Nearly a decade ago, I had the privilege of attending a lecture by Pope Benedict, “The Roots of European Culture.” He developed his theme through a discussion of medieval monasticism. The elite of the Parisian intelligentsia was in attendance, and their bewilderment was obvious. What was the pope driving at? What was the upshot of this meditation on monkish life in the Middle Ages, a walk of life not at all like our own, and one which belongs to a historical era that has been, for many, happily left far behind? I must confess that I was a little perplexed, as well, though perhaps for different reasons. For Pope Benedict brought forward a paradox. European culture undoubtedly owes a great deal to Christianity, but Christianity does not require European culture, as a culture, to be built with Christian materials. This does not reflect a weakness or defect in Christianity. It is a consequence of Christianity’s genius.
To understand this paradox, we need to make an initial distinction. Culture can be defined in two ways. The first provides answers to the basic questions of mankind: Whom shall I marry? What shall I eat, and how shall I cook my meals? How shall I behave within my social and natural surroundings? Whom shall I worship? In each case, a culture distinguishes a right and a wrong way to act. Thou shalt marry a person belonging to this group and not the other. Thou shalt eat this food and not that disgusting filth. Thou shalt worship this god of our fathers and not foreign idols, and so forth.
“Culture” in this sense is hardly common usage. Only anthropologists talk this way. By and large, we use the word “culture” in a more restricted sense to refer to art, religion, philosophy, and science. Let us call this “high culture,” the elevated elements of life, activities and artifacts that go beyond the nitty-gritty. Aristotle makes this point when he discusses philosophical pursuits. He observes that such endeavors arise only after basic needs have been met by various mundane arts. The philosopher can search for final causes after someone has taken good care to make sure the pantry is stocked. Put simply, “high culture” requires a leisure class or, one might say more precisely, a superfluous class of people that is not engaged in the necessary work of maintaining the material basis for society. Aristotle gives as an example the priests in Egypt. They had nothing very much to do, apart, of course, from the ritual deeds that were their job.