1 Introduction 2 Why Is Political Philosophy Different? 3 On the Paradoxical Place of Political Philosophy in the Structure of Reality 4 The Philosopher's Study of Political Things 5 The Role of Christian Philosophy in Politics 6 On How Revelation Addresses Itself to Politics 7 The Relation of Political Philosophy to Metaphysics and Theology 8 From Curiosity to Pride: On the Experience of Our Own Existence 9 Modernity: What Is It? 10 Revelation, Political Philosophy, and the Generation of Morality 11 Worship and Political Philosophy 12 Roman Catholic Political Philosophy 13 Conclusion Chapter 14 Thirty-three Summary and Concluding Maxims, Principles, and Aphorisms Concerning Roman Catholic Political Philosophy
James V. Schall is Professor in the Department of Government at Georgetown University.
Fr. Schall's meditations on the profoundest themes of western
civilization are essential reading for anyone interested in its
fate — regardless of their religious convictions or lack thereof.
And it would be a rare creature who would not beforced to
re-examine the depths and dimensions of his soul to take account of
Fr. Schall's powerful argumentation. His book is especially welcome
at a time the west faces yet another challenge from radical Islam
and its own continuing deterioration from its own nihilism
within.
*Ken Masugi, Claremont Institute*
James Schall is one of the giants of contemporary Catholic thought.
This volume is essential reading not just for Catholics but for
anyone interested in the nature of political philosophy as a
tradition of inquiry and the vitally important question of the
relationship of faith and reason.
*Kenneth Grasso, Texas State University - San Marcos*
Here in large part is what makes Schall unique; his best friends in
politics, philosophy, literature, history, and theology make his
interpretation of reality sole occupant of the field. With their
help he undertakes in these pages the central task of Catholic
political philosophy-to spell out the true enlightenment of which
Chesterton was a herald in the way he courageously faced, loudly
proclaimed, and galantly challenged all the errors that ever
were.
*Gilbert Magazine*
A lively and spirited defense of Roman Catholic political
philosophy that exemplifies what it describes. James Schall
understands the presumption against any attempt to link the worlds
of faith and reason. He shows that the most powerful argument for
convergence arises from the side of reason itself. Political
philosophy is most true to itself when it preserves its openness to
revelation.
*David Walsh, Catholic University of America*
Tertullian asked: "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?" James V.
Schall goes one step further and asks: "What have Athens and
Jerusalem to do with Rome?" Serious and playful, witty and wise,
Roman Catholic Political Philosophy is essential reading for anyone
exploring the question of reason and revelation and how it relates
to the nature of political things.
*William P. Haggerty, Gannon University*
Roman Catholic Political Philosophy will provide rewarding reading
to any student, professor, or lay reader who is interested in the
relationship between religion and philosophy, especially as this
has developed within the Catholic tradition.
*Review of Metaphysics*
This book is a magisterial summation of Fr. Schall's lifelong
reflections on political philosophy in relation to the Catholic
tradition. Readers will be impressed by the constructive dialogue
he establishes between Reason and Revelation in relation to
understanding the nature of politics. His command of the classic
works, both ancient and modern, and his knowledge of contemporary
political theorists, both Catholic and non-Catholic, is equal to
any.
*Timothy Fuller, Colorado College*
Despite various qualms and trepidations, philosophy has been
rediscoving revelation for some time. Political philosophers dig in
their heels, though, and Schall shows why this is misguided. By
accepting revelation, reason actually becomes more reasonable;
revelation makes the intellectual life more intellectual. Of course
philosophy is not theology and cannot "prove" the truths of
revelation, but it denies itself if it does not take the
possibility of revelation seriously. This is a searching,
reflective book in the spirit of Fides et Ratio, an essay to be
meditated, not merely read.
*Jay Budziszewski, University of Texas, Austin*
Fr. Schall argues that the purpose of Roman Catholic political
philosophy is to inquire about the relation of politics to the
teaching of Revelation, as preserved and interpreted in the
Catholic Church. In carry out this philosophical inquiry he
ackowledges his debt to Leo Strauss and Eric Voegelin, but then
argues that political philosophy direct people's attention to the
highest things and, therefore, points to metaphysics and
Revelation. Fr. Schall is at his best in making the case that
Revelation not only helps the non-philosopher, but also the
philosopher as well. In fact, he argues in his fine book that
philosophy, if true to itself, will be open to Revelation.
*Brian Benestad, University of Scranton*
This wise and learned essay is a truly original contribution to our
understanding of the relationship between political philosophy and
the revelational traditions of the West. Schall brilliantly
demonstrates that political philosophy is prone to degenerate into
mere skepticism or even inhuman ideology when it arbitrarily closes
itself off from the account of human nature and the whole of things
that is provided by "Roman Catholic political philosophy." Schall's
erudition is staggering and his judgment "Catholic" in the most
capacious sense of that term.
*Daniel J. Mahoney, Assumption College*
Together with Pope John PaulII's Fides et Ratio, Father Schall
eloquently reminds us that the city in which we live is limited and
can never fulfil our transcendent destiny.
*The British Columbian Catholic*
This book, written by the preeminent Catholic political philosopher
in North America, is a brilliant inquiry into the nature and limits
of political philosophy.
*Fellowship Of Catholic Scholars*
Roman Catholic Political Philosophy is thus both simple and dense -
simple in its startling clarity, dense in its richness of meaning,
a work of great metaphysical integrity. One need not be a Catholic,
much less a Christian, to grasp the importance of Roman Catholic
Political Philosophy.
*Claremont Review of Books*
The author holds that political philosophy is especially an area
where faith and reason have, and will continue to, come together
very clearly. This book is an excellent illustration of how these
two ways of knowing can collaborate in an academic discipline, but
also of what happens when they separate as in our own times.
*The Review of Politics*
One of this book's greatest strengths is its effective synthesis of
elements of Strauss with elements of Catholic and related
thought....Schall's message is an important one....He is a much
needed corrective to a de-sanctified world and its fragmented
pursuit of knowledge.
*H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online*
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