The Core of UChicago Aris Raj Agarwala

As a devout Catholic, I have passionately embraced my spirituality by reading and adhering to the moralities outlined in Theology and Philosophy which I hold so close to my identity. Taking thirty minutes out of my daily routine, I always find myself starting the day with a few verses on the nature of Virtue or a glance at Christianity’s Beatitudes and ending it with a reading of Dr. Osler’s “Aequanimitas,” feeling the spiritual comfort that these works bring to my life. To be able to shut out the burdens of everyday life and meditate on these works is a salubrious exercise to me, mentally preparing me for school or nightly prayer.

Many people in my family don’t understand my obsession, but I feel as though they too can benefit from simply taking thirty minutes to embrace something that isn’t the tedium of our daily routines. Intellectual vitality, which is found in abundance at the University of Chicago, has always been important to me, and I feel that these allotted thirty minutes transcend the mental health aspect and truly is representative of a passion in my life. However, as a Philosopher and Theologian in high school, I became cognizant of an inherent flaw in contemporary curricula: a lack of emphasis in the humanities...