William C. MichaelWilliam C. Michael

Mr. William C. Michael, O.P., is the founder and headmaster of the Classical Liberal Arts Academy and a Lay Dominican in the Catholic Church. Mr. Michael received an honors degree in Classics and Ancient History from Rutgers University and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He led the CLAA to accreditation with Cognia in 2024. He has been studying and teaching the classical liberal arts for over 30 years.

Epicureanism and Modern Society

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While many today imagine “modern science” to be a morally neutral pursuit of truth by means of experiments and observation, the reality is that the Renaissance, Protestant Reformation and Scientific Revolution of the 16th-17th centuries were three-pronged attack on Catholicism and Aristotelianism, which worked to promote the ancient school of philosophy known as Epicureanism. In this article, I’d like to provide an introduction to Epicurean philosophy, its relationship to Catholicism and how it influenced modern society. What is Epicureanism? Epicureanism is a philosophical system that originated in ancient Greece and was founded by the philosopher Epicurus (341-270 BCE). The central … Continue

Who was Epicurus?

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Epicurus was a Greek philosopher who lived from 341 to 270 BC. He was born on the island of Samos to a family of Athenian settlers, who had migrated to the island. Epicurus’ father, Neocles, was a school teacher who taught rhetoric and grammar. It is believed that Epicurus inherited his love of learning from his father. Neocles died when Epicurus was still a child, leaving him and his siblings in the care of their mother, Chaerestrate. Chaerestrate was a strong and independent woman, who raised Epicurus and his siblings on her own. She instilled in them a love of … Continue

Did the Pagan Gods and Goddesses Exist?

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The transcript for the article, “Did the Pagan Gods and Goddesses Really Exist?” was generated by https://otter.ai. It has not yet been edited. Yesterday, I received an email from a parent asking for some clarification about some statements that I made while teaching an introduction to Homer’s Iliad. I’ll grant before even saying anything about this, that my teaching on this topic is uncommon among Christians, but so is the study of the classical liberal arts. So I really don’t think that’s much of a concern. Now, the topic that this mother wrote about, and it was all friendly, there … Continue

Aristotle: Everything You Need to Know (2023)

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Aristotle is the greatest philosopher to ever live, and his ideas have had a profound impact on Catholic thought, particularly in the areas of ethics, politics, and metaphysics. The Classical Liberal Arts Academy recognizes the importance of Aristotle’s works in Catholic education, and places a strong emphasis on the study of his philosophy. In this article, we provide everything you need to know about Aristotle. Aristotle’s Family & Birth Aristotle, one of the most renowned philosophers and scientists in history, was born in 384 BCE in the ancient Greek city of Stagira. He was the son of Nicomachus, a prominent … Continue

Who Was Isocrates?

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Isocrates was a Greek philosopher and orator who lived in Athens in the 5th century BCE. He was one of the most prominent figures of his time and is considered one of the greatest speakers of ancient Greece. Isocrates was born in 436 BCE and was educated in the same schools as Plato and Xenophon. He was a student of the famous philosopher Gorgias, who was known for his rhetorical skills and his emphasis on the power of speech. After completing his education, Isocrates became a teacher of rhetoric and established his own school in Athens. He became well known … Continue

Intro to Classical Arithmetic, Lesson 09.

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There are three assignments for this lesson: Lesson In this course, we have studied Unity, but only in the simplest way. We learned that Unity is a known quantity used to measure unknown quantities. In this lesson, we will learn the definitions of Even, Odd, Prime, Composite and Perfect numbers, but all of that would be meaningless unless we knew why they are important in Arithmetic. In this lesson, we will take a deeper look at Unity and numbers and to begin we need to begin at the beginning. As Christians, we are very familiar with the story of Creation … Continue

How to Identify the Part of Speech in Latin

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In our weekly Latin studies live class, we have been working to learn to identify the parts of speech in Latin. From these lessons, I have prepared the following document to help remember/practice this. God bless your studies,Mr. William C. MichaelClassical Liberal Arts Academy

Who was Zeno?

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Zeno of Citium was a Greek philosopher who lived from 334 BCE to 262 BCE. He was the founder of the Stoic school of philosophy, one of the most influential schools of thought in ancient Greece and Rome. Despite the fact that very little is known about Zeno’s life, his teachings have had a lasting impact on Western thought and continue to be studied and discussed today. Zeno was born in Citium, a city in the ancient kingdom of Cyprus. According to legend, he was originally a merchant, but after a shipwreck left him stranded in Athens, he turned to … Continue