Excellent Review of My “Primer” at First Things

Last updated on: February 4, 2015 at 6:17 pm by Sam Rocha

Excellent Review of My “Primer” at First Things 2015-02-04T18:17:58-06:00 Sam Rocha

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Stephen Webb’s column at First Things today — titled “Sam Rocha’s Strange and Startling Philosophy of Education” — gives a generous (and even foreboding) theological review of my book, A Primer for Philosophy and Education.

Webb writes:

A Primer for Philosophy and Education, his brief introduction to the philosophy of education, is proof that educational heresy is what you get when you begin with theological orthodoxy. (Theology is a science, and education an art, but most educators get that exactly reversed by treating religion as a matter of opinion and education an application of pedagogical methods.) Rocha shows how education, the art of formation, is dependent on theology, which generates real knowledge about universal and lasting truths. His philosophical foundations are eclectic but his spiritual focus is simple and steady, never losing sight of the way in which love and knowledge must be joined together for education to be successful. This is one of the boldest treatises on education ever written by a professor of education, and one hopes that it does not derail this young scholar’s career.

The key sign of Webb’s insightful reading of my book shines in his clear description of my notion of education:

Education for Rocha has little—perhaps very close to nothing, actually—to do with schools and classrooms. It is always going on, constantly and indiscriminately. Its ubiquity makes it hard to describe, which is where philosophy comes in. Rocha suggests that people typically know more about philosophy than education, which is an extremely counter-intuitive claim. If he is right, then his observation shows just how poorly most people are educated.

It is an excellent review for many reasons, more than I can name here. Two stand out: (1) it forces me to re-think the ideas and see them in a more explicitly theological light and (2) it makes me feel uneasy about the rather grim possibilities that may await it. We’ll see.

Read the whole review here. (Other reviews and info here and here.)

Education

Philosophy

Previous Post

November 25, 2013

Art Perfects Nothing: Review of "The Thorny Grace of It"

Next Post

November 29, 2013 Correcting a Correction of Evangelii Gaudium, para 54. UPDATED

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category aesthetics audio class notes conversation Education En Español Interviews jazz jazzhop link Liturgy Music Nonsense pastoral philosophy phenomenology Philosophy philosophy of education photo Poetry Political Theology quote Race regular Schooling Uncategorized video Weekly Apocalypse

Select a Month June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Why was it scandalous for the woman to anoint Jesus' feet with tears?

Select your answer to see how you score.

She was a child She was foreign She was wealthy She was a known sinner