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The Aquinas Lecture in Philosophy #6
The Subject
Lonergan, Bernard J. F.
- GenresPhilosophy
35 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1968
About the author
Bernard J.F. Lonergan
44 books52 followersFr. Bernard Joseph Frances Lonergan, SJ, CC (Ph.D., Theology, Gregorian University (Rome), 1939; B.A., University of London, 1930), was an ordained Roman Catholic priest of the Jesuit order. As an economist and philosopher-theologian in the Thomist tradition, he taught at Loyola College (Montreal) (now Concordia University), Regis College (now federated within the University of Toronto), the Pontifical Gregorian University, Harvard University, and Boston College. He was named by Pope Paul VI one of the original members of the International Theological Commission.
He is the author of Insight: A Study of Human Understanding (1957) and Method in Theology (1972), which established what he called the Generalized Empirical Method (GEM). The University of Toronto Press is in process of publishing his work in a projected 25-volume collection edited by staff at the Lonergan Research Institute at Regis College.
"Lonergan is considered by many intellectuals to be the finest philosophic thinker of the 20th century."
—TIME Magazine
He is the author of Insight: A Study of Human Understanding (1957) and Method in Theology (1972), which established what he called the Generalized Empirical Method (GEM). The University of Toronto Press is in process of publishing his work in a projected 25-volume collection edited by staff at the Lonergan Research Institute at Regis College.
"Lonergan is considered by many intellectuals to be the finest philosophic thinker of the 20th century."
—TIME Magazine
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March 2, 2026
Bernard Lonergan In Milwaukee
The philosophy department of Marquette University, Milwaukee, sponsors an annual lecture, known as the Aquinas Lecture, presented by a distinguished philosopher. Marquette University Press publishes the Aquinas Lectures in a series of small uniformly bound books.
Fifty-eight years ago, on March 3, 1968, Bernard Lonergan (1904 -- 1984) delivered the Aquinas Lecture. Lonergan was a Canadian Jesuit priest, theologian, and philosopher. Among other places, Lonergan taught at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Regis College, Toronto, Boston University, and Harvard University. He wrote extensively, and his best-known work is "Insight: A Study of Human Understanding" (1957). Lonergan remains highly regarded in some philosophical and theological circles. Several institutions, including Boston University, have established a Lonergan Institute devoted to the continued study of his thought.
Lonergan's Aquinas Lecture, "The Subject" is a short introduction to his thought. Lonergan begins:
"There is a sense in which it may be said that each of us lives in a world of his own. That world is usually a bounded world, and its boundary is fixed by the range of our interests and our knowledge. There are things that exist, that are known to other men, but about them I know nothing at all. There are objects of interest that concern other men, but about them I could not care less. So the extent of our knowledge and the reach of our interests fix a horizon. Within that horizon we are confined."
Lonergan's lecture is a short study of epistemology, or how we know. He describes various concepts of "the subject" and their limitations, including the "neglected subject", the "truncated subject", the "immanentist subject", the "existential subject" and the "alienated subject". He argues that the "existential" subject is primary because it includes other forms of the subject and studies man in the world and the search for Being, knowledge, value, and God. While he takes a great deal from existential philosophy, Lonergan argues that traditional philosophical questions about knowledge, reality, and God still need to be considered and explored to avoid falling into the position of the "alienated subject." He finds that the refusal to pursue these questions has led to the difficulties many feel in living a good, meaningful life.
Lonergan's lecture on "The Subject" is special to me. As a young undergraduate student in philosophy who grew up and was attending college in Milwaukee, I remember walking some miles from my home on a March day to hear Lonergan lecture at Marquette to a large, appreciative audience. The memory of what he said was long lost. The lecture gave me difficulty and I did not follow much of it. Still, attending the Aquinas Lecture and hearing Lonergan has stayed with me over the years. I only recently revisted the lecture in the published form and had to reread and struggle with it. It was much different from the experience of hearing it delivered as a young student. The lecture has followed me as part of my lifelong interest in philosophy which continued even as I took another career path. Reading the lecture reminded me of my youth and of the intellectual life of my beloved home town of Milwaukee.
Robin Friedman
The philosophy department of Marquette University, Milwaukee, sponsors an annual lecture, known as the Aquinas Lecture, presented by a distinguished philosopher. Marquette University Press publishes the Aquinas Lectures in a series of small uniformly bound books.
Fifty-eight years ago, on March 3, 1968, Bernard Lonergan (1904 -- 1984) delivered the Aquinas Lecture. Lonergan was a Canadian Jesuit priest, theologian, and philosopher. Among other places, Lonergan taught at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Regis College, Toronto, Boston University, and Harvard University. He wrote extensively, and his best-known work is "Insight: A Study of Human Understanding" (1957). Lonergan remains highly regarded in some philosophical and theological circles. Several institutions, including Boston University, have established a Lonergan Institute devoted to the continued study of his thought.
Lonergan's Aquinas Lecture, "The Subject" is a short introduction to his thought. Lonergan begins:
"There is a sense in which it may be said that each of us lives in a world of his own. That world is usually a bounded world, and its boundary is fixed by the range of our interests and our knowledge. There are things that exist, that are known to other men, but about them I know nothing at all. There are objects of interest that concern other men, but about them I could not care less. So the extent of our knowledge and the reach of our interests fix a horizon. Within that horizon we are confined."
Lonergan's lecture is a short study of epistemology, or how we know. He describes various concepts of "the subject" and their limitations, including the "neglected subject", the "truncated subject", the "immanentist subject", the "existential subject" and the "alienated subject". He argues that the "existential" subject is primary because it includes other forms of the subject and studies man in the world and the search for Being, knowledge, value, and God. While he takes a great deal from existential philosophy, Lonergan argues that traditional philosophical questions about knowledge, reality, and God still need to be considered and explored to avoid falling into the position of the "alienated subject." He finds that the refusal to pursue these questions has led to the difficulties many feel in living a good, meaningful life.
Lonergan's lecture on "The Subject" is special to me. As a young undergraduate student in philosophy who grew up and was attending college in Milwaukee, I remember walking some miles from my home on a March day to hear Lonergan lecture at Marquette to a large, appreciative audience. The memory of what he said was long lost. The lecture gave me difficulty and I did not follow much of it. Still, attending the Aquinas Lecture and hearing Lonergan has stayed with me over the years. I only recently revisted the lecture in the published form and had to reread and struggle with it. It was much different from the experience of hearing it delivered as a young student. The lecture has followed me as part of my lifelong interest in philosophy which continued even as I took another career path. Reading the lecture reminded me of my youth and of the intellectual life of my beloved home town of Milwaukee.
Robin Friedman
Displaying 1 of 1 review