Call to Virtue : Republics of Character from Rome to 1776

The American republic was the Enlightenment’s greatest experiment, an attempt to institutionalize virtuous character as never done before. Call to Virtue explains the role of character as the driving force behind the rise and fall of empires, the well-being of citizens’ lives, and the structure of governments and their constitutions. It draws a line between the definitions of virtue from ancient times to the motivating force behind our nation’s founding. The book surveys 3,000 years of Western civilization and uses the voices of history’s greatest participants to create a narrative describing character’s pivotal role throughout history. It describes how definitions of character were an integral part of philosophy, government, and religion from ancient Greece and Rome to the European Enlightenment—and underpin the colonial spirit of America's founding. The American republic was the Enlightenments greatest experiment, a bold attempt to institutionalize virtuous character as never done before. Call to Virtue explains the role of character as the driving force behind the rise and fall of empires, the well-being of citizens lives, and the structure of governments and their constitutions. It draws a direct line between the definitions of virtue from ancient times to the motivating force behind our nations founding. The book surveys 3,000 years of Western civilization and uses the voices of historys greatest participants to create a narrative describing characters pivotal role throughout history. Indeed, until the nineteenth century, character was studied with the same degree of rigor and discipline as mathematics and science. Definitions of character were an integral part of philosophy, government, and religion from ancient Greece and Rome to the European Enlightenmentand underpin the colonial spirit of 1776. It is my hope that such a perspective influences contemporary conversations about politics, culture, and a life well lived. If there is one takeaway for the reader, it is to appreciate the importance of viewing lifes big questions through the prism of character and using classical virtue as a divining tool of enduring value.