Joseph Pieper 1904 – 1997
Joseph Pieper was a German Catholic philosopher and one of the most widely read twentieth-century interpreters of Thomas Aquinas. Long-time professor at Munster, he combined careful scholarship in medieval philosophy with a gift for short, pellucid books that brought the central themes of the perennial Christian philosophical tradition to a wide modern readership. His Leisure: The Basis of Culture, The Four Cardinal Virtues, Hope, Faith, Love, and the late Anthology drew on Aquinas, Plato, and Augustine to articulate a humane philosophical theology of contemplation, virtue, hope, and the festive.
Key facts
- Nationality
- German
- Era
- Contemporary
- Movements
- Scholasticism, Christian
Selected quotes
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Attributed to Joseph Pieper:
“Leisure is the basis of culture.”
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Attributed to Joseph Pieper:
“Hope is the virtue of the wayfarer.”
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Attributed to Joseph Pieper:
“Truth is the soul's love of being as it is.”
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Attributed to Joseph Pieper:
“Justice unites human beings; injustice separates them.”
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Attributed to Joseph Pieper:
“Worship is the source of culture, not its product.”