Presented at the 2024 CiRCE National Conference: A Contemplation of Prudence.

Prudence is the chief moral virtue and is needed to have any of the other moral virtues. Pope St. Gregory the Great says (in Moral. ii, 46) “the other virtues cannot be virtues at all unless they effect prudently what they desire to accomplish.” But prudence requires experience, and that is something children can’t have. So what can children do? They can participate in the prudence of those who have experience, namely their parents and teachers, through obedience. Thus both prudence and obedience are necessary virtues in education, in different ways. Teachers/parents need to be prudent, and students/ children need to be obedient. Both groups need to have self-control, and the other virtues. First, we will discuss what virtue is and where the cardinal virtues come from. Then we will distinguish between principles and practice in the acquisition of virtue. Finally, we will explore various resources for virtue education and share best practices (which come from experience!).