A reader writes that he is beginning to doubt some of the tenets of the religion he grew up with. He is dealing with doubt, and is not sure how to handle it. He wonders of masculist doctrines can serve as a substitute for religion.
Thought
Blaise Pascal On The Universe And Man
Some statements of philosophers are so transcendent, and so soaring in imaginative power, that they require little or no comment. I found one such passage today in a book that in recent years has come to be one of my favorites: Pascal’s Pensées. I love Pascal because I can open his book at random, any time I feel the need, and feel his spiritual fingers gripping my throat with every sentence. He is not only a philosopher, but a saint.
Petrarch Reflects On Ignorance And Happiness
The great humanist Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) had opportunity to reflect on the fact that the more he gained in knowledge and experience, the less and less certain he became of his own judgments. These thoughts were recorded in an essay called On His Own Ignorance And That Of Many Others (De sui ipsius et multorum ignorantia). Some of these observations are incredibly frank.
Jan Scruggs And The Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial
I was recently watching the film Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision. It is a 1994 documentary about the architectural work of Maya Lin, the designer of the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial on the Mall in Washington D.C. One of the key figures interviewed in the film was an honest-faced, frank man named Jan Scruggs.
Continue readingThe Need For A Fighting Ideology
There is a scene at the end of the film Apocalypse Now where Colonel Kurtz delivers a monologue on the ruthless tactics of the Viet Cong guerrillas. He relates how the Viet Cong had come and “hacked off” the arms of child villagers that the Americans had inoculated as part of an effort to win their hearts and minds.
John Locke’s Theory On The Education Of The Young
In my Thirty-Seven, I wrote at length (Ch. 7, “A Program of Education”) on the educational views of the Renaissance humanist Paolo Vergerio. His ideas stressed the importance of character and discipline as the foundations and prerequisites for intellectual study; not to master one’s desires, he knew, was fatal to any meaningful progress in education.
The Giving And Receiving Of Advice
Advice requires two participants. One must offer it; and another must receive it. If it is offered without first having been solicited, it generates resentment, however small and incremental. And if it is requested, the counselor must yet take care not to overstep his boundaries, for fear of providing insight that is too pungent.
Coping With Extreme Adversity (Podcast)
What traits and habits enabled men to survive extreme physical danger or adversity?
In this podcast, we look for some answers in accounts of the First World War.
No Rest For The Wicked
Boccaccio’s On Famous Women
I find these old, forgotten Renaissance works highly enjoyable and instructive, precisely for the reasons that some people do not. Some people do not like the moralistic, judgmental tone of these old works. But it is refreshing. It is good sometimes to judge, and to be judged.
In Praise Of Painting
Certain diversions we do because we more or less have to do, such as vigorous exercising, studying languages, sex, travel, and reading. And these all have their proper place. But there are times when the collective strain of responsibility, and the stress of duties, demand that entirely new parts of our brain be activated and exercised. When I say “new” parts of the brain, I mean literally that: a man can rub raw a particular part of his brain by continually using it, and exhaust himself by repetitive tasks.
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Quintus Curtius 
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