Order this video series and related material through the Center for Life Principles.

Description

Fr. Spitzer has captivated audiences across the globe with his unique approach to human happiness and his authentic, delightful style. Captured here in eight half-hour units, Fr. Spitzer weaves his teaching on human dignity into a philosophy for the pro-life movement that will change the way you see the life issues forever.

Simply explained, and masterfully delivered, the Life Principles Video Series educates people of all backgrounds and beliefs in the elements necessary for creating a culture of life. Excellent for adult and young adult audiences, this foundational series can be viewed at home for private study or presented in public settings such as classroom, church, or organizational meetings.

Contents

UNIT 1: Defining Personhood - Part I
    31 mins.
The importance of objective definitions, a system for defining reality, and a comprehensive definition of the human person.

UNIT 2: Defining Personhood - Part II
    39 mins.
A model of the "four levels of happiness" and their affect on the way we view everything from suffering to personhood and rights.

UNIT 3: Happiness - Five Fundamental Attitudes
    45 mins.
The crisis of Happiness 2, and the differences between seeking only Happiness levels 1/2 and living for Happiness levels 3/4.

UNIT 4: Happiness, Ethics, and Freedom
    29 mins.
Moving through the levels of happiness. How one's perception of happiness affects one's perception of ethics and freedom.

UNIT 5: Rights and the Common Good
    35 mins.
An objective definition of human rights and a method for resolving rights conflicts.

UNIT 6: What Makes a Culture Healthy
    23 mins.
Steps for making the culture healthy, and principles for resolving rights conflicts in situations of uncertainty.

UNIT 7: The Abortion Issue
    27 mins.

UNIT 8: The Euthanasia Issue
    44 mins.
The individual and cultural harms of abortion and euthanasia, with real solutions using material from previous units.

Conclusion - Teaching the Life Principles
    70 mins.

Camille De Blasi concludes the series with techniques for teaching the Life Principles in various settings. Included is a half hour excerpt from a presentation on the definition of personhood to a class of middle school students, and a half hour excerpt from a lecture on rights to adults.

For a more thorough summary of Healing the Culture and The Life Principles program, please click here.

Reviews

"An excellent resource for examining the life issues in their broadest and most profound context."
  -- Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago

"Every great once in a while, a book comes along that pulls together a multitude of perplexing questions and presents them in a form readily understandable to the general reader. Healing the Culture is such a book."
  -- Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, Editor, First Things

"Professor Spitzer returns us to the fundamental questions: What is happiness, what is love, what constitutes the good life, and who counts as a person. He elegantly demonstrates how our answers to these questions determine who we are and how we live. His book is powerful and much needed for an ailing society."
  -- Patricia Wesley, M.D., Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine

"Fr. Spitzer is an astute diagnostician of our troubled times, and an adept healer. But the source of these two abilities is his gift as a teacher. Indeed, he is a virtuoso teacher and has brilliantly outlined, for the docile reader, an artfully conceived path that leads the authentic person through knowledge, love, sacrifice, social consciousness, and a practical awareness of what it truly means to be pro-life, to fulfillment and beatitude. He provides the vital ethos, logos, and pathos that is largely missing in our "culture of choice" that so often chooses both unwittingly and unwisely."
  -- Dr. Donald DeMarco, Professor of Philosophy, St. Jerome's University; Waterloo, Ontario

"Our 'culture of death' cannot make anyone really happy. Why is this so? Because, as Fr. Spitzer explains, our 'metaphysical materialism' denies intangibles such as "love, justice and rights.' Fr. Spitzer tells why 'we must accord personhood, unconditional dignity, and inalienable rights to all beings of human origin.' Drawing on his expertise in philosophy and psychology, he goes on to show, in many practical ways, how we can transcend 'ego-centric materialism.' We can fully live the culture of life only if we seek a happiness which 'involves giving up to God.' Fr. Spitzer shows, with examples, how 'Thy will be done' is a prescription for happiness. It works. Fr. Spitzer is an academic. But, thank God, he does not write like one. This important and readable book is one you will underline and keep handy for frequent reference. We should all read it."
  -- Charles Rice, Professor of Law, Notre Dame Law School, Indiana

"In Father Bob Spitzer we meet a man of uncommon common sense married to acute intelligence and extensive pastoral experience. Healing the Culture shows us how to escape the lethal cul-de-sac of 'I did it my way' and get back onto the path of doing it the right way - which is the road to happiness and excellence."
  -- George Weigel, Senior Fellow, Ethics and Public Policy Center, author of Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II