Roger Scruton refers to Thomas Stearns Eliot in almost every one of his books, but despite the undoubtedly fundamental influence, which Eliot had exerted on the development of Scruton’s outlook, apart from a short article entitled Eliot and Conservatism, Scruton did not devote a separate work to Eliot’s thought. As I try to show this is due to the fact that Scruton was not so much a scholar of Eliot, as a continuator of his thought – not merely an expert on his philosophy and poetry, but an inheritor of his spiritual legacy. Both Eliot and Scruton belong to a current, which may rightly be called conservative philosophy of culture. In this paper I outline the conception of culture advanced by Eliot, and show how Scruton draws on this conception in his own spiritual development.
This article presents various definitions as well as the object and the method ofspiritual theology in the concept of post Vatican Council II. Referring to Western literature the author manifests various efforts in his attempt to define the essence of spiritual theology propagated by Polish theologians from the time of Vatican Council II. Therefore, it is a kind of synthesis of Polish thought portraying various kinds of concepts in the defining of spiritual theology. This article also shows the unique Polish method in the way of proceeding researchin the field of theoretical and experiential mysticism. The author also refers to the spirituality of the religious and to various aspects of the history of Polish spirituality.
Moje rozważania dotyczą jednego z podstawowych tematów egzystencjalnych. Śmierć jest przynależna ludzkiej kondycji, ale w kulturze Zachodu pozostawia się na nią coraz mniej miejsca. Można to interpretować jako rezultat tego, co Paul Tillich nazywał utratą „egzystencjalistycznego punktu widzenia”, rezultat wzmocniony przez rozwój kapitalizmu i zwycięstwo mieszczaństwa. Kiedyś o śmierci mówiło się otwarcie, istniały rytuały jej uszanowania, przejścia, kontaktowania się z nią i zachowania się po niej. Dziś śmierć stała się tematem nieprzyzwoitym, niewymawialnym. Efektem tego jest, że tak umierający człowiek, jak i osoba w żałobie nie mają o tym z kim porozmawiać. Ten proces wypierania śmierci jest długotrwały. Jego wczesne przejawy odnotowywał m.in. Walter Benjamin (w świecie jego bogatych krewnych nikt nie umierał, wszyscy byli nieśmiertelni, umierało się daleko, w sanatoriach). Dziś ludzie pytają psychologów, czy to normalne, że czują smutek po śmierci bliskich. Jednym ze sposobów przywrócenia śmierci miejsca w naszym doświadczeniu jest snucie o niej opowieści.
Storia della spiritualit cristiana sotto il aspetto metodologico
Sommario
L’oggetto della storia della spiritualit lo studio dell’esperienza dell’uomo nella sua relazione con Dio come Essere Assoluto, che si attua e sviluppa nel corso dei tempi. la trascendenza a permettere allo spirito umano di mettersi in contatto con l’Assoluto e in tale caso si pu parlare della storia di spiritualit giudaica, musulmana, buddista, induista e ovviamente cristiana. La storia della spiritualit come disciplina scientifica nata agli inizi del XX secolo, la sua importanza incresciuta grazie allo sviluppo delle scienze storiche soprattutto della storia della Chiesa e della teologia. Il suo constante sviluppo attestano molte ricerche scientifiche, periodici, specialistiche edizioni enciclopediche, dizionari. La storia della spiritualit cristiana analizza e cerca di dare la spiegazione della relazione che l’uomo sperimenta nel suo contatto con Dio Uno e Trino, che si rivelato pienamente in Ges Cristo. Essendo di sua natura una disciplina scientifica interdisciplinare usa metodi adatti per arrivare alla verit. La costatazione, la descrizione e l’interpretazione dei fatti, di cui si occupa la storia della spiritualit, ha un valore enorme per la cultura umana.
This article analyses the first traces of postsecular turn in historical theory, arguing that they first emerged in Dominick LaCapra’s book History and Its Limits: Human, Animal, Violence (2009) and in Allan Megill’s subsequent polemic with that work. The author claims that what prevails in LaCapra’s narrative is the rhetoric of “resisting apocalypse”, thus demonstrating how he inscribes postsecular themes with the issue of trauma, together with its religious connotations. The discussion between LaCapra and Megill is treated here as a point of departure for considering the forms that the postsecular can take in historical theory.
La Bible hébraque nous apporte un certain nombre d’informations sur les sages/ savants cté d’un roi ou au milieu d’une société. Malgré cela il est difficile de définire le rle et la place des sages dans la société israélite comme aussi l’histoire du mouvement sapiential au cours des sicles. Ben Sira vivant vers la fin de l’Ancien Testament est conscient d’eÎtre le dernier et le débiteur de tous ceux qui ont veÂcu et travaillé avant lui. Il est trs conscient de ce qu’il est dans la société contemporaine et il esquisse un portrait trs apparent d’un sage (Siracide 38,24-39,11). Selon lui tous les métiers sont utiles et nécessaires pour le fonctionnement de la cité. Mais le rle du sage dans la société est exceptionnel et tout fait indispensable. Seulement le sage est capable de donner bon conseil dans les cas difficiles et prendre parole dans le gouvernement de l’Etat.
Le sage est un homme qui étudie avec respect l’héritage du passé en particulier les écritures des auteurs inspirés. Mais il est autant soucieux d’enrichir cet héritage par raisonnement, par observation de la vie, par assimilation de la philosophie hellénistique qui a profondément pénétré dans la vie et pensée de la population juive pendant les derniers sicles de l’Ancien Testament. Le sage systématiquement construit sa sagesse par l’étude, par les voyages, par les contacts avec les hommes et surtout par la prire. Ce l’Esprit de Dieu qui finalement donne la sagesse et c’est par la force de l’Esprit que le sage formule ses pensées en tant qu’un prophte. A l’instar d’autres sages Ben Sira enseignait oralement la sagesse dans une école Jérusalem. Il a aussi exposé sa doctrine dans un livre l’usage de ceux qui désirent s’instruire. Il a écrit en hébreu et dans la forme poétique, alors la langue et la forme habituelle pour les livres sapientiaux juifs. Cet idéal présenté par la personne de Ben Sira et par son ouvrage est actuel aussi aujourd’hui: tous ceux qui veulent enseigner les gens, propager leurs idées par la radio, la presse, le livre, doivent d’abord soigneusement élaborer et évaluer leurs concepts et ensuite les exposer dans une forme la plus élégante.
The Meaning of Life by Yevgeny Trubetskoy (1863–1920) is one of the most important works of the religious-philosophical renaissance in Russia. The book addresses the issue of value of human life despite the evidence of evil, violence and moral decline. In order to achieve his aim the Russian thinker referred to the philosophy of all-unity and the category of revelation. However, he understood the latter category in two ways: broad and narrow. In the broad sense the higher meaning of revelation (all-unity) is constantly revealed to humans, which allows them to cognize and develop. In the narrow sense revelation came from Jesus Christ who has revealed the deepest sense of life by means of His paschal mystery. Every human being has a choice to accept or reject the content of the narrow revelation. Such things as collective consciousness, community-based experience, living within church, eucharist, and common responsibility not only for the fellow believers, but also for the whole creation – can help to accept the narrow revelation. The following article discusses also the aspects of natural revelation, revelation in non-christian religions, conditions and characteristics of christian revelation.