School Days

I note this week yet another editorial in our local rag by a writer that boasts a college affiliation. Surface-wise this lends credence since there's an assumption the author is well educated and has performed the research at a university level. I've made it my practice to google the school as cited to determine the legitimacy of the 'college,' to uncover its mission, and to examine its funding. Then and only then can I place the piece in context.

The editorial in question is called, "Civilizations Fall When They Bow Down to Evil." That's quite the weighty indictment. This opinion provider is a junior from Providence College. In typical Fallwellian-Robertsonian fashion he writes of a 'culture of death.' Wait, I've seen that phrase before. I remember; it was employed frequently by Pope John II. Let's explore Providence a little more. It turns out the school is run by Dominican Friars. Those guys keep following me like that posse in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; I wrote last week about a showdown in the Seminary corral.

Now we know where our budding author is coming from, not that there's anything inherently wrong with that. Catholic scholarship rivals the world's best, at times. This isn't the time. There's no critical thinking, no logical argument or convincing evidence, just platitudes and pronouncements raining down about, 'sex without consequences,' 'moral absolutes,' and 'actions without penalties, etc. Frankly, I'm disappointed at the level of discourse from one so young with mind so closed; it's a terrible thing to waste or in this case to read. I give it a C-.

Medieval clergy aspirants were chosen from a pool of the best philosophy students, those who already possessed a comprehensive knowledge of rhetoric and logic. I pray the Dominicans are cultivating the 'intellectual, spiritual and ethical values,' they proclaim in the Providence mission statement. What I've read here shows no improvement over the good old fashioned Aquinian scholasticism of the 13th century. I doubt this fellow could count the angels on the head of pin.

I note in contrast three MBA programs including San Francisco's prestigious Presidio School of Management that focus on 'profit, people and planet,' incorporatng social justice and environmental values into the business world. Could it be that these secular instiutions are embracing the mission statement of Providence just as much as they are?

There was a lot to note this week including a note written by that other familiar posse, stage right, 'Dobson, Bauer, Perkins and Weyrich.' They demanded the National Association of Evangelicals,' stop speaking out on global warming since it's "associated with leftists, limits on free enterprise and population control." The very same James Dobson was accused by Wayne Besen, executive director of Truth Wins Out, an organization that counters groups who say they can 'cure' gays, of "starting with a conclusion and manipulating the research to fit their beliefs,'' with a 'complete indifference to the evidence." I've worked in business for almost 30 years. I can do the same. I can support or kill a project, whatever outcome you like. When it comes to important things, though, like human rights or the hole in the ozone layer, I prefer hard evidence and less name calling.

It cuts both ways. Oxford atheist Richard Dawkin's new bestseller, "The God Delusion," also comes under fire from skeptical scientists like evolutionary biologist H. Allen Orr who writes, "Dawkin's fails to engage religious thought in any serious way. You will find no serious examination of Christianity or Judaism or debates about the nature of religious propositions." So far, our junior from Providence, Dobson and Dawkins are all batting zero.

Since the moderns are failing us, let's try the ancient and the not so old. In the 6th century, St. Gregory the Great wrote in his Great Catechism that a good teacher doesn't force his lessons upon students like a plant you temporarily pin down but that springs up once you remove the pressure. (He also wrote that nothing draws in the customers like a comfy spot, catchy advertising and a delicious meal; St. Gregory was teaching the Alpha course 15 centuries ago - imagine that.)

The not so old voice is John Henry Newman who wrote in 1852, "The Idea of a University," in conjunction with Vatican plans for a Catholic University in Ireland. He writes, 'It is a great point to enlarge the range of studies for the sake of students, and even though they cannot pursue every subject, they will be the gainers by living among those who represent the whole circle. They learn to respect, to consult, to aid each other. They apprehend the great outlines of knowledge, the principles on which it rests, the scale of its parts, its great points and its little, otherwise they cannot apprehend them. A habit of mind is formed which lasts through life of which the attributes are freedom, equitableness, calmness, moderation, and wisdom; or what I have ventured to call a philosophical habit.' Newman summed up by writing, "If then a practical end must be assigned to a University course, I say it is that of training good members of society."

I disagree with what the student from Providence, Dobson and Dawkins write, but much more, in how they write, and their lack of or manipulation of evidence. I also disagree with much of what Newman advocated and did, despite his grand vision of education, but by God, I respect the man's brilliance, erudition and scholarship as much as any person who ever lived. Would it be that all of our discourse were conducted so, where we agree, but more to the point, where we don't.