Religion & Law

Thanks very much to Rick for the pointer to Ryan Anderson's response to the nice NYT profile of Robby. 

Funny, but I'd experienced a somewhat similar reaction to the piece last Sunday, in that it seemed pretty clear that the author was a little thin on the venerability of the natural law tradition, which in my reckoning antedates -- at least in fragmentary fashion -- even Aristotle in the writings of many of the pre-Socratics, as well as their counterparts farther east.  (See, e.g., this little book: http://www.amazon.com/Little-Book-Big-Ideas-Law/dp/1556528272/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1261690840&sr=8-2.)   

In any event, I thought I would take this opportunity quickly to register the fact that I think of myself, too, as an heir to and devotee of this tradition, albeit nowhere near as distinguished a one as are Robby, John Finnis, or many here at MoJ.  I also find in the work of Aristotle and Thomas, as well as that of the that fellow who I believe to be insufficiently appreciated as a sort of neo-Aristotelian himself -- yep, Kant, by way of the Aristotelian Wolff -- much that informs my own humble attempts at action-theoretic, practical-rational, moral, and political-philosophic thinking.  And for what it might be worth to confine myself to saying this only cryptically right now, the account of distributive justice that I think most compelling -- an account I have tried to work out over the years and of which I believe we can be just as clear and just as sure (if not even moreso) as we are about other spheres of morality such as the sexual and the filial -- is an account that I believe to be thoroughly rooted in the natural law tradition. 

But more of all that in the days ahead.  For now, let it suffice to say ...

Joy to the World!

Bless you all and Merry Christmas,

Bob