The Cathedral Builder: Pursuing Cultural Beauty

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About the Title
"The rule of law is a cathedral we have to build brick by brick." So spoke Chief Justice John G. Roberts during his first major public address. But how are the bricks to be laid? Is there an order? How does one distinguish between cultural bricks and mortar? Or, facade? And, upon what foundation should these bricks rest? What roles should same-sex "marriage," the Academy, the Constitution, faith, and abortion "rights" play in this cultural project?
 
Cathedral Builder examines these questions in the context of today's legal culture by exploring what it takes to build a lasting and beautiful cultural cathedral. Will the rule of law be a lasting thing of increasing beauty, or a hastily erected, unstable, rusting tin shack?

From the Introduction:
To pursue cultural beauty requires living for the common good; it necessitates building a cultural cathedral. And cathedrals - as opposed to shanty shacks - cannot be built hastily. Foundations must be purposefully laid. And then upon those solid foundations, the walls and arches and adornments must be assiduously assembled piece by piece, brick by brick. Note well: building cathedrals is not about building buildings; building cathedrals is about serving people and honoring God. The Rule of Law is the cultural structure, the container that provides the framework for fostering these noble ends.

How then shall we build? Baseball supplies part of the answer. People who attend baseball games usually have a favorite place to sit: behind home plate, the right field bleachers, or perhaps in the upper deck down the third base line. Every single play is seen from various perspectives. When a player hits a triple in the gap, the person behind home place sees the play one way and the fan sitting in right field sees the very same play, but from a different perspective. One play, many perspectives....In baseball, there are rules when a player is batting.... Cultures are built with this tri-perspective structure as well. In particular, Western culture manifests three institutions that sanction or approve "acceptable" cultural conduct: The Academy, the Judiciary and the Clergy....

If the church will not evangelize, it will fossilize. The Truth, it is said, sets people free (John 8:32), but only if they can speak it and hear it. Many forces today, however, seek to censor and truncate the Christian voice in the public square in effect saying: stay in Sunday School with your felt boards and happy-clappy songs, but don't you dare use a religious perspective publicly. This should not be. To effectively respond to this truth decay, rather than simply react, Christian[s] must be both willing and equipped to engage the legal culture - for the long term - for our children's children. They must strive to build glorious cultural cathedrals - monuments to Goodness, Truth and Beauty.

Endorsements:

"This work is a wonderful example of what happens when an author takes serious theology as a knowledge-tradition that has the capacity to contribute to our understanding of law, society and culture. Moreover, this book has the virtue of being accessible to nonprofessionals who seek a deeper understanding of the place of theology in uncovering the philosophical infrastructure of our legal regime and the role of its citizens in advancing the public good." - Dr. Francis Beckwith, Associate Professor of Church-State Studies, Baylor University

"With all the talk about culture wars, it is a delight to read about cathedral building, not casting stones. Ventrella's musings are mighty. With a lawyer's eye for detail, a military mind for strategy, a pastor's heart for people and a theologian's mind for God, his many musings collaborate to construct a glorious cathedral of goodness, truth and beauty in the public square. Though, with more than a nod to law students, lawyers and policy makers, Ventrella's The Cathedral Builder will profit any thoughtful Christian who desires to take up mortar and stone and play their part in building a better culture to God's Glory." - Dr. Alfred Poirier, Author of The Peacemaking Pastor

"The Cathedral Builder shows how biblical Christians ought to think, indeed to live, if their work is to transform society. I enthusiastically recommend this book and pray that God makes it fruitful in the lives and hearts of Blackstone students and of all of us." - Dr. John Frame, Professor of Systematic Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary

About the Author: Jeffery Ventrella, Esq. is senior vice president of strategic training with the Alliance Defense Fund, a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding and litigation. (J.D., 1985, University of California, Hastings College of the Law)

Specifications: Paperback, 391 pages, a Core Curriculum Series title with Blackstone Legal Fellowship.



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