ABSTRACT

The liberal arts form the central educational tradition of Western civilisation. Over the centuries, scholars patronised by popes and secular courts, those active in the monastic tradition of Benedict of Nursia and later in the universities, helped to preserve and gradually re-establish this system of education at the heart of Christendom. John Henry Newman wrote in The Idea of a University that by participating in a liberal arts education, 'a habit of mind is formed which lasts through life, of which the attributes are freedom, equitableness, calmness, moderation, and wisdom'. Liberal arts education should not neglect the Christian and classical tradition, which is still very much present throughout the fabric of the West. Education is often lacking in quality, and universities today increasingly seem to see their sole mission as the production of small cogs in the gears of global capitalism and consumerism.