Dr. Michael Pakaluk on Contemplation of Beauty

"Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn in one of his Gulag books tells of how he and other prisoners were kept in buildings without any windows, yet each day, when they were being marched from one prison bloc to another, they passed through a hallway with a small window opening to the sky. And they would pause and stare at that sliver of sky in wonderment, lingering there until the guards pushed them along.

"One can similarly read, in many of the stories of unfortunate persons sent by the Nazis to concentration camps, that when they were transported from one camp to another they would stare in amazement at the beauty of the mountains or countryside they were passing through.

"Here is another story: a mother who was born blind but gained her sight as an adult was asked what most affected her when she finally could see. 'My children,' she said, 'I had no idea how beautiful they were.' Before she could only hear their voices but could not see the beauty of their hair, visage, expression, complexion.

"These stories and others like them teach us that beauty is something that we can hunger after, the way a famished person hungers after food. Also, that beauty is hopeful, because it points us toward something higher and better, a world different from our own, where standards of justice and right are always observed. Also, that beauty is nonetheless all around us -- 'consider the lilies of the field' -- and we can take it for granted, because we have lost sensitivity, or have become coarse or uncaring. We are very often not recollected enough to receive it."

In a recent commentary, Dr. Michael Pakaluk, Professor of Philosophy at Catholic University of America, reflected on beauty and its role in our lives, including our faith lives.

To access Dr. Pakaluk’s complete essay, please visit:

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