• Book Review,  Classical Studies,  My Ramblings

    My Thoughts on Aristotle’s On the Soul

    Title: On the Soul (De Anima) Author: Aristotle translated by J. A. Smith Published:. Preamble It was the summer of 1983 that I walked over to the Ohio State Fair from the trailer park where I lived.  The newest edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica had just released, and they had a booth.  With my love of books, living on my own, and just a few days into the ripe wise age of twenty, I was easily convinced to take a loan and purchase a library.  This collection consisted of a thirty-volume encyclopedia, a fifty-four-volume set of Great Books of the Western World, a three-volume Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, and a twenty-one-volume collection of the Annals of America.  Since then, I have lugged these 108 books from one end of the country to the other.  I have never regretted this purchase. This collection was my Wikipedia.  It gave me incite into the world around me.  The Great Books, encyclopedia, and the dictionary I have used consistently over the years.  The Annals, for some reason, have been referenced or read very rarely, some volumes not at all.  But, to get back to my topic, Aristotle.  Two books, in this collection, are dedicated to his…

  • Author: Matthew M. Fay,  Lecture Review,  My Ramblings

    Lecture Review: Evolution and the Catholic Faith

    Lecture Review: Evolution and the Catholic Faith (Fifth Annual Conway Lecture) Lecturer: Stephen M. Barr, a University of Delaware physics professor, author, Bartol Research Institute member and president of the Society of Catholic Studies.  Barr is a frequent lecturer on the topic of science and religion, and is the author of Modern Physics and Ancient Faith (2003) and The Believing Scientist: Essays on Science and Religion (2016). He was awarded the Benemerenti Medal by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007 for exemplary service to the Church. Where: University of Cincinnati McMicken Hall, room 127 When: 7-8:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 7, 2018 Other Details: Fifth Annual Conway Lecture presented by Catholic Studies of University of Cincinnati.  Free and open to the public.  The Conway lecture is named in honor of Ruth J. and Robert A. Conway, who donated $2 million to establish the chair in Catholic studies at UC. M.C. was Jeff Zalar.  Housed within the Department of History in the College of Arts and Sciences, the Program in Catholic Studies explores the history, spirituality, literary and artistic traditions, and contemporary significance of Roman Catholicism. Through interdisciplinary teaching, student mentorship, and public lectures, it fosters greater understanding of Catholic beliefs, culture, and…

  • Classical Studies

    Creationism and Its Critics in Antiquity

    By: David Sedley 2007 So how did this book end up on my reading list?  In my journey to find other adults to discuss the classics and how they pertain to modern issues I discovered this book and other resources.  I started my quest by asking friends and family, this then expanded to social groups, and business acquaintances.  One of the librarians was wondering why anybody would want to read that old stuff for fun, it was bad enough she had to read it in college.  One day I was talking to one of my customers, (I own a board game store), he is a professor at University of Cincinnati and he informed me that they have a really good classics department and often host classics presentations that are open to the public.  After checking the schedule online I found when the next presentation was.  I made it a point to be there.  The guest speaker was Dr. Athena Kirk on “The Semantics of Showcase in Herodotus’ Histories”.  In preparation to meet this presenter, I looked up the professor online to see if she had any books that I could read beforehand.  I did not find any, but I found…

  • Author: Matthew M. Fay,  Book Review,  Literature,  Philosophy

    Elements of Philosophy

    Comprising Logic and Ontology, or General Metaphysics by Rev. Walter H. Hill, S.J. 1892 After reading Aristotle’s Logic and Metaphysics recently, this book certainly clarified and explained several key concepts.  Hill introduces each core topic and then goes on to explain them in a concise, easy to understand terminology.  The topics move along very quickly and  the concepts are only briefly explained.  The author does not try to teach a new course of philosophy, but rather explain where things are as of this date (1892).  There are several Latin and Greek phrases interspersed as needed, but nothing that a rudimentary knowledge of these would not be able to overcome. Reading this book gave me the impression I had the professors notebook.  In the Preface it states, “The author derived much help from notes taken in private study years ago, but which were prepared with no thought of ever employing them for any other purpose than his own instruction.”  Keeping that in mind, the structure makes sense.  I am sure I will refer back and reread sections of this book again.  The section on syllogisms I found particularly useful. “Logic explains the laws of right reasoning; it is, when considered under…