Should the state take a stand on first things?

Peter Kreeft has had more of an influence on me than perhaps anyone else. Here he addresses a fundamental question for politics: should the state take a stand on first things?



Lots to learn here. Here is a quote Kreeft provides from Lewis, as food for thought and to motivate you to listen. The quotation is presented in answering the question of whether the polis ought to have a single and definite telos.

"I fully embrace the maxim that all power corrupts. I would go further. The loftier the pretensions of the power, the more meddlesome, inhuman and oppressive it will be. Theocracy is the worst of all possible governments. All political power is at best a necessary evil. But it is least evil when its sanctions are more modest. Thus the Renaissance doctrine of Divine Right is for me a corruption of monarchy, Rousseau's general will, of democracy and racial mysticisms of nationality, and theocracy is the worst corruption of all. But I don't think we are in any danger of it."

-From Lillies that Fester, C.S. Lewis

I cannot recommend this lecture highly enough. I think it is wholly relevant to every conversation that's ever taken place at Vox Nova. Hopefully I can transcribe it so it can be studied in more detail. (or maybe I'll just email Peter Kreeft and ask if he'll send me the essay - is that unreasonable?)

To see all the videos, follow this link. Or, it is also available in mp3 format from Trinity Law School here.