Leading into the 20th century scientific reductionism taught us that the universe and all life was but the mechanical playing out of simple physical forces on elementary particles, devoid of any inherent purpose. At the same time religious dualism taught that the gods and spirits and symbols of deeper meaning resided in some alternate plane that this physical world was some fallen version of, and thus was not of much importance in comparison. In either case, the conclusion was that this material world didnt really matter all that much. In the case of the reductionsists it didnt matter because nothing really mattered. And in the case of the dualists it didnt matter much because this lowly material realm was just the breezeway to getting in to the true party up in heaven. Is it any wonder that a culture developed which considered it acceptible to dump life-disrupting chemicals into the soils and rivers...and our own bodies. This tendency to unintentionally debase life pervades modern discourse. These patterns of valuation carry forward even if the beliefs upon which they were based have long since been overturned or gone out of favor. It seems it takes a culture time to reorient when its foundational value structure has been reassembled. If youre not lost by now. All Im trying to say is perhaps both the reductioniats and the dualists were wrong and our new task is to appreciate the overwhelming significance and responsibility we are granted by simply being alive. Have a nice week!
Posted on: Mon, 05 May 2014 03:25:34 +0000
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