Globalization of Human Mind
Choose the uniting face of religion, not the divisive one
Summary:Religion has two faces: one unites and the other divides. Religion unifies people into communities and simultaneously divides by building tight boundaries around them.
I haven't read Christopher Hitchens' recent book, God is not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, yet its title compels me to present an opinion for discussion.
Religion has two faces: one unites and the other divides. Religion unifies people into communities and simultaneously divides by building tight boundaries around them.
Religion generally is founded upon one reality underlying the entire universe. This reality is infinite. It is the one source of all diverse beings. It is indescribable. [...]Theism, Atheism or Something Else?
Summary:This article disagrees with the generally accepted argument that theism underlies the feelings of human love, compassion and caring. It also disagrees with the argument that atheism is more valuable in this regard as theism is held by some as responsible for a great deal of murderous violence in human history. It argues that both theistic religion and atheistic humanism unify humanity only on a piecemeal basis which is akin to being divisive on the global scale. The worldview of prehistoric Perennial Philosophy seems to be our big hope of unifying of all beings on a global scale through a shared essence. Modern science now vouches for the existence of such an essence. This essence is at once immanent and transcendent to the building blocks of all beings; and it drives their activity.
Clinton Address in Ottawa
Summary:In a recent address in Ottawa, Bill Clinton identified inter-religious relations and environmental exploitation as major problems facing humankind today. He appealed to world religions to find common ground to work together in resolving these problems. The author argues that the task appropriately belongs to our educational institutions and not to the religious institutions.
In a news report datedMarch 7, 2006 by Bill Curry in the Globe and Mail, a premier newspaper of Canada, the former U.S. president Bill Clinton warned in an address to a conference in Ottawa that the world is at risk of coming apart unless citizens around the globe address the danger of extremism in inter-religious relations. Mr. Clinton appealed to the followers of world religions to find common ground and work together.
"Perversely, if we over-warm the planet, it will almost certainly trigger [...]A Truth that the Academy Underplays
Summary:This article is inspired by an op-ed by Stanley Fish wherein Dr. Fish’s advice to his academic colleagues not to surrender their academic agendas to any non-academic constituency advocating a particular point of view seems to be based upon a false assumption that moral and civic education cannot be taught without accepting one of the competing views of morality and citizenship. The blog author argues that this assumption is totally invalid and teaching of morality and citizenship can be based on an undeniable truth.
It is generally agreed that the true calling of the academy is the unfettered search and dissemination of truth. Then, why does it overlook an obvious truth, a truth that concerns the essential oneness of all humanity? This truth is upheld equally by common sense and various knowledge disciplines. Is it possible that this truth has become the victim of some partisan agenda?
This article is inspired by an op-ed entitled Why We Built the Ivory Tower by Stanley Fish published in the New York [...]Teach, Don't Preach
Summary:In his op-ed in the New York Times, Bruce Feiler establishes the legality of teaching the Bible in a non-sectarian way in the United States and makes an argument that doing so should become a national imperative. The blog author takes this argument further by suggesting the addition of other scriptures plus the intelligibility and meaning drawn from natural and life sciences, social sciences, humanities, etc. to create a new discipline of study called the spiritual heritage of humanity. He argues such an endeavor is needed urgently to ameliorate the current crisis of religious intolerance and environmental exploitation.
In his op-ed entitled Teach, Don't Preach, the Bible published in the New York Times onDecember 21, 2005, Bruce Feiler argues that a 2005 ruling by a federal judge involving aPennsylvaniapublic school district has the potential to put the teaching of the Bible back in our schools. He opines, “An elective, nonsectarian high school Bible class would allow students to explore one of the most influential books of all time and would do so in a manner that clearly falls within Supreme Court rulings.”
Bruce [...]About
Modern Science and technology has turned the world into a global village, but inwardly we are not prepared to interact with each other as equal members of one community. This blog urges educational systems worldwide to use methods of modern mass education to raise deep human consciousness to enable relationships based on the essence lying at the core of our very being. We all share in this common essence and we are connected, nay we are one through its oneness. This essence also is central to the core spirituality underlying all religion. Living by it is living by the core spirituality of our particular religion and indeed of all religion. It is the ultimate goal of all knowledge disciplines including religion and it is the subject of world literature worthy of being called the spiritual heritage of humanity. Education in this spiritual heritage can raise deep human consciousness to treat all beings in the universe as one.
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