The Clash of Orthodoxies
130. Robert P. George, The Clash of Orthodoxies: Law, Religion, and Morality in Crisis
In this book, Robert P. George - a conservative, Catholic professor at Princeton - discusses some of the most controversial issues in contemporary American political life, including contraception, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, pornography, and (especially) abortion. His primary goal is to show that Catholic Church’s positions on these issues are intellectually defensible; he therefore attempts to answer criticism of the Catholic positions with arguments based on reason rather than the Bible or divine revelation. Professor George also examines the American legal tradition, especially pondering what role natural law theory should (or shouldn’t) play in judicial decisionmaking.
First of all, I should note that this book is primarily a collection of essays and articles that have already been published elsewhere, so there is no single overarching argument or thesis. Additionally, George doesn’t spend a lot of time arguing the intellectual merits of specific Catholic teachings; many of his claims “on the merits” are followed by an endnote saying he has argued the matter more fully elsewhere. Therefore, this would not be a good book for someone hoping to engage with the reason-based arguments for specific Catholic moral teachings. Rather, the book is really about what changes legitimately can (or should) be made in the U.S., if the Catholic Church is correct on these issues. I found George’s comments regarding American law and public policy to be very thought-provoking, and the book as a whole is presented in a scholarly way. However, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who doesn’t already have a background in law, philosophy, theology, ethics, or another similar field.