Anselm of Canterbury endeavours to prove by “plain reasoning and fact”, without resort to revelation, “as if nothing were known of Christ”, that it is necessary for the death of a God-man to save man from death so that he may enjoy eternal life. Justice, Dignity and Offense If, as Plato writes in Republic, justice is to give each his due, what is the just due creatures ought to give […]
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Augustine’s City of God: The Dark Side of Human Dignity
Two Contrasting Conceptions of Human Dignity In Book I of the City of God, Augustine contrasts Greco-Roman (pagan) and Christian conceptions of dignity. Cato the Younger and Lucretia are paragons of pagan virtues, of man and woman, respectively. They committed suicide out of a strong sense of dignity. Lucretia killed herself to protest her innocence as a rape victim; Cato the Younger, a Stoic, would rather die as a free […]
Read moreOn the Dignity of the Person: Against Procrustean Law
Some men think the earth is round, others think it flat. It is a matter capable of question. But if it is flat, will the King’s command make it round? And if it is round, will the King’s command flatten it? No, I will not sign. –Thomas More “A Man for All Seasons” When reading published opinions on the Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission case, I’m baffled […]
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On the Dignity of the Person: II. A Lesson from Leonard Bernstein
The following is a transcript of Leonard Bernstein’s address to the audience before a performance of Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1, with soloist Glenn Gould and the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall on April 6, 1962 [1]. I find his speech both remarkable in itself and highly relevant today. Among other things, it demonstrates how people with strong convictions and disagreements can get together and “achieve a unified performance”. […]
Read moreOn the Dignity of the Person
I just came across a NPR report that Pope Francis rejects the death penalty on the ground that “it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person”, and is leading the Catholic Church to work for its abolition worldwide.[1] Coincidentally, I recently appealed to “the dignity of the person” in a heated online exchange with a self-professed Christian, who treated me repeatedly with hostility and scorn. I asked, […]
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Plutarch: Life of Pericles
Pericles was a pupil of Zeno the Eleatic, and perfected a species of refutative catch which was sure to bring an opponent to grief. But the man who most consorted with Pericles and did most to exalt the dignity of his character, was Anaxagoras the Clazomenian, whom men of that day used to call ‘Nous,’ either because they admired that comprehension of his; or because he was the first to […]
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