Welcome to the Neo-Scholastic Playground!
Ever since studying philosophy and theology in university, I have had a hunch that the Neo-Scholastic thinkers of the early 20th century - philosophers, theologians, manualists - are the victims of vicious straw-manning. The criticisms I encountered were all style, no substance. I have decided my own intellectual labor is a ressourcement of the Neo-Scholastic thinkers and a re-reception of their ideas.
The Neo-Scholastic Playground is where I will document my explorations, digging through hard to find books (including manuals that are nearly a century old, when I can find them) and trying to make relevant their thought today. The main charge levied against the system was that they focused so intently on eternal, abstract truths that Neo-Scholasticism could not be relevant in the changeable historical reality we all inhabit.
It is precisely that interest in fixed, eternal Truth that convinces me we are in great need of a reclamation of Neo-Scholastic thought.
The major intellectual challenge of the 21st century is an obscured nihilism, and only Truth can bear the existential weight atomized individuals try and bear themselves, or that politics promises it can bear.
I call it a playground because Neo-Scholastic thought opens up routes to joy, and creates a solid framework to pursue Truth wherever it may be found. Thus I will be inviting the Nouvelle Theologians, the foes and conquerors of the Neo-Scholastics, to the playground as well. Over the coming years I will read the two positions in dialogue with one another and see if my hunch is correct, or if I am more influenced by the foes of Neo-Scholastics than I currently realize.
“Wherever it may be found” is not some meaningless phrase either. Many interests capture my attention, and I will write about some of them alongside my Neo-Scholastic inquiries and explorations. Regularly I will write about Scripture, or some of the Church Fathers, or theology, or whatever compels me to write. Films, literature, Dungeons and Dragons, Weird stuff will also certainly make regular appearances.
If you have read this far, chances are you will find something I write of interest. I also want to know what motivates and engages you. So please comment if you have an objection or observatoin. Creating communities is one of my passions as well, and I will be taking inspiration from other Substacks to try and generate a little community here.
My deepest hope is that I will strengthen your conviction that there is Something, and not Nothing, and perhaps from there you may begin to wonder if that Something is also Someone. My second deepest hope is that you might find that intellectual exploration joyful and exciting as well.
