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Historical Reality (historical + reality)
Selected AbstractsTranslating the Ideal of Deliberative Democracy into Democratic Education: Pure Utopia?EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY AND THEORY, Issue 3 2010David Lefrançois Abstract Is the idea that the self-determination of all citizens influences progress towards democracy not merely a dream that breaks itself against the hard historical reality of political societies? Is not the same fate reserved for all pedagogical innovations in democratic education that depend on this great dream? It is commonplace to assert this logic to demonstrate the inapplicability of the ideas of both democracy and of democratic education. Though this argument is prominent and recurring in the history of political and educative ideas, in response we can ask ourselves if the gap between the ideal and the reality is effectively insuperable and must be considered an incontestable fact. The double objective of this article is to determine explicitly the meaning and extent of this gap in the context of democracy and of education and to demonstrate that this gap is neither static nor permanent, but is susceptible to being narrowed, from generation to generation. [source] Bread, Cheese and Genocide: Imagining the Destruction of Peoples in Medieval Western EuropeHISTORY, Issue 307 2007LEN SCALES Western European society in the middle ages is generally perceived as lying, in its modes of thought and action, far remote from those acts of mass ethnic destruction which have been a recurrent element in world history since the early twentieth century. Yet medieval Europeans too were capable of envisaging the violent obliteration of peoples. Indeed, the view that such acts had occurred in times past and were liable to occur again was deeply embedded in medieval thought and assumption. For some commentators, the destruction of certain peoples was inseparable from the making of others, an essential motor of historical change, underpinned by biblical narratives of divine election and condemnation. Such notions constituted a matrix within which medieval writers interpreted real acts of social and political violence, the scale and the ethnic foundations of which they were thus naturally inclined to inflate. Nevertheless, their belief in the recurrent historical reality of ethnic destruction was, in their own terms, well founded , although medieval conceptions of what constituted the undoing of peoples were broader than most modern definitions of ,genocide'. By the later middle ages, moreover, government was increasingly perceived , not without justification , as a powerful agent for remaking the ethnic map. [source] Death and Memory in Early AmericaHISTORY COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 2 2006Matthew Dennis Death is a historical phenomenon , although pervasive and unavoidable, it has not been understood or experienced in a uniform fashion over time. Death has visited some times and places more heavily than others; ideas about death, rites surrounding it, and the memorials and monuments commemorating it have varied over time and place. This article emphasizes the omnipresence of death in early America, an historical reality of great importance that we are peculiarly conditioned today to miss or avoid, both because of the nationalist biases of American history and because American culture is so insulated from actual physical death and mortal remains. Finally, the essay suggests why death mattered and how Americans made sense , and made use , of death and mortal remains in early America. [source] Choosing Life or Second Life?INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF MISSION, Issue 384-385 2008Agency in A Mediated Culture, Discipleship Liberationist theologies gave rue to a re-emphasis on Christian life as being primarily historical life, and Christian spirituality as rooted in faithful and honest attention to the immediacy of historical reality. However, for many people living in media-saturated, overdeveloped societies, any distinction between actual reality and a mediated pseudo-reality is blurred. Another facet of life in a media-saturated context is that of being regularly confronted with impressions of destitution, violence and ecological degradation, whilst at the same time being further distanced from the realities represented through communications media and their ,virtualizing' tendency. This rapid change in our relation to reality has, I suggest, profound theological and missiological consequences. The ways in which electronic media have modified life, including religious life, are complex and varied. Consumption of electronic media does not seem to have replaced religion as such but it has tended to shape religious life in its own image. With particular reference to Slavoj Zizek's reading of "the Real" after "9/11", I have attempted to sketch how some of these sweeping social and cultural changes may impact on the interpretation of Christian discipleship and mission. In the end, either the Christian life is vulnerable to potentially disruptive reality, or it is at risk of collapsing into a version of the pursuit of happiness mediated by and through late-capitalist culture. [source] Keftiu in Context: Theban Tomb-paintings as a historical SourceOXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 3 2001D. Panagiotopoulos It is generally asserted that the representations of Aegeans in Theban private tombs cannot be regarded as a reliable historical source, since the gift-bearers of this independent region were depicted by Egyptian artists as tributaries. The present paper is an attempt to test the validity of this orthodoxy from the Egyptological perspective. The new explanatory approach is based on a contextual analysis which embraces the entire body of foreigners' processions in the Theban tomb-paintings. It is suggested that these scenes provide, within certain iconographical conventions, an accurate record of historical reality, thus offering a valuable insight into the mechanisms of pharaonic power. The question of the political vs. economic nature of the depicted activity, the diplomatic gift-giving, is taken up in an appendix at the end of the paper. [source] Teaching & Learning Guide for: Can a Darwinian Be a Christian?RELIGION COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 3 2008Gregory W. Dawes Author's Introduction The article was provoked by recent discussion of the so-called ,conflict thesis': the idea that the Christian faith and the findings of modern science are necessarily at odds. This thesis is generally attributed to John William Draper (1811,1882) and Andrew Dickson White (1832,1918). Recent opposition to their work dates from a 1979 publication by James Moore. Moore argues that the warfare metaphor employed by Draper and White misrepresents the historical reality, by suggesting that the religion and science debates were clashes between distinct groups of people who were sharply polarized and violently antagonistic. Since then, similar criticisms have been made by historians, such as David Livingstone, Ronald Numbers, and David Lindberg. A key question here is: what does the conflict thesis entail? If it holds that Christian thinkers have invariably opposed scientific progress, while the defenders of science have been non-believers, it would be demonstrably false. But there exist more interesting forms of conflict thesis, which are philosophical rather than historical. These suggest that there is some tension between what Christians have traditionally believed and the findings of modern science, particularly Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Even if the two are not, strictly speaking, incompatible, the truth of one may constitute evidence against the truth of the other. Darwin's theory also undercuts traditional arguments from design, and highlights the epistemological divide between religious and scientific conceptions of authority. Online Materials The following sites contain audio and video files, as well as text and images. 1. http://www.meta-library.net/history/intro-frame.html This is a useful overview of the historical debate by Ronald Numbers, with links to other sites. Most presenters follow Moore in opposing the conflict thesis, narrowly defined, but neglect the conflicts that my article highlights. 2. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/id/program.html Here one can view an excellent, 2-h PBS television documentary on the Dover, Pennsylvania trial in December 2005 regarding the teaching of ,intelligent design' (ID) in public schools. 3. http://www.butler.edu/clergyproject/rel_evol_sun.htm This is a letter signed by more than 11,000 clergy, arguing that there is no conflict between religion and science, and encouraging (among other things) the liturgical celebration of evolution by natural selection. 4. http://www.discovery.org/csc/ At the other end of the theological spectrum, this is the website of the Discovery Institute, devoted to opposing Darwinism and promoting ,intelligent design' (ID). Controversially, it presents ID as a scientific theory, rather than a religious doctrine. 5. http://www.asa3.org/ Somewhere between the Clergy Letter Project and the Discovery Institute lies the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA). The ASA ,does not take a position when there is honest disagreement between Christians', so it embraces a variety of perspectives. Sample Syllabus The following could form the basis for a graduate seminar on religion and science, focusing on the Darwinian controversies. One could, for instance, devote two classes to each of these topics. 1. The Draper-White Thesis I recommend reading extracts from the two writers thought to be responsible for the conflict thesis, to establish what each actually said. John William Draper, The History of the Conflict between Religion and Science, International Scientific Series 13 (London: Henry S. King & Co., 1875), chap. 8. Andrew Dickson White, A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom (1896; New York, NY: Dover Publications, 1960), vol. 1, chap. 1. 2. Criticism of the Draper-White Thesis Either of the following readings from historians critical of Draper and White's work would be a useful starting point for discussion. James R. Moore, The Post-Darwinian Controversies: A Study of the Protestant Struggle to Come to Terms with Darwin in Great Britain and America, 1870,1900 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979), chap. 1. David N. Livingstone, ,Re-placing Darwinism and Christianity', in David C. Lindberg and Ronald L. Numbers (eds.), When Science and Christianity Meet, pp. 183,202 (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2003). 3. The Incompatibility Thesis Many authors attempt to show that Darwinism and Christianity and compatible. But it would be useful to examine Pope John Paul II's statement on this topic, along with some responses by biologists and philosophers. John Paul II, ,The Pope's Message on Evolution and Four Commentaries', The Quarterly Review of Biology, 72:4 (1997): 375,406. 4. The Evidential Thesis Students might enjoy reading and discussing the following article by a leading evolutionary biologist. George C. Williams, ,Mother Nature Is a Wicked Old Witch', in Matthew H. Nitecki and Doris V. Nitecki (eds.), Evolutionary Ethics, 217,31 (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1993). 5. The Replacement Thesis This is an important but often neglected book. Students would benefit from reading at least the first chapter. Neal C. Gillespie, Charles Darwin and the Problem of Creation (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1979), chap. 1. 6. The Faith and Reason Thesis The following article by a well-known historian and philosopher of science touches on some of the key issues. Ernan McMullin, ,Evolution and Special Creation', Zygon 28:3 (1993): 299,335. Focus Questions 1There exist many Christian thinkers who accept Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Does that mean there is no conflict between Darwinism and Christianity? 2Taken at face value, Genesis 1,3 tells the story of the origins of the world and of human beings. What aspects of that story would you consider essential to the Christian faith? 3If we have an entirely natural explanation of the origins of complex living organisms, do we still have reasons to believe in a creator God? 4If God could have created complex living beings by a simple command, why would he choose a lengthy and wasteful process such as natural selection? 5Could a Christian regard the existence of God in the same way as a scientific hypothesis, that is to say, to be accepted only in so far as it is supported by the evidence? Seminar Activity I would suggest a debate, in which students sympathetic to the creationist position are asked to defend Darwin's theory, while students sympathetic to evolution are asked to argue against it. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||