The Lyceum's heritage traces back to ancient Greece, notably to Aristotle's teachings at the Temple to Lyceus, a hub for debate, lectures, and intellectual exchange. This tradition of conversation found its way to a farm in Milbury, Massachusetts in 1820. Born out of a need to address the public's craving for education beyond the elite confines of universities, the Lyceum took off like a prairie fire. It rapidly became a nationwide phenomenon, fostering community engagement and intellectual dialogue in cities both large and small.

But as it goes, times change. We have neighborhood apps, 24-hour news cycles, podcasts and YouTube videos for just about everything. Streaming devices have filled our leisure time, preventing us from interacting within our communities

In a world where we're all glued to our screens, convinced we're connecting while we scroll, the Lyceum is a breath of fresh air. It's a reminder that there's something special about sitting down face-to-face, sharing stories, and discovering we're part of a bigger community tapestry striving to understand our complex world.

A Lyceum is where a city comes to think. Part of a tradition going back 150 years in America, the Lyceum is where neighbors can pursue the most important questions of human life through philosophy, art, history, and more. In a time when so much of our life is lived in toxic, superficial online environments, it’s time to get back with the people in our community and learn together.

Not dry academic lectures or seminars, Lyceum events are a chance to make friends around food, beer, and big ideas.

I'll be the first to admit, some days, the couch and my phone's glow are too tempting. But deep down, I believe we're all looking for something more meaningful than what's on our feeds. Getting back to basics, gathering over food and drink, and remembering how real conversation can bridge the divides that keep us apart.

So, what do you think? If any of this strikes a chord, maybe the St. Paul Lyceum is just what you're looking for. It's about rediscovering the art of true conversation and connection, face-to-face, in a way that's becoming all too rare. Let's come together, share a laugh, learn something new.

Let's make our community stronger, one conversation at a time.

Our event offerings are a blend of lecture, panel, presentation and conversation. Each month, the Lyceum releases a theme that will be explored at Lyceums across the United States. These themes are introduced with a short essay led by an expert writer, thinker, or leader. Each Lyceum adapts the theme to its own community.

Lyceum events are designed specifically to re-route around the unhealthy ways of talking that persists in our political culture. Rather than discuss hot button issues, the Lyceum seeks to go deeper into fundamental ideas and stories that may influence why we hold the views that we do. Philosophy, history, art, science, and culture, are the fare, rather than the national political debate or culture war dividing lines. The aim is to develop better habits of investigating the truth, of speaking more clearly, generously and productively, as well as to promote mutual understanding between neighbors. The Lyceum hopes to enable neighbors to become friends while investigating the truth. To that end, our events have the following defining features:

1) In-person gathering - As mentioned in the last column, we must hold Lyceums in a physical space. We want to look our neighbors in the face, share a room and encounter them in their humanity. Virtual meetings are insufficient.

2) Viewed through a local lens - Events will alway take universal ideas and demand specificity by putting them in the context of the real life of place.

3) Informed by great thinkers - Events will be influenced by the insights of renowned thinkers from history, recognizing that our generation is not the first to grapple with these concepts.

4) Dialogical - Events will always be shaped around dialogue. Unlike lectures, speakers will be required to engage as conversation partners with the community

5) Convivial - Events will not look like academic lectures or typical community meetings. The Lyceum provides an opportunity to come together around food, drink and big ideas.

6) Formative - The Lyceum aims to shape participants with the habits of the heart, to talk fruitfully and well for the sake of the common good.

I often imagine the Lyceum as a gym for exercising our public discourse skills. Our six habits serve as a training regimen, strengthening our approach. As we grow in these habits, we tackle each conversation with central questions that guide us through the topic. The next issue will dive into these questions.

At the heart of the Lyceum is a hidden gem—the small group discussions that follow the panel. This is the crucible where ideas are tested, challenged, and refined. It’s not just a recap but where the real magic happens.

In these intimate groups, the audience transforms from passive listeners to active participants. Each person is invited to wrestle with the concepts, challenge the status quo, and contribute from their deep well of knowledge and experience.

In a world where opposing viewpoints are often met with dismissal or conflict, the Lyceum seeks to restore meaningful dialogue. Cable news and social media have conditioned us to treat conversations like battles, aiming to win rather than understand. But at the Lyceum, we aim to break these patterns through our "6 Habits of the Lyceum." These habits guide us toward deeper conversations, encouraging participants to listen with empathy, speak thoughtfully, and value disagreement.

By laying down the weapons of argumentation and embracing these habits, we create space for genuine discourse—where ideas are cultivated rather than crushed, and where disagreement is not feared but embraced as an opportunity for growth.

Though the Lyceum holds no specific creed or party, we evoke the '6 Habits' as a guiding foundation, encouraging dialogue that is curious, contemplative, and charitable as we come together to think.

1) Read our neighbor’s words in the best light - In a world quick to assume the worst, we choose to listen patiently, seeking the best in each other’s words, even when we disagree.

2) Talk for the sake of truth and understanding, not victory- At the Lyceum, we exchange ideas not to win, but to walk away wiser. Understanding, not victory, is the true prize.

3) See ourselves as fundamentally on the same team, even with those who disagree -Despite our differences, we are bound by a common thread. From this place, we journey forward, knowing we all seek the same ultimate good.

4) Acknowledge what we don’t yet know - With humble hearts and curious minds, we gather, recognizing there is much we have yet to learn. The Lyceum is a place of discovery and growth.

5) Talk for the sake of building up community - Our words are seeds—meant to grow understanding and goodwill. We aim to cultivate a dialogue that strengthens relationships and enriches the community around us.

6) Look for something to love in every person - At the core of every conversation is charity. Even in disagreement, we search for that spark of shared humanity, knowing unity lies deeper than consensus.

I often imagine the Lyceum as a gym for exercising our public discourse skills. Our six habits serve as a training regimen, strengthening our approach. As we grow in these habits, we tackle each conversation with central questions that guide us through the topic. The next issue will dive into these questions.