The Beautiful and the Sublime: How to Make Art that Leads to God | Prof. Patrick Callahan

Apr 29, 2025

Patrick Callahan, Director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture, dives into the relationship between art and spirituality. He discusses how philosophy and contemplation enhance our experience of the arts and connect us to divine truths. Callahan explores the essence of beauty, linking it to goodness and contrasting divine and created beauty. He also examines the concept of the sublime in art, citing poets like Dante and Shakespeare, and emphasizes how art can awaken spiritual wonder and deeper human desires.

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INSIGHT

Aquinas on Beauty's Essence

St. Thomas Aquinas defines beauty as that which pleases when seen, emphasizing clarity, proportion, and integrity.
Beauty relates to our cognitive faculty, while goodness relates to desire and the appetite.

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ANECDOTE

Nirvana as Grocery Muzak

Patrick heard Nirvana for the first time as Muzak in a grocery store, which felt crass and wrong to him.
This illustrated how the arts can be diminished when reduced to mere commercial ends.

insights

INSIGHT

Art Trains the Contemplative Soul

Making and viewing beautiful art trains our soul's faculty to recognize and resonate with beauty.
Beautiful art plays a vital role in the contemplative life by activating beauty within the practitioner.

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The Interplay of Philosophy, Contemplation, and the Arts

02:04 • 2min

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The Essence of Beauty in Art

04:13 • 15min

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Exploring the Sublime in Art

19:35 • 18min

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Awakening Wonder Through Art and Metaphor

37:17 • 5min

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Pied beauty

Gerard Manley Hopkins

Leisure the basis of culture

Josef Pieper

Josef Pieper's "Leisure: The Basis of Culture" is a profound exploration of the nature of leisure and its importance for human flourishing. Pieper argues that leisure, understood as a state of freedom from necessity, is essential for contemplation and the development of culture. He contrasts leisure with mere idleness or entertainment, emphasizing its role in fostering creativity, intellectual growth, and spiritual development. "Leisure" has had a significant impact on philosophical and theological thought. Pieper's work challenges readers to reconsider the value of contemplation and the importance of creating a society that fosters leisure. The book is a classic of philosophical and theological reflection.

The Summa Theologica is a comprehensive work divided into three parts. The first part deals with God, the creation of the world, angels, and the nature of man. The second part is subdivided into two sections: the first part of the second part discusses general principles of morality and law, while the second part of the second part addresses morality in particular, including individual virtues and vices. The third part, left unfinished by Aquinas, focuses on the person and work of Christ and the sacraments. The work also includes a posthumous supplement that concludes the third part and discusses Christian eschatology. Aquinas drew on Aristotelian and Augustinian influences and aimed to integrate faith and reason in his theological arguments.

Nicomachean Ethics

Aristotle

The Nicomachean Ethics is Aristotle's most renowned work on ethics, focusing on the science of the good for human life. The text is divided into ten books and discusses the concept of eudaimonia, often translated as 'happiness' or 'flourishing,' which is achieved through living a virtuous life. Aristotle argues that eudaimonia is an activity of the soul in accordance with virtue, emphasizing the importance of reason, moral virtues, and the pursuit of excellence. The work also explores the division of the soul, the role of rationality in human life, and the ultimate goal of human activity, which is to achieve happiness through virtuous actions and a complete life.

Paradiso

Dante Alighieri

Mark Musa

Paradiso is the third and final part of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, following Inferno and Purgatorio. It is an allegory that tells of Dante's journey through Heaven, guided by Beatrice and later by Saint Bernard. Mark Musa's translation preserves the intricacy and poetic beauty of the original work, rendering it in clear, rhythmic English, accompanied by extensive notes and commentary.

The theory of moral sentiments

Adam Smith

Published in 1759, 'The Theory of Moral Sentiments' is Adam Smith's first major published work, based on his lectures at Glasgow University. The book argues that morality is driven by humanity's natural sociability and the need for approval from peers, rather than by rational calculation or innate moral sense. Smith introduces key concepts such as sympathy, the impartial spectator, and the invisible hand, which explain how individuals judge the conduct and character of themselves and others. The work delves into the emotional and social aspects of human behavior, highlighting the role of emotions like pity and compassion in shaping moral sentiments and behaviors.

In Memory of W. B. Yeats

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W.H. Auden

W. H. Auden's "In Memory of W. B. Yeats" is a moving elegy for the Irish poet William Butler Yeats. The poem reflects on Yeats's life and work, exploring themes of mortality, art, and the relationship between the poet and society. Auden uses a complex structure and imagery to convey his grief and admiration for Yeats. The poem's famous line, "poetry makes nothing happen," is often misinterpreted, but in context, it emphasizes the intrinsic value of poetry as a form of expression and contemplation, rather than a tool for political or social change. Auden's elegy is a powerful testament to the enduring power of art and the importance of remembering those who have shaped our cultural landscape.

A philosophical enquiry into the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful

Edmund Burke

Only the Lover Sings

Josef Pieper

Josef Pieper's "Only the Lover Sings" delves into the relationship between art, contemplation, and the experience of love. Pieper explores how artistic creation and appreciation can lead to a deeper understanding of the world and our place within it. He emphasizes the importance of receptivity and openness in engaging with art, arguing that true artistic experience involves a kind of contemplation that transcends mere intellectual understanding. The book draws on classical and Christian traditions to illuminate the nature of artistic creation and the role of art in human life. Pieper's work offers a profound reflection on the nature of beauty, truth, and the human capacity for wonder. It remains a significant contribution to philosophical aesthetics and theological reflection on art.

Observations on the feeling of the beautiful and the sublime

Immanuel Kant

In diesem 1764 veröffentlichten Werk untersucht Kant die ästhetischen Kategorien des Schönen und Erhabenen durch Beobachtungen menschlicher Natur und Temperamente. Das Buch gliedert sich in vier Teile: Die Unterscheidung der ästhetischen Gefühle, ihre Anwendung auf menschliche Eigenschaften, geschlechtsspezifische Unterschiede und nationale Charaktere. Kant verbindet hier empirische Beobachtungen mit moralphilosophischen Überlegungen, wobei er 'wahre Tugend' als Synthese von Schönheitsempfinden und erhabener Prinzipientreue beschreibt.

Prof. Patrick Callahan explores how art, through beauty and the sublime, can lead the soul toward God, drawing on insights from Joseph Pieper, Aristotle, and Christian philosophy to reveal the contemplative power of poetry, music, and the fine arts.

This lecture was given on November 19th, 2024, at East Carolina University.

For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.

About the Speaker:

Patrick Callahan is director of the Newman Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture as well as Assistant Professor of English and Humanities at St. Gregory the Great Seminary. There he directs and teaches in a Great Books Catholic program for students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and other regional colleges. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Dallas and his graduate work at Fordham University in Classics. He lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife and 5 children.

Keywords: Aristotelianism, Beauty, Christian Philosophy, Contemplation, Ethics, Incarnation, Joseph Pieper, Poetry, Simone Weil, Summa Theologiae

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