Th omas More at Syllabus Saving the World Oxford of Errors Th rough Beauty Students and faculty Rutler, Kreeft , Zuhlsdorf, David Clayton’s 13-part explore the riches of Scalia and others dissect Television Series on how history, literature, and college heresies in book good art leads us through our Faith in Great edited by Prof. Zmirak. beauty to the Truth. Britain. Communitas THE MAGAZINE OF THOMAS MORE COLLEGE Imitating the Carpenter: College Establishes Student Guilds Also in this issue: Why Catholics Can Th ink Th e Pope Conquers England A Graceful Balance BY DR. WILLIAM EDMUND FAHEY Th ings of this World,” the reader will It presents our own eff orts to find encounter a beautiful articulation and keep the diffi cult balance in of principles pondered by Plato, St. our chief activity of study, balanced John, St. Augustine and others— and made lovely by merriment, the insight that there is a great acts of creativity, prayer, travel, pain in turning from the heights of and complete acceptance of and thought and spirit to what appears gratitude for the goodness of the merely mundane. And yet, Wilbur created order and the goodness of reminds us of the divine turning the life-giving Trinity that brings from higher things back to the all into existence and sustains all. he students of Th omas More world, a turning done out of love: College are great readers of Th roughout this issue, you will T “God so loved the world…” Th is is fi nd descriptions of the College’s poetry—and by reading, I do not not just a momentary gesture of the mean the silent scanning of lines. internships opportunities as well Creator to His creation, but some- as an account of our recent debate For our students, the word is alive thing deeply true and necessary to and meant to be enacted. Recently on the nature of Islam. Set beside imitate. Wilbur teaches his readers tales of foreign travel, there is a at lunch, one senior suddenly that through the loveliness of the turned from the soup tureen and satirical glance at the virtues and world, we are lift ed up. We are both vices. Chickens and chain-saws belted out “What’s he that wishes so, called from the heights and back to my cousin Westmorland?” Several jostle with meditations on religious the heights by love—by the love of poetry and the masterpiece that minutes into one of the most the ordinary which has been placed famous of all dramatic speeches, a is a Chestnut tree. At the center is all around us and which we must the story of our new guilds—the handful of earnest freshmen still sustain through our own works. gaped in wonder, but most stu- College’s attempt to encourage dents had recognized that King Life in this world is, as Wilbur student creativity and discipline Henry V was before us—or, rather, suggests, a “diffi cult balance.” Words, through the practical arts. Our that we were before him, back on ideas, and spiritual consolations hope is that ideas and action will the fi eld of Agincourt. Faculty nod- must co-exist with works, actions, fi nd a balance at Th omas More ded, realizing, “Of course, it is St. and ordinary duties. Part of this College and be a cause of joy. balance is to be found in accepting Crispin’s Day, aft er all.” Th e Psalms, In Christ the King, the works of Shakespeare or Robert the profound yet humbling lesson Frost—these and much else give of the Incarnation: that we must Th omas More College students the be about our pursuit of the highest vital words that shape their ideas, goods in the midst of, and indeed William Edmund Fahey, Ph.D. utterances, and actions. through, the ordinary and earthly. President One such Th omas More College Th is issue of Communitas sets “classic” is the poetry of Richard before you the current thoughts, Wilbur. In his “Love Calls us to the words, and actions of the College. Communitas | staff John Zmirak, Ph.D., Editor Contributing Photographers: Contact Communitas at: Charlie McKinney, Managing Editor Marielle Gage, Charlie McKinney, Th omas More College of Liberal Arts Karyn Baskette, Art Director Th omas J. Pia, Mark Schwerdt Six Manchester Street Merrimack, NH 03054 Paige E. Scarlett, Copy Editor Contributing Writers: Dr. Christopher Blum, Stratford info@Th omasMoreCollege.edu Caldecott, Dr. William Fahey, (800) 880-8308 Meryl Trapp contents 4 8 2 Th omas More Students Intern, Learn Vital Skills 4 FEATURE Prof. Zmirak’s Syllabus of Errors 6 Peter Kreeft , Robert Spencer Debate: Is the Only Good Muslim a Bad Muslim? 8 FEATURE Students Walk in the Footsteps of Newman, 16 Chesterton, Tolkien 10 Why Catholics Can Th ink 11 Th omas More’s Artist David Clayton Hosts 13-part TV series on Catholic Art 12 Why Not Chinese and Arabic? 14 From Prof. Zmirak’s Th e Bad Catholic’s Guide to the Seven Deadly Sins 16 COVER STORY Words, Flesh, and Making: TMC’s Guilds 22 Teach the Practical Arts 20 Why We Chase Chickens in College 21 Th e Pope in Britain: A Second Spring 22 Candid Campus Polaroids Reveal All 24 Th oughts on the American Chestnut 25 Ruminatio Th omas More Students Hone their Skills Th rough Internships he liberal arts education off ered at Th omas More College is aimed at Tthe full development of the person, consonant with the educational philosophy of Blessed John Henry Newman. We recognize, however, that our graduates must have adequate preparation to enter the world of work which awaits most of them. Th e Church and society need responsible Catholic citizens, teachers, artists, communicators, businessmen, lawyers, legislators, and other faithful stewards. Graduates of Th omas More are called upon to translate their liberal arts education into practicable, productive endeavors which will help them to form and support families, and otherwise build up the Culture of Life. 2 Communitas At Th omas More College, we assist graduates in bridging their intellectual formation and the practical application of that education by providing them with a variety of internship possibilities. Working with select institutions whose missions are compatible with the Gospel and the natural virtues, we off er these bright young men and women the opportunity to put to use the wisdom and knowledge gained in the classroom. Since 2008, for instance, Th omas More students have been working as interns at an array academic institutions and preparing profi les of of communications apostolates them for Choosing the Right in Rome, such as Vatican College, a 1,000-page biannual Radio and H20 News, a video guide. Four recent graduates news service that is broadcast At Th omas More, of the college, William and online throughout the world, Rosie Herreid, Paul Kniaz and run in close association we help students (all Class of 2010), and with the Vatican’s TV offi ces. Martin Lockerd ‘09, served Students have narrated the news, pursue such as Contributing Editors for dubbed the daily Mass readings the guide. into English, and learned the internships at In the autumn of 2010, the intricacies of audio and video select institutions college was also fortunate to production. Th ey have also host Dr. Michael Aeschliman, worked closely with Tony Assaf, whose work is Professor of Education at an editor at Zenit News—a Boston University, for a forum worldwide online service that deeply compatible on preparing students for has hundreds of thousands of with the Gospel and secondary teaching positions. readers every day. In 2010, H20 Dr. Aeschliman, who also interns from Th omas More the natural virtues. serves as Professor of English College included sophomores at the University of Italian Maisie Sifert, Sam Miloscia, and Switzerland, advised the Wilfred Th omas. students on opportunities for Closer to home, students have interned with teaching English as a Second the Culture of Life Foundation at its offi ces in Language (ESL), and guided them through the Washington, D.C., and at the United Nations failures of modern education. He suggested that in New York, working to promote national Th omas More students, by virtue of their Catholic and international policies compatible with the liberal arts training, were uniquely prepared to sanctity of human life. In 2010, two Th omas More avoid the pitfalls of progressive education. While undergraduates, Eleanor La Prade and Katie Lloyd, deepening the students’ understanding of the craft worked as editorial interns for the Intercollegiate of teaching, Dr. Aeschliman also provided practical Studies Institute, conducting research on major advice on obtaining the necessary credentials for a career in teaching. Winter 2011 3 Syllabus of ERRORS Top Authors Name (and Refute!) the 14 Heresies that Rob Catholic Students’ Faith FROM THE INTRODUCTION BY TMC WRITER-IN-RESIDENCE JOHN ZMIRAK, EDITOR he questions raised in this book are going to come up again and Tagain throughout your life. Your dating behavior will be aff ected by where you stand on Relativism, Hedonism, and Feminism. Your choice of career may hinge on how much you have been infl uenced by Consumerism and Cynicism. How you vote will be infl uenced by your attitude toward Sentimentalism, Americanism, Marxism, and Multiculturalism. Life and death medical decisions regarding your parents as they age will depend on where you stand on Scientism and Utilitarianism. Th e state of your soul when you die may hinge on how you have reacted to Progressivism, Modernism, and Anti- Catholicism. As the great professor Richard M. Weaver once wrote in a book of the same title, “ideas have consequences.” If you don’t believe this, pay a visit to Iran or North Korea.