Philippine E-Journals

Santiago Sia. Society in its Challenges: Philosophical Considerations of Living in Society

Brendan Sweetman

 

Abstract:

This volume brings together Filipino-born and Irish-based scholar Santiago Sia’s writings over a number of years on the nature of the human person, ethics and culture to produce a book-length study of the general topic of ethical living in society. The result is a stimulating set of reflections on a vital topic for our times, since contemporary society in many parts of the world is often thought to be facing something of a crisis of ethical values, not only in the area of individual behavior and personal morality, but also with regard to modern living more broadly, such as in business, politics, and law. Sia brings his considerable philosophical ability and wisdom over a lifetime of studying these matters, in the company of several major philosophers, to offer us a penetrating set of insights on various dimensions of the ethical problems we face today. His work in this volume is inspired and informed by the thought of process philosophers Alfred North Whitehead and Charles Hartshorne, as well as traditional thinkers as diverse as Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, Confucius and Mencius, along with other inspirational figures from whom we have much to learn, such as Martin Buber. In this way, the book is a treasure trove of ancient and modern wisdom, as well as a measured, but insightful set of reflections on the crisis of ethics in contemporary society that has contributed so much to the disturbing levels of cynicism, desperation, dysfunction, economic hardship and alienation among the general public.