Rev. Dr. John Trigilio, Jr.
Author and President, Confraternity of Catholic Clergy
EWTN Host

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It is graduation time and college students from the class of 2013 are assembling on campus greens everywhere to mark the occasion. It is a time of hope, joy and expectation as they enter the next phase of their lives. Yet beyond a climate of optimism that usually prevails, I cannot help but feel a bit afflicted as these students venture into the real world.

The reason for my affliction is that many of these graduates have yet to find what I would describe as their calling in life. In fact, a sizeable number began their college years without really knowing what they should study, constantly changing majors. And now many leave with a degree unsuited to the desires of their hearts.

It is not by chance that a number find unrelated jobs or return unemployed to live with their parents. I often meet or hear of students who have spent fortunes (often that of their parents) and incurred great debt at college. Many of these have secured degrees and even advanced degrees in a certain field yet want to do something else.

One such student graduated in business administration only to find himself selling insurance. What he really wants to be is a writer. Another person I know is trained to practice in some specialized medical field yet now works as a gourmet cook (and a very good one at that!). I know several young ladies who have put aside their degrees after only a few years to start a family. Another scrapped his degree and did the unthinkable – he followed in his father’s footsteps.

In these cases, there is a mismatch between the degrees these students obtain and the desires of their hearts that they later discover. They go to college because they are told everyone goes to college. As a result, so many of these young people make a $60,000 four-year detour in their lives before figuring out what they really desire. Yet more tragic are others that never find what they desire and enter into jobs for which they have no passion or liking.

I believe the reason for this mismatch lays in a culture that sets no limits on the individual. The bewildered high school student is told he can be anything yet is prepared to be nothing. He is overwhelmed by the vast array of choices to the point of indecision.

Adding to the dilemma, college freshmen are told they need not make decisions about their future right away. They can do whatever they please, and, as a result, the university often becomes an extension of childhood where the real decisions of life can be postponed… even until after graduation.

Missing from the lives of these students is the discernment of a calling. Childhood used to be a preparation for adult life. Already from an early age, children were encouraged to ponder the purpose of their lives and prepare themselves for their future by discerning their calling that would correspond to the desires of their hearts.

This calling was easily found in the gentle guidance of parents who noted talents and defects, capabilities and limitations and pointed their children in the right direction. The discerning child drew upon family traditions, occupations or reputation. The calling was also heard in the community and parish where representative characters served as models and mentors. In the silence of one’s leisure, each could subtly recollect oneself and perceive that unique calling. This discerning process produced inside each soul what Richard Weaver called “the formation of character, the perfection of style, the attainment of distinction in intellect and imagination.”

In my book, Return to Order: From Frenzied Economy to Organic Christian Society—Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go, there is a description of what I call an organic Christian society that once nurtured this notion of calling. In such a society, those approaching adulthood already had a general notion of who they were, and what they were to become.

In our times of broken homes and shattered communities, discerning one’s calling is challenging yet not impossible. It takes much more courage and daring to buck the tide and follow the desires of the heart whether it be a degree, a craft or art, or a family.

And so if I were to have a message for those in the class of 2013, it would be: Leave today’s noisy existential wilderness where you are taught that you have neither place nor purpose in life beyond that of arranging your own pleasure. Leave behind the modern din. Seek your God-given purpose in life. It is not too late to listen for and follow your calling.

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Spring Grove, PA – Fiscal cliffs, nagging unemployment and budget debates are urgent reminders that the American economy is in a precarious state, but these economic troubles can also be traced to a cultural problem residing in the soul of society and individuals rather than the balance sheet.

In his new book Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society–Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go [February 19, 2013], scholar John Horvat II compares the current United States economy and society to a ship on a never-ending cruise. The passengers indulge their appetites on spectacles, entertainment, games, gadgets and consumption that they come to see as entitlements.

What many Americans don’t realize is that as they engage in what Horvat sees as a restless personal and societal drive to consume and gratify—what he coins “frenetic intemperance”—they are unprepared to face a gathering financial storm on the horizon that threatens the whole American way of life.

Americans, writes Horvat, must address this overarching problem, this “restless spirit of intemperance that is constantly throwing our economy out of balance.” Their frenetic intemperance, spurred on by the ready-to-please modern economy, pushes society to throw off legitimate restraints and gratify disordered passions.

Horvat sees a way to face the coming storm. He proposes a return to an organic Christian order. This means abandoning what he calls the “Rule of Money,” which emphasizes risky speculation, irresponsible extension of credit and accumulation of monstrous debt. It involves adopting instead, a “Rule of Honor,” which holds in high regard leadership, integrity and excellence especially when embedded in Church, family and community.

Horvat claims frenetic intemperance has now become unsustainable, and Americans must take measures individually and as a society to weather the storm, which include:

1. Self-analysis: Have the courage to disengage from a culture of frenetic intemperance with its risky speculation, unbalanced consumerism, rushed schedules, and stress-filled lives.

2. Organic alternatives: Restore the human element back into economy by embracing duty, sense of place, the family spirit, a passion for justice and Christian charity.

3. Debate: Understand the gravity of the crisis, and engage in the debate over the nation’s future course.

4. Sacrifice: Put aside legitimate self-interest and rally around the refreshing principles of an organic Christian order that will restore health to both economy and society.

5. Spiritual remedy: Like the Prodigal Son, this involves a reawakening that leads to the renouncing of the errors of a warped culture, and a grand return home to the wellspring of those high ideals that inspired Christian civilization.

Amid the present chaos, gridlock and fiscal irresponsibility, Return to Order is much more than a book; it’s a vision to restore the American soul.

John Horvat II is a scholar, researcher, educator, international speaker, and author. He heads the Tradition, Family, and Property Commission on American Studies. His regular commentary appears at returntoorder.org.

To schedule an interview, please contact Kevin McVicker with Shirley & Banister Public Affairs at (703) 739-5920 or kmcvicker@sbpublicaffairs.com.

The post “Culture of Unrestraint”: The Real Cause of Economic Crisis appeared first on Return to Order.

Video #1

If there is an image that corresponds to the state of the nation, it would be that of a cruise ship on a never-ending cruise facing a gathering storm. On each of its multiple decks, there is every modern comfort and entertainment. The bands are playing, the theaters are full, the restaurants crowded, and the boutiques well stocked. No one seems concerned about the storm.

Video #2

After you watch both videos, post your comments below. Share the videos with family and friends. Please embed the video on blogs and websites.

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The Catholic Monthly Legatus has published a short review of Return to Order in its May 2013 issue.

The review reads:
The subtitle says it all: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society — Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go. In his penetrating analysis of contemporary society, author John Horvat focuses on our cultural and economic crises with insight and clarity.

The modern economy has become cold, impersonal, and out of balance, he writes. Gone are the human elements of honor and trust so essential to our daily lives. Society has discarded the natural restraining influence of the human institutions and values that should temper our economic activities.

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Since only two percent of all titles reach this critical milestone, York Press is proud to announce that 5,000 copies have been sold of its title Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society—Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go by John Horvat II. This milestone was reached in less than three months after the book’s release.

The book describes America’s need to return to an organic Christian society or Return to Order, as a solution for today’s socio-economic meltdown.

For more than two decades Mr. Horvat has been researching and writing about the socio-economic crisis inside the United States that has culminated in the ground-breaking release of his new book.

Recognized as one of the most important books on the subject to be published in the past ten years, Mr. Horvat describes the root cause of our economic crisis and what can now be done to put us back on course.

The book has received critical acclaim from political and religious leaders including former Attorney General of the United States, The Hon. Edwin Meese III who said Return to Order “sets forth valuable recommendations for restoring our society to its foundation of ordered liberty and traditional values.”

John Horvat II is a scholar, researcher, educator, international speaker, and author whose writings have appeared worldwide including in The Wall Street Journal, FOX News, The Christian Post, The Washington Times, ABC News, C-SPAN as well as other publications and websites.

Return to Order sells at www.ReturnToOrder.org, at major online booksellers, and in bookstores nationwide.

For author interviews please contact:

Mr. Alex Hinojosa at
EMSI Public Relations
3748 Turman Loop, Suite 101
Wesley Chapel, FL 33544

Toll Free:800-881-7342

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“I am so impressed at how deeply Return to Order plumbs the American soul, and with 36 years of experience in the financial industry, I do appreciate how much our collective journey as a nation interfaces with our economic cycles. Horvat’s fabulous analysis of our present crisis can and should be a most important instrument in reshaping the educational foundations of our youth, preparing them for leadership in the foremost country of the Western Hemisphere.”

—  David S. Miller
Senior Vice President, Operations Manager, US Bank

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This special two-minute video trailer is part of a campaign promoting the soon-to-be-released book, Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society–Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go by John Horvat II.

Watch the video to get a perspective of what the book is about. Share the video with family and friends. Embed this video on blogs and websites. Better yet, buy Return to Order TODAY.

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One of the big problems with modern economy is the constant attempt to take the human element out of the equation and speed up the process of trade. Speed and frenzied economic activity are aspects of modern economy that are justly criticized in the book Return to Order: From Frenzied Economy to Organic Christian Society—Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go. It leads to, what author John Horvat calls, frenetic intemperance — a desire to throw off all restraints and gratify disordered passions

One recent example of frenetic intemperance is a new system that is being implemented at some Wal-Mart stores called “Scan & Go.” Customers are encouraged to scan the bar codes of the items they wish to buy on their iPhones and then bag the items already placed in their cart. When arriving at the self-checkout lane, they hold up their phone which transmits a list of the items purchased and negotiates a payment. Other retailers are trying similar systems such as one where a person can pay from anywhere in the store. It should also be mentioned that some have abandoned these schemes because it makes shoplifting much easier.

Someone might object that such measures are merely done to increase efficiency and make shopping less annoying. However, there is a strong tendency toward intemperance in these schemes since it feeds the idea of instant gratification and promotes the idea that not even the buying process should have any restraint or reflection. Moreover, the human element is eliminated by these measures. The rushed consumer now “saves time” by doing everything himself. He puts himself at the service of the retailer by quickly performing all the functions that once fell to employees.

Temperance is the virtue whereby man governs and moderates his natural appetites and passions in accordance with the norms prescribed by reason, and when it is weakened by one thing, it is weakened for everything. Buying and selling should thus be a calm and reasoned process, not a “scan and go” shopping spree that favors today’s age of instant gratification. When frenetic elements enter into an economy, the resulting intemperance introduces imbalance and turbulence that rock markets and lead to economic turmoil.

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EWTN just called and said Mr. Horvat’s interview tonight at 8PM EST had to be rescheduled due to technical troubles.

Author John Horvat will be rescheduled for another day with EWTN’s The World Over with Raymond Arroyo.

Sorry about the change.

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