John Krambuhl
@johnkrambuhl.bsky.social
EdD🍎| Metacognition, Spiritual Exercises, Institutional Analysis | Cor ad cor loquitur
If there was a Jedi council to discern and judge developments in Lonerganese, I would request an audience and make the case to replace “deciding” as the common 4th level cognitive descriptor with “enacting”. And if they didn’t like that I’d pivot to “praxis” which Lonergan himself uses at times.
January 29, 2026 at 1:18 PM
If there was a Jedi council to discern and judge developments in Lonerganese, I would request an audience and make the case to replace “deciding” as the common 4th level cognitive descriptor with “enacting”. And if they didn’t like that I’d pivot to “praxis” which Lonergan himself uses at times.
Toni Morrison as a model of personal value? And her novels as invitations for others to become so likewise?
“Personal value is the person in her self-transcendence, as loving and being loved, as originator of values in herself and in her milieu, as an inspiration to others to do likewise.”
“Personal value is the person in her self-transcendence, as loving and being loved, as originator of values in herself and in her milieu, as an inspiration to others to do likewise.”
She’s just so irreverent toward presumed roadblocks to the imagination. It’s wonderful. So much of our navigation of matters is, instead, about finding and defending the borders of our own belonging.
January 28, 2026 at 5:46 PM
Toni Morrison as a model of personal value? And her novels as invitations for others to become so likewise?
“Personal value is the person in her self-transcendence, as loving and being loved, as originator of values in herself and in her milieu, as an inspiration to others to do likewise.”
“Personal value is the person in her self-transcendence, as loving and being loved, as originator of values in herself and in her milieu, as an inspiration to others to do likewise.”
Reposted by John Krambuhl
My piece on Lonergan’s philosophy of history, “Things Will Get Better Before They Get Worse,” is live now in @commonweal.bsky.social
Both @gelliottmorris.com & @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org get shout outs in this one, btw. www.commonwealmagazine.org/heaps-jonath...
Both @gelliottmorris.com & @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org get shout outs in this one, btw. www.commonwealmagazine.org/heaps-jonath...
Things Will Get Better Before They Get Worse
For Bernard Lonergan, the drama of human history is—even right now, even in the United States—in the process of being redeemed by God through grace.
www.commonwealmagazine.org
January 28, 2026 at 4:22 PM
My piece on Lonergan’s philosophy of history, “Things Will Get Better Before They Get Worse,” is live now in @commonweal.bsky.social
Both @gelliottmorris.com & @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org get shout outs in this one, btw. www.commonwealmagazine.org/heaps-jonath...
Both @gelliottmorris.com & @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org get shout outs in this one, btw. www.commonwealmagazine.org/heaps-jonath...
Lonergan says: Theology sublates, orients, and authenticates all human life through study of the dynamic state of being in love unrestrictedly.👑 Philosophy is the basic and total science and as such mediates between theology ‘above,’ and the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences ‘below.’
I mean I love being queen of the sciences but the trivium and quadrivium are ghosts living in a forgotten closet in two universities, so every time I walk in with my crown and scepter, people find me arrogant. (adjusts crown) Me? Arrogant?
January 28, 2026 at 3:48 AM
Lonergan says: Theology sublates, orients, and authenticates all human life through study of the dynamic state of being in love unrestrictedly.👑 Philosophy is the basic and total science and as such mediates between theology ‘above,’ and the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences ‘below.’
Reposted by John Krambuhl
I find Gendlin’s “Focusing” approach helpful to guide this process: focusing.org/sixsteps
The Classic Six Steps | International Focusing Institute
focusing.org
January 27, 2026 at 12:42 PM
I find Gendlin’s “Focusing” approach helpful to guide this process: focusing.org/sixsteps
“[T]he possibility of progress reaches beyond the cognitive capabilities of human beings. The future remains unknown. Whatever resolution human beings are able to achieve turns on reflection and choice in the context of artisanship–artifact relationships… reflection and choice can only be done by
“The human mind is sensitive, closely bound up with emotions, and highly unstable. It needs anchoring… If the state becomes the ultimate anchor, practice of the art of manipulation leads to despotism…
January 26, 2026 at 5:41 PM
“[T]he possibility of progress reaches beyond the cognitive capabilities of human beings. The future remains unknown. Whatever resolution human beings are able to achieve turns on reflection and choice in the context of artisanship–artifact relationships… reflection and choice can only be done by
Reposted by John Krambuhl
I know people who went back to mass because of Lady Gaga.
January 25, 2026 at 10:36 PM
I know people who went back to mass because of Lady Gaga.
“What is poetry which does not save
Nations or people?”
- Czeslaw Milosz (Warsaw, 1945)
Nations or people?”
- Czeslaw Milosz (Warsaw, 1945)
January 24, 2026 at 10:39 PM
“What is poetry which does not save
Nations or people?”
- Czeslaw Milosz (Warsaw, 1945)
Nations or people?”
- Czeslaw Milosz (Warsaw, 1945)
Referencing Lonergan:
He said sometimes he wanted readers & students to be able to trust their own minds, and I think this is one of the signs of that trust: you can tolerate the process that leads to knowing even as you feel the tension of not-knowing-yet
January 19, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Referencing Lonergan:
Reposted by John Krambuhl
We seem to find it enormously difficult to say things like “I’m certain I don’t understand this completely, but I’d like to. I have both some questions, but also some hunches” and then just sit with that for as long as it takes.
January 19, 2026 at 3:33 PM
We seem to find it enormously difficult to say things like “I’m certain I don’t understand this completely, but I’d like to. I have both some questions, but also some hunches” and then just sit with that for as long as it takes.
The already and not yet of Christian fellowship; the love of God and others dramatically infused with dialectic. 💪❤️✝️
I my friends on here, that we’ve got a dynamic that involves “what about this angle?” and it’s energizing and interesting instead of rivalrous.
No it’s a fair question! It’s fair. I think the danger for me is simply that I think about this all the time. The bishop doesn’t. He’s got other stuff to do.
January 17, 2026 at 2:13 PM
The already and not yet of Christian fellowship; the love of God and others dramatically infused with dialectic. 💪❤️✝️
Reposted by John Krambuhl
🧵 I finished reading Karl Polanyi’s The Great Transformation (1944) & wanted to share some thoughts. It’s a history of how the attempt of a liberal economic utopia was countered by efforts to subsume the economy within democratic society. The tension between those led to 20th century fascism. 1/15
January 16, 2026 at 5:31 PM
🧵 I finished reading Karl Polanyi’s The Great Transformation (1944) & wanted to share some thoughts. It’s a history of how the attempt of a liberal economic utopia was countered by efforts to subsume the economy within democratic society. The tension between those led to 20th century fascism. 1/15
Reposted by John Krambuhl
Anyway, if you like these questions about how human action and divine action cooperate (or don’t), *and* you have a generous book buying budget, you might like my book, *The Ambiguity of Being: Lonergan & the Problems of the Supernatural” www.cuapress.org/978081323804...
The Ambiguity of Being - CUAPress
The debate in Catholic theology over the relationship between the natural and the supernatural has only occasionally engaged with Bernard Lonergan’s philos...
www.cuapress.org
January 16, 2026 at 1:51 AM
Anyway, if you like these questions about how human action and divine action cooperate (or don’t), *and* you have a generous book buying budget, you might like my book, *The Ambiguity of Being: Lonergan & the Problems of the Supernatural” www.cuapress.org/978081323804...
Reposted by John Krambuhl
Proposals are due tomorrow, Friday, January 16.
CFP:
The West Coast Methods Institute (WCMI) Annual Meeting
Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA. April 23-25, 2026
THEME:
The Idea of the University Today: Newman, Lonergan, & Higher Education
The West Coast Methods Institute (WCMI) Annual Meeting
Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA. April 23-25, 2026
THEME:
The Idea of the University Today: Newman, Lonergan, & Higher Education
January 15, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Proposals are due tomorrow, Friday, January 16.
This series “America at a Crossroads” on the PBS NewsHour is an excellent example of reporting which seeks mutual understanding through free inquiry and encounter (rather than fostering anger and division through manipulative and monetized news-as-entertainment)
www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...
www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...
January 11, 2026 at 2:48 PM
This series “America at a Crossroads” on the PBS NewsHour is an excellent example of reporting which seeks mutual understanding through free inquiry and encounter (rather than fostering anger and division through manipulative and monetized news-as-entertainment)
www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...
www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...
🍷🧀 Lonergan’s philosophy of history pairs nicely with the action of Balthasar's theodrama:
Decline- the pathos of the world stage
Redemption- acting from within God’s pathos
Progress- the battle of the logos
Decline- the pathos of the world stage
Redemption- acting from within God’s pathos
Progress- the battle of the logos
Theo-Drama 4 really is a lot of fun. I’d be willing to do some kind of Christmas break “course” on it if anyone wants. We can Zoom about it or something.
January 10, 2026 at 4:23 PM
🍷🧀 Lonergan’s philosophy of history pairs nicely with the action of Balthasar's theodrama:
Decline- the pathos of the world stage
Redemption- acting from within God’s pathos
Progress- the battle of the logos
Decline- the pathos of the world stage
Redemption- acting from within God’s pathos
Progress- the battle of the logos
Reposted by John Krambuhl
My forthcoming Commonweal piece addresses this in Lonergan’s terms. The shorter cycles of decline are shorter bc they create crises that grab our attention. But the longer cycle unfolds bc we let those crises monopolize our attention, making us just thoughtless enough not to address the deep issues.
I have seen a lot of people say “what’s the point?” of doing their academic work in particular, and I get that. It’s like grief: the inbox, the day to day, doesn’t reflect any of the feelings.
But, gosh, a part of me stubbornly thinks: they want us to never think, they want it so badly.
But, gosh, a part of me stubbornly thinks: they want us to never think, they want it so badly.
January 9, 2026 at 2:18 PM
My forthcoming Commonweal piece addresses this in Lonergan’s terms. The shorter cycles of decline are shorter bc they create crises that grab our attention. But the longer cycle unfolds bc we let those crises monopolize our attention, making us just thoughtless enough not to address the deep issues.
“The human mind is sensitive, closely bound up with emotions, and highly unstable. It needs anchoring… If the state becomes the ultimate anchor, practice of the art of manipulation leads to despotism…
January 9, 2026 at 2:30 AM
“The human mind is sensitive, closely bound up with emotions, and highly unstable. It needs anchoring… If the state becomes the ultimate anchor, practice of the art of manipulation leads to despotism…
“I said so little.
I couldn’t keep up.
My heart grew weary
From delight,
From despair,
From ardor,
From hope.”
- Czeslaw Milosz
I couldn’t keep up.
My heart grew weary
From delight,
From despair,
From ardor,
From hope.”
- Czeslaw Milosz
January 8, 2026 at 1:24 AM
“I said so little.
I couldn’t keep up.
My heart grew weary
From delight,
From despair,
From ardor,
From hope.”
- Czeslaw Milosz
I couldn’t keep up.
My heart grew weary
From delight,
From despair,
From ardor,
From hope.”
- Czeslaw Milosz
Great recommendation (thank you!), this book is theological reflection on the cross rooted in experience of the cross, and so simultaneously spiritual and intellectual witness to encountering Christ.
January 7, 2026 at 11:35 PM
Great recommendation (thank you!), this book is theological reflection on the cross rooted in experience of the cross, and so simultaneously spiritual and intellectual witness to encountering Christ.
"Displaced from what is familiar, put on unsafe ground, or even seemingly deprived of any ground at all, one faces the choice of falling down into the abyss that is God or succumbing to the abyss of despair. Trusting in God’s saving action enables one to give oneself away freely and to find hope…
"To be sure, Christianity is in this sense Utopian. But inasmuch as it knows God's promise...it is, as it were, a realistic Utopia. A hope into the void contains within itself a springboard, even where every direct crossover past the abyss of death remains absolutely invisible."
HUvB
HUvB
January 6, 2026 at 9:21 PM
"Displaced from what is familiar, put on unsafe ground, or even seemingly deprived of any ground at all, one faces the choice of falling down into the abyss that is God or succumbing to the abyss of despair. Trusting in God’s saving action enables one to give oneself away freely and to find hope…
I’ve been thinking about how to best frame Lonergan? It helps me to read him as 1) a phenomenologist studying the data of consciousness and understanding, 2) a complex systems scientist modeling human life and history, and 3) a Thomist theologian living out a vocation in the Ignatian charism.
A narrative tells a story about who did what. Insight among other things takes a look at how things fall apart, not whose fault it is.
So. Whatever the Radical Orthodoxy people are doing is one thing, and Lonergan barely even gives named examples.
So. Whatever the Radical Orthodoxy people are doing is one thing, and Lonergan barely even gives named examples.
Insight’s grand historical narrative is not a narrative. So. There’s that.
January 6, 2026 at 7:07 PM
I’ve been thinking about how to best frame Lonergan? It helps me to read him as 1) a phenomenologist studying the data of consciousness and understanding, 2) a complex systems scientist modeling human life and history, and 3) a Thomist theologian living out a vocation in the Ignatian charism.
“Of ourselves, we cannot reverse the aberrations of meaning and value. Evils cannot endow us with wisdom or goodness, and even the disposition for change they might trigger in us ‘is not without ambiguity, since whatever is received…
So I don’t really care if the atheism is up to date. Complete side problem. I care that we’re worried about the direction of a whole culture as if getting that in order will lead to proper Christian witness.
January 4, 2026 at 8:29 PM
“Of ourselves, we cannot reverse the aberrations of meaning and value. Evils cannot endow us with wisdom or goodness, and even the disposition for change they might trigger in us ‘is not without ambiguity, since whatever is received…
“I can put together a Thomistic metaphysic of history that will throw Hegel and Marx, despite the enormity of their influence on this very account, into the shade.“ – from a letter of January 22, 1935 by a young Bernard Lonergan to his Jesuit superior Fr. Keane
*Into the shade!*
*Into the shade!*
December 27, 2025 at 9:00 PM
“I can put together a Thomistic metaphysic of history that will throw Hegel and Marx, despite the enormity of their influence on this very account, into the shade.“ – from a letter of January 22, 1935 by a young Bernard Lonergan to his Jesuit superior Fr. Keane
*Into the shade!*
*Into the shade!*