"We no longer dare to believe in beauty and we make of it a mere appearance in order the more easily to dispose of it"

Hans Urs von Balthasar's quote, "We no longer dare to believe in beauty and we make from it a mere appearance in order the more easily to dispose of it", reflects a profound commentary on contemporary society's relationship with appeal. Balthasar, a theologian and theorist, is critically resolving the superficiality with which modern culture often deals with the idea of charm.

The statement suggests that there has actually been a departure from a time when charm was deeply revered and considered an important part of fact and goodness. Historically, charm was believed to go beyond the mere physical, embodying something divine or a minimum of deeply important. It was believed to reflect a higher order, motivating people to aspire to greater truths and perfects.

However, Balthasar observes a shift in modern times, where beauty is minimized to its mere appearance, losing its much deeper significance. By describing appeal as a "mere appearance", he indicates that society has actually burrowed charm, treating it as a shallow quality that lacks depth or significance. In doing so, charm becomes disposable-- something trivial that individuals can easily cast aside without considering its implications for fact and morality.

Underlying this critique is a lamentation of a lost nerve to "think in beauty". This recommends that individuals beware or perhaps scared to engage with appeal on an extensive level, possibly since acknowledging real beauty needs vulnerability and openness to transformative experiences. Such experiences might challenge dominating norms or much deeper self-conceptions.

By minimizing charm to a superficial level, society guards itself from the profound impact and duty that real charm needs. Subsequently, this disposability shows not simply a cheapening of appeal, but a broader existential crisis where transcendent qualities like truth, charm, and goodness are marginalized. Balthasar's quote, for that reason, is a call to reconsider how we perceive and worth appeal, motivating a go back to an appreciation that acknowledges its depth and transformative capacity.