The West: Between Open Society and Clashing Civilizations

The article aims to show that by its very nature Western civilization is well suited for making a significant contribution to build the open society based on intercivilizational dialogue. In the age of global migration, there is an obvious need for developing tools which would effectively transform the threat of a clash of civilizations into a creative dialogue between them. As a civilization of the dialogue, Western civilization seems to be an ideal instrument to meet that need. The article raises the following questions: Is there any connection between the idea of the open society and the heritage of Western civilization? Is liberal education an adequate means to resolve the paradoxes of the open society? Why is the West an arena for the clash of civilizations

Some Philosophical Remarks on Educating Genuine Leaders

The author intends to make an appeal for paying closer attention to human nature in educating genuine leaders. His philosophical approach embraces following topics: (1) whether leaders are born with talents and traits that allow, or even cause, them to be successful leaders, or whether effective leadership behaviors can be learned through education and experience; (2) whether the influence exercised by groups or individuals can be considered as a necessary and sufficient factor in explaining leadership; (3) whether leaders lead the followers to achieve the required end for the sake of the end itself, or rather that of those who are to achieve it – in other words, whether the followers exist for the end or the end for the followers. The author concludes that well educated leaders are those who know not to confuse the ultimate end with particular ones in their own life and in that of others

Karl Marx: Rousseau’s powerful ally

For over last two centuries, education in the West has been destructively influenced by the philosophical thought of Jean Jacques Rousseau. Following the route of exposing threats, which waylay the Catholic understanding of human being and education, I would like to point out that Rousseau’s educational utopianism is actually neither alone, nor prevailing. For the contemporary culture seems to be under the dramatic impact of many idealistic thinkers which actually are captained by Karl Marx

John Paul II on Totalitarianism: A Timeless Lesson

The article shows that Pope John Paul II contributed not only to a practical weakening of totalitarian systems in the political world, but also to a significant deepening of theoretical knowledge about them. In the light of his teaching, totalitarianism appears as an attack on the human person, consisting in an attempt to subordinate him to a collective subject. The main reason for the emergence and implementation of totalitarian ideologies is the negation of God as the ultimate guarantor of human dignity and freedom. In the field of social life, the separation of man from God results in the replacement of truth by the dictates of power. Living the life without free access to universally knowable truth can lead to various, even democratic, forms of totalitarianism. Democratic totalitarianism occurs when transcendent truth is excluded from the public sphere in the name of a democracy that gives absolute primacy to majority rule. Such a democracy becomes a treacherous danger for both individuals and minority groups. It finally seems that only an authentic democracy built on respect for the dignity of all human beings as persons can provide the necessary conditions for the successful overcoming of totalitarianism

The Principal Assignment of Philosophy in Culture

The following article is focused on the question of the primary task of philosophy in culture. The problem of philosophy itself is the starting point here. The author observes a chronic discord among philosophers on what philosophy is that undermines the identity of the afore-mentioned as well as disables it from determining its tasks in the culture. Thus, he attempts to determine the nature of philosophy indirectly. The author indicates what philosophy is not and has never been from its beginning, and can not be if it be itself. According to the author, myth is an effective negative criterion with which to determine the true character of philosophy. Philosophy’s aspiration to emancipate itself from myth’s influence justifies the effort to search the foundation of philosophy in contradistinction from myth, and enabling a determination of philosophy directly by indicating its constitutive factors. To philosophize is to know things as they are in the real world, or as they are related to the real world. A reflection on philosophy is not only possible, but also necessary. Since philosophy is part of human culture, the author concludes that the primary task of philosophy in culture consists in justifying the identity of philosophy as such

Contemplation: If It Makes for Peace, Why Not for Christian Witness Too?

The author attempts to answer the following question: Why does Christian witness need contemplation? He claims that Christian witness needs contemplation, because contemplation reveals the truth about the nature of reality; it is this truth which is one of the factors that constitute the foundation of Christian faith. In a sense, contemplation is analogical to mysticism: as mystical visions make Christian belief grounded on the immediate experience of (meeting with) the Truth, so the contemplation of the creatures makes Christian belief based on the indirect experience of the Truth (i.e., the meeting with the traces left by the Creator in the world)

Between Politics and Religion – In Search of the Golden Mean

The author undertakes the problem of the identity of Western civilization in the light of a correlation between politics and religion. First, he traces the theoretical debates about the mutual correspondence of politics and religion in ancient Greece. Following two extreme errors depicted by Sophocles in his “Antigone,” and by Plato in his “Apology of Socrates,” he infers that the “Golden Mean” is necessary in resolving the problem of politics and religion. Then, he examines the underlying errors put forward in the history. His investigations show the erroneousness of endowing either politics or religion with sovereign status in culture. There is always a conflict between politics and religion unless man regains his own sovereignty from them. Ultimately the author arrives at the conclusion that the “Golden Mean” correlating politics and religion distinctly strengthens the identity of the Western Civilization, and consists in respecting all real and universal parameters of human person life, such as cognition, freedom (and responsibility), love, agency in law, ontological sovereignty, and religious dignity

Philosophy in Seminaries

The author attempts to answer the question concerning whether or not philosophy is needed in seminaries. In light of his analysis, it can be concluded that philosophical studies for future priests are a serious alternative to the fideistic positions often adopted by Catholics. The presence of philosophy in the seminary curriculum is supported by: (1) the need for building intellectual foundations of the religious faith professed by a cleric; the faith which cannot do without reason and abstain from justifying the rationale of its content; (2) the need for introducing the alumnus to the mysteries of the classical philosophy of being which can equip him with a better understanding of human nature and the surrounding reality. In this way, the seminarian: (1) acquires a reasonable belief that the human mind is able to know the objective and universal truth, including the truth about God as the Ultimate Cause of all that exists; (2) is able to enter into an intelligent dialogue about the truth with an increasingly globalized world

State vs. God: On an Atheistic Implication of European Statism

The article consistst of four parts. First, it gives an example of statism present in contemporary Europe which consists in giving a priority of loyalty to the state at the expense of loyalty to God. Secondly, it traces the idea of European statism in the thought of Hobbes and Hegel to show how the state was to replace or equal God’s authority. Thirdly, it considers whether democracy can efficiently protect against statism. Finally, it explores the words of Jesus Christ—“Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s”—to formulate an argument against trading Christian faith for the philosophy of statism