art of composition—requires not only practice, but careful habits of thinking. These habits, in order […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour on… whatever! Revisiting our Felictates de Quodlibet series, in which we talk about whatever we want, so long as it is interesting, and for as long as we are interested. In the Scholastic university, renowned thinkers would regularly engage in open debate on questions posed by other scholars or students at […]

A Philosophical Happy Hour discussing how personal relations affect our reception and transmission of tradition, especially intellectual tradition. Intellectual Tradition Recently, I was fortunate enough to attend, along with a number of colleagues and friends, the 2024 Annual Meeting of the American Catholic Philosophical Association.  This year’s president was Dr. Mary-Catherine Sommers, Director of the […]