The School of Athens by Raphael.
Notes from a Hitchhiker on the ‘Way of Beauty’
“The via pulchritudinis way of beauty) is a pastoral way which cannot be exhausted in a philosophical approach. Yet the metaphysician is needed to help us understand why beauty is a royal way leading to God.” – José Tolentino de Mendonça
I’ve been reading Dr. Junius Johnson’s Father of Lights. Johnson would probably agree with my mission here. That is to find the beauty and wonder in the world that leads one to see the ultimate author of such wonder and beauty. But, some would say “isn’t it a waste of time. The world is ugly. We have no time for art and culture. We have to act NOW [name cause here].” Wait a minute. You’re telling me you want to start by hitting the machine — but you don’t care to read the manual?
There is the old story of the man in the industrial plant whose machine broke down. He had no idea how to fix it, so he called in a renowned expert who was quite adept at repairing such machines. The man flew in the next day. He walked into the plant, pulled out a hammer, smacked the machine soundly with the hammer. It sprang to life, whirring and producing perfectly.
Then the expert handed the man his bill — $10,000! Certainly that was a reasonable amount, considering the importance of the machine and the loss of production that was in the hundreds of thousands — but it had only taken ten seconds! “That only took ten seconds!” the man sputtered. “My accounting department will require you to submit an ITEMIZED bill.”
The expert turned his invoice over. He quickly wrote the following: “Hitting the machine….$1.00 — Knowing WHERE to hit it….$9,999.00.” In our chaotic and ugly world, where does “knowing where to hit it” come from? Where do we find the knowledge we need, that is deeper than can be found in a YouTube video? When will we learn that knowing where to hit the machine is more important than the act of hitting it?
I worked for a man, early in my career, a man who was set on his mission – so set that he had no concern for the quality and endurabitity of our work. He had a small core of supporters and just couldn’t see that quality presentation of our work might just broaden our impact. It was a good work, and a good first job. Yet it carries a lesson.
I was charged with designing newsletters. They were always bad. Crammed with copy, they begged to be recycled by all but diehard supporters, who, my boss told me, hung on every word. Every now and then I’d introduce an open easy to read format only to be told to stuff it with more copy. I’m actually thankful for this because it forced me to consider the importance of beauty and culture, and ultimately led me to sally forth into the world of ‘real’ design. I have no regrets.
Ultimately I discovered people with a broader vision. People like Roger Scruton, Robert Barron, and Junius Johnson. They too were people of mission, but they recognized a key element of speaking to a confused and convoluted world. There is a path of beauty, it leads to truth, it is not a nice little adjunct to mission. It IS mission.
Robert Barron talks straight-up about history. How reformers need to challenge ideas in culture – BUT, when reform becomes the smashing of the sacred and the beautiful, it CEASES to be legitimate reform. Indeed, it now makes a compelling statement that the beauty destroyed has a legitimate claim on a truth we should ponder.
So, we have just seen a time where churches, concerts, and museums were closed – but we had to allow riots in the name of ‘reform.’ Yeah, I’ve heard it before. “Our cause is SO important, we’re allowed to be ugly in the pursuit of it…” Witness the students on university campuses who hold rowdy demonstrations while actually knowing very little about middle-eastern history. They love the iconoclasts because they too are iconoclasts.
Remember, when a ‘reform’ moves to ‘desecration,’ it is really an admission that there is some truth that the ‘reformers’ do not want to listen to — it is uncomfortable. “My mind is made up, don’t confuse me with the facts,” it screams. It is that truth, and that wonder, that in this Substack I wish to celebrate. That will hopefully explain my passion for art, design, history, and wonder. Most writers here will tell you what they want to accomplish before they start writing here. Having pushed off from shore, and charted a course, yea and weathered a storm — “Without a Hitch,” [click to read], I wanted to make that declaration now.
The North Transept Rose Window.
Robert Barron on Beauty
Bishop Barron’s Reflections on Beauty.
Roger Scruton on Beauty
The great philosopher’s thoughts.