Conversation of Our Generation

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More info: The Death of Socrates And What It Teaches Us Of Courage and Nobility

In his description of the imprisonment and death of Socrates, Plato gives us a look at who he was. In many of Plato's other works, Socrates is more of a character in the dialogue. However, in Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito, we see him for the man he was - his commitment to being virtuous in the most dire of circumstances

These three works detail the conversations of Socrates while he was imprisoned and awaiting his trial. The Apology details the trial of Socrates and the defense he put forward. Ultimately, his defense fell short and Socrates was sentenced to death by poison. However, it shows his incredible ability to get to truth and to make a defense for himself. Plus, it shows the injustice of his trial and his willingness to suffer in service of the truth.

The other two works detail conversations of Socrates while in jail. In Euthyphro, he discusses whether the holy are loved by the gods because they are holy, or if they are holy because they are loved by the gods.

The better of the two dialogues from prison is Crito, where Socrates explains why he's not going to flee and instead await trial. This dialogue shows his courage and nobility. He knew his fate was sealed if he went to trial, but he did so anyways. However, he didn't do it out of some suicidal mission, but out of love for truth and earnestness to do what is right.

Shownotes: What is Objective Reality?

A major problem I see in our society is that we've divorced objective reality and subjective experience. Instead of recognizing the world around us as it is and trying to relate to it, we do one of two things. We either fall into a Newtonian idea that we're determined and only science is real, or we rebel against this idea and recognize only our subjective experience.

I want to tackle this problem, so I'm going to walk through how I understand reality, as well as how I think we ought to relate to it. In today's episode, I start with what objective reality is.

Does objective reality exist?

My theory of truth holds that truth is based on objective reality. There is a world around us that actually exists. Our experience of the world is also real, and can be trusted, although it's not infallible. In this episode, I intend to demonstrate that we can trust our notions about the world. We see a world around us that is real - with which we can interact.Where do we see this most obviously?

Here are a few areas of our lives that we can look to in order to understand objective reality:

Does the fact that knowing the truth can be hard actually mean truth is changing or that it's relative?

As I mentioned above, we often hold two opposing ideas. One is that science is real truth, and objectively true. But at the same time, we reject any notion of objective truth when it comes to questions of morality. How can objective reality exists sometimes, but not others? I think what happens is that we confuse our experience of the world with the world as it is.

 I wanted to start reading the Summa Theologiae by Thomas Aquinas - until I realized it was a multi-volume set. So, I despaired and looked for another option. And, I ran across A Shorter Summa, Peter Kreeft's work that helps introduce people to Aquinas.

Buy your copy of A Shorter Summa by Peter Kreeft here>>

Full episode: Peter Kreeft's Intro to the Summa Theologiae by St. Thomas Aquinas 

Thomas Aquinas is a Dominican friar, Catholic Saint, and a Doctor of the Church. He was philosopher who helped the Medieval Church incorporate Aristotle and the Greek philosophers into the Catholic tradition. He was a spectacular thinker and writer whose impact on the Church is still tremendous. While he's best known for the Summa Theologiae, he also wrote numerous commentaries, the Summa Contra Gentiles, and much more.

Buy your copy of A Shorter Summa by Peter Kreeft here>>

Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae is his largest work. Aquinas wrote the Summa to be a beginner's guide to the faith. Today, we would think it is rather comprehensive and hard to grapple with. It argues in favor of belief in God and the teachings of the Catholic Church as well as speculate on moral and theological questions.

What I found helpful about Kreeft's summary of the Summa Theologiae is how he broke down the questions. Kreeft's offered insight and background to questions, but didn't talk down to the reader. I found his notes helpful in understanding the context as well as the methods and jargon used in philosophy. His glossary of terms helped me grasp the concepts because Thomas didn't write in a way we'd be familiar with. Unless you've read and studied Aristotle (which I barely had at the time), much of what Aquinas wants to say is muddled. By leveraging Aristotle's system, he took on his terms and methods. Kreeft translates that in the notes, helping the layman like myself make better sense of it.

Buy your copy of A Shorter Summa by Peter Kreeft here>>

"You're not a monk." That was the reaction I got from a priest as I confessed that I'd slipped in my prayer life. And it struck me. He pointed out that my duty is not to spend X amount of time in prayer, but to be a good husband. That comes first, and my prayer life should aid me in that endeavor. This happened within a day or two of listening to Catholic Stuff You Should Know's episode titled GOD IS "BEING WITH". What I want to do with this episode is explore how we live a life of love and service in our world of distractions, without compromising on our faith.

For the full show notes with verses, go here: You're Not A Monk | Unexpected Advice From a Priest

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Because I'm not feeling great today, I'm posting class 2 from my course on the Nichomachean Ethics. I wanted to still have something for you today. So, tune in to hear more from the class.

Class 1 of the Nichomachean Ethics>>

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The importance of integrity cannot be overstated. If we want to be good, honest people, we have to act out of integrity. We must find a way to uphold our beliefs and act in accord with what we claim to be true. That's what I discuss below in today's episode, so listen here to learn more:

Get your copy of Thoreau's Civil Disobedience here >>

https://conversationofourgeneration.com/2021/05/28/suffering-for-the-truth-the-importance-of-integrity/

Civil disobedience is a popular way of changing laws without violence. This is an option when we can no longer use the normal channels like legislation or petitions to update our laws. If an unjust law persists on the books after all the usual means have been tried, this is a great option for changing the law. Today, I'll discuss why that's the case, and how we go about doing it properly.

Find out more:

https://conversationofourgeneration.com/2021/05/25/when-civil-disobedience-is-justified/

Civil Disobedience by Thoreau:

https://conversationofourgeneration.com/2020/04/17/109-book-review-walden-civil-disobedience/

What can we really know about human nature? I think one of the best ways to understand it is through stories. Sure, biology can tell us how our body works. But, only narrative, philosophy, and theology can help us understand our souls.

Grab your copy of Lord of the Flies here >>

Rousseau said that people were inherently good. I don't think that's the case. In The Lord of the Flies, we get a glimpse of what might happen if we were thrust back into nature. And, it doesn't look good. However, I think it is much more accurate than the naive hope Rousseau seemed to have.

However, I don't think people are inherently bad either. I think being itself is good, so in that respect we're all good. With regards to whether or not we're all morally good, I'd say we have a mixed bag. And, it depends on the day for each of us. I've had good and bad days (sometimes back to back).

Society influences people, but society doesn't dictate our nature. Instead, I think a mixture of our temperament, societal influences, chance, and our choices influence it. We are in control of who we are and how we handle what's thrown our way. That, I think, is the only way to look at human nature honestly, pragmatically, and truthfully.

Find out more - https://conversationofourgeneration.com/2021/05/21/human-nature-in-stories-lessons-from-the-lord-of-the-flies/

The Supreme Court is taking up a case that could seriously limit abortion. Mississippi banned abortion after 15 weeks, and now the Supreme Court is considering the case. While I have fears this may not turn out how I'd like it to, I want to make the case for why America should ban abortion. So, I am going to take a look at the reasons why it should be banned as well as how to go about it. Hopefully, by looking at some other examples, we can see how this can be accomplished.

This is the first question we must address if we want to decide whether or not it should be illegal. Until we know what an act is, we cannot judge whether it should be illegal or not. Abortion is the purposeful killing of a human being in the womb. If that is the case, then I would argue it ought to be illegal - just like murder. Basically, the difference between a procured abortion and murder is the location of the victim. This is the central issue for having a discussion about abortion

There are many reasons why we should to ban abortion. But, as I discussed above, it is important that we don't allow people to murder others. If abortion was simply taking out a parasite or a part of the woman's body, we'd think differently. However, because it is the direct killing of a human being it should not be allowed. I see no reason why this should be allowed and murder be illegal

What you'll find is that more conservative states have stricter abortion laws and more liberal states are more lax or even encourage it. Ballotpedia has a resource where you can dive in further. The problem is that the Supreme Court has shot down many restrictions on abortion over the decades since Roe vs. Wade.

Because we are a republic and a union of sovereign states, America has many different abortion policies. And, I think our laboratories of liberty are generally good. However, when lives are at stake (in the hundreds of thousands per year) I don't want a diversity of policy. Instead, I want a unified front against this heinous crime.

While I'd like to see us ban abortion all at once, I doubt it'll happen that way. So, I think the best course of action is to take any step toward restricting abortion possible. Furthermore, we should find ways to restrict abortion completely. But, we have to change people's minds on the issue. In order to do that effectively, we have to find a way to make the reality of abortion plain.

In addition, we have to do it within the law as it is. We should seek to overturn Roe v. Wade, but that can't be the only thing. We should fight in states where we can get laws passed to restrict abortion as hard as we can. By doing that, we could try many different policies to see what is effective as well as what is palatable to the public. In a nation like America, we have to convince people that our policies are right. It can't be forced on anyone, but has to be chosen by the voting public.

https://conversationofourgeneration.com/2021/05/18/why-america-should-ban-abortion/

Libertarianism is a fractured and somewhat incoherent political camp if you look at libertarians as a whole. But, there are many sharp libertarians who know what they believe and why. Today's book review looks at some of the arguments in favor of liberty from a libertarian perspective, while exposing some of the problems with libertarianism.

In this book, you get 9 different arguments for liberty from libertarian philosophers.

166. Election Thoughts, Libertarianism, ACB and More with Sean Boston

Is Libertarianism An Ideology?

The Most Beautiful Place I’ve Ever Been & More Mailbag Questions

Conservative Libertarianism: An Answer To Today’s Political Problems

Political Action and the Call to “Do Something”

Politics – All About It