Five Ways God Loved Mary
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.” –Luke 1 Two thousand years after Christ was born of the virgin Mary, millions of Christians around the globe call Mary blessed, especially during the Christmas season. God loved Mary, and Mary loved God. Five Ways God Loved Mary One | God gave Mary the privilege of giving birth to the long-awaited Messiah After the fall, God told Satan that the Seed of the woman … Continue Reading “Five Ways God Loved Mary”
What do we mean by “Liberal Arts”?
[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s Christians recover classical Christian education, they are unearthing old treasures, once the possession of every educated man. Some of these treasures are words and descriptions–terms like “Trivium” and “Quadrivium,” “paideia,” and “liberal arts.” Of all these terms, “liberal arts” lays at the heart of what classical education is all about. So what did our forefathers mean by “liberal arts”? “Liberal” [dropcap]T[/dropcap]he word liberal has nothing to do with our modern use of the word in politics and culture. Liberal means “free,” and historically described the kind of education expected of a freeman–especially one in a position of leadership, like … Continue Reading “What do we mean by “Liberal Arts”?”
Review of Fitting Words by Brian Daigle
If Proverbs says that “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver,” then a page of Fitting Words is an apple tree, and a book of those pages is a fitting orchard. Fitting Words is a fitting orchard for which our Christian communities are in desperate need. This book may be written for high school students and teachers, but we ought not think the material covered here is beneath any of us, for a proper study of rhetoric ought to be required for doctoral candidates and plumbers alike. So, taste. And see that rhetoric, when … Continue Reading “Review of Fitting Words by Brian Daigle”
Arteries of ink and veins of gold
Arteries of ink and veins of gold, Blue and scarlet threads Stitching stories on paper, Words of God and man. Hours in silent sunlight, Hunched back, cramped fingers, Planting words in rows, Seeding centuries. Hide of beast, kitchen rags, Carved by blue and red and gold – Holdfast of hope and the world’s wisdom In a smudged hand. See also: Three Ways Dante Influenced C.S. Lewis, by Christiana Hale. More articles by Christiana Hale. Christiana Hale graduated from New Saint Andrew’s College with a B.A. in Liberal Arts and Culture (Cum Laude, 2015) and with an M.A. in Theology & Letters (Summa … Continue Reading “Arteries of ink and veins of gold”
St. Crispin’s Day Speech Contest
Tomorrow is St. Crispin’s Day! Record yourself reciting Shakespeare’s famous St. Crispin’s Day Speech, and post it to the Roman Roads Facebook page or email us the link. The best recitation of the speech will win a $20 Amazon Gift card, and a free Old Western Culture: Rise of England video set ($56 value) when it comes out aext year!nce UPDATE: New “Kids Edition” of this contest. Children 12 and under can recite 12 lines or more, with the best recitation winning a separate $10 Amazon Gift Card. OR, tag-team 12+ lines with siblings and/or a parent, completing the speech, and become … Continue Reading “St. Crispin’s Day Speech Contest”
Augustine on the use of Rhetoric
Christians need to learn the tools of Rhetoric both to persuade and to gain wisdom and understanding of our times. “Since, then, the faculty of eloquence is available for both sides, and is of very great service in the enforcing either of wrong or right, why do not good men study to engage it on the side of truth, when bad men use it to obtain the triumph of wicked and worthless causes, and to further injustice and error?” —Augustine, On Christian Teaching (quoted in Fitting Words: Classical Rhetoric for the Christian Student by James B Nance).
Supposing He’s Super
By Kaycie Kelly Second Place Winner of the 2016 Scribenda Summer Essay Contest [dropcap]J[/dropcap]esus is my Superhero.” Those were the words I saw posted big and bold on the back of a t-shirt. Call me irreverent, but it made me laugh. It sounded so cheesy, as if we were trying to advertise Jesus. “Lookie here kids, Jesus is just as cool as Superman.” Out of all the awe-inspiring, glorious names of Jesus (Almighty God, King of kings and Lord of lords, to name a few), superhero is all we could come up with? But though at first laughed, I now … Continue Reading “Supposing He’s Super”
The Last Enemy
The Last Enemy By Sophia Klomparens Winner of the 2016 Scribenda Summer Essay Contest [dropcap]S[/dropcap]uperhero stories have existed as long as humanity can remember, beginning with epics such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. The larger-than-life characters of Achilles and Odysseus share much in common with the powerful figures of Batman and Superman, the wind-swept shores of Troy echo the dark streets of Gotham, and the sweet island of Ithaca reminds us of the planet Krypton. Clearly, superheroes have been a part of human history for much longer than the term itself has existed. But every superhero story, whether ancient or … Continue Reading “The Last Enemy”
Athenian reaction to defeat similar to US reaction to 9/11 terrorist attacks
In this excerpt from The Histories, part of the Old Western Culture series, a Great Books video course, Wes Callihan shows how the reactions that the Athenians had to a defeat is very similar to other reactions of democracies throughout history, and specifically similar to the reaction of the United States to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001. Thucydides wants us to make these parallels as he explains at the beginning of “The History of the Peloponnesian War.” YouTube version here.
Feeding the Dragon
The realm of fairy-story is wide and deep and high and filled with many things: all manner of beasts and birds are found there; shoreless seas and stars uncounted; beauty that is an enchantment, and an ever-present peril; both joy and sorrow as sharp as swords. —J. R. R. Tolkien, On Fairy Stories [dropcap]T[/dropcap]here is a certain something about fairy tales that keeps us coming back for more. It’s quite puzzling, really, when you think about it: we know these stories so well, and yet we never tire of hearing them. By all accounts, we ought by now to be … Continue Reading “Feeding the Dragon”