Category: Activism and Quietism
-
Quietism versus Activism
Substack latest.
-
Two Types of Contemplative
Those of the first type try to see into eternity by piercing the veil of space and time. They attempt to look beyond this world. The mystics and religious contemplatives are of this type. A second type is content to view the world of space, time, and matter under the aspect of eternity. Not a…
-
Polarization and Flotation in Politics
Can we avoid both polarization and a noncommittal floating above the fray that does not commit to one side or the other? I fear not. Politics is war. You must take a side. You can't play the philosopher on the battlefield. A warrior at war cannot be "a spectator of all time and existence," as…
-
Quietism at War with Activism
EVAGRIOS PONTIKOS enjoins apatheia, a state of deep calm, of tranquillity of mind. Hard to achieve, it is in need of constant protection. Why then do I follow current political and other events? Why do I put myself in a position to have my peace of mind disturbed? I tell myself to do both: live…
-
The Way Forward
It seems we are condemned helplessly to watch our country be destroyed. The drift of events is ever downward. To turn things around would require something most of don't want to talk about — and for good reason. Angelo Codevilla ends his analysis with talk of "rebuilding the Republic" but he offers no concrete proposals.…
-
Sebastian Haffner: Totalitarians Intolerant of Private Life
Among the dozen or so books I am currently reading is Sebastian Haffner, Defying Hitler: A Memoir (Picador, 2003). Written in 1939, it was first published in German in 2000. The Third Reich is no more, but the following passage remains highly relevant at a time when the main forms of totalitarianism are Chinese Communism,…
-
Southern Heritage, American Heritage, Western Heritage
You thought the thugs were out to tear down the first. Then their actions made it clear that American traditions and values as a whole were in their sights. But it goes deeper still: they oppose our entire Judeo-Christian, Graeco-Roman legacy. And now comes the existential question: are you willing to fight to defend it?…
-
What Can a Sane individual Do in the Present Political Situation?
This is a repost from last November. Given how fast things are unraveling, what I wrote then sounds a bit lame now. Still, I think my suggestions are sound. They are things I do. Whether you should do them is your call. ………………………. What can an individual do? Not much, but here are some suggestions.…
-
The Upside of the Shutdown: A Salutary Slowdown
A strange vibe supervened the other morning during a leisurely meander over the local hills. It was as if the world's volume had been dialed down. Things had become calmer and quieter. Or so it seemed. "An upside of the shutdown," I said to myself. The typical American's life is frantic, frenetic, and hyperkinetic. For…
-
The Quietist on the Delights of Escapism
There are the undeniable and readily accessible delights of escapism into scholarship, and science, and research and inquiry of all sorts. When 'reality' becomes too much to bear, what is wrong with retreating into an ivory tower? Who can rightfully begrudge us our right to peace and quiet and happiness? You say that there are…
-
Should a Philosopher Care about the Political Situation?
It would seem that a "spectator of all time and existence" (Plato, Republic 486a) ought to care inasmuch as his 'telescope' is located in the world, well within range of the agents of the State, the power of which has rarely been limited, and the malevolence of which has too often swamped the good things…
-
What Can a Sane Individual do in the Present Political Situation?
What can an individual do? Not much, but here are some suggestions. Exercise your rights and in particular your Second Amendment rights; the latter provide the concrete backup to the others. A well-armed populace, feared by the totalitarians, is a strong deterrent without a shot being fired. Money spent on guns, ammo, accessories, and range…
-
A Monk and His Political Silence
Mary Gordon, On Thomas Merton (Boulder: Shambala, 2018, 118): By the late fifties Merton was deeply disturbed about his political silence. Should he have been? This world is a passing scene. The temporal order is next to nothing compared to eternity. That is the old-time Roman Catholic teaching that justifies the world-flight of monks and…
-
Wolff on Anti-Natalism: A Glimpse into the Mind of a Leftist Activist
In an entry bearing the charming title WTF? Robert Paul Wolff expresses astonishment at his commenters' discussion of anti-natalism: I have to confess that blogging is weird. It has its pleasures, but from time to time the conversation here takes a genuinely strange turn. Anti-natalism? Seriously? With all the challenges that face us, with the disaster that…