Natural Law and Integral Humanism by J. Maritain: Teaching Challenges

The article examines (based on an analysis of texts of an important French thinker) the concept of natural law and humanism in order to off er inspiration to today’s formation of man. This is an analysis of Maritain’s work, especially in the fi eld of political philosophy (Integral Humanism and the Crisis of Modern Times, Christianity and Democracy, Man and the State, The Peasant of the Garonne: An Old Layman Questions himself about the Present Time), philosophy of education (Education at the Crossroads, Philosophy and Education, Education and the Humanities, Moral and Spiritual Values in Education, The Crucial Problem of the Education of the Human Being, Pour une philosophie de l’éducation), and religious philosophy (The Range of Reason, Religion and Culture). A concrete example of the Human Rights Teaching Programme shows that Maritain’s philosophy of education and his stimuli for education can be inspiring for current teachers and other workers in the helping professions who aspire to cultivate humanity, and not only for them. Jacques Maritain considered education to be an art, that is, an activity that is not an animal’s training. The main goal of education, according to Maritain, is to bring man towards freedom through knowledge and wisdom, good will and love. The author of the paper questions the possible deeper theoretical foundations of integration in education, the role of the Christian-educator in contemporary society, and the possibilities and limits of human rights education. Based on the humanistic tradition (in the case of Maritain’s work, it is inspired mainly by the work of Thomas Aquinas) and selected current educational documents, the presented text off ers concrete examples of good practice and suggestions for social educators, educators, teachers, or parents, that is, for those who are involved in the process of education.


Introduction
What is the role of the Christian-educator in the world? Can the ideas of humanism be fruitful nowadays? What is the theoretical source of today's overused term 'integration'? What kind of view of the person stands behind the eff ort to integrate in schools, that is, where to take inspiration for a strong personal justifi cation of a positive attitude towards school integration? Are we trying to fulfi l the 'natural rights' of man by integration? How specifi cally can a contemporary teacher contribute to the development of a society that respects human rights as one of its core values? How deeply can contemporary education draw inspiration from the work of the thinker who created specifi c ideas for the education he personally saw in crisis -but more than half a century ago? Th e following text builds on these and other related issues seeking to show how these questions can be answered in the context of the work of an author who contributed to the formulation and interpretation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1 -a philosopher, educator, diplomat, and inspirer during the establishment of papal documents on social questions, 2 Jacques Maritain. Jacques Maritain centres bring a deeper view of Maritain's life and work, currently being mainly the Center at Notre Dame University in Indiana, US. 3 Maritain's main ideas for education were published for the fi rst time on the basis of lectures given by Maritain during World War II at Yale University within the Terry Lectures; they were published in the same year in which the lectures took place, in 1943, and were titled Education at the Crossroads (and by 1957 there had been nine editions). In the framework of the Jacques and Raïssa's Maritain work collection (published in French), texts about education were published in the seventh volume under the title Pour une philosophie de l' education. Th e four chapters originally included in Education at the Crossroads were extended by three more chapters -Maritain's texts about education which also emphasise not only the US but also the French educational and formational environment. So far, only the basic works of Maritain have been published in Czech. Th e fi rst (published in 1931) was the publication Vybrané stati fi losofi cké (selected philosophical articles, published in English as Introduction to Philosophy), two years later Umění a scholastika ( Man) has not been published yet. 5 Meanwhile, those who are interested in Maritain's philosophy of education in the Czech language can fi nd relevant information, in particular, in the third part of the fi ft h chapter of the book Man and the State, which is devoted to formation to support the democratic charter. More generally on the topic of Christians' responsibility in society, one can fi nd inspiration in Integral Humanism. Maritain's Proceedings (prepared by the Christian Academy in Rome) are now available online in electronic form. Th e fi rst translated text in those proceedings regards what one needs in order to live a renewed, heroic Christian life -to live the life of a Christian turned towards Christ's Cross and God's grace. Th ere is presented a treatise on the means of self-formation towards integral humanity. In the history of Czech pedagogical thinking, J. Maritain is mentioned only sporadically, which is probably due to the fact that understanding Maritain's concept of education requires at least a basic understanding of Christianity, the biblical concept of man, the meaning of Christ's sacrifi ce and God's mercy, or the understanding of the theory of human rights in its roots, long before the time of the Enlightenment. Th erefore, if the educator should benefi t from Jacques Maritain's work on the philosophy of education, I think it is important to outline at least briefl y the basic concept of natural law, the core of human rights theory, in the work of Jacques Maritain.

J. Maritain on Natural Law
Th e idea of natural law is the inheritance of classical, ancient thinking. According to Maritain, Antigone is the eternal heroine of natural law, of an unwritten law. Th e ancient Greek playwright Sophocles is for Maritain the fi rst among the personalities who have embraced the idea of natural law and thus one must start with him. Besides the great poets, Maritain mentions the great ethicists of ancient times, the Stoics, Cicero, the Apostle Paul, the Church Fathers, Augustine, Th omas Aquinas, Francisco de Vitoria, Suarez, Hugo Grotius, pointing out that later in 18th century philosophy the idea of natural law was more or less deformed. Maritain certainly opposes the widespread view that natural law is the invention of the American or French Revolution. 6 Th e idea of natural law is based on the belief that there is human nature that is the same in all people. Such nature includes the idea that man is gift ed with rational and intellectual insight, which leads one to an awareness of his behaviour or activity, and hence to the power by which one can infl uence one's own actions and pursue one's own goals. Maritain oft en recalls the ancient philosophical idea that the goal of man is to be a seer. 7 Th anks to human nature, there is an arrangement (internal order) or disposition that human reason can discover, and according to which the human will then has to act in order to be able to adapt itself to the desired goals of the human being. Unwritten law, or natural law, is precisely this internal disposition which can be understood and seen by rational and intellectual insight, the mind. 8 Natural law and knowledge of natural law is not the same. A person who has not yet been able to know this law (or because of an ailment no longer has the opportunity to know this law) is not accountable to the law -and, on the contrary, since the law is accessible to him, through rational insight, he is legally responsible even if he does not assign himself to it. Th e idea of natural law derives from this (unwritten and never completely written or recorded) natural law. And any human being (even one who does not have knowledge of natural law) has the natural right to protect his human nature. Th is law is 'inscribed in one's heart' truthfully and deeply (it is diffi cult to look into one's own 'heart' and impossible for one to look into the heart of another). One only knows natural law to a certain degree as it is impossible to 'rewrite' it from one's 'heart' to one's 'head' -Pietists have also used these metaphors to express their view saying that dynamism (which is more connected with one's will, that is, with the 'heart') is a greater depth, the very essence of the human being. Th erefore, it was their aim to move Christianity (the way of life coming from Christ's teaching) 'from one's head to one's heart' . 9 Growth of natural law is associated with the development of moral consciousness -Maritain favoured the research done by Jean Piaget very much, and even today's educators can be given the recommendation to familiarise themselves with the results of Piaget's students' research. 10 If Maritain speaks of culture as the intellectual development of a human being in all his completeness, 11 the recognition of natural law is considered to be the cultivation, or enculturing of the person. Eff orts of human spirit and freedom are joining the potential of nature. In this sense, culture is natural to man. 12 'Man, natural completely and earnestly, is not a raw existence, nor a fallow land, but a man of virtue, a human ground educated by common sense, a man created by an inner culture of intellectual and moral virtues. Only such a person has consistency, he is a personality. ' 13 In this way Jacques Maritain expresses his characteristics of man in relation to his nature -and in such matter, he is a disciple of Aristotle, 14 and also Th omas Aquinas. 15 Jacques Maritain realised that people of diff erent faiths, diff erent traditions of thought would not be able to agree on the reason why fundamental human rights should apply. He had the hope, however, that people from diff erent cultures would be able to agree on the basic defi nition of human rights, that is, that they would be able to agree with the order of fundamental values, with the practical concept of man and life, with the 'philosophy of life' that would be a practical manifestation of civilised living. 16 In the summer of 1948, he himself was aware of the fact that it was necessary to start with the necessary changes worldwide. 17 He personally off ered inspiration, for example, through his concept of integral humanism and his philosophy of education.

Integral, Christian Humanism
Under the title Integral Humanism lectures were published by Jacques Maritain which were held at the Santander Summer University in 1934. 18 What Jacques Maritain off ers as a way out of the (in his time) contemporary crisis 19 is a new concept of humanism that would be theocentric, Christian, heroic, progressive, integral, complete, humanism of incarnation. 20 Education, at a time when Christian civilization can no longer be naïve, 21 should (in the spirit of this new humanism 22 ) lead to the freedom of human beings, to the freedom of man 23 as an individuality and as a person. Th e individuality is (in Maritain's view) understood as a physical basis for a person. According to Maritain, contemporary education is mistaken specifi cally in the perspective of man and in the development of his individual and personality character. 24 According to Maritain, integral humanism will require radical changes in culture, even substantive changes: And this transformation requires not only the establishment of new social structures and the new system of social life rising aft er capitalism, but also an increase of forces of faith, understanding and love, coming from the inner springs of the soul. It requires progress in discovering the world of spiritual facts. Only under this condition will one really be able to advance further into the depths of his nature without having to change or deform it. 25 Here is an essential view of the nature of man, which is the basis of the whole concept of Maritain's integral humanism. Maritain believes that, through self-cultivation and with the help of appropriate education, 26 one can descend into these essential depths of his own nature, to the inner springs of the soul. Jacques Maritain, by his works on the need for a new concept of humanism as an integral humanism, has also contributed to the development of the social teaching of the Church. Th e encyclical letter Caritas in veritate (Charity in Truth) which has the subtitle On Integral Human Development in Charity and Truth and concerns the social teaching of the Church has already been dealt with on the pages of this magazine (note: Caritas et veritas). 27 Th is pope had already written about Christian humanism in the 1960s. 28 Pope Francis used the term 'integral' directly in connection with ecology, and indirectly also with humanism. 29 He also expresses, in his encyclical letter Laudato si', the need for ecological education that will contribute to the integral conversion of the human person and thus cultivate all human relationships. 30 Jacques Maritain combined the term integral with the term advanced 31 in the sense (as previously indicated) of personal growth towards profound spiritual resources in which one recognises the Truth, a believer sees his Creator and his principle of love, mercy, understanding, acceptance. It can be said that Maritain interprets the biblical concept of man and his task in such a way. Th e principle of humanity was seen in loving aff ection also by John Amos Comenius who (three centuries earlier and also at a time of social crisis) had worked on expressing the basis of humanity. 32 Maritain proposes (as the way out of the crisis) a formation leading to the transformation of man which would actually be a reversal to the springs of the spirit and, at the same time, would be a strengthening and nourishing of the spiritual life. Such a transformation would also aff ect social institutions. 33 He thinks about integral upbringing for integral humanism. 34 He personally collaborated on major projects of his time which he considered to be hopeful in the spirit of this integral humanism; he participated, for example, in the formulation (and also the interpretation) of the

Suggestions for Teaching Human Rights Topics
Contributing to the fulfi lment of human rights is one of the main goals of education, as represented by Education 2030, 36 the strategical documents. Also, the approaches to education are still not fair and, according to the current data, this goal is still impossible to reach worldwide. 37 Th e largest international organisations dealing with education focus not only on monitoring the current state of aff airs, 38 but also on defi ning common values in the fi eld of education. 39 In addition to appealing to the governments of the responsible countries, they off er support to individual states for quality education. 40 Specifi cally, for human rights education, there are, for example, materials on global civic education issued by UNESCO 41 , or a human rights education and training website. 42 Th e United Nations has a world human rights education programme where its third phase is currently in progress. 43 For the purposes of human rights education, fi lms have been made. 44 Th e Council of Europe has published a charter for education in this area. 45 Also, the international conferences are held to promote good practice in human rights education. 46 New publications are published, 47 new exhibitions and up to date recommendations are presented. 48 Th e European Union has established an interdepartmental centre for excellence in human rights education (Th e European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation). 49

2018
A teacher or educator who wants to incorporate human rights issues into his educational and upbringing activities certainly does not have a lack of material. It is up to him to choose the best for the children, youth, or adults he is entrusted with. I think it is appropriate for him to think very well, for example, about the appropriate use of freely available didactic materials for human rights education. Th ere are Compasito 50 (for children) and Compass 51 (for older children and youth) and others are accessible. Specifi c examples of good practice in human rights education include syllabuses for non-confessional ethics elaborated at the European School (Schola Europaea). 52 By comparing syllabuses for education and training in the fi eld of ethics in primary and secondary education in the Federal Republic of Germany and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, it has become clear that pupils are led to the recognition and refl ection of human rights at an early age (that is, when they are eight years old). 53 For those who want to talk about human rights (as educators or teachers), it is true that they should have the human rights idea reasonably proven for themselves. As already stated, it seems that the consensus in human rights justifi cation among people of all cultures and traditions of thought cannot be found. Still, a teacher or educator who wants to make sure that human rights are truly understood by his students (that is, children or adults assigned to him) should be an example of a person who has gained a well-founded understanding of human rights. 54 Despite the fact that, during the educational process, for educators (according to Maritain) awareness of the goal is the key aspect and the methods are not of primary importance, it is necessary for every educator and teacher (who looks for ways to reach human rights understanding) not to stay with one or only a few methods. 55 When Jacques Maritain was considering the introduction of a democratic charter in schools, he wrote: 'Th e goal of school and the state is unity -unity in the joint adoption of the democratic charter. Although if one wants to reach this practical unity, there must be a healthy plurality in the means. If one wants the eff ective teaching of a democratic charter, the internal diff erentiation must fi nd its own place in the structure of the educational system. ' 56 Th erefore, even though the democratic school and the state should work together in the process of the adoption of the human rights ideas by their pupils and citizens, they should allow for a pluralist structure in their organisation: 'In my opinion, the plurality that seems to be desirable for public schools should not touch the study program. It should be present in different inspirations, and in their perspective, the joint program would be realized ... ' 57 Given the fact that human rights education and upbringing is about practice in the fi eld of ethics (that is, practical philosophy), it is appropriate to point out the various possibilities of how people fi nd understanding for the great, good, and beautiful values of life. 58 How the plurality of traditions and methods as part of human rights education is treated in the Federal Republic of Germany and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, I have shown elsewhere. 59 I only emphasise the fact that the variety of resources that pupils and students encounter in such a learning process can help them better understand the positive value of pluralism, diversity among people, peoples, cultures. It is precisely due to the fact that we are diff erent that we can learn something really new from each other. As Emmanuel Lévinas 60 reminds us, we should not be limited by ourselves. He was also, as was J. Maritain, a pupil of H. Bergson. On the other hand, according to Jacques Maritain's wife, Raïssa Maritain, there is one single fact that the educator or teacher should not forget to convey -the testimony that every human life is a gift which is loved, endowed with love, and designed for love. Th ere is the law, and a good value is a just law. Love, though, is above the law. If we, as educators, spoke only about justice, law, and rights, we would forget the core, the most important thing. Given the varied palette of Jacques Maritain's life activities and work, and given that his lifelong memories end with the text of his wife pointing out the importance of the testimony of God who is love, I consider Jacques Maritain's texts about education very inspiring for educators and teachers in the 21 st century. Th ese texts, in addition to the essential values of integral humanism, point out the great mistakes in education which were seen by Maritain more than half a century ago. Th e mistakes seen by him in the past are being repeated in the practice of education today, and it is not clear if these mistakes are made consciously -that is, if those who (according to Maritain's opinion) choose bad educational concepts 61 at least know the roots of the concepts, which concepts of man and humanity are natural for them, and with which values, attitudes, and concepts of life they really want to support a person. Jacques Maritain criticised seven concepts which I still consider to be survivors in today's state education. Just as human rights are an idea, Maritain's proposals for integral education leading to integral humanity remain an idea that perhaps only a few educators and teachers in the Czech Republic are trying to fulfi l. In a country that has been learning to live in freedom for more than thirty years, and whose institutions consider themselves to be democratic, we should no longer regard such issues as a 'consequence of the past regime' .

Conclusion
Jacques Maritain devoted a signifi cant part of his life to thinking about the basics of education. Apparently, he was trying to be a man who would react to contemporary social events and would try to positively infl uence them. In education, he saw an exceptional opportunity to contribute to the humanity of man. He worked very actively on this matter and in his actions he was not alone. His companion was his wife Raïssa (with whom he accepted baptism into the Catholic Church and tried to live the exemplary life of an active Christian in society). Th eir energy devoted to this work was also drawn from the treasures of metaphysics. Th ey devoted themselves to the studies of the work of Th omas Aquinas. Raïssa, for example, wrote a book for children about Th omas Aquinas. 62 Th ey were both convinced that it is now necessary to expand the narrow concept of man and, for that reason, they off ered diff erent possibilities in their written works (in both poetic and scholarly ones). When Jacques Maritain wrote the book 'Th e Peasant of the Garonne' immediately aft er the Second Vatican Council, he fi nished it with the text of his wife 'Th e True Face of God or Love and the Law' . Jacques and Raïssa Maritain thus end their work with the testimony of God who is love that stands above the law. Th e work is about the love that creates trust, the freedom of the spiritwithout love one is not free so love must be presented and lived by the educator if he really wants to raise a person towards his purpose. 63 Th e concept of natural law was refl ected by J. Maritain at a time when natural law theory was not in the viewfi nder of theoreticians, 64 even though its results were oft en used and promulgated in the legal environment of its time. It was the next period which came with a certain renaissance of natural law theory. In the same way, another of Maritain's concepts, 'integral humanism' is resurrected beyond the limits of purely professional circles in contemporary times. Several concrete examples of contemporary didactic materials for teaching human rights topics show that Maritain's hope put into the teaching of the democratic charter was encouraging, and the work of Jacques and Raïssa Maritain can still be inspiring, not just for current teachers and other workers in the helping professions. Let us wish for the educators' courage and power to penetrate the critical texts of Jacques Maritain, revealing the roots of the crisis in education and society.