Against the background of the present political and cultural disarray, this book asks: What can be learned from past historical examples of such decay? How can political life be restored now to its original purpose: the promotion of the "good life" or the "common good?" Taking up these key questions, the volume performs a deep dive into the historical and literary record, tracing out the collision of institutions and society, and the development of philosophical and ethical accounts of what constitutes politics, the state, the public, and individuals. Throughout history, there have been a multiple trajectories for understanding the basic relationship between the state, power, society, and the ethical: the multivalent theories, unsurprisingly, have clashed and created rifts. At the same time, despite conflict and tumult, from ancient Athens and Tudor England, to the rise of fascism and authoritarianism in the previous and current centuries, a riptide of hope and praxes has endured that grounds the possibility of a society founded on solidarity. Towards this end, Fred Dallmayr pleads for the renewal of politics through the legacy of the "cardinal virtues" acting as chief remedy for the present disarray.

This book discusses the “special call” to ministry and describes how our calling is interconnected with the other key areas of life. God’s callings for our lives include a broad spectrum of areas. Our Creator, who “knits us together in our mother’s womb,” places within our hearts and minds our purpose for our being on earth, and out of that context calls us to serve the needs of His Kingdom—sometimes in specific ways. While not everyone is called to dedicate their careers to ministry, everyone is called to engage in the Lord’s work on some level and many times to multiple tasks in life. This book examines the wide range of those callings and focuses on the “special call” to ministry. This book answers many of the questions students have about the “special call” to ministry and is written to guide young people as they choose their career fields—especially in ministry. In working in higher education for over four decades, the author has observed many students struggle to determine which major they should take in college and decide whether they are called to the ministry. The second part of the book is dedicated to finding God’s will for our lives. Upon graduation, many ministry students seek to know which ministry opportunity they should take. However, there are other times when our calling comes directly from our Creator. God calls us and we know with conviction that He has called us. There are other times when our calling flows out of the situation we find ourselves in—and sometimes this is not of our own choosing. At other times our callings are connected to the choices that we make. For example, when we choose to get married, we take on the calling of serving our spouse. In all of life, God masterfully uses our circumstances to call us to His work.