Although philosophy, religion, and civic cultures used to help people prepare for aging and dying well, this is no longer the case. Today, aging is frequently seen as a problem to be solved and death as a harsh reality to be masked. In part, our cultural confusion is rooted in an inadequate conception of the human person, which is based on a notion of absolute individual autonomy that cannot but fail in the face of the dependency that comes with aging and decline at the end of life. To help correct the ethical impoverishment at the root of our contemporary social confusion, The Evening of Life provides an interdisciplinary examination of the challenges of aging and dying well. It calls for a re-envisioning of cultural concepts, practices, and virtues that embraces decline, dependency, and finitude rather than stigmatizes them. Bringing together the work of sociologists, anthropologists, philosophers, theologians, and medical practitioners, this collection of essays develops an interrelated set of conceptual tools to discuss the current challenges posed to aging and dying well, such as flourishing, temporality, narrative, and friendship. Above all, it proposes a positive understanding of thriving in old age that is rooted in our shared vulnerability as human beings. It also suggests how some of these tools and concepts can be deployed to create a medical system that better responds to our contemporary needs. The Evening of Life will interest bioethicists, medical practitioners, clinicians, and others involved in the care of the aging and dying. Contributors: Joseph E. Davis, Sharon R. Kaufman, Paul Scherz, Wilfred M. McClay, Kevin Aho, Charles Guignon, Bryan S. Turner, Janelle S. Taylor, Sarah L. Szanton, Janiece Taylor, and Justin Mutter

Reprint of the original, first published in 1859. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

The type of local and school history before the reader may be unfamiliar. It is a definitive and scholarly history in the style of many grammar school histories in Queensland. Although it is not unknown for Australian public and private schooling, it is unique for Queensland state schools. By saying it is a ‘definitive and scholarly history’, what is meant is not that the history is complete; only that it reaches decisive conclusions in a substantive treatment. In this particular case, the historian is someone who has been trained at the level of a higher degree.

Living Wisely and Well in the Evening of Life addresses the increasing difficulty of those in our culture who are “in the evening of life,” who must manage a rapidly changing society and a new world being born almost daily. There are several dimensions of life which have become especially difficult for those in this position, including loneliness, the sense of being set aside in a changing culture, the cost of medical care, the deep conflicts in our political life, and the increasing sense of not being able to cope. Deep universal values, articulated by the apostle Paul in his letter to the Corinthian church, must be claimed and internalized. Paul artfully guides those from this church in a complex setting by suggesting a “more excellent way” in which to live with complexity and challenge. Then and now, we need to cultivate a thoughtful and credible faith in our mature years; second, we must sustain the well-founded hope, rooted in our faith in a loving God, especially necessary in the evening of life. In keeping with the teaching of Jesus, we should make unconditional love the central value in life. It is possible to flourish in the evening of life undergirded by faith, hope, and love.

Life Is Simpler Toward Evening is an inspirational, thought-provoking poetry book with poems featuring such topics as the majesty of clouds, the loneliness of being apart from a loved one, and always, the glory of God. Fr. Ralph Wright, who is a poet of great distinction, pens works that reflect his knowledge of and respect for the masters. His images are both beautiful and startling; his metaphors perceptive, his use of rhyme natural. His expertise lies in the unity of word and idea that is the essence of poetry. Life is Simpler Toward Evening is one of Fr. Ralph's eight books of verse. The poetry of Life is Simpler Toward Evening is never obscure but nevertheless demands that we return, again and again, to delight in and savor both words and subtle meanings. Life Is Simpler Toward Evening offers a soothing escape from the pressures and turmoil of every day life.