Healing the Culture A Commonsense Philosophy

Father Spitzer, President of the Magis Institute and former President of Gonzaga University, has been using the principles in this book to educate people of all backgrounds in the philosophy of the pro-life movement. The tremendous positive response he has received inspired him to start the Life Principles Institute. This book is one of the key resources used for this program.

This work effectively draws out the connections between personal attitudes toward happiness and the meaning of life, and the larger cultural issues such as freedom and human rights. Relying on the wisdom of the ages and respecting the human persons' unique capacity for rational analysis, this work offers definitions of the key cultural terms affecting life issues, including Happiness, Success, Love, Suffering, Quality of Life, Ethics, Freedom, Personhood, Human Rights and the Common Good.

Robert J. Spitzer, S.J., Ph.D. is the former president of Gonzaga University and the founder of the Magis Institute, which educates the public about the relationship between physics, philosophy, reason, and faith. He is the chief education officer of the Ethics and Performance Institute, which delivers web-based ethics education to corporations and individuals, and President of the Spitzer Center for Ethical Leadership, which delivers similar curricula to non-profit organizations. He is the author of Healing the Culture, Five Pillars of the Spiritual Life, and Ten Universal Principles.

Acknowledgments

13

(2)

Foreword

15

(2)

Introduction

17

(1)

An Invisible Agent of Cultural Decline

17

(1)

Materialism and the Loss of Intangibles

18

(9)

A Potential Source of Cultural Healing

27

(8)

PART ONE: DEFINING ``PERSON'' AND ``HAPPINESS''

Introduction to Part One

35

(2)

Defining the Human Person

Introduction

37

(18)

Four Kinds of Definition

37

(7)

Definition of ``Person''

44

(5)

Some Ambiguities

49

(3)

Summary and Principles

52

(3)

Defining ``Happiness''

Introduction

55

(9)

The ``Heart''

55

(2)

The Effect of the ``Heart'' on the Culture

57

(1)

Four Levels of Happiness, Desire, and Purpose in Life

58

(6)

Moving Through the Levels of Happiness

Introduction

64

(59)

The First Level of Happiness and Its Crisis

64

(3)

The Second Level of Happiness and Its Crisis

67

(10)

The Third Level of Happiness: A Way Out of the Comparison Game

77

(1)

Five Fundamental Attitudes

78

(13)

The Essence of the Third Level: Love

91

(3)

The Third Crisis and the Fourth Level of Happiness

94

(1)

The Power of Human Self-Transcendence

95

(9)

The Third Crisis (the Category Error) and Its Resolution

104

(4)

Faith

108

(5)

Some Supplemental Prayers to Enhance the Life of Faith

113

(4)

Ramifications of the Four Levels on the Notion of ``Person''

117

(6)

PART TWO: THE TEN CATEGORIES OF CULTURAL DISCOURSE

Introduction to Part Two

123

(4)

Happiness, Success, Quality of Life, and Love

Introduction

127

(32)

Success

127

(5)

The Relationship Between Self-Worth and Quality of Life

132

(11)

Love

143

(16)

Suffering Well

Introduction

159

(34)

Transforming Suffering from a Negative to a Positive Experience (Moving from a Level 2 to a Level 3 Interpretation of Suffering)

164

(13)

Moving from a Level 3 to a Level 4 Interpretation of Suffering

177

(16)

Ethics and Freedom

Introduction

193

(35)

Ethics

193

(1)

Ethics on the First and Second Levels of Happiness

194

(3)

Ethics on the Third Level of Happiness

197

(1)

Virtues and Vices

198

(6)

Norms Pertaining to Right and Wrong Conduct

204

(3)

Ethics on the Fourth Level of Happiness

207

(2)

Freedom

209

(1)

``Freedom from'' Versus ``Freedom For''

209

(3)

Defining ``Want'' and ``Choice''

212

(3)

Freedom on the Third Level of Happiness

215

(4)

Freedom on the Fourth Level of Happiness

219

(1)

Freedom and Abortion

220

(2)

Freedom and Euthanasia

222

(6)

Person, Rights, and the Common Good

Introduction: The Relationship Between Person, Rights, and the Common Good

228

(42)

Inalienable Rights

232

(1)

The General Notion of a Right

233

(5)

Three Inalienable Rights

238

(2)

The Objective Prioritization of Inalienable Rights and the Resolution of Rights Conflicts

240

(3)

The Universality of the State's Protection of Inalienable Rights

243

(4)

The So-Called Principle of Clarity and an Example of Its Misuse

247

(4)

Abortion, Euthanasia, and Inalienable Rights

251

(4)

The Legitimate State and the Objectively Necessary Proscriptions of Its Powers

255

(2)

The Principles of Nonmaleficence and Beneficence

257

(4)

The Pursuit of the Common Good

261

(9)

Summary of the Ten Categories of Cultural Discourse

Introduction

270

(11)

PART THREE: THE LIFE ISSUES: ABORTION AND EUTHANASIA

Introduction to Part Three

281

(2)

Abortion

Introduction

283

(25)

The Redefinition of ``Person'' in the Attempt to Justify Abortion

286

(4)

Neglect of Inalienable Rights Arising Out of the Redefinition of ``Person''

290

(1)

Neglect of the Objective Ordering of Rights Arising Out of A and B

291

(1)

Neglect of the Principle of Nonmaleficence Arising Out of A Through C

292

(1)

Superficiality of ``Freedom'' Arising Out of A Through D

293

(2)

Superficiality of ``Virtue/Ethics'' Arising Out of A Through E

295

(3)

Superficiality of ``Love'' Arising Out of A Through F

298

(4)

Superficiality of ``Self-Worth'' Arising Out of A Through G

302

(3)

Superficiality of ``Happiness/Success'' Arising Out of A Through H

305

(1)

The Inability to Suffer Well Resulting in a Culture of Self-Pity and Despair Arising Out of A Through I

306

(2)

Conclusion

308

(27)

Euthanasia

Introduction

309

(26)

Negative Effects of Euthanasia on Individuals

311

(1)

First Argument of Euthanasia Advocates: Without Active Euthanasia, Uncontrollable Pain Is Likely to Accompany the Dying Process of the Terminally Ill

311

(4)

Second Argument of Euthanasia Advocates: Even if Pain Can Be Adequately Controlled, the Debility of Terminal Illness Will Likely Preclude an Acceptable Quality of Life

315

(10)

Third Argument of Euthanasia Advocates: Active Euthanasia Is a Choice, an Option, a Fundamental Right; Therefore, People Who Do Not Want This Option Should Not Be Permitted to Prevent Those Who Do Want It from Obtaining It

325

(5)

Fourth Argument of Euthanasia Advocates: Active Euthanasia Will Provide a Variety of Social Benefits, Such as Helping to Curb the Costs of Treating the Terminally Ill

330

(1)

Negative Effects of Euthanasia on the Culture

331

(4)

Conclusion

335

(2)

Epilogue

337

(4)

Appendix 1: Powers, Perfection of Powers, and Quantum Systems

341

(4)

Appendix 2: The Necessity of Finite Past Time and, Therefore, a Creator

345

(2)

More Information About the Life Principles Project

347

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

FREE SHIPPING

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

Healing the Culture A Commonsense Philosophy of Happiness, Freedom and the Life Issues

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials