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Products>Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education

Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education

Publisher:
, 2025
ISBN: 9781514011317
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Overview

What is the purpose and meaning of classical education?

Imagine a world where education isn’t just about information transfer but about shaping the soul, where students are nurtured to become virtuous, morally self-regulating citizens. Passing the Torch makes an energetic case for the critical role of classical Christian education in today’s world. From the pre-Christian musings of Plato to the modern reflections of C. S. Lewis, Passing the Torch intertwines the wisdom of diverse epochs to argue for an educational renaissance grounded in classical Christian values.

Passing the Torch takes educators and parents on a literary and philosophical pilgrimage that includes:

  • Bibliographic Essays: Each essay serves as a gateway to key texts and influential thinkers, making it an invaluable guide for educators and homeschooling parents alike.
  • Close Readings: Delve into thoughtful examinations of pivotal figures such as Augustine, Rousseau, and Dorothy Sayers offering an intimate understanding of the moral and educational imperatives they championed.
  • Passionate Advocacy: Passing the Torch ignites a fervor for the value and necessity of classical Christian education that is both infectious and inspiring.

In an era where educational paradigms often prioritize technological proficiency over moral formation, Passing the Torch is a call to return to the roots of classical Christian education.

"Reflecting on the writings of literary and philosophical giants from Plato and Augustine to C.S. Lewis and Dorothy Sayers, Markos makes a strong case for the benefits of classical education over the modern public education system." – Library Journal Review, April 2025

Preface
Introduction: The Nature of Man

Part 1: The Nature of Education
1. Liberal Arts Versus Vocational
2. Canonical Versus Ideological
3. Books Versus Textbooks
4. History Versus Social Studies
5. Humanities Versus Social Sciences
6. Goodness, Truth, and Beauty Versus Relativism
7. Virtues Versus Values

Part 2: The Nature of the Debate
8. Plato’s Republic: The Educational Journey of the Philosopher-King
9. Augustine’s De Doctrina Christiana: Learning to Think Rightly
10. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Emile: The Pedagogical Implications of Denying Original Sin
11. John Dewey’s Democracy and Education: The Birth of Progressive-Pragmatic Education
12. C. S. Lewis’s The Abolition of Man: Building Students’ Chests
13. Dorothy Sayers and Charlotte Mason: How Best to Train the Young
14. Mortimer Adler, E. D. Hirsch, and Neil Postman: How to Educate Americans

Conclusion: From a Philosophy of Life to a Theory of Education
Bibliographical Essay
Appendix
Scripture Index

"Dr. Markos’ ability to refine complex ideas into coherent and actionable expressions astonishes me. In this treatise, he shows some of the main differences between a Christian classical education and a progressive-pragmatic education. The people he discusses are representative figures for the various views and practices. The issues he addresses lie at the heart of the debate—and the answers we apply to those issues will determine our future. This book provides a valuable contribution to one of the most important deliberations our non-deliberative age needs to discuss."

"This book is a staggering achievement. Written by the foremost contemporary authority on the intersection of classicism and Christianity, this triumph of scholarship encompasses the best that has been thought and said about education and virtue in the entire Western tradition from Aristotle through C. S. Lewis. This book is a complete sourcebook for thinking Christianly about education today."

"Modern education is in crisis, and Louis Markos shows us why. More to the point and more importantly, he shows us how to overcome the crisis facing modern education through the rediscovery of ancient wisdom and the rejection of the bad ideas which have had such bad consequences. The crisis in education is a challenge, and Louis Markos rises to the challenge and shows us how to do the same."

"In Passing the Torch, Louis Markos brings to the issue of classical education what he brings to everything else: scholarly wisdom, a broad knowledge of the subject, and just plain common sense. Classical Christian education has grown into a national movement despite the fact that many of those involved in growing it were not entirely certain of what it was they were trying to rediscover. Fortunately, a new generation of Christian classicists have arisen to tell them, and Markos may be the best of them. He has retrieved from the sands of time the ancient scrolls of learning, blown off the dust of neglect from the scholarly relics, and returned them to the light of our attention. Passing the Torch is one of the best articulations yet of the importance of passing on the culture of the Christian West to a new generation."

  • Title: Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education
  • Author: Louis Markos
  • Publisher: IVP Academic
  • Print Publication Date: 2025
  • Logos Release Date: 2024
  • Pages: 240
  • Language: English
  • Resources: 1
  • Format: Digital › Ebook
  • ISBNs: 9781514011317, 9781514011300, 1514011301, 151401131X
  • Resource ID: LLS:9781514011317
  • Resource Type: Monograph
  • Metadata Last Updated: 2025-05-07T01:50:27Z
Louis Markos

Louis Markos (PhD, University of Michigan) is professor in English and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University, where he holds the Robert H. Ray Chair in Humanities. His 27 books include The Myth Made Fact; From Plato to Christ; From Achilles to Christ; Ancient Voices: An Insider’s Look at Classical Greece; Heaven and Hell; Apologetics for the 21st Century; Atheism on Trial; and Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education. He has published over 300 essays and given over 300 public lectures. He is committed to the concept of the professor as public educator. He has two grown children and lives in Houston, Texas.

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  1. Patrick

    Patrick

    5/14/2025

    Starting in 1934, Werner Jaeger began his work on the three-volume series on the establishment of Greek culture and through the education developing the citizenship and character of the Greek person - his or her Paideia. Martin Cothran, of Memoria Press, described it as one of the best works of classical education you could find (paraphrased). I've just started reading it and I came upon Markos' book that presents a more direct linking of Paideia and classical education. On the subject of what is classical education, its importance, and the tracing of the history of not just classical education but also modern-western, secular education history and debate; Markos does a phenomenal just in 240 pages. In the first part of the book, Markos defines the terms and gives the basis for the classical education model. Again, borrowing from Jaeger's Paideia he contrasts the classical with the modern, secular style. While making the distinctions clear, Markos focuses on the benefits of items like liberal arts vs vocational, a Western canon vs ideological texts, books vs textbooks, history vs. social studies, and humanities vs. social sciences. What doesn't get lost is the focus on the classical model and this shows the quality of writer Markos is. Whereas one could mention all sorts of major shortfalls of the modern western system and decry the communistic progressive takeover and agenda pushing, Markos focuses more on what the classical model offers and uses the contrasting model in contention as a short touchpoint. Markos isn't writing for the Twitter crowd but using the rhetoric to communicate the beauty of the classical method while also showing the benefits in all areas of life. If all you gave someone was this first half of the book to have a really good explanation and starting point for classical education this book would be worth it. Then you get the second half of the book, which traces the history of Western education from Plato to Augustine and then makes a sharp leftist hand turn as Rousseau and Dewey. I do have to say that I was slightly in awe of Markos not only not calling both these men villains of the highest order of the second millennia but actually had areas of praise to deliver out where appropriate. Finally the discussion of people like C.S. Lewis, Dorthy Sayers, Charolotte Mason, Mortimer Adler, and Doug Wilson (among others) in pushing forward the modern-day resurgence of Western classical education. Again, I was impressed at the balanced attitude towards Sayers and Mason and I think both sides of that internal conversation will walk away happy (or at least equally both unhappy). I really appreciated this book and Markos' work. I almost feel bad now having to reader Jaeger's book on the subject but this probably will provide a great foundation for getting more into the weeds of Paideia. A small critique I would have is that the two parts of the book do seem very much like two parts. I would have enjoyed a few more tie-ins directly pointing back to direct parts of the previous section of the book. This is not to say they are discarded or you're lost in the ideas of where they happen, but I do think the knitting together could have happened just a bit closer. This will be a resource for those wanting to know more about classical education, firming up the foundational thoughts of classical education, or a tool to give to a homeschool parent looking at what direction to take. Final Grade - A
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