Comments on: Essays And Articles http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison n. the principle of good order<br /><br /> "Observe the strange inversion of all order and sense! Dignity debased; how vilely is the function of a consul prostituted!" ~The Craftsman Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:25:26 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: pggreenman http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/articles/comment-page-1/#comment-4561 pggreenman Mon, 11 Sep 2006 01:14:15 +0000 http://larison.org/articles/#comment-4561 Thank you. Peter Greenman Thank you.

Peter Greenman

]]> By: Daniel Larison http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/articles/comment-page-1/#comment-4560 Daniel Larison Sun, 10 Sep 2006 23:06:08 +0000 http://larison.org/articles/#comment-4560 On these themes I recommend Christos Yannaras' Freedom of Morality, Metropolitan John Zizioulas' Being As Communion and Josef Pieper's In Tune With The World (his study of festivity). ISI's new multi-contributor volume The Self also has some important articles contrasing modern, postmodern and what they tentatively call "transmodern" selves; some of the contributors draw on Zizioulas' work. Zizioulas makes an important distinction between what he calls the "biological hypostasis," the self-interested self, and the "ecclesial hypostasis," which is a person existing in communion as part of an ecclesial relationship. I believe the rhythms of fasting and feasting connect us to the rhythms of the created order and remind man of his true nature in relationship to God; that he is not a merely material being or an autonomous being, but one who is bound up the annual cycle of fasts and feasts as a member of a community, in this case the community of the Church and one who is bound, through the fasts and feasts, to the entire history and life of the Church and to salvation history as a whole. He comes to understand his place in the cosmos through these observances. Furthermore, fasts help to weaken and diminish self-will and the strength of the "biological hypostasis"; asceticism helps to curb the choosing will of the self and reinforces the willingness to obey the will of God, through which the fullness of our nature can be realised. Feasts then have us celebrate and rejoice, but not celebrate ourselves--instead, we celebrate Him Who has fashioned us and given our lives their purpose. I am mixing and matching between the several sources I have listed above, but you should find much that is very edifying in those volumes. On these themes I recommend Christos Yannaras’ Freedom of Morality, Metropolitan John Zizioulas’ Being As Communion and Josef Pieper’s In Tune With The World (his study of festivity). ISI’s new multi-contributor volume The Self also has some important articles contrasing modern, postmodern and what they tentatively call “transmodern” selves; some of the contributors draw on Zizioulas’ work. Zizioulas makes an important distinction between what he calls the “biological hypostasis,” the self-interested self, and the “ecclesial hypostasis,” which is a person existing in communion as part of an ecclesial relationship. I believe the rhythms of fasting and feasting connect us to the rhythms of the created order and remind man of his true nature in relationship to God; that he is not a merely material being or an autonomous being, but one who is bound up the annual cycle of fasts and feasts as a member of a community, in this case the community of the Church and one who is bound, through the fasts and feasts, to the entire history and life of the Church and to salvation history as a whole. He comes to understand his place in the cosmos through these observances.

Furthermore, fasts help to weaken and diminish self-will and the strength of the “biological hypostasis”; asceticism helps to curb the choosing will of the self and reinforces the willingness to obey the will of God, through which the fullness of our nature can be realised. Feasts then have us celebrate and rejoice, but not celebrate ourselves–instead, we celebrate Him Who has fashioned us and given our lives their purpose. I am mixing and matching between the several sources I have listed above, but you should find much that is very edifying in those volumes.

]]> By: pggreenman http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/articles/comment-page-1/#comment-4559 pggreenman Sun, 10 Sep 2006 22:58:34 +0000 http://larison.org/articles/#comment-4559 Mr. Larison, I'm intrigued by your call in "Imagining Conservatism" for replacing "notions of autonomy, self-interest and choice" with "a morality rooted in asceticism, festivity... [and] communion." Where can I read more about this contrast? I'm interested specifically in the alternating rhythms of fasting and feasting that we find in the Church year and within which we can discern, you seem to suggest, the true ground of our humanity. Thanks, Peter Greenman peter.greenman@gmail.com Mr. Larison,
I’m intrigued by your call in “Imagining Conservatism” for replacing “notions of autonomy, self-interest and choice” with “a morality rooted
in asceticism, festivity… [and] communion.” Where can I read more about this contrast? I’m interested specifically in the alternating rhythms of fasting and feasting that we find in the Church year and within which we can discern, you seem to suggest, the true ground of our humanity.

Thanks,
Peter Greenman
peter.greenman@gmail.com

]]> By: pggreenman http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/articles/comment-page-1/#comment-4558 pggreenman Sun, 10 Sep 2006 22:53:33 +0000 http://larison.org/articles/#comment-4558 Mr. Larison, I'm intrigued by your call in "Imagining Conservatism" to replace "conceptions of agency connected with notions of autonomy, self-interest and choice" with "a morality rooted in asceticism, festivity...[and] communion." Where can I read more about this contrast? I'm especially interested in the alternating rhythms of ascetism and festivity that we find in the Church year and within which, you seem to suggest, we can discern on a daily basis the true ground of our humanity. peter.greenman@gmail.com Mr. Larison,
I’m intrigued by your call in “Imagining Conservatism” to replace “conceptions of
agency connected with notions of autonomy, self-interest and choice” with “a morality rooted in asceticism, festivity…[and] communion.” Where can I read more about this contrast? I’m especially interested in the alternating rhythms of ascetism and festivity that we find in the Church year and within which, you seem to suggest, we can discern on a daily basis the true ground of our humanity.

peter.greenman@gmail.com

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