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I learned several things from the Catholic Intellectual Tradition that make Fr. Malloy’s statement true. One of these, is the affirmation of liberal learning by encouraging us to be intellectually curious and to be life long learners. I have applied this in my life, not only religiously, but also academically and emotionally. We are encouraged to keep on exploring and challenging ourselves and the society we pertain to; hence, simultaneously impacting our world through exploration and new challenges. This course helped me flourish spiritually, it definitely challenged my views on certain topics, and allowed me to understand others’ perspectives in a safe environment. As discussed in my extra credit for the attendance to Spirituality and Gender
There have been many priest that I have known that have impacted me in certain ways. I think there is one that stands out from the others. Father Anthony Gerber is the priest at my parish St. Theodore. He arrived at our parish after our old priest retired. Father Gerber has only been with us for a short time, yet has still impacted me as a person and as a catholic.
This primary source document has been collected, translated, and published into the Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents. Due to several language translations and lack of a professional editor, it is noted that many of the documents collected have errors. This specific entry is titled Jesuit 's Interpretation of Gender Roles and dated 1633. The author is also listed as Pierre Biard, however the author and/or date is very questionable and possibly wrong. I will explain my disagreements later on, but for the sake of this review let us just say the author is Pierre Biard.
Since high school and now through my second year of college I have had one goal for my future, that goal was to graduate college with a degree in criminal justice. Not being interested in math or science, I was discouraged by the fact of taking classes that had nothing to do with my career choice. Thus being said, many people that I talked too felt the same way as I did. Which constantly led me to question what the importance of a liberal education was. After reading an essay called The Liberal Arts Are Not Elitist by Martha Nussbaum and relating it to an essay by William Cronon called The Goals of a Liberal Education, my perspective changed. An education is more than just a degree in your field of study, but an overall basic knowledge in which will inspire people to be the absolute best they can be.
A well-rounded education is very important and much supported. Two supporters are John Henry Newman and Paulo Freire. John Henry Newman was a professor at Oxford University and an Anglican minister that converted to Roman Catholicism and became a Pope. He delivered several lectures in Dublin, Ireland, about the importance of a Catholic education. These early lectures on education were revised and published in The Idea of a University. One of those lectures, “Knowledge Its Own End,” is about two distinct kinds of education (Austin, 53). Newman believed that there was a need for education purely for pleasure and education that is needed to pursue a specific career. Paulo Freire is a Brazilian literature professor and philosopher. Freire
The Clarion Herald states, “Philip Matthew Hannan fifth of eight children of Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Francis Hannan, was born in Washington, D.C.” (Clarion Herald 1). Archbishop Hannan was born on May 20, 1913 where he spent most of his young life. Tom Benson told the Clarion Herald, “Archbishop Hannan once told me that the New Orleans Saints were part of the unique culture and social fabric of our city. The same can be and must be said of him,” (Clarion Herald 35). New Orleans mourned the death of Hannan on Thursday, September 29, 2011.
Similarly, in This is Water, David Foster Wallace argues a real education as offering people the choice of what to think about in life. He states that “a liberal arts education is not so much about filling you up with knowledge as it is about ‘teaching you how to think’, but rather about the choice of what to think about” (1). After getting educated, students obtain the basic knowledge among many subjects, but with all the information and facts being offered, people may lose conscious of what to think about. Schooling may cause students over-think things which are unnecessary because it may take over what you actually notice and care. Wallace insists “learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and
Murray believes that students should receive a liberal education, yet they should not have to wait until college to do so (Murray 225). Murray states that a person should not be forced to obtain a college-level liberal education, simply because they are capable of doing so (Murray 228). On higher education, Murray says, “A large proportion of people who are theoretically able to absorb a liberal education have no interest in doing so.” (Murray 228). Regardless of the fact that a person fits the criteria enabling them to pursue a college degree, does not necessarily mean that they should, if they are not interested. It is more logical to teach students extensively before the time of college, instead of leaving out information and forcing them to attend a school (Murray 225). However, Addison disagrees with this ideology, and believes that a college education is essential to growing up.
Even though the tradition is longer than the university, the Catholic college serves as a platform to maintain, communicate, and advance it. In Mary Ellen O’Donnell’s essay, she quotes Father Leo Ward from the University of Notre Dame, who claims, “Just as we reject the principle of divorcing faith and works, so we reject the principle and the practice of divorcing the life of faith and the life of study,” (O’Donnell 43). Meaning, Catholic universities aren’t disconnecting faith from their education. Specifically, these institutions have played a crucial role in the cultivation of the intellectual heritage. Today, most things are done through reason alone. The Catholic university’s role is to maintain the relationship between faith and reason. Even though, as what O’Donnell describes, The Catholic Intellectual can be seen as an oxymoron, the Catholic university is committed to keeping the tradition a part of their overall mission. More importantly, these institutions try and reinforce faith and reason to solve complex problems of the world, and by doing so, they are furthering the advancement of the living tradition. O’Donnell adds, “With the criteria of the Catholic intellectual tradition at the heart of their mission and identity, then Catholic universities and colleges bear much of the burden of keeping the tradition alive and encouraging its growth and development,” (O’Donnell 61-62). Because the need for both faith and reason in the world is so imperative, without Catholic colleges, the tradition’s chance to continue to be living would significantly
“A high school graduate who has acquired Hirsch’s core knowledge will know, for example, that John Stuart Mill was an important 19th-century English Philosopher who was associated with something called Utilitarianism and wrote a famous book called On Liberty. But learning philosophy in college, which is and essential component of a liberal education, means that the student has to be able to read and understand the actual text of On Liberty”. (Murray
...s that you develop a way of regarding the information that you receive to the society that you are living in. He also believes that a quality education develops a students moral views and ability to think. And that these qualities are best developed in the traditional classroom setting by interaction between the student and their professors, and the student’s social life on campus, that is, their interaction with fellow students.
My philosophy of higher education is that thus far we have realized that the gift of sharing knowledge is one of the keys to success in our society. We have learned from so many great philosophers, scientist, and researchers that have fueled our knowledge in a vast variety subjects. The importance of passing on this knowledge and improving our society has shown to be important in human survival and our growth in the years to come. As the years pass and technology is getting more advanced, the need for higher education is steadily rising. In the past years, a bachelor’s degree was viewed as one of the greatest accomplishments of that time. Now in today’s standards, only having a bachelors degree will not suffice. Thus proving that higher education is the pillars for growth in humanity. Similar to my philosophy, I believe my Christian experience relates to my views of higher education. For instance, as Christians, we have learned that the keys to success is reading and learning from the Bible. Just as we have learned from past philosophers, the Bible provides Christians with knowledge to continue to walk in the path that God has paved for us to go to heaven. In addition, talking and communicating with God helps us in times of need. He is our teacher and supervisor providing us useful knowledge to succeed. From that guidance, it is our job to pass that knowledge to other Christians to grow in our faith. In both higher education and Christianity, our job is to pass our knowledge and faith to others to maintain and improve human survival for years to come. Moreover, in today’s society, there is a growing need for Christ centered learning. I believe that CBU offers that and more. By combining my Christian experience and philosophy of ...
During the 17th and 18th century a distinct shift in society’s view of the Catholic Church occurred. Before the 17th century Catholicism was the primary religious power in much of the western world. After this century, rational thought and Protestantism became more prevalent. The Enlightenment, a time ruled by intellectual questions and ideas, was the one of the root causes of this significant shift in society’s view of the church. During the Enlightenment one series of values decreased in popularity while another increased. Several of the values that were upheld before the Enlightenment were based in Catholic beliefs while the values that were upheld during and post-Enlightenment were based in rational and skeptical thought. It was during this time that many individuals shifted ways of thinking, but what was the Scottish Enlightenment like for the individuals who remained devout Catholics? How did Catholicism interact with the Scottish Enlightenment and how did 17th and 18th Scottish Society view Catholics?
In order to properly understand the struggle of the intellectually excellent, it is first important to understand what makes one intellectually excellent. According to John Newman, intellectual excellence is achieved through Liberal Education (Newman 58). This intellectual excellence is not what brings around merit or righteousness. Having this knowledge is what can make a man more able to learn. It is not the rudder of a man’s inner self. Newman says this about pursuing intellectual excellence: “Intellect too, I repeat, has its beauty, and it has those who aim at it” (Newman 59). In the preceding passage, John Newman discusses that every object has beauty, but there is an example of every type of object that is the most perfect. The same can apply for knowledge. Intellectual excellence is that perfection of knowledge. While it is technically unreachable, as no man can harness all of the universe’s knowledge, those who strive for the beauty of knowledge are reaching for intellectual excellence. Those with intellectual excellence can be students, whether in middle school or college, or instructors. It is relative to the learner itself as well. In a college setting, those who are achieving intellectual excellence are those who, most often, are in liberal arts educational pathways. Those who are business majors, for example, are confined to only their field of education. They do not need to know about Vivaldi, Michelangelo, and other classic artists. They only strive to learn that which they need to, simply because there is no benefit in other knowledge. Those in liberal arts majors, however, are more likely to achieve this excellence. Menand states that “liberal-arts students are more likely to take courses with substantial amounts ...
A crucial topic being debated on in today’s society is core principles and disciplines. When debated and discussed, these two immense topics bring up discussion on liberal art colleges and their education. “Liberal Arts” can be translated in many different ways depending on perspectives. So what exactly is a liberal arts college/education? Patrick Connelly states, “A liberal arts college is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences. It aims to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capacities for students” (Pg.18). Students who attend liberal art colleges experience broad and vast knowledge to create intellectual capacities that public universities will not provide. Essentially a liberal arts college gives a selected “Core” education to students to develop their skills and improve their weaknesses. Liberal arts are thought to be extremely necessary or very pointless depending on perspective. For example, two articles by two different authors explain liberal arts in a completely different way and opposite perspectives. The first
Of course, faith is a huge part of our Catholic education. Mary Queen of Peace allows me to learn so much about my faith through Wednesday masses,Religion class, meetings with Father Aaron, and VBRD time. Wednesday masses are an especially special time for me because I get to not only pray and offer up all my stresses and worries to God, but I get to sit with my kindergarten buddy and form a special relationship with him. For me, as I go onto a Catholic high school, it is nice to know my faith has grown so much from my time here at Mary Queen. Knowledge, of course is something that is important at any school yet I feel as though Mary Queen gives you something special.