An Essay Toward the Other

An Essay toward the Other considers the three fundamental verities of the human experience-the True, the Good, and the Beautiful-and presents three arguments, one from the domain of each verity, in support of theism and in opposition to materialism.

• The True is the way things are.
  
• The Good is that which contributes to the happiness of the individual and the group.
  
• The Beautiful is an indefinable quality that evokes a pleasing and enjoyable inner experience.

The verities derive from a Divine source and point toward that Divine source, thus the opening sentence, "From the One, three; from the three, One." While the verities are part of the human experience, their source and their vision transcend our realm. They are of God.

The author accepts the classical view that all human intention, however flawed and misguided, looks to a final good. That final good we call happiness, and insofar as our aims and ways are shaped and guided by the True, the Good, and the Beautiful, we are drawn toward happiness.