There is a constant flood of commentary on the convergence of several thorny societal changes — demographic, economic, political, spiritual. American higher education is an arena in which these forces meet, a microcosm of our larger culture, as universities face increasingly urgent existential questions. In times like these, it can be tempting to disregard what has served in the past and simply react to things as they come.
How do we respond to novel circumstances and renew our institutions without losing our mission and identity? G.K. Chesterton pointed out over a hundred years ago, “that a permanent ideal is as necessary to the innovator as to the conservative … [F]or altering things or for keeping things as they are, … it is equally necessary that the vision should be a fixed vision.”
The Catholic University community offers answers to these questions rooted in the things of enduring value, the permanent things. Our “fixed vision” is the one given to us by the living thing we call the Catholic intellectual tradition. You’ll see that in numerous ways in these pages: in the conversations taking place on campus around human and artificial intelligence (p. 7); in the vital importance our faculty place on mentorship (p. 14); in a semester-long exploration of what makes life worth living (p. 40); in my conversation with Monsignor James Shea and Kathleen deLaski (p. 34) on the purpose and future of a university education; and more.
We are striving to address emerging problems in new and creative ways without either giving in to the spirit of the age, or simply clinging to the familiar. We have hope — not because we are certain of a particular outcome but because we know to Whom we belong.
Peter Kilpatrick, President
The Catholic University of America
