{Culture, politics, religion, global interest, ethics}

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Africa's gifts to the world...

... in music, art, politics... from the Independent.

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Who knew?

"View of God Can Predict Values, Politics" says USA Today, summarizing the results of a broad Baylor U survey. Some highlights:
  • 91.8% believe in God. But...
  • Our ideas of God differ, from the "wrathful" and "authoritarian" God most prevalent in the Bible belt to the "critical", "distant", or"benevolent" views of God somewhat more prevalent elsewhere. [only four?]
  • These differences play out in political stances. Amazingly, believers in a God that is actively involved in the affairs of our lives AND that punishes the sinful are more likely (74.5%) to say that the federal government "should advocate Christian values" than the population as a whole (45.6%).
Says Baylor sociologist Christopher Bader, "[Y]ou learn more about people's moral and political behavior if you know their image of God than almost any other measure. It turns out to be more powerful a predictor of social and political views than the usual markers of church attendance or belief in the Bible."

It's almost as if, as a theologian once said, the most important thing about a person is what comes to mind when s/he conceives of "God."

This just in: "Ultimate commitments affect life!"

Many, including Rush Limbaugh, have noted the Sam Harris's concession here that fellow libs have their head in the sand with respect to the threat of militant Islam. Okaaaay.... Then this:
The truth is that there is every reason to believe that a terrifying number of the world's Muslims now view all political and moral questions in terms of their affiliation with Islam.
Think of it. Religion actually affecting how people view their live. Let's forget that (thoughtful) philosophical liberals view all political and moral questions in terms of their liberal commitments. The question is, can we find a way to live together peaceably? With respect to those times and places in which Muslims have political power, we're still looking for a clear answer.

Call me intolerant, will you?!

"... Islam always reacts to western allegations that it is not a peaceful religion by mass outbreaks of vituperation, denunciation and acts of jihadic violence.

"That this is a paradox seems not to be even remotely recognised by many Muslims. Commenting on the Pope’s speech, Tasnim Aslam, a spokeswoman for the Pakistani foreign ministry, came out with this little piece of doublethink beauty: 'Anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence.'" London Times

"Paradox"? How 'bout "being in collective denial"?

A big wall in China

The immense obstacles to the realization of human rights in China remain high and wide and visible from the other side of the globe. Chen Guangcheng, an opponent of forced abortions -- and a blind man -- has been grievously abused in his efforts to receive justice.

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Benedict and Scotus

Benedict XVI's speech at the University of Regensburg has special interest for me. The comments about Islam have people pulling the fire alarm, both Muslims and the left-leaning. More on that later. The deeper question is this: is God bound by reason? Is morality directed toward human flourishing a metaphysical necessity of some kind? Could God have willed other than God has in fact willed? Benedict, following many other Catholics, seem to think that Aquinas's Aristotelianism set the boundaries of rational thought, and traces our current woes back through the Reformers to Scotus.

These questions happen to be the subject of a recent doctoral thesis.