Matchmaking

Every year I dream of going to the annual conference sponsored by the Circe Institute.  Each year, the conference has an enticing title: A Contemplation of Justice, a Contemplation of Man, a Contemplation of Rest.  Just the idea of contemplating sounds so refreshing!  This past month the conference was about judgment: how to judge everything.  I am looking forward to hearing talks and discussing ideas with friends who attended.  And maybe one of these years, I can make it myself.

One friend who tweeted during the conference posted an idea that I can't let go of.  She quoted one of the speakers (I believe Dr. Peter Kreeft) as saying that teaching is really match-making: Student, meet Plato.  Wow- that's a talk I've got to hear.  But I keep pondering the notion of teaching as matchmaking. Teaching is really causing your students to fall in love with (or at least be willing to amicably co-exist with) the authors, composers, or ideas you are presenting to them.  Of course, this is not a new concept for any good teacher, but a novel spin on the idea. Wouldn't it be wonderful if a former student of mine could say, "I first met Socrates in her class!"  Or "I first sang Brahms in her choir!" in that dreamy way we all talk about first encountering the loves of our lives, from real people to fictional, from hobbies to books to people. I hope I can inspire my students to make life-long matches.

But I don't want that to be the end of what I inspire my students to do.  The reason I want them to love Aristotle, or Beethoven, or grammar, or Washington Irving, is because the God who created them is so very worthy of their love.  Loving the creation often leads to loving the Creator. And that is a match made in heaven and for eternity.