I couldn't agree more Keith. We live as "animaux dénaturés", increasingly living lives that are separate from nature, unlike our kin, the apes (chimps and gorillas) who remain firmly rooted in nature. My chapter 7 in Crossing Boundaries, about "wayfinding in Amina's world", is very dear to me. It is about the groundedness of walking the earth. We, however, seem to have lost the ground under our feet. Regards. Bernard
I started out being interested in religion, Bernhard. But I was diverted diverted into economy which I consider to be the religion of capitalist society. I always imagined I would get back to religion via ecology; and helping Skip Rappaport to finish Ritual and religion in the making of humanity (1999) brought the two together. Having survived several near death experiences in old age, I am exploring religion and philosophy again and have found nature. I am currently immersed in Spinoza, a major influence on Kant. Having read your book, I was struck not only by the conceptual primacy of nature there, but also by your many vivid natural descriptions.
There is some confusion of terms here and my examples are too compressed. Rappaport arg8ued that we need new religions compatible with the science of life on earth not outside it (cosmology). Getting from economy back to religion made me use the scientific name ecology. But nature and ecolog7y are not identical concepts. There is a continental tradition that distinguishes between what is becoming and what has become and nature is often a term for the latter, i.e. something necessary and unchangeable. Spinoza developed a notion of natural religion that claimed God is everything, not outside it or its creator. This leaves the issue of what about morality and free will. Kant tried to rescue the idea of human choice to be good or not. It is widely believed that he was inf7luenced by Hume's empiricism which he admitted, but he took a lot from Spinoza as well. The idea of a nature and religion frames these debates. Ecology is word for the study of life.
Thank you for your explanations. If I may add Auguste Rodin to this and his use of the body as a vehicle, expressing through its movements the "mystery, allure and poetry of nature". His L'Homme qui marche is that for me.
I couldn't agree more Keith. We live as "animaux dénaturés", increasingly living lives that are separate from nature, unlike our kin, the apes (chimps and gorillas) who remain firmly rooted in nature. My chapter 7 in Crossing Boundaries, about "wayfinding in Amina's world", is very dear to me. It is about the groundedness of walking the earth. We, however, seem to have lost the ground under our feet. Regards. Bernard
I started out being interested in religion, Bernhard. But I was diverted diverted into economy which I consider to be the religion of capitalist society. I always imagined I would get back to religion via ecology; and helping Skip Rappaport to finish Ritual and religion in the making of humanity (1999) brought the two together. Having survived several near death experiences in old age, I am exploring religion and philosophy again and have found nature. I am currently immersed in Spinoza, a major influence on Kant. Having read your book, I was struck not only by the conceptual primacy of nature there, but also by your many vivid natural descriptions.
Very interesting. I look forward to reading about how you think Spinoza-Kant may connect to religion and ecology.
There is some confusion of terms here and my examples are too compressed. Rappaport arg8ued that we need new religions compatible with the science of life on earth not outside it (cosmology). Getting from economy back to religion made me use the scientific name ecology. But nature and ecolog7y are not identical concepts. There is a continental tradition that distinguishes between what is becoming and what has become and nature is often a term for the latter, i.e. something necessary and unchangeable. Spinoza developed a notion of natural religion that claimed God is everything, not outside it or its creator. This leaves the issue of what about morality and free will. Kant tried to rescue the idea of human choice to be good or not. It is widely believed that he was inf7luenced by Hume's empiricism which he admitted, but he took a lot from Spinoza as well. The idea of a nature and religion frames these debates. Ecology is word for the study of life.
Thank you for your explanations. If I may add Auguste Rodin to this and his use of the body as a vehicle, expressing through its movements the "mystery, allure and poetry of nature". His L'Homme qui marche is that for me.