"Journal of Law, Philosophy and Culture" launched.

The Columbus School of Law at Catholic University (Washington, D.C.) has begun the publication of "Journal of Law, Philosophy and Culture," a new law journal designed to promote scholarly inquiry into the significance of law and legal institutions for culture and the common good. It will be published three times a year.

The journal said it has adopted the definition of culture offered by the Second Vatican Council, that is, as concerning "the cultivation of the goods and values of nature." The school said the journal is premised on the idea that the study of law and legal institutions can "reveal underlying truths about human nature and conduct, and in turn, contribute to the transformation and renewal of both law and culture."

The inaugural issue is dedicated to discussing the question posed by John Rawls: how is it possible for there to exist over time a stable and just society of free and equal citizens, who remain profoundly divided by reasonable though incompatible religious, philosophical and moral doctrines? Content for the issue includes articles on: the evangelization of culture; public reason and contemporary politics; public reason and "justification" in the courtroom; religious reasons, liberal theory and coercion; attempts to exclude religious argument from democratic deliberation; and, social responsibilities of venture capitalists.

The journal also carries commentary and book reviews on economics, culture and the philosophical tradition of public reason and truth.