The Perennial Order

Description

THE PERENNIAL ORDER unfolds the whole fabric of a Catholic mind. Its breadth and richness show in the titles of the six sections into which it is divided. The• first is on 'Metaphysics', and there follow sections on the Philosophy of Science, of Morals, of History, of Art and of Culture. The book is, in fact, a Christian speculum mentis, offered to those who are facing the issues of our times. It is a re-statement for them of that perennial philosophy which is reborn from the experience of every generation. There exists a Christian tradition in philosophy which remains faithful to the unchanging, perennial truths and values. It arises from meditation upon the highest concerns of man; from a meditation always aware of the mystery of a universe of which God is the Creator, and which is always reflecting the light of His Being. Dr Martin Versfeld has set himself to interpret that tradition for the modern generation. Dr Versfeld's academic attainments are impressive enough–he is the senior lecturer in Philosophy in the University of Cape Town, the foremost University in his native South Africa. But he has in addition three qualifications which make him particularly well entitled to introduce the modern generation to the Catholic mind. First, he is young, without being too young. Born in 1909, he is young enough to claim to belong intellectually to the post-war generation, and is yet old enough to have a mind which is both experienced and mature. Secondly, he is a convert to the Catholic Faith, who 'thought his way into the Church' shortly after his marriage, when he was already over thirty. If we mention this as a qualification for writing this book, it is because it is a book intended as much for those who are not yet Catholics as for those who are; for those who may themselves be stumbling along the spiritual and intellectual path which Dr Versfeld himself has trodden. He is able to write with a profound understanding for the uncertainties which were once his own. Third, distinguished as his academic reputation is, Dr Versfeld is not only academic. His life is not bound by the walls of library or lecture-hall. His interests are very much wider. As a practical farmer as well as a University lecturer, he lives in close contact with the rhythm of the seasons. He has written books, from long practical experience, about mountaineering as well as about metaphysics. And he is a keen amateur fisherman. These may not be direct qualifications for a philosopher, but they are powerful aids to sanity and a balanced judgment. A special merit of THE PERENNIAL ORDER is that it makes constant reference to the works of others. It is a• plain man's guide to a disordered world, and everyone who is prepared to think of himself as a plain man ought to read it, and then read it again.