The Four Cardinal Virtues (Week 1 of 12)
Dear Fellow Reader:
We at Catholic Spiritual Direction hope you’ve been enjoying a very Merry Christmas season, that your New Year is full of peace and joy, and that you are ready to make good on that New Year’s resolution to devote time every day to spiritual reading! Please join us as we begin our first book for the New Year – The Four Cardinal Virtues by Josef Pieper. If you haven’t found your copy yet, no worries! We plan to start slow. I’m breaking the original plan for Week One into two weeks. That way, you are welcome to begin with us this week, but will not fall behind if you still need to acquire the book before getting started. For those of you who are interested, I did find this copy on an online archives website.
The following is taken from the back of my book:
Fortitude…
Temperance…
Justice…
Prudence…A stimulating quartet of essays on the four cardinal virtues by Josef Pieper, internationally know German Thomist scholar and one of the most important philosophers of our time.
In this book he demonstrates the unsound overvaluation of moderation that has made contemporary morality a hollow convention and points out the true significance of the Christian virtues that can and should make morality a dynamic way of life.
Pragmatic and puritanical concepts about virtue and morality are demolished, and Dr. Pieper sounds a warning: Unless we regain the true essence of the cardinal virtues, we are headed for moral anarchy.
Wow! I don’t know if I should have posted that blurb! It sounds a little dry even to me! If it peaks your curiosity, just focus on that “headed for moral anarchy” part and believe me when I tell you that I’ve already skimmed through the book and the material is profoundly interesting. Sure to be an invaluable tool for our edification, it’s also included on Father C.J. McCloskey’s Catholic Lifetime Reading Plan.
Below you’ll find our prospective schedule for The Four Cardinal Virtues. This list notes the week the assignment is to be given. The assignment for any particular week will be discussed the following week. For example, on Week 2, we will discuss the Preface and Prudence Ch. 1:
1/6 Week 1: Preface; Prudence Ch. 1
1/13 Week 2: Prudence Ch. 2
1/20 Week 3: Prudence Ch. 3-4
1/27 Week 4: Justice Ch. 1-2
2/3 Week 5: Justice Ch. 3-5
2/10 Week 6: Justice Ch. 6
2/17 Week 7: Justice Ch. 7; Fortitude Ch. 1-2
2/24 Week 8: Fortitude Ch. 3-4; Temperance Ch. 1-2
3/3 Week 9: Temperance Ch. 3
3/10 Week 10: Temperance Ch. 4-7
3/17 Week 11: Temperance Ch. 8-10
3/24 Week 12: Conclusion – NO ASSIGNMENT
I hope you’ll join us over the next twelve weeks for a great discussion!
Happy Reading!
Reading Assignment:
Preface; Chapter 1
Discussion Questions:
1. Have you read The Four Cardinal Virtues before? If so, please note any feedback you’d like to share on the book.
2. We’ve missed you over the past several weeks! Please share any special blessings you’ve experienced over the holidays!
Read More: http://spiritualdirection.com/topics/book-club
For More Information on the Book Club: http://spiritualdirection.com/csd-book-club
About Vicki Burbach
Vicki Burbach is a wife and homeschooling mother of six children ages three to fifteen years who relishes the calm inspiration of spiritual reading amidst the roller coaster of life. A passionate convert to the Faith, Vicki is an avid reader who started the CSD book club so she could embark with likeminded bibliophiles on a spiritual journey through some of the greatest Catholic books ever written.
In addition to moderating the book club and managing family activities, Vicki also cooks, does laundry, cleans, does laundry, and, every once in a while, finds time to write and speak on topics such as marriage and spiritual reading – of course, these endeavors take place only between her many loads of laundry.
