Saint Cicero and the Jesuits: The Influence of the Liberal Arts on the Adoption of Moral Probabilism

Over the past decade various historians have examined the consequences of Ignatius Loyola's decision to involve his newly approved Society of Jesus in various educational enterprises. The first Jesuits emphasized the importance of spiritual conversation, preaching, and reconciliation, horizontally and vertically. In this monograph, Maryks argues that Jesuit interest in classical learning prompted them to re-examine their own concepts of conscience and confession, leading them to increasingly abandon traditional concepts of putting the demands of the law above the calls of their own conscience. By integrating concepts of theology and classical humanism, this book offers a compelling account of how diverse forces could act upon a religious order to alter the central beliefs they held and promulgated.

Author: Robert Aleksander Maryks
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 08/14/2008
Pages: 182
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.96lbs
Size: 9.21h x 6.14w x 0.50d
ISBN: 9780754662938

About the Author
Robert Aleksander Maryks is an Assistant Professor in the Department of History at the City University of New York.