Column: The Matter At Hand
Homo Homini Lupus est
(Man Is a Wolf to Man)
by Leon J. Podles
Human solidarity is a fragile accomplishment. Habits of cooperation quickly evaporate under anarchy, as men exploit one another. The violent bear away the prize: survival. Hobbes looked to strong government to save the human race from self-destruction. Without government, the weak face the strong with no protection. In a state of nature, men devour one another.
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A Double Take . . . THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS. Leon J. Podles holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia and has worked as a teacher and a federal investigator. He is the author of The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity and the forthcoming License to Sin (both from Spence Publishing). Dr. Podles and his wife have six children and live in Naples, Florida. He is a senior editor of Touchstone. calling all readers Please Donate "There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine." "Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal." • Subscribers: Manage your subscription account here.
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is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary. more from the online archives 31.4—July/August 2018 Labels & the Ecumenism of Discipleship by James M. Kushiner 31.1—January/February 2018 The Wisdom of the Victorian Quest for Innocence by David Sandifer
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