Reflective Commentary (2025) This essay examines the layered meeting point of pagan and Christian traditions in Renaissance Florence, using the transformation of the Temple of Mars into the city's Baptistry as a symbol of wider cultural and theological interplay. My intent is not only to recount historical transitions
by Shawn D. Mathis
Author’s Note: This article forms part of an ongoing reading of Immanuel Kant’s Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, considered in relation to questions of institutional life, leadership, and governance. These reflections inform a broader body of work at the intersection of philosophical foundations and practical institutional responsibility.
Author’s Note: This article forms part of an ongoing reading of Immanuel Kant’s philosophical corpus, exploring its relevance for organizational leadership and institutional governance. There is a particular kind of setting in which serious thought becomes possible—not in isolation alone, but in environments where distraction recedes just
The reign of Pope Boniface VIII is a tapestry of papal agendas fashioned for the creation of empire under the guise of the Holy Roman Church. His papacy materializes as kingship rather than pure Apostolic See. The papacy is a relic of the spiritual body. Empire is the incarnation of
Reflective Commentary (2025) Looking back at this essay more than a decade after I first wrote it in 2014, I see how my thinking about "wasted time" has changed. When I wrote this as a doctoral student, leisure, contemplation, and intellectual growth were seen as important. Now, the
