dialogo 8.1: DIVERSITY and DIFFERENTNESS

Journal of the Dialogue between Science and Theology

DIA LOGO

Volume 8 - Issue 1 - November 2021

Edited by Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan

DIVERSITY & DIFFERENTNESS

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DIALOGO International Journal with biannual volumes on regard to the Dialogue between Science and Theology

Dialogo Journal is the intellectual property of RCDST (Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology), Ovidius University of Constanta, Romania

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DIALOGO 2021 volume 8 - issue 1:

‘DIVERSITY & DIFFERENTNESS’

Organized by the RCDST - Romania in collaboration with Institutions from Slovakia - Pakistan - Switzerland - Poland India - Egypt - Uganda - Jordan - Turkey Argentina - USA - Canada - Germany - Australia November 2021 www.dialogo-conf.com/dialogo-journal/

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this volume do not necessarily represent those of the Dialogo Organizers and are attributable to the authors of the papers alone.

Publication Series: Description: ISSN (CD-ROM): ISSN (ONLINE): ISSN (PRINT): ISSN-L:

Dialogo (Multidisciplinary Journal for the Dialogue between Science and Theology) 2392 – 9928 2393 – 1744 Tudor-Cosmin Cio can, P h.D. (Romania) - In-Chief Editors: 2457 – 9297 Ing. Stefan Bad ura, P h.D. (Slovak Republic) 2392 – 9928

Series Copyright RCDST (Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology) of Owner: the “Ovidius” University of Constanta. Romani a Volume7, Issue2 Title:

‘DIVERSITY and DIFFERENTNESS’

IVC2021DD DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

abreviation:

Published by: Dialogo Publishing House SRL, Sos. Mangaliei 185 - Constanta, Romania

DOI issuer: Lucian Blaga Central University Library of Cluj. Str. Clinicilor, nr.2, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

275 Printed on: 100 copies Publishing date: 2021, November 30 Pages:

Note on the issue: This is the volume of our general topic, with articles gathered until November 2021 on 14 sections of research.

*All published papers underwent double peer review. *All published papers are in English language only. Each paper was assigned to 3 reviewers and went through two-level approval process. * The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not nec-

essarily represent the views of RCDST. Authors only hold responsability over their papers and content.

Open Access Online archive is available at: http://www.dialogo-conf.com/archive (articles will be available online one month after the publication releases).

In case of any questions, notes or complaints, please contact us at: info(at)dialogo-conf.com.

Warning: The owner of Dialogo Journal is RCDST (Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology), Romania, while the authors hold the copyright of their articles.

Dialogo by RCDST is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License Th s is in an Open Access journal by which all articles are available on the internet to all users upon publication.

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

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8:1 (2021) Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

Conference Sponsors and Parteners

Ovidius University of Constanta (UOC/Romania) www.univ-ovidius.ro

University of the Punjab (Lahore) www.pu.edu.pk

The Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi (UAIC/Romania) www.uaic.ro

“Vasile Goldis” Western University of Arad (UVVG/Romania) www.uvvg.ro/

The Institute for the Study of Christianity in an Age of Science and Tech- Horizon Research Publishing, HRPUB - USA nology (ISCAST/Australia) http://www.hrpub.org/ www.iscast.org

Research and Science Today www.lsucb.ro/rst

Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology www.rcdst.ro

www.The-Science.com (Slovakia)

Maritime University of Constanta “Mircea cel Batran” Naval (UMC/Romania) Academy (ANMB/Romania) www.cmu-edu.eu www.anmb.ro

Global Ethics (Geneva/Switzerland) www.globethics.net

Faculty of Educational Sciences (WNP) Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland www.pedagogika.umk.pl doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

Action-research in Contemporary Culture and Education – Practice & Theory (ACCEPT/Poland) www.accept.umk.pl

Centre for Research and social, psychological and pedagogical evaluation (CCEPPS/Romania) ccepps.univ-ovidius.ro

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Open Access Theology Journal www.mdpi.com/ journal/religions

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Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

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Conference Sponsors and Parteners

Faculty of Medicine (UOC), Romania www.medcon.ro

Faculty of Theology (UOC), Romania teologie.univ-ovidius.ro

Faculty of Orthodox Theology (UAIC), Romania www.teologie.uaic.ro

Faculty of Theology (UAB), Romania www.fto.ro

Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education (UAIC), Romania www.psih.uaic.ro

Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education (UOC), Romania pse.univ-ovidius.ro

Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (UAIC), Romania snsa.univ-ovidius.ro

Centre of Inter - Religious Research and Christian Psychopedagogy Alba Iulia - Saint Serge (CCIRPC)

Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering (UOC), Romania fcetp.univ-ovidius.ro

Faculty of Law (UOC), Romania drept.univ-ovidius.ro

Christian Theological Institute after the Timotheus Gospel, Romania http://timotheus.ro/

Institute for Peace Studies in Eastern Christianity [IPSEC] Cambridge, MA 022380246, U.S.A. https://orthodoxpeace.org/

Volume published by

RCDST Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology Ovidius University of Constanta Romania doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

Dialogo Publishing House S.R.L. Editing and Publishing Society, Constanta Romania

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Lucian Blaga Central University Library of Cluj Publishing Institution of the “Lucian Blaga” University, Cluj-Napoca-400006, Str. Clinicilor, no 2 Romania

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Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

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International Scientific Committee, Reviewers and Advisory Board Christoph Stueckelberger Globethics.net Executive Director and Founder; Prof. PhD. (Switzerland) Maria Isabel Maldonado Garcia Directorate External Linkages/Institute of Language University of the Punjab; Head of Spanish Dpt. / Assistant Professor (Pakistan) Filip Nalaskowski

Faculty of Educational Sciences - Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun; Dr. (Poland) Lucian Turcescu Department of Theological Studies - Concordia University; Professor and Chair (Canada)

IPS Teodosie PETRESCU Archbichop of Tomis disctrict; Faculty of Orthodox Theology; “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Prof.

PhD. (Romania) Mohammad Ayaz Ahmad University of Tabuk; Assistant Professor PhD (Saudi Arabia) Edward Ioan Muntean Faculty of Food Sciences and Technology - University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Cluj–Napoca; Assoc. Professor PhD. (Romania) Altaf Qadir University of Peshawar (Pakistan)

Francesco FIORENTINO Dipartimento di Filosofia, Letteratura e Scienze Sociali; Universita degli Studi di Bari «Aldo Moro»; Researcher in Storia della Filosofia (Italy)

Eugenia Simona Antofi “Dunarea de Jos” University (Romania)

Dagna Dejna NCU Faculty of Educational Sciences (Poland)

D. Liqaa Raffee Jordan University of Science and Technology (Jordan)

Panagiotis STEFANIDES Emeritus Honoured Member of the Technical Chamber of Greece HELLENIC AEROSPACE IND. S.A. - Lead engineer; MSc Eur Ing (Greece)

George Enache Faculty of History, Philosophy and Theology „Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati; Associate professor PhD. (Romania)

Cristiana Oprea European Physical Society; member Joint Institute for Nuclear Research - Frank Laboratory of Neutron Physics; Scientific Project Leader (Russia)

Ahed Jumah Mahmoud Al-Khatib Faculty of Medicine - Department of Neuroscience University of Science and Technology; Researcher PhD (Jordan)

Coli Ndzabandzaba Rhodes University (South Africa)

Gheorghe Istodor Faculty of Orthodox Theology - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Prof.

PhD. (Romania) Nasili Vaka’uta Trinity Methodist Theological College University of Auckland; Ranston Lecturer PhD. (New Zealand)

Akhtar Hussain Sandhu Department of History, University of the Punjab; Associate professor PhD. (Pakistan) Richard Woesler European University press, PhD. (Germany) Riffat Munawar University of the Punjab; Dr. PhD. (Pakistan)

Dilshad Mahabbat University of Gujrat (Pakistan) Adrian Niculcea Faculty of Orthodox Theology, “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Prof.

PhD. (Romania) Tarnue Marwolo Bongolee Hope for the Future; Executive Director (Liberia)

Hassan Imam Aligarh University, PhD. (India) Ioan G. Pop Emanuel University of Oradea; PhD. (Romania) Farzana Baloch University of Sindh Associate professor PhD. (Pakistan)

Ahmed Kyeyune Islamic University in Uganda

Petru BORDEI Faculty of Medicine - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Prof. PhD. (Romania)

Ahmed Usman University of the Punjab (Pakistan) Mihai Valentin Vladimirescu Faculty of Orthodox Theology, University of Craiova; Professor PhD. (Romania)

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Ioan-Gheorghe ROTARU ‘Timotheus’ Brethren Theological Institute of Bucharest (Romania)

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Khalil Ahmad University of the Punjab; Prof. PhD. (Pakistan)

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Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

International Scientific Committee, Reviewers and Advisory Board Maciej Laskowski Politechnika Lubelska; Prof. PhD. (Poland)

Mihai CIUREA University of Craiova, PhD. (Romania)

Muhammad Hafeez University of the Punjab; Prof. PhD. (Pakistan)

Mohammad Ayaz Ahmad University of Tabuk, Assistant Professor PhD. (Saudi Arabia)

Muhammad Shahid Habib International Islamic University; Lecturer Ph.D. (Pakistan)

Mirosaw Zientarski Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toru, PhD. (Poland)

Muhammad Zakria Zakar University of the Punjab; Prof. PhD. (Pakistan)

Manisha Mathur G.N.Khalsa College; University of Mumbai; Assistant Professor (India)

R S Ajin GeoVin Solutions Pvt. Ltd.; PhD. (India)

Pratibha Gramann Saybrook University of San Francisco, California (United States of America)

Mustfeez Ahmad Alvi Lahore Leads University; Prof. PhD. (Pakistan)

Adrian Gorea Concordia University, Montreal (Canada)

Radu Niculescu Ovidius University of Constanta; Assist.prof. PhD. (Romania)

Richard Alan Miller

Navy Intel (Seal Corp. and then MRU); Dr. in Alternative Agriculture, Physics, and Metaphysics (United States of America)

Fermin De La Fuente-Calvo De La Fuente Consulting (Corporative Intelligence) B.Sc. Physics and Professor PhD. (United States of America)

Maria Ciocan “Mircea cel Batran” Naval Academy; teacher PhD. (Romania)

Kelli Coleman Moore University of California at Santa Barbara (United States of America)

Sorin Gabriel ANTON Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi; PhD. (Romania)

Osman Murat Deniz Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart Üniversitesi; Associate Professor PhD. (Turkey)

Sultan Mubariz University of Gujrat; PhD. (Pakistan)

Daniel Munteanu The International Journal of Orthodox Theology (Canada) Dragos Hutuleac Stefan cel Mare University of Suceava; Assistant Lecturer, PhD candidate (Romania) Shiva Khalili Faculty of psychology and education - Tehran University; Associate Professor PhD. (Iran) Mihai Himcinski Faculty of Orthodox Theology - „1 November 1918” University of Alba Iulia; Prof. PhD. (Romania) Richard Willem Gijsbers The Institute for the Study of Christianity in an Age of Science and Technology - ISCAST (Australia) Flavius Cristian MaRCaU Constantin Brancusi” University of Targu Jiu; Phd. Candidate (Romania)

Gheorghe Petraru Faculty of Orthodox Theology, Iasi; Prof. PhD. (Romania) Rania Ahmed Abd El-Wahab Mohamed Plant Protection Research Institute; PhD. (Egypt) Rubeena Zakar University of the Punjab; Prof. PhD. (Pakistan) Mihai GIRTU The Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology (RCDST); President Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Prof. PhD. (Romania) Cosmin Tudor Ciocan The Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology (RCDST); Executive Director Faculty of Orthodox Theology - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Lecturer PhD. (Romania)

Stanley Krippner Association for Humanistic Psychology, the Parapsychological Association; President; Prof. PhD. (United States of America) Fouzia Saleem University of the Punjab, Dr. PhD. (Pakistan)

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Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

International Scientific Committee, Reviewers and Advisory Board Mihaela RUS “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Professor PhD. (Romania) Sónia Morgado Instituto Superior de Ciências Policiais e Segurança Interna, (ISCPSI); Aux. Prof., PhD (Portugal)

Muhammad Shahzad Aslam Universiti Malaysia Perlis; Assistant Professor PhD (Pakistan) Musferah Mehfooz Islamic Studies, Humanities Department; Assistant Professor PhD (Pakistan)

Jean FIRICA

University of Craiova; Assoc. Professor PhD. (Romania) Ahmed Ashfaq Assistant Professor PhD (Saudi Arabia) Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqi Faculty of Biological Sciences, Lahore Garrison University; Assistant Professor PhD (Pakistan) Rehman Ataur Lahore Garrison University; Senior Lecturer PhD. (Pakistan)

Stefan Gregore Ciornei University of Agricultural Science and Veterinary Medicine; Assistant Professor PhD (Romania) Ahmed Kadhim Hussein Babylon University, College of Engineering; Assist.Prof.Dr.Eng. (Iraq) Muhammad Sarfraz Kuwait University, Department of Information Science, College of Computing; Professor and V. Dean of Research & Graduate Studies (Kuwait)

Kuang-ming Wu Yale University Divinity School; Senior Lecturer PhD. (Pakistan)

Abbasali Barati Al-mustafa International university in Qom; Professor PhD (Iran)

Nursabah Sarikavakli “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Professor PhD. (Turkey)

Amando P. Singun Higher College of Technology, Muscat; Lecturer PhD (Oman)

Laurentiu-Dan MILICI “Stefan cel Mare” University of Suceava; Professor PhD. (Romania)

Marian Gh. Simion Harvard University - Harvard Divinity School; PhD (United States)

Emad Al-Janabi “Al-Mussaib” Technical College; Asist. Prof. Dr. (Iraq)

Besmira Lahi University of New York in Tirana; Lecturer PhD (Albania)

Sugiarto Teguh Budi luhur and AAJ Jayabaya; Lecturer PhD. (Indonesia)

Zeyad Samir Zaki al-Dabbagh Mosul University / College of Political Science; Assist. Prof. PhD (Iraq)

Lili BUZATU “Mircea cel Batran” Naval Academy; teacher (Romania) Ionut Chircalan Faculty of Orthodox Theology - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Assist Prof. PhD. (Romania)

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Mahesh Man Shrestha International Network on Participatory Irrigation Management (INPIM); Lecturer PhD. (Nepal)

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Hamnah Naveed Malik Lahore Grammar School; PhD (Pakistan) Nicolae popescu Faculty of Orthodox Theology - “Ovidius” University of Constanta; Assist Prof. PhD. (Romania)do P. Singun Higher College of Technology, Muscat; Lecturer PhD (Oman)

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DIALOGO

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Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

Organizing Committee Cosmin Tudor ciocan - Scientific Programme Officer

RCDST Executive Director and Founder; Lect. ThD. Faculty of orthodox theology, Ovidius University of Constanta (Romania) Mihai GIRTU

RCDST President and Founder; Professor PhD. Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering , Ovidius University of Constanta (Romania)

responsibles for session 1. Art and Literature Mihai Valentin Vladimirescu - University of Craiova; Prof., PhD (Romania)

Radu Niculescu - Ovidius University of Constanta; Assist. Prof., PhD (Romania)

responsible for session 2. Earth Sciences, Ecology, Environment Cristiana Oprea - Dzelepov Laboratory for Nuclear Problems (DLPN) - JINR Dubna, Professor PhD (Russia)

responsibles for session 3. Social Sciences, Culture, Lifestyle Choices Maria Isabel Maldonado Garcia - University of the Punjab; Assist. Prof., PhD (Pakistan)

Miguel ALGRANTI, PhD (Argentina) - Instituto Universitario Nacional del Arte, Universidad Favaloro; Lecturer PhD (Argentina)

responsible for session 4. Law and Political Science Mihaela RUS - Faculty of Law, Ovidius University of Constanta; Assoc. Prof . PhD. (Romania) responsible for session 5. Philosophy of Science Osman Murat DENIZ - Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart Üniversitesi - lahiyat Fakültesi; Assoc. Prof . PhD. (Turkey) responsible for session 6. Life Sciences Ahed Jumah Mahmoud Al-Khatib - University of Science and Technology - Department of Neuroscience; Dr. (Jordan) responsible for session 7. Neurobiology Any DOCU-AXELERAD - Ovidius University of Constanta; Assoc. Prof . PhD. (Romania) responsible for session 8. Metaphysics and Communication Sciences Muhammad Shahid Habib - Lahore Garrison University, Prof . PhD. (Pakistan) Bruno MARCHAL - IRIDIA, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Prof . PhD. (Belgium) responsible for session 9. Management, Marketing, Economics and Tourism Sónia MORGADO - Instituto Superior de Ciências Policiais e Segurança Interna (ISCPSI), Prof . PhD. (Portugal) responsible for session 10. Bioethics Christoph STUECKELBERGER - University of Basel ; Founder and Executive Director of Globethics.net, Geneva ; Professor PhD. (Switzerland) responsible for session 11. Astronomy, Astro-Physics Valeriu Gheorge Cimpoca - “Valahia” University of Targoviste; Professor PhD. (Switzerland) responsible for session 12. History, Demography, Archaeology Akhtar Hussain Sandhu - University of Gujrat; Professor PhD. (Pakistan) responsible for session 13. Mathematics, Technology, Industry, Networking Anton LIESKOVSKY - Faculty of Management Science and Informatics, University of Zilina; Ing. PhD. (Slovakia) responsible for session 14. General Topic (Theology) Teodosie PETRESCU - Faculty of Orthodox Theology, Ovidius University of Constanta; Professor PhD. (Romania) Stefan badura - responsible for IT Publishing Society of Zilina; Ing. PhD. (Slovakia) doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

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Volume Presentation

EDITORIAL “DIVERSITY & DIFFERENTNESS’” Entitled `DIVERSITY & DIFFERENTNESS’ this volume addresses a needed and very actual issue in our society concerning people’s choice to get to choose their lifestyle, every day’s choices without getting any social biases in return. Is this the right way to be The main session of the Dialogo conferences (in November, each year) is dedicated to a special topic. We have concluded the previous conference with a conclusion stating that “Different doesn’t mean wrong; it just means different.” The implications of the Diversity & Differentness issues are great and they extend to any field of social concern, psychological, religious, political, and beyond. Diversity is generally understood to encompass race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, age, and political and religious beliefs. And while in the past it has focused on strengthening inter-cultural tolerance, currently new ideas about diversity and inclusion have developed, shifting the focus towards enriching human learning and experience, so-called ‘unity in diversity.’ Nowadays movements strive to legalize more and more issues that were previously banned from public display or engagement, while now more than ever they are promoted, fought for, and socially imposed. A new kind of ‘generations conflict’ emerges from this fact, ‘liberals’ pro-actively engage social impositions of differentness, while ‘traditionalists’ stand for a more conservative approach. There seems to be no way of objectively and absolutely proving one way is ‘correct’ while the other should be regarded as ‘wrong’, but each path is urged to explain its validity. Shaping Inclusiveness through dialogue is one general purpose of this event while shaping the limits of it must be another strong point to emphasize upon. ‘Peculiarity’ became the new kind of normality; ‘oddness’ is no longer disavowed; what once was declared as abnormal and inappropriate, now it came to be seen as at most a curiosity, a mirage. That is why, through the visual arts and not only, ‘weirdness’ proliferates more and more, so that any formerly tagged as a handicap is now seen and labeled as a gift - “With a little help, most of life’s curses can be a gift” (‘Seventh Son’, movie).

Well, for a start, don’t get me wrong! It is not up to us to be the ‘judge, jury, and executioner’ for any of these peculiar, strange, or rather unique kinds of envisioning life and living that have emerged lately. Instead, it is with certainty ours to get aware of them all and their thinking, get acquainted with any of their motivational existence so that we can develop newly, the right way of “dealing” with them. If we do not have the right to label them as ‘right or wrong,’ neither what becomes nowadays ‘traditional,’ nor the vanguardist approaches, we do urge to place them both in continuity, not in opposition. Even if their presentation is antagonistic antithetic, none help us understand them both correctly and fully. It seems that humans have always had this tendency of judging / not appreciating ‘novelty’ until they did – out of different reasons, especially impositions and adaptational reactions. Vangardism has always been disregarded, as has traditionalism mounted as the unique, likely path. It should be ‘normal’ now the obvious diversity of life, as such was made by the very God who made everything endlessly diverse. On the other hand, it should be also proved and aware that different things are not opposed, concurring for a pall position, but the alternative, enriching life and living in a way we were previously not capable or eager to accept. If we try to find our possibilities doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

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Volume Presentation

Volume Presentation

of defining a theory, it shouldn’t be always about ‘confirm’ vs ‘infirming’ something; instead, we can also merely ‘affirm’ peacefully, diverse, the otherness.

Judging by all previous cycles of traditional-vanguardism, all starting with the same resistance to change and ending with the same adaptation in embracing novelty, we cannot but assume it will always be likewise. The only thing that makes the difference is the force to impose such novelty for the outcome to settle quicker. Thus, the question is not whether, but when we ‘embrace’ / allow novelty and peculiarity.

On the other hand, diversity, otherness is not an issue to be disregarded, for it creates “situations” in which we don’t know to act if otherwise. Therefore, regardless of the label posterity will tag the current “diversity” with – as ‘normal’ or ‘abnormal’ –, knowing the novelty, getting acquainted with differentness, and being aware of the peculiarity is the normal attitude we can have: acknowledging their existence and developing a correct attitude towards them.

Do we need to rethink society? Do they fit in along with the rest of it? How can we influence the social view to help with the coexistence of these elements, traditional and differentness?

Should we consider differentness as ‘out of the ordinary’ or just another emerging pattern?

It is all about being ‘original’ or merely ‘odd’?

For genuine and proper answers to all these and more, we summon any scholar and research to propose a personal project and research for the conference’s participants with ONLY ONE RULE to apply to your paper: please consider sending papers within the general aim of Dialogo, that is THE DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE SCIENCE & THEOLOGY, or propose anything with concern to DIVERSITY & DIFFERENTNESS! Starting from the keyword `individual choice`, We have invited researchers, teachers, and students to join this global forum, where research, knowledge, and ideas can be efficiently presented and shared. Dialogo conference provides a smart virtual platform to share your research ideas with personal attendance but without traveling or expensive accommodation.

Any paper that brings forward a new approach, a research report, or a case study, a decentprovocative supposition, or a challenging hypothesis is more than welcome into DIALOGO Conference. We have the pleasure to discuss findings and ideas with fellow scholars worldwide and the opportunity to publish them in an international, indexed publication!

I.

II. Conference paper approval process: Each registered paper was evaluated in a double-tier approval process.

1. Scientific Committee evaluation (on average 2 reviews were prepared per paper).

2. Conference Editorial Board.

Only those papers recommended by these committees were accepted for online presentation at the conference and publication in the Journal. That was rated to 85% of the total submitted papers.

III. Dialogo Endeavor Presentation 1. General presentation As the chief editor and founder of Dialogo enterprise, I have started this endeavor with a lot of anxiety, for there were many failures regarding the same purpose, as well as there are some other already internationally recognized. Still, I have started this quest along with a few fellow researchers in my University [i.e., Ovidius University of Constanta, RO] from diverse fields of science. I was encouraged to propose our version of dialogue in this form, a virtual forum of debates and discussions, capable of bringing people from around the globe more comfortable and environmental-friendly; and I did. Now, after only five years and ten published volumes, I am grateful I had these colleagues beside me and also God, who blessed our proposal since it started with 21 professors. Now it reaches more than a hundred involved academics in a genuine and targeted dialogue. I could not be amazed by the considerable amount of questions these events usually raise, sometimes from the papers as the starting point of discussions, or just as an excuse for considering addressing such items to people who often taught such issues. Overall, I cannot be more proud that we achieve this aim of bringing people of such diversity of research fields, sciences, religious backgrounds, or spirituality in an academic arena for discussions and clarifications. Considering the phrase of Norman Vincent Peale, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars”, we, at Dialogo, are but proud to see this outcome on our endeavor.

2. Aim and Scope

Guiding Keywords

Exclusivism and Inclusivism ◊ Identity and change ◊ e-Society ◊ Differentness ◊ Biodiversity ◊ peculiarity ◊ abnormal ◊ inappropriate ◊ improper ◊ strange ◊ Social Bias ◊ Tolerance ◊ Social acceptance ◊ Culture ◊ Eccentricity ◊ distinction ◊ Diversity ◊ Pluralism ◊ Uniqueness ◊ Public Use of Religious Reasons ◊ Social representations of diversity ◊ Religious socialization ◊ Interfaith ◊ Gender diversity ◊ LGBT ◊ Religious freedom ◊ Gay marriage ◊ Cosmetical Surgery ◊ Spirituality and Medical Practice ◊ Racism ◊ Religiousness and spirituality ◊ prejudice ◊ Sociology of oddness ◊ Religion and health ◊ Social identity ◊ Religious identities ◊ Religion, political behavior, and public culture ◊ Religious leadership during the pandemic ◊ Pandemic, religious tradition, practice, and core beliefs ◊ Religion and political behavior ◊ Religious social movements in the public sphere ◊ Religious pluralism ◊ Reasonable Faith ◊ Contemporary Philosophical Theology ◊ Religion and violence ◊ Civil society and civil religion ◊ Industries Most or Least Impacted by COVID-19 ◊ The dynamics of religious economies ◊ Religion and law ◊ Science delusion

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and mistakes ◊ Metaphysics in science ◊ Empowerment and quality of life ◊ The criminal nature of cult activities ◊ The problems of metaphysics ◊ Weather and Climate ◊ Global warming ◊

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The Dialogo Journal is a multidisciplinary, peer-reviewed academic journal published twice a year.

It aims to study the theory and practice of dialogue between all types of sciences and any religious background, understood provisionally as meaningful interaction and exchange between people (often of different social, cultural, political, religious, or professional groups) who come together through various kinds of conversations or activities with a view to increased understanding on both these two ways of human reasoning, scientifical and religious/spiritual. The Journal is published by the Research Center on the Dialogue between Science and Theology of „Ovidius” University of Constanta, Romania, in partnership with several academic institutions and research centers from Romania and abroad. The conference is addressed to scholars from all over the world interested in communicating on topics of interest at the crossroads of science and religion. The participation of young scientists, graduates, and students is greatly encouraged, one of the goals of the workshop being to offer the new generation an doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1

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Volume Presentation

opportunity to present original new results and a chance to learn from the experience of distinguished researchers.

The goal of the Virtual Conference on the Dialogue between Science and Theology is twofold. First, it aims to collect high-quality, authoritative, well-documented information on topics placed at the intersection of science and religion. Secondly, it makes an effort to provide a way for leading scholars to share and exchange their views, as well as to comment on the opinions of their peers regarding particular aspects of science and religion. This might include ways to challenge the boundaries within and between religion and science, and or between and within the academy, as well as the boundaries of the sacred and secular, of reason and faith. Ultimately, we want to ask how queer religion, science, and philosophy, can and/or should be. It is our pleasure to introduce you to this anniversary volume. This book contains all the accepted papers from the 13th conference organized by the Dialogo community of scholars, which is described below in more detail. We hope that all these published papers contribute to academic society and provide interesting information for researchers worldwide.

Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.

Sincere thanks for: Scientific Committee for their volunteer work during reviewing.

Eleanor Rosevelt

Conference partners for promotional work and their contribution.

Editorial Board for enormous workload and patience.

Be welcomed to enjoy this accomplishment!

See you again for the DIALOGO 2022 upcoming events! your host, lect. Fr. Ciocan Tudor Cosmin, PhD Executive Director of The Research Center on the Dialogue between Science & Theology (RCDST) „Ovidius” University Constanța / Romania Scientific Programme Officer of DIALOGO international conferences E-mail: office(at)dialogo-conf.com

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Table of Contents

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Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

SECTION 3. Social Sciences, Culture, Lifestyle Choices & Religion

Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 EDITORIAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

8. Assuming diversity and difference in the educational process. Limits, opportunities, consequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85 Constantin Cucos

SECTION 1. Art and Literature & Religion 1. The Love for Romania of a Northern-Irish Woman: Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Nicoleta Stanca, Iulian Isbășoiu

2. The Theological Importance of Prof. Uwe’s Christian Poems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Paul Tseng (Tseng Kuei-chi)

9. Cultural Education towards Exclusivism. Or, the Role of Education in shaping Exclusivism. . . . . . .94 Constantin Cucos; Cosmin Tudor Ciocan; Maria Ciocan

10. A Theological Understanding of Ancestor Veneration in the Bapedi Society as an Expression of Transcendence and Anticipation of Comfort and Hope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Morakeng Edward Kenneth Lebaka

SECTION 2. Earth Sciences, Ecology, Environment & Theology 3. Governing Dynamics in Complex Systems using Big Data Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Catalin Nutu

4. Determination of essential elements and trace heavy metals in agricrops by photoneutron activation analysis and X-ray fluorescence methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

11. Grigore Nandriș. Bridging the East and the West through the History of Language, Culture, Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Iulian Isbășoiu, Nicoleta Stanca

12. Distance learning during Covid-19 pandemic in Iran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Beata Pietkiewicz-Pareek

Cristiana Oprea, Marina V. Gustova, Oleg D. Maslov, Anatoly G. Belov, Ioan A. Oprea, Pavel J. Szalansky, Ruxandra Ciofu

13. Aristotle’s Mean in Politics and Religion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

5. Theoretical analysis of R22 substitution with R417 on board of fishing vessels - thermodynamic, environmental and Islamic aspects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

14. The sociological MRI of a fetish. How ‘odd’ is an oddity and how ‘peculiar’ peculiarity?. . . . . . . 144

Feiza Memet

6. Statistical Analysis in Time and Frequency Domain of the Last Decades Earth Data. . . . . . . . . . .67 Catalin Nutu

7. Photoneutron activation analysis and multivariate geostatistical approach to assess the spatial occurrence of trace heavy metals in Crisuri Basin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Cristiana Oprea, Diana Cupsa, Alexandru Ioan Oprea, Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, Marina Gustov, Oleg D Maslov, Anatoly Belov, Alin Teusdea, Istvan Gergely, Ion Gruia, Doris Cadar

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Tabel of Content

Spyridon Stelios, Alexia Dotsi

Cosmin Tudor Ciocan

15. Unity in Diversity: A Theological Analysis of the War on Gender Identity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Ovidiu Hanc

SECTION 4. Law and Political Science & Theology 16. Rules on Decarbonization and Humans Rights Law. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 Nazibrola Chinchaladze

Tabel of Content

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Dialogue between Science & Theology November 2021

SECTION 5. Philosophy of Science & Theology 17. How to reason about religious beliefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 Daniele Bertini

SECTION 8. Epistemology, Metaphysics and Communication Sciences & Theology 18. Transcending and including diversity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 Pier Luigi Lattuada

19. A Reality Based on Consciousness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205 Stephan A Schwartz

SECTION 12. History, Demography, Archaeology & Religion 20. Maniu and Popoviciu. Different Views on National Self-Identity of Romanians from Transylvania. 221 George E. Oprea, Alexandru I. Oprea This page was intentionally left blank

SECTION 14. General Topic: Science and Theology in dialogue 21. History and future of life on Earth - a synthesis of natural science and theology . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Andreas May

22. Unexplored implications of the diversity of early belief in Jesus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Abel Mordechai Bibliowicz

23. Human Beings as Imago Dei and Homo Sapiens: Assessing the Substantive Interpretation of Imago Dei. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Juuso Loikkanen

24. Forgiveness of Sin in the Relation to the Community of Believers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 Ilie I. Sorițău GUIDE FOR AUTHORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

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DIALOGO JOURNAL 8 : 1 (2021) 25 - 32

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.1

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The Love for Romania of a Northern-Irish Woman: Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș Nicoleta Stanca, Ph.D.

Iulian Isbășoiu, Ph.D.

Assoc. Prof. at Faculty of Letters, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

Rev. Assist. Prof. at Faculty of Theology, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 07 July 2021 Received in revised form 27 July Accepted 01 August 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.1

This article aims to discuss the case study of a Northern-Irish woman, Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș, who became a real promoter of Romanian culture. Her intellectual passion for this land started in her youth, when she first came to Romania, in the 1930s, grew through her marriage to the Romanian university professor Grigore Nandriș, her baptism in the Orthodox Church and the Romanian-Northern-Irish heritage left to their son, Professor Jonh Nandriș. Her dual legacy is revealed by her publications, even if away from Romania because of historical circumstances, and she will be seen, in this article, as an informal ambassador of Romania on the British Isles.

Keywords: Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș; Romanian culture; Northern Ireland; translations; culture; history; exile; resistance;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Nicoleta Stanca, Iulian Isbășoiu. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Stanca, Nicoleta, and Iulian Isbășoiu. ”The Love for Romania of a Northern-Irish Woman: Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 25 - 32. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.1

I.

INTRODUCTION : the birth of a life-long passion for Romania

Mabel Farley, the daughter of Northern Irish reverend and Professor of Old Greek and Hebrew at Magee University College Londonderry, sets on a research voyage to Eastern Europe in the early decades of the 20th century. This is the beginning of a life-long passion for Romania.

As a collaborator of The Balkan Herald and

other periodicals in Northern Ireland, she is offered the possibility to travel to the Balkans [1].

In a way, for western-educated young women, it seems that was the fashion, or rather an initiation – to travel to far-away, “exotic” places to have the experience and mature. It was comparable to the grand European tour of Americans at the turn of the 20th century. However, for Mabel, when she reaches Romania, in the 1930s, it seems to be love at first sight, first of all for the

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Carpathians, the peasants in the villages she visits, the friends she makes in Bucharest and Iași, the Orthodox Church she is baptized in as Maria and, then, after 9 years, the love for her future husband, Grigore Nandriș, whom she will support in his endevours to promote Romanian studies throughout the rest of their lives and whose remains she will bring back home to his native land.

The marriage of the two kindred spirits, Grigore and Mabel, takes place in Chernivtsi, where the former was a university professor and a prominent intellectual, with a promising political career. Their son, John Nandriș, was born in 1938 in Northern Ireland in his grandparents’ home, but, as the young family settled in Chernivtsi, he was baptized at St. Nicholas church, a 16thcentury beautiful church in the Bukovinean city [2].

In 1940, after Grigore Nandriș became an MP in the Romanian Parliament, he was given his first diplomatic assignment on behalf of Romania, and thus he set on the mission to establish Romanian links in London and Dublin, taking his family with him, Mabel and little John.

The year 1940 is considered a turning point in the destiny of the Romanian-NorthernIrish family [3], as they are forced to remain in Northern Ireland in the context of the signing of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact (1939) and the annexation of Northern Bukovina by the Soviet Union. The tragedy back home, where Grigore’s sister, Anița, and her three children are deported to Siberia, is doubled by the one abroad, as Romania entered the war on the German side and Nandriș became an “enemy alien” [4].

Grigore and Mabel Nandriș did not have any chance to go back to Northern Bukovina or Romania in the man’s lifetime. It was their son who not only made the return voyage, later, but he also continued, as an archeologist and university professor, his parents’ work inspired by their love for Romania.

For the rest of their mature lives, abroad, Grigore and Mabel Nandriș were indefatigable promoters of Romanianness, like the two facets

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of a coin, him from an institutional and more official position, and her, from a more personal perspective, supporting her husband’s projects and embarking on translation work. Grigore defended Romania from the BBC and from the Language and Literature Department of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies at the University of London. In parallel, Mabel translated from Romanian into English, tales and short stories by classical Romanian writers, such as Ion Creangă, Mihail Sadoveanu, Ioan Al. Brătescu-Voinești and I.L. Caragiale, through whose writings she recreated the magical folktale universe of Romania, which she had experienced firsthand in the mountains in her youth, and in which she raised their son.

A different type of work is dedicated by Mabel Nandriș to the Romanians who suffered in exile, through her translation of Twenty Years in Siberia

by Anița Nandriș-Cudla and of The Lost Footsteps

by Silviu Crăciunaș. To a certain extent, besides the obvious connection with her sister-in-law’s story, these translation projects revealed the suffering of her own family, of her husband’s, forced to live away from his home until his death.

And who could understand better the essence of exile if not a Northern-Irish woman, given the intricacies of the Anglo-Irish troubled history?

II.

Translations from literature

Romanian

According to her son, John Nandriș, Mabel brought him up with Ion Creangă’s stories, whose characters he remembers later in his life very well [5]. Ion Creangă (1837-1889) is considered the most popular Romanian storyteller, an extremely gifted author, with a unique writing style, which makes a translator’s job exciting, yet quite difficult. Folk Tales from Romania of Ion Creangă was published in Mabel Nandriș’s translation into English in 1952. The volume, illustrated by the Bukovinean painter Isidora Constantinovici, contains “The Story of the White Arab”, “Human Stupidity”, “The Story of the Lazy Man”, “The Little Purse with Two Pennies”, “Mother’s Girl and Father’s Girl”, “The

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Story of the Pig”, “Five Loaves”, “Ivan and his Sack”, “Daniel the Gawk” and “A Sketch of Ion Creangă’s Life” [6]. Creangă’s tales are regarded as realist due to his talent as a fiction writer.

The challenging task for the Northern-Irish translator, who was nevertheless familiar with the spoken language of the Romanian peasants after all her travels through the Carpathians, was to render the characters as unique, with their own individuality, not merely symbolical elements in a folktale scheme. For instance, the Green King is proud, vain; the Red King is grumpy; the Beardless Man is sly and cunning [7]. The translation was well received by the Romanian literary critic George Călinescu, who praised it in “Creangă Abroad” in Gazeta literară (no. 17, November 1964). The book was so successful that there was a second edition published in America a year later, From Wolves to Nonsense, Folk Tales from Romania of Ion Creangă [8].

I.L. Caragiale (1852-1912) is best known in Romanian literature as a playwright. He praised the writers who participated in an active manner in the life of the community and was of the opinion that artists have to render people’s passions, which make the world move [9].

These must have been two of the reasons why Mabel Nandriș chose to translate two of his novellas, “The Inn” and “Retribution”. Both are a combination between the fantastic and the real and share a religious layer of interpretation, which the translator must have been aware of as she had her share of Christian Orthodox teaching while in Romania. “The Inn” [10] recounts the meeting with the Devil of a young man, who is tempted into gambling all his money (needed to pay the rent for his father’s estate), but he is miraculously rescued by an uncle of his and thus given a second chance after he has learnt this lesson. “Retribution” [11] focuses on the story of the gypsy who killed the bear who ate the apple in the Apple-Tree Hermitage but was killed in his turn in the struggle with the beast.

From Mihail Sadoveanu (1880-1961), Mabel Nandriș chose to translate the story “The Wind” [12]. First published in 1902 in Pagini alese

magazine, as a Christmas story, “The Wind” reminds one of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The Wind is personified and on Christmas night he starts his voyage through the city of Bucharest.

One recognizes Victoria Street and the National Theatre, all deserted, looking like the setting of a ghost story. The Wind torments a creature he meets, Honest Politics, who is eventually ironically chased away from a political meeting.

Then the Wind is visiting a girl in love with the Poet, hopelessly writing and whom he gives a frozen kiss. It almost looks like Mihai Eminescu, the Romanian national poet kissed by the Wind. In the end, the Wind continued to roam the city bringing the news of the Star of Hope rising for everyone. The story is among the early writings by Sadoveanu, conceived at a stage when the author was prone to experimenting to reach the essence of the characters, beyond appearances [13]. The mysterious nature of the main character, the mastery of the fantastic, the spatial dimension of the urban setting and the religious undertone are very well captured in the translation of the Northern Irish intellectual.

Mabel Nandriș also translated “The Mystery” [14] by Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești (1868-1946).

The narrative technique is extremely interesting, as it is a frame story or a tale told through the Chinese boxes or Russian doll technique, story within story. Initially, two friends go hunting; there, at night, while preparing to sleep in the open under a wonderful August sky, they are discovered by another acquaintance, who hunted with them as well on other occasions and who tells them about the death of another hunting companion, who died apparently choking himself in alcohol. Then one of the two friends tells the other his guesses about this death. That man wanted indeed to die as he had killed both his wife and a hunting companion, apparently by accident, after discovering their adultery. Thus, the inference is one of remorse leading to the suicidal act or punishment. It is considered that Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești evoked the spirit of the Romanian countryside nobility in decline, in a direct, confessional style

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[15], through subtle nuances that the translator was careful not to miss.

III.

Translations of exile resistance accounts

and

In 1998 Mabel Nandriș translated her sisterin-law’s book Twenty Years in Siberia [16], which must have been felt like a duty of the entire Nandriș family to make known the calvary their relatives, Anița and her three children, went through for twenty years in Siberia. The manuscript of the book was carried across the border, from Chernivtsi to Romania in 1982 by Gheorghe Nandriș, Anița’s nephew from Sibiu, her brother’s son, who initially sent a letter to Liiceanu from “Humanitas” Publishing House with a view to get it published. In 1991, 20 de ani în Siberia. Destin bucovinean by Anița Nandriș-Cudla was published as “testimony of revolt, human dignity and moral purity” [17]. It was awarded the “Lucian Blaga” Award of the Romanian Academy and became popular around the world after its translation into English.

In the letter to Liiceanu, published as Foreword to the book, Gheorghe Nandriș introduces his aunt’s writing as proof of the Romanian presence in the Gulag Archipelago.

Anița Nandriș-Cudla was barely schooled but with the inborn talent of a storyteller – this is another Romanian-Irish connection we become aware of – she recounts her struggle for survival for twenty years in Siberia in the Russian prison camps. She stands out as a mother who protected her children, proving the capacity to sacrifice her life and also an exceptional moral strength. Gheorghe Nandriș mentions how she gives her food to her children; she looks for fruit for them to protect them from diseases caused by vitamin deficiency; she learns to run the dog sleigh and to make clothes from dog’s hair to keep her children warm. Twice she is in a coma, but she is brought back to life by her love for her children and her faith. Still recovering, she is sent on a night shift at minus 40 degrees Celsius and when she fails she is imprisoned. She survives it all.

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After twenty years, Anița sends her children to Moscow to prove their innocence and after many difficulties, they get the documents confirming that they had been sent to Siberia “by mistake” and as “victims of Stalin’s regime” [18]. After twenty years, on the exact month and day when they had been sent away, June 13, 1941, Anița and her boys came back to their village in Bukovina. She could consider her mission as a mother accomplished. Yet, she felt that she needed to write about it and confess the calvary they had been through. Then, after giving the manuscript so that the story might be known to all people, she died at peace at home in 1986.

Gheorghe Nandriș also remarks that the two feelings experienced when entrusted with the manuscript were fear to get it across the border and secondly, shame at being afraid compared to what his aunt had experienced.

In translating her sister-in-law’s book, Mabel Nandriș must have, first of all, identified with the suffering since her husband could never meet his sister again after her deportation.

Besides the personal affliction, it appears that the Nandriș family, Anița’s parents, who were well-established peasants and their seven children, who became famous doctors, agricultural engineers and university professors, were symbolical for the destiny of a nation.

According to N. Corlăteanu, the destiny of this family conveys a message of high dignity and morality and of profound love for their country.

The foreign domination and control could not destroy the core of the Romanian Bukovinean soul, nestled in its villages [19].

To further prove the relevance of Anița Nandriș-Cudla’s book, in 2015, in a project titled “The Trial of Communism through Theater,” Sorin Misirianțu converted it into a dramatic monologue based on Twenty Years in Siberia to be performed at the National Theatre in Bucharest.

Thanks to the powerful interpretation of Amalia Ciolan, the audience has the chance to witness the lifestory of the simple peasant woman, with a genuine gift for story-telling, who reveals her experiences without hatred. According to Ștefan

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J. Fay, it is all about the aristocratic stature of the Romanian peasant. Amalia Ciolan, the leading actress, confesses how she identified with the Bukovinean woman and that the theatrical performance was meant to pay homage to the innocent who was forced by history to respond with their suffering. Sorin Misirianțu, who adapted the text to the play, is convinced that this is a lesson about forgiving one’s enemies, meant to trigger a spiritual renaissance in the audience [20].

The second exile and resistance account translated by Mabel Nandriș is the 1961 work, The Lost Footsteps, of Silviu Crăciunaș [21]. The English edition of the manuscript, written in Romanian between 1958-1959, was huge, but the editor chose to shorten it and to delete or abbreviate the long political and philosophical passages. The author agreed and thus the translation was issued, a very successful one, which served to further circulation in many other foreign languages.

Thanks to Marie-Paule Hayward, and in order to fulfill the last wish of the author, the book was published in Romanian in 2003 [22]. Hayward explains the importance of this volume in the context of Romanian anti-communist resistance, of which Silviu Crăciunaș (1914-1998) was a member. He helped many Romanians to leave the country in the 1940s. In 1949, he managed to run away from Romania to Paris but he was assigned the mission to come back to the country and he accepted it. He was caught and arrested and escaped from the prison in Suceava and lived for three years hidden in the mountains. He was rescued by the woman who was to become his wife and he reached Vienna in 1957. Then they got married and they went to England to settle there. They also lived in Spain and then back to England, where they were confronted with financial and health problems, but they were supported by Marie-Paule Hayward and her husband.

It is extremely interesting that a book that recounts the missions and terrifying experiences that Silviu Crăciunaș went through and which

would have had an echo in the hearts of so many Romanians was only known first through its English version, because of the communist censorship. The volume, the only one by Silviu Crăciunaș, is more than a confessional account of terrifying events that occurred in Romania in the 1940s-1960s. It has been read as a lesson of genuine patriotism, dignity, morality, serving as a role model for generations to come after the generation that contributed to the making of Romania [23].

Mabel Nandriș, as a Northern-Irish woman, born and raised in a part of the world torn by centuries of conflicts between the Irish and the English and Protestants and Catholics, which often sent people in exile, would very well understand the trauma afflicting an entire community or even nation. Therefore, we emphasize her willingness to embark upon translating these exile and resistance accounts so that she could make them known and help in the process of healing.

Conclusion: Mabel Farley Nandriș - an informal ambassador of Romanian culture In conclusion, we would like to include Mabel Farley Nandriș in the category of informal ambassadors for all her efforts to promote Romanian culture through what is known as soft power, i.e. cultural activities.

In the book Irish–Romanian Cultural Connections. Travellers, Writers and Ambassadors (2019), the problem of cultural diplomacy and its efficiency is at large discussed by Nicoleta Stanca.

The book develops the topic of Irish journeys through Romania (Patrick O’Brien’s Journal of a Residence in the Danubian Principalities in the Autumn and Winter of 1853, Maude Rea Parkinson’s Twenty Years in Romania and Peter Hurley’s The Way of the Crosses). It also discusses the reception of Irish writers, such as W.B. Yeats, J. Joyce and S. Heaney in the Romanian space and presents cultural initiatives of the Embassy of Ireland in Bucharest in the recent period with

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a view to creating a bridge between Ireland and Romania. As a matter of fact, the key characters of this account of the Irish-Romanian connections are travellers, writers and ambassadors. They all travel; if it had not been for their journeys – real, mental, spiritual, cultural – the connections would have been poorer.

By looking at this book, Irish–Romanian Cultural Connections. Travellers, Writers and Ambassadors, a complex image is revealed: Romanianness through Irish travellers’ lenses, Irishness through the reception of Irish writers in the Romanian space and Irish-Romanian cultural relations through the activity of the Embassy of Ireland in our country. In addition to the historical and geographical elements mentioned in the conclusion to the book, the human component turns out to be the most valuable, because thanks to it - namely Irish travellers and ambassadors, Irish writers, Romanian reading public, authorities, academics and students - cultural items defining Irishness and Romanianness have travelled both in space and time, between cultures, uniting the two countries [24].

This is the context we have considered adequate for the portrayal of Mabel Nandriș, only that she acts as a Northern Irish promoting Romania. It all began with her real journey to Romania. Later, in her mature years, she travelled back to Romania in a spiritual and symbolical way. Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș was a Northern-Irish woman, married to a Romanian, who lived in Romania, baptized herself in the Orthodox Church and she did the same for her son. She knew and understood the language and the country so well, translated Romanian books and identified with the long lasting sufferings of Romanian that she could rightly be considered a cultural ambassador of Romania in Britain.

John Nandriș, her son, remarked the similarities between the (Northern) Irish and Romanian folklore and human nature which must have brought the union between his parents and the true marriage of their minds.

The rural universe, with the cottage, the garden

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and the crosses in the graveyard, are tightly liked to Romanian identity. The same link between the Irish space and landscape and the Irish identity can be invoked [25]. Processes of Anglicization in Ireland and Russification in Northern Bukovina are also to be considered and blamed for triggering exile in both cases and traumatic experiences, like the ones in the translations

by Mabel Nandriș. In spite of the fall of the communist regime and the independence of the Republic of Ireland (Northern Ireland is still part of the United Kingdom), the consequences of these historical stages are visible and the healing process is going to require patience and efforts in both parts of the world.

Moreover, Mabel Farley Nandriș finds her well-deserved place among a long list of scholars, Romanian and foreign, whose efforts have been directed towards promoting Romanian Studies in Great Britain. Denis Deletant, from the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University College London, provides an overview of Romanian Studies in Britain, mentioning her in connection to her husband.

The earliest translations of Romanian works into English date back to the 19th century: “The Moping Dove” by Ienăchiță Văcărescu translated in Bruce Whyte’s Histoire des languages romanes et de leur littérature (Paris 1841); Doine, or the National Songs and Legends of Romania (1854), an anthology by E.C. Grenville Murray, some of the folk-poems translated being the ones gathered

by Vasile Alecsandri; Henry Stanley’s Rouman Anthology (1854), containing translations from Alecsandri, Dimitrie Bolintineanu and Grigore Alexandrescu. To these, other initiatives could be added up until the appointment of the first ambassador of Romania to the Court of St. James, Ion Ghica, who further gave an impulse to an official establishment of Romanian Studies in Britain and the expansion of the Romanian section in the British Library. In 1915, the School of Slavonic and East European Studies was set up at King’s College, with a long list of publications, lectures, cultural exchange programs, activities and personalities involved: Marcu Beza,

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Grigore Nandriș, Eric Tappe, Michael Impey, R.C. Johnstone, Glanville Price, Paul-Russell Gebbett, Martin Maiden, Frank Barnett, Dennis Green, James Mullen, Tom Gallegher, Alex DraceFrancis, Rebecca Haynes, Ramon Gonczol-Davies and Dennis Deletant himself. The School of Slavonic and East European Studies, included, since 1999, within University Collge London, has constantly added new dimensions to the study of Romanian culture and language [26].

All in all, unlike her husband, Grigore Nandriș, who worked passionately within institutional frameworks to promote Romanian Studies, Mabel ‘Maria’ Farley Nandriș’s dedication to Romanian Studies appears filtered more through her heart, out of love for her son, to whom she read Romanian stories, and for her husband, relatives and Romania, whom she supported and worked for throughout her life.

References [1] Ciprian Rus, “John Nandriș I,” Formula AS, year XXXI, no. 1462 (April 2021): 16.

[2] Ibid., 17.

[3] Rus, op. cit., 17 and E.D. Tappe, “Grigore Nandriș,” The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 47, no. 108 (Jan., 1969): 6.

[4] Tappe, op. cit., 6.

[5] Rus, op. cit., 17.

[6] Folk Tales from Romania, translated from the Romanian of Ion Creangă, by Mabel Nandriș (Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1952).

[7] George Călinescu, Ion Creangă (Viața și opera) [Ion Creangă (Life and Works)], (București: Editura Minerva, 1989).

[8] From Wolves to Nonsense, Folk Tales from Romania, translated from the Romanian of Ion Creangă, by Mabel Nandriș, illustrated

by Iza Constantinovici-Hein (New York: Roy Publishers, 1953).

[9] I.L. Caragiale, Teatru [Theater], (București: Editura Tineretului, 1894).

[10] ---, “The Inn,” translated by Mabel Nandriș, in The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 25, no. 65 (Apr. 1947): 325-330.

[11] ---, “Retribution,” translated by Mabel

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Nandriș, in The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 29, no. 73 (June 1951): 372-374.

[12] Mihail Sadoveanu, “The Wind,” translated

by Mabel Nandriș, in The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 25, no. 65 (Apr. 1947): 331-335.

[13] ---, Povestiri și nuvele [Stories and Novellas], (București: Editura Albatros, 1988).

[14] Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești, “The Mystry,” translated by Mabel Nandriș, in The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 28, no. 71 (Apr. 1950): 326-331.

[15]https://www.autorii.com/scriitori/ioanalexandru-bratescuvoinesti/.

[16] Anița Nandriș-Cudla, Twenty Years in Siberia, translated into English by Mabel Nandriș, with an afterword by Gheorghe Nandriș, (București: Editura Fundației Culturale Române, 1998).

[17] Vasile Pavel, “Destin bucovinean exprimat în viu grai românesc” [Bukovinean Destiny Expressed in Vivid Romanian Language], Buletin de lingvistică, 2010, no. 11, 131-135.

[18] Nandriș-Cudla, op. cit., 7-8.

[19] Nicolae Corlăteanu, Nandriștii. Povestea unui neam bucovinean [The Nandriș. The Story of a Bukovinean Family], (Chișinău, 1998).

[20] https://www.tnb.ro/ro/20-de-ani-in-siberia [21] Silviu Crăciunaș, The Lost Footsteps, translated by Mabel Nandriș (London: Collins and Harvill, 1961).

[22] ---, Urme pierdute [The Lost Footsteps], (București: Editura Enciclopedică, 2003).

[23] Sanda Anghelescu, in Crăciunaș, Silviu.

Urme pierdute, 164.

[24] Nicoleta Stanca, Irish–Romanian Cultural Connections. Travellers, Writers and Ambassadors (București: Editura Universitară, 2019), 189-190.

[25] Crina Boros, “Nandriș, destinul unei familii de țărani români – 20 de ani în Siberia și efectul de diaspora” [Nandriș, the Destiny of a Romanian Peasants’ Family – 20 Years in Siberia and the Diaspora Effect].

Corespondența din Londra. Hotnews.ro, 3 august, 2010.

[26] Denis Deletant, „Studiile românești în Marea Britanie” [Romanian Studies in Britain],

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https://litere.univ-ovidius.ro/stur/Europa/ Marea%20Britania.htm.

Biographies

Nicoleta Stanca is Associate Professor at Ovidius University Constanta.

She has published four book-length studies: Irish-Romanian Cultural Connections.

Travellers, Writers and Ambassadors (2019), Mapping Ireland (Essays on Space and Place in Contemporary Irish Poetry) (2014), The Harp and the Pen (Tradition and Novelty in Modern Irish Writing) (2013), Duality of Vision in Seamus Heaney’s Writings (2009), articles in academic journals and book chapters on Irish-American identity, literary studies and popular culture. She has been a co-editor of conference volumes, the most recent being: Ideology, Identity and the US: Crossroads, Freeways, Collisions (2019).

She is a member of ESSE and EAAS and an alumna of the Multinational Institute of American Studies, New York University (NYU).

the Theological Seminary and as a cultural adviser at the Archiepiscopacy of Tomis. At present he works as a priest at ”Saint John the Baptist” church in Constanta and as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Theology of the Ovidius University, Constanța. Among his publications, the most remarkable are: Culte et religion populaire dans l`Eglise Orthodoxe. Le mariage chez les Roumains Orthodoxes a l`aube du XXI-e siecle, French ed. Vasiliana, Iaşi, 2008; “The implementation challenges of the Bologna process in theological orthodox university education in Romania – the dialogue between church and state”, International Scientific Conferences on Social Sciences & Arts, Albena, Bulgaria, 3-9th September 2014, vol. III Psychology, Psychiatry, Sociology, Healthcare Education, pp. 913-925; “The Personality of the Saintly Prince Constatin Brâncoveanu as Revealed in the Prefaces of the Books Printed in his Age” in the International Journal of Cross-Cultural Studies and Environmental Communication.

Special Issue “Constantin Brâncoveanu’s Legacy from Cross-Cultural Perspectives”, 2015 (Coordinators Florentina Nicolae and Nicoleta Stanca), pp. 39-48; Isbășoiu, Iulian, Nicoleta Stanca. “In the Same Melting Pot? America and Europe.” DIALOGO, vol. 7, issue 1 (November 2020): 126-135.

Iulian Isbășoiu graduated the University of Catholic Theology of “Marc Bloch” University of Strasbourg and received the title of Doctor in Theology with the doctoral thesis: Culte et religion populaire dans l`Eglise Orthodoxe. Le mariage chez les Roumains Orthodoxes a l`aube du XXI-e siecle. He worked as a teacher at

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The Theological Importance of Prof. Uwe’s Christian Poems Paul Tseng (Tseng Kuei-chi), Ph.D.

National Kaohsiung Normal University Assistant professor at Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Taipei University of Technology and Open University, New Taipei City, taiwan

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 20 August 2021 Received in revised form 01 September Accepted 15 September 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.2

Prof. Heinz-Uwe Haus is an internationally renowned director and is considered one of

Keywords: Heinz-Uwe Haus; Christian poem; theological importance; New Testament; faith; religion; salvation;

the world’s leading authorities on Bertolt Brecht. Besides his theatrical achievements, he proves to have a profound knowledge of Christian doctrines, which is significantly well portrayed in his Christian poems. His poetic lines unveil the essential spirit of the New Testament. In this paper, a few poems are chosen to illustrate his theological thoughts, which are intricately connected with the core value of the New Testament, including Jesus’ crucifixion, salvation, man’s real nature, fundamental faith, and so on. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Paul Tseng (Tseng Kuei-chi). This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Tseng, Paul (Tseng Kuei-chi). ”The Theological Importance of Prof. Uwe’s Christian Poems.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 33-39. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.2

I.

INTRODUCTION

“Professor Uwe is an internationally renowned director and is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on Bertolt Brecht. He was educated and trained in Germany at the Film Academy PotsdamBabelsberg (Acting), as well as at the Humboldt-University in Berlin (Cultural Studies, German literature and theater

science.) In addition to his prestigious work in Germany, he has directed for the National Theaters of Greece, Cyprus, and Turkey, and worked with companies from Chile, Finland, Italy, South Korea, Canada, and the USA. His productions have appeared in Festivals throughout Europe. Dr. Haus has been a guest professor at more than a dozen North American universities. Besides publishing in his field, he writes about intercultural and

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political topics in German, English and Greek medias.”1 Besides these achievements, it should be pointed out that Prof. Uwe has a profound knowledge of Christian doctrines, which is significantly well portrayed in his Christian poems. His poetic lines unveil the essential spirit of the New Testament. Here, I choose several poems depicting Jesus’ crucifixion, salvation, man’s real nature, and so on, all of which are intricately connected with the core value of the New Testament.

Accordingly, their theological importance is unfathomable. Living in Taiwan, an area that has been saturated by traditional religions and upholding the value of Confucianism, I seem to hear of the echoes of universal truths while reading Prof. Uwe’s Christian poems, which are enlightening, refreshing and justified. And especially for Chinese readers, I translate these poems into Chinese and provide biblical sources for references. I will show you the awesome world and its horizon in Prof. Uwe’s poems in the following sections.

II.

Discussion

1. Prof. Uwe’s two poems—“What Then?” and “What We Better Than They?”— are concerned about the core value of the Christianity, that is, faith and behavior.

Without behaviors, the Christian faith is useless and valueless. Real faith is based on the constant and persistent practice of God’s words. And faith combined with deeds can help sincere believers conquer any possible persecutions in the real world. Actually, how can believers grow in spirit and mind? It is totally based on real faith which is rooted in good deeds.

In Morgan’s The Gospel According to Matthew, he pointed out that God’s 1 see http://www.rep.udel.edu/education/ undergraduate-offerings/Pages/undergraduate-facultybio.aspx?PageID=30

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working in this generation is by sowing the seed of heaven. These seeds will influence this generation for they recognize God’s sovereignty and accept God’s management.

On the other hand, those who cannot bear fruits, are those who have contacted the conception and ideal of the heavenly kingdom, but cannot bear fruits (Morgan, 427). Based on this, we can see how heavy the responsibility we shoulder is for our contemporaries. Our inner beings would affect whether they will well react to the gospel. That is our nature would decide their response to the doctrine of the heavenly kingdom (Morgan, 249).

What Then? 之後如何 Persecution arises for 遭受迫害 The words sake the ones 神的道灑在 Sown among thorns 荊棘叢裡 They are the ones who 他們聽了這道 Hear the word no more 就不再記得 May be remembered Cursed is everyone who 掛在木頭上的 Hangs on the tree 都是被咒詛的 What then shall we say? 我們該說些甚麼呢?

Are We Better Than They? 人焉廋哉 Those who hear the words 人聽見神的話 Accept it and bear fruit

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接受並結果 But the birds 然而飛鳥 Came and devoured it 來吃盡種子 By faith apart from 只因為人 The deeds of the law 有信心卻無行為 For there is no difference 因為這與不信 沒有什麼不同 Matthew 13: 18-23 “Listen, then, and learn what the parable of the sower means. Those who hear the message about the Kingdom but do not understand it are like the seeds that fell along the path. The Evil One comes and snatches away what was sown in them.

The seeds that fell on rocky ground stand for those who receive the message gladly as soon as they hear it. But it does not sink deep into them, and they don’t last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, they give up at once. The seeds that fell among thorn bushes stand for those who hear the message, but the worries about this life and the love for riches choke the message, and they don’t bear fruit. And the seeds were sown in the good soil stand for those who hear the message and understand it: they bear fruit, some as much as one hundred, others sixty, and others thirty.”

2. Prof. Uwe’s “Palm Leaves” proclaims Jesus’ gospel of peace, which is significantly manifested in this martyrdom. It is recorded in Scripture that Jesus is humble and rides on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a donkey when he is on his mission of sacrificing himself to save the world. The palm leaves signify his love of peace. He is intended to make peace via his death on the cross. And

it should be noted that making peace is the core value of Christianity. Prof. Uwe uses several brief poetic lines which on the one hand record the last peaceful journey of our savior, and on the other hand uphold the core value of the peace-making in the gospel of the heavenly kingdom.

Here, in describing the savior’s journey to Jerusalem, Matthew actually stressed two things: coming of the king, and the gentleness of the king. Jesus rode a donkey to the capital not only to portray his kingship but demonstrate his gentleness (Morgan, 415). In addition, the olive branch is symbolic of Jesus’s desire to realize God’s wish and fulfill his responsibility for the kingdom of God (Morgan, 425).

Although Matthew’s dependence on earlier tradition prevents him from adapting everything in his Gospel to his reader’s situation, enough of his emphases remain and fit what we know of the issues of his day ( Keener 45) . Savior’s peaceful journey to Jerusalem is really a big issue of his day.

Palm Leaves 棕櫚葉 Martyrdom holding the breath 眾人屏息 Pressure of expectations but 緊張地看祂來殉道 He enters Jerusalem with 但祂來到耶路撒冷 Olive branches for peace 帶來和平的橄欖枝 Crucified 祂來殉道釘死 That they may see and believe 讓世人可以看見並相信

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Matthew 21: 1-11 This happened in order to make come

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true what the prophet had said: “Tell the city of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you! He is humble and rides on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

3. Prof. Uwe’s “Mount of Olives” is associated with the most crucial prayer of Jesus Christ, who never ceased to ask for God Father’s will even when he had been determined to be betrayed, sold, and crucified on the cross. This is also an extremely important passage in the doctrine of the New Testament. It should be noted that Prof. Uwe delicately presents Jesus’ devotion to make a stark contrast to Judas’ sell-off. The tension of the verses is thus artistically shown off.

It is the common experience of mankind that times of special spiritual endowment or exaltation are followed by occasions of special temptation. The Messiah is no exception. No sooner is He anointed with the Spirit for the work of the Ministry than He has to undergo a fierce conflict with the great personal power of evil (Plummer 35).

Under extremely evil circumstances, Jesus must conduct the crucial prayer.

The purpose of the author is to remind the community of the essential nucleus of discipleship: i.e., in order to follow Jesus we must be ready to identify ourselves with the hidden, misunderstood and crucified Messiah (Schneck 15), who readies himself to fulfill God’s will in the mountain of olives.

Mount of Olives 橄欖山 Withdrawn from his disciples 退去離開他的門徒 About a stone’s throw 一箭之遙 He prayed more earnestly 耶穌禱告更加懇切

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Blood falling down to the earth 汗滴如血 滴落在地 Strengthened restructuring 出賣耶穌 用計用謀 Charges sell-off skills in 交易裡面 Deal making agreement 彷彿有成功的味道 Smoky smell of success 背後有吹哨看嗎 Was there a scream 當出賣時刻 成就之時 In the background 叛徒猶大的通風報信 Time to adjust to 激動了所有的人 Impact of sales 一切尚請說明 But a gospel of Judas Will excite all of them Plea for clarity Matthew 26: 36-46 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. Grief and anguish came over him, and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it is almost crushing me. Stay here and keep watch with me.”……Again Jesus left them, went away, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Then he returned to the disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting?

Look! The hour has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the power of sinful men. Get up, let us go. Look, here is the man who is betraying me!”

4. Again, Prof. Uwe’s “Two Mites” presents the core value of Christian doctrines,

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that is, to love your Lord wholeheartedly.

The disciples of Jesus Christ should love their master with full strength and with their whole hearts. The core value of donation is inseparable from an individual’s mind and heart. To be obedient is better than offering sacrifices. To learn in the temple is better than a monetary donation. This could be a theological pragmatism.

Two Mites 兩個小錢 Their gifts into the treasury 富人的奉獻 Out of their abundance 是出自他門的節餘 But when will there things be 何時我們為加利利人耶穌 Upon another for a Galilean? 全然的奉獻?

Mark 12: 41-44 As Jesus sat near the temple treasury, he watched the people as the dropped in their money. Many rich men dropped in a lot of money; then a poor widow came along and dropped in two little copper coins, worth about a penny. He called his disciples together and said to them, “I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all the others. For the others put in what they had to spare of their riches; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had—she gave all she had to live on.”

For the woman, the two mites are a gift of faith. Just as the temple is the house of God, so her gift is the symbol of her firm faith of sacrifice to God (Morgan 215).

5. Furthermore, Prof. Uwe’s “Vanity” broadens our view of the real world. No war is justified for any sacred purpose. There is no side which can be unilaterally or absolutely

justified. Just as we cannot justify a terrorist, so we cannot justify the Western World. This is a paradoxically ethical and moral dilemma.

Prof. Uwe’s keen observation of the real war can be interpreted by the core doctrine of the New Testament, namely, to be justified by faith. Life and war are useless, but real faith counts. Man lives and is justified by his faith. “ …ague from fundamental conceptions of God, the right of reason in matters of faith. In what he says about the two great commands, he establishes fundamental principles and sentiments instead of rules, in control of life.” ( Gould xxix) . Faith counts in everything.

This proves that every posterity to whom this heritage was to belong was a fruit of faith. The case is applied to believers of the present. Thus righteousness, inheritance, posterity, everything, Abraham received by faith; and it will be even with us, if we believe like him (Chambers167).

Vanity (Romans 3:10) 虛空 Guilt evil defection and 邪惡的變節 Contrivance too late 計謀已晚 Too soon landslides of years 經年山崩 Sounds at morning 破曉聲隆隆 Impotent grenades till 手榴彈力微 The day the car bomb 促使汽車炸彈 Exploded disintegrating his body 爆炸撕裂他的身體 In waves of heat and gas the sounds

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熱氣瓦斯熱竄 Blossom on sharp needles 引線開花 Cry out all memories 回憶在呼號 Battle cries separate peace 戰爭的吶喊 撕裂和平 It is written 經上記著 There is none righteous no 沒有義人 Not one 連一個也沒有 Romans 3: 10 6. There is no one who is righteous.

Finally, in the beginning is the Word, and the Word is with God, and the Word is God. The core doctrines of Christianity depend on God’s words, which are solid, powerful, and applicable to every aspect of the real world.

However, the satanic dark discourse is closely and deeply associated with the words of the evil men, which are dishonest and useless.

Prof. Uwe’s “Neighbor’s Osmosis” unveils the evil and sinister essence of the words of the world. It is his wisdom which can apply God’s words to reveal the lies and deceits of the evil neighbors surrounding us. Actually, this is an unavoidable aspect of our real life. And it requires us to use our wisdom to make a fair judgement.

Neighbor’s Osmosis 鄰居的反滲透 Their throat is 他們的喉嚨是 An open tomb 敞開的墳墓 But the fight is shifted in blue-ray’s favor 但口舌之戰皆為獲利

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Whose mouth is full 口舌充滿 Of cursing and bitterness 咒詛和苦毒 Removes the speck from your brother’s eye 何能自省其過 With their tongues 他們的舌頭 They have practiced deceit 習於欺騙 We’ll decide on a case by case basis 我們必須按實情判斷 Due to 一切 Investment demand 都是為名為利 Romans 3: 13-17 Their words are full of deadly deceit; wicked lies roll off their tongue, and dangerous threats, like snake’s poison, from their lips; their speech is filled with bitter curses. They are quick to hurt and kill; they leave ruin and destruction wherever they go. They have not known the path of peace, nor have they learned reverence for God.” It should be noted that flesh ceaselessly wars with the Spirit. And Christ ushers in a new order the New Testament (Bruce 29).

Conclusion In conclusion, we can see the universal truths in the light of Prof. Uwe’s Christian poems. Their significance and importance in theology could brighten men’s minds and lead their paths. The poetic lines bear the weight of wisdom, which is apparently a philosopher’s insight. Hopefully, readers can broaden their horizons and extol their view of the world by getting a better understanding of Prof. Uwe’s Christian poems.

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Bibliography [1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

Bruce, F. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries: Romans . Taipei: Campus Evangelical Fellowship, 1987.

Chambers, Talbot. Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans. Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1956.

Gould, Ezra. The International Critical Commentary : Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel according to St. Mark. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1913.

Keener, Craig. A Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1990.

Morgan, Campbell. Morgan’s Expository Series—The Gospel according to Mark .

California: Living Spring Publications, 1985.

Morgan, Campbell. Morgan’s Expository Series—The Gospel According to Matthew.

California: Living Spring Publications, 1984.

Plummer, Alfred. An Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel according to St. Matthew.

London: Chaplain of Whitelands College, 1911.

Schneck, Richard. Isaiah in the Gospel of Mark, I-VIII. Colombia: Bibal Press. 1994.

Short Biography Paul Tseng was born in Taiwan, and got his Ph.D in Literature at National Kaohsiung Normal University. In addition to running a workshop of editing and translation to serve the needs of the campus, he has been a concurrent assistant professor at National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences.

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Governing Dynamics in Complex Systems using Big Data Information Catalin Silviu Nutu, Ph.D.

Constanta Maritime University Constanța, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7234-6869

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abstract

Article history: Received 04 July 2021 Received in revised form 27 July Accepted 01 August 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.3

The paper is presenting different dynamics of an economic complex system, based on certain assumptions made within each of the presented models in the paper. The assumptions used are allowing estimating and forecasting the evolution of the respective complex economic system. This estimation can be made in the “classical” way, which is to say without the use of big data, in which case the results are more prone to errors, or with the use of the recordings of big data, which delivers a much more accurate estimation of the evolution within the complex systems. Throughout the paper the term “with sustainable growth” is used with the meaning of “ecological growth” and it refers to durable economic systems where the environmental issues are taken into consideration, whereas the term “without sustainable growth” or “conventional growth” refers to the economic systems where the environmental issues are not taken into account. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Keywords: big data; economic systems; exponential growth; S-shaped curves; utility; planetary boundaries; planetary resources; population growth; temperature rise; pollution; carbon footprint; renewable energies;

Copyright © 2021 Catalin Silviu Nutu. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Nutu, Catalin Silviu. ”Governing Dynamics in Complex Systems using Big Data Information.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 43-54. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.3

INTRODUCTION The present paper has a few distinct objectives. On the one side, has the objective to stress the nowadays’ realities regarding our Planet, that has been misused and still, it is. On the other side, it is intending to approach the value created within economic systems taking into account different models, the so-called “classical” or

“conventional” economic model which has been deemed as valid until very recently, and the model of the economic growth taking into account sustainability and durability issues, the model which is absolutely necessary to be used from now on, if the Planet and its habitants are to survive.

Using the sustainability concept and making the calculations taking into account all the presented costs, one can easily remark that

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the value generated within the worldwide economy is by far not so high as by the calculated GDP and should be seriously corrected with all the costs incurred. Based also on the written scientific literature concerning environmental and climatic issues, the paper also identifies a series of problems and their possible solutions, by giving specific indications in this regard, going out from another paper published by the author, some few years ago.

Assessing utility in complex I. systems without sustainable growth without the use of big data You live in a home; you do not own the home, You do not even pay rent, Moreover, you vandalize this home…

What should you expect?

The most suitable model to assess the utility to be used in both, complex systems without and with sustainable growth is the additive utility model such as described and used in [2], [4], and [7]. According to the paper [1], one economic sector of an economy can be found in one of the two regions of the graph areas of the exponential evolution curves. This S shape used for modeling the evolutions within an economy has been chosen for two reasons: most of the processes in the economic evolution are said to be exponential, and according to some older theory of Engel much of the consumption or production curves are S-shaped curves, a fact which implies that the production reaches sooner or later its saturation limit, Slide 90 in [3]. One issue addressed and solved by the author is the assigning of an analytical form of the function to the respective S shape. Both, the shape and the analytical form of the function are to be found in the respective paper. The S shape does not necessarily need to be based on an exponential function, but in the

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model proposed by the author, it is. In this model proposed, Ai is representing the initial production quantity of the ith economic sector, Bj is representing the saturation limit of the production quantity of another jth economic sector.

A. Assumptions made within complex systems without sustainable growth and the use of big data information These assumptions made within the complex system without sustainable growth are: a1) the calculation of the utility in the complex system is to be made over many decades of time b1) without restricting the generality of the model, since an economic sector can be always split into subsectors and to each such subsector can be associated the production of a certain product, one can assume, for the clarity of the model, without the loss of generality that each sector produces only one product and the value of the product made within this certain sector i, has the average added value Val Ai, whereas the added value of the product in another economic sector j, sector situated in the saturation region of the exponential growth, has the value Val Bj c1) another simplifying assumption used within the paper is that the added value Val Ai of the product in the sector i is calculated, under globalization assumption, that is to say, it has the same value worldwide (which is more or less the tendency and status toward which the global economy is moving to) d1) all production functions are assumed to be S-shaped. The analytical form of these curves will be extended in the fourth chapter of the present paper, with another concept, namely the concept of acceleration and deceleration (attenuation) factors, which

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will be described and presented therein e1) in the time interval over which the utility is calculated, the production quantities Ai and Bi are deemed to be almost constant and the added values of the products of the economic factors, for example, Val Ai and Val Bj, are also deemed to have almost constant values over time (which is the stability assumption of the economic prices) f1) another assumption valid for the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, which was deemed to be true until recently and is characterizing the conventional economic theory is the assumption that the resources available for growth are infinite and the Earth has an infinite regeneration capacity, assumption which dated until recently, in the XX century, but it is obviously false. g1) another assumption also valid for the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, also deemed to be true until recently and is characterizing the conventional economic theory is that the value generated within the national economies is measured by their GDPs, such as presented in [5], the assumption used also until recently, in the XX century, and it is again, obviously false.

GDP+IM=CP+IP+CS+IS+EX GDP = gross domestic product IM = imports CP = private consumption IP = private investments CS = state’s consumption IS = state’s investments EX = exports

(1)

B. Value generated within the complex systems without sustainable growth without the use of Big Data Taking into account the above assumptions the value generated within an economic complex system could be calculated, more or less accurately with the same formula that was valid for the first economy of humans (the ancient agricultural economic system which had only two sectors: planting and farming), and this formula for the production (GDP) generated at a certain moment in time (for example in the year t), for a complex economic sector with n sectors within the exponential growth area and m economic sectors within the exponential growth limitation area, is:

(2)

One remark to be made in this situation of the calculation of the total value of the production, not using big data, is that in order to estimate closer to the truth the value of GDP, the form of the exponential functions in both regions should be determined as exactly as possible. The same formula applies also for calculating the production over a longer period, by integrating the formula above, thus resulting in the total production’s value over the respective period.

II. Assessing utility in complex systems without sustainable growth with the use of Big Data The model generated within this chapter will make use of the nowadays’ on a larger scale available big data information.

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A. Assumptions to be made within “conventional” complex systems (without sustainable growth) using big data information The assumptions made within the complex system without sustainable growth and with the use of big data are: a2) the calculation of the utility in the complex system is to be made over many decades of time b2) using big data information one can estimate more accurate the values pertaining in the assumptions b1 and c1 from above, by calculating more precise the value generated in the complex economic systems, by adding the almost exact values of all economic sectors in the respective economy, thus renouncing the assumption of global economy used above to simplify the model. c2) all production functions are assumed to be S-shaped. Their analytical form will be extended in one later chapter of the present paper. d2) using the big data, one can also estimate more exactly the analytic form of the S-shaped curves in the model by using permanent updated big data information, a fact which contributes to much better accuracy of the calculated value within the respective economic system. e2) another assumption valid for the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, which was deemed to be true until recently and is characterizing the conventional economic theory is the assumption that the resources available for growth are infinite and the Earth has an infinite regeneration capacity, an assumption which dated until recently, in the XX century, but it is false. f2) another assumption also valid for the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, is that the value

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generated within the national economies, according to the conventional economic theory, is measured by their GDPs, although this assumption which has been deemed as valid until recently in the XX century, is again, obviously false.

B. Value generated within the “conventional” complex system (without sustainable growth) using big data information Taking into account the above assumptions and using big data information, the value generated within an economic complex system could be calculated much more accurately than in the case without the use of big data information, by adding permanently updated data in the models used. With the help of big data, almost all necessary information for calculating the total value in the respective system, such as number n of the economic sectors, number mi of subsectors for each economic sector, the amount of quantity of products within a specific subsector (i,j) is Aij,the calculated average value of the product produced in the subsector j of the sector i, has the known value Val Aij. In this case, using big data information, the analytic form of the productions functions of the economic subsectors do not need to be known anymore, since the calculation is made by aggregating of the data available above. Using the information from big data above, the total value created (GDP), calculated based on big data can be calculated, using the formula:

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(3)

III. Assessing utility in complex “ecological” systems with sustainable growth and using big data information To assess utility in complex economic systems with sustainable growth that is to say with an environmental component, is far more complex and delicate than in those without. One of the main aspects and difficulties in doing that has been already stressed within [1], and it refers to the fact that the quantifying/ monetization of human lives is a very hard thing to do and moreover the concept of money was nonexistent in ancient times. Back in ancient times, when humans moved from the hunter/gatherer economic to agricultural/farming economy, the positive impact of this move, in terms of human lives which have been saved from starvation or the fights with the wild animals, is virtually impossible to be made.

Nobody can know and nobody can even estimate how many human lives have been saved by this first replacement in the world’s economy. The issue of these estimations, however, in the present days or very shortly, has become much more addressable and able to be solved, using big data. Big data, which is now collected everywhere around us and as it is very well presented in [10], can be used as both, as a microscope or as a telescope, and hence, based upon them one could somehow quantify one’s value of the human life, one of the most valuable assets. Hence, big data could be used as a microscope in order to make the necessary estimations in the following way: A. Assumptions used in complex systems with sustainable growth using big data information Assumptions to be made within the complex system with sustainable growth: a3) the first remark is that some of the assumptions made within the previous

conventional economic model will be kept, some of them are to be renounced to and some new assumptions regarding the sustainable growth and the environmental component are to be made additionally. b3) the assumptions a1, b1, c1, and e1 from the model above are to be kept in the same form as they are presented above. c3) the obviously false assumption deemed until recently to be valid, in the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, that the resources available for economic growth are infinite and the Earth has an infinite regeneration capacity, it is to be renounced and the correct assumption is that both, the resources and the regeneration capacity of the Planet are limited d3) the other false assumption deemed to be valid in the theory of complex systems without sustainable growth, namely that the value generated within the national economies can be measured by their GDPs, is also to be renounced to, and the concept of GDP should be extended and corrected with the concept of the balance of natural resources, such as indicated in the [11] e3) taking into account of the assumption above, the estimation of diminishing of the resources should count as cost in the economy and this cost should be subtracted from the value of the GDP of the respective national economy. One real problem is the evaluation of the loss or gain of natural resources in the balance (either the national or worldwide balance of natural resources, such as natural habitats and ecosystems that is to say plants and animals, but also nonliving natural or fossil resources, limited in quantity and used within the complex systems). The difficulty refers, on one side to the evaluation methods to be used to make the estimations and on the other side on the measurements which are to be made for the respective evaluations. It is obvious for anybody that the value of a forest, for

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example, is not the value of the wood from the trees growing in that forest. One can say that the most correct evaluations will be made soon, only after the damages of the natural habitats’ disaster will be evaluate in terms of negative impact on our Planet. This is also the case for the deaths and damages caused by the Corona virus pandemic. The costs thus incurred will be perhaps possible to be assessed, retroactively, only after the end of the pandemics. f3) the model of the complex system with sustainable growth is to be completed with the costs incurred due to the damages risen from the loss of human lives, either deaths due to natural calamities (death casualties caused by extreme weather conditions such as fires, floods, draught, storms, hurricanes, a.s.o.), deaths due to pollution of the air, soil, waters, material damages due to natural calamities caused by climatic change, material damages caused by the reduction of the agricultural production due to climatic changes g3) the estimation of losses in terms of human lives, due to deaths from natural disasters (death casualties caused by extreme weather conditions such as fires, floods, storms a.s.o.) is to be made based on the big data numbers recorded and the consecutive calculated costs will be subtracted from the GDPs h3) the estimation of the human deaths due to air, soil, waters pollutions such as: lung diseases, cardiovascular diseases, digestive diseases a.s.o, are to be estimated as number or as years lost in the respective humans’ populations plus the cost of the medical treatments used for the respective patients affected by the pollution of any kind.

There are nowadays’ estimations regarding the respective costs which are more or less exact. For example, according to [11], the estimate of costs due to environmental issues in the USA is estimated as high as 120 mlrd. USD/year and the same estimate

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for China is about 5% of its annual GDP. One other estimate is that the number of people dying because of air pollution is worldwide of about 7 million. If the deaths caused by the other types of pollution have amounted to the same value, then 14 million deaths yearly are caused only by the pollution. i3) another estimation which is counting to the costs, as well, but is also rather hard to be made, is the estimation of costs due to dead born children, which brings also its consecutive costs in the extended economic balance. Although the number of dead-born children due to environmental pollution could be somehow estimated, the additional costs (for example traumas of their parents) incurred by these deaths are not so easy to be estimated. j3) another important cost account in the balance of the complex economic system with sustainable growth is represented by the costs of living for children being born with serious debilitating illnesses due to the pollutions and toxicity on Earth. In this case, a great percentage of the respective persons, not only does not produce any value, but instead, they are representing costs for the economy, during their entire lives. k3) much of the above estimations are possible to be made nowadays, based on the big data information which begins to be used more and more, to record the data concerning almost anything. The future expectations are that big data will become more precise and more widespread shortly, and based on it, much of the estimations to which the above assumptions are referring to will be possible to be made l3) another cost account in the model is represented by people with debilitating handicaps resulting from both natural disasters caused by climatic change but also caused by pollution and toxicity. m3) although the estimation of the cost of

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a human life is a rather delicate and intricate issue to be approached and there are also other aspects to be taken into consideration in this matter, the costs of the lost human lives can be however be estimated using the following calculus: the estimation of costs incurred in h2 and k2 and m2 can be made based on big data information as it follows.

One has to calculate the difference between the average lifespan and the age of death for each of the dead persons; then this number of years is to be transformed in costs by multiplying the value of this difference with the average generated value/ person/year for the people deceased due to extreme weather conditions. One can make this estimation in two different ways: the first one by using the global economy assumption and using the same average generated value for every person on Earth, or the second one, based on big data information, using the much more exact estimated value of the annual average value generated pro person for the respective economic system where the natural disaster occurred. n3) according to some initial information from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Coronavirus is originating from the Asian wild animal farms. This initial assumption has not been fully confirmed for Corona but is referring also to other similar viruses that originated from wild animals. They are the result of entering humans in natural, former virgin natural habitats. The costs thus incurred in complex economic systems with sustainable growth are of catastrophic impact and almost impossible to predict, but possible to be estimated ex-post.

B. Value generated and boundaries within complex systems with sustainable growth using big data information Taking into account all the assumptions above, the formula for GDP, corrected with the costs incurred in the respective period,

based on the following notations, can be calculated with the Formula (4) below. is the number of products produced within the subsector (i,j) is the added value of the product produced within the subsector (i,j) is the assigned quantity of resources consumed, to the sector (i,j) is the value of the resources consumed by the sector (i,j) are the values of damages due to extreme weather conditions are the costs related with environmental issues are the costs of human lives, calculated such as indicated in the paper

(4) C. A model to control the limits of consumption and to correct the limits of resources used The model proposed within this subchapter is representing another original contribution of the present paper. The concept of “saturation limit” has been addressed by the author, in [1], some few years ago, independently from the presentation in [11], where a similar concept of “boundary” is used. While in the book [11] the concept of “boundary” has a general approach and the concept refers only to the idea of limitation of the consumption of resources or to limitation of pollution, temperature rise or carbon dioxide emissions, the concept used by the author, of “saturation limit” refers to the calculation and implementation of the actual limit of the analytical function. This is to be made either

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concerning past values of the function or to saturation limits that the evolution of the certain processes should be forced to reach in a certain period of time. In the respective paper [1] it was assumed that the function according to which the evolutions are taking place in the economy are following simple exponential functions, in both regions of the evolution within a certain economic sector: the exponential growth region and the saturation exponential growth region of the curve associated to the respective evolution of the economic sector.

According to data and observations in rich countries [11], the happiness and wellbeing of people are also obeying the law of saturation. Over a certain value of GDP, the population of the respective country is not happier or more satisfied. So the model in this chapter of the paper could be also applied to reduce consumption and consecutively GDP in wealthy countries, in order to eventually transfer resources to poorer nations, without significant loss of the happiness and standard of living in the wealthy countries, so that the balance between people on Earth could be restored.

The present paper is taking this concept of saturation limit to the next level. The assumption made within the respective paper of the author was that the exponential growth and limitation curves are increasing in two different regions of the curve: in the first region, the growth being exponential and in the second growing up to a saturation limit, both functions being simple exponential functions of the variable time (t). These assumptions are to be extended, namely by the following: The disappearance of an economic sector could occur not only when a certain saturation limit is reached, but also when the demand for the goods of the respective sector is decreasing down to a certain lower saturation limit. This proposed model is completed additionally with the fact that

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the exponential functions do not need to be simple functions of time, but they can be also exponential composed functions.

The assumptions made in the [1] are to be extended with the following: to both, to the exponential growth area and the saturation area can be added acceleration factors that will correspond to the actually corrected evolutions of the respective sectors. An exponential decrease with an additional deceleration or attenuation factor (A) of the considered consumption, down to the accepted value of the respective economic sector, should be seriously taken into consideration, to reach the sustainability condition to which the economy should comply with. Let us set the time interval T0 in which the value of a certain consumption should decrease from the value M to value S.

Hence, the attenuation factor A of the function has the value:

Although theoretically, big data could make unnecessary the use of the exponential functions, the present paper shows how the respectively developed theory could be useful in controlling the evolutions and actions to be taken in the future. This is going to be done as follows: one can set out the time interval (T0), available to decrease the present actual consumption level (M) down to a certain lower saturation limit (S).

The decrease should be also exponentially accelerated, from level M down to level S. One can, then, calculate the analytical form of the exponential decreasing function and based upon a can permanently follow and correct the measures to be taken in time, in order to control the respective decreasing consumption process, in the time interval set, T0. This way, the process of exponential decreasing could be permanently monitored and controlled to avoid deviations from the process.

IV.

The secondary conditions to determine the analytical form of the function C (t) are:

From the first one results: C*1 = M, and using also the second one:

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Problems and solutions

“There is enough for anyone’s need, but not for everyone’s greed” Mahatma Gandhi

Some actions taken, regarding the commerce in the capitalism society at the beginning of the XX century, have generated an increase of population’s consumption.

The large-scale availability of credit, introduction of marketing, publicity and advertisements and fashion, all have led to the exponential growth of consumption and to consumerism. The data recorded since the beginning of the 1920s are proof for this. The greed which followed to this consumerism

originates exactly in those actions taken at the beginning of the previous century. This greed associated with the consumerism should be abandoned and replaced more and more by the values of a minimalistic way of living. Since those consumption habits are already deeply embedded in the consumers’ genetic codes of the wealthy nations’ population, the measures to be taken should be very harsh. One easy and logical solution is to make more people aware of the dangers we have already entered into and to form in the shortest time the critical mass necessary for the abortion of unnecessary consumption. Increasing education, but also interdisciplinary education and awareness with regard to environmental issues could be a good solution, ideas also stressed in [9].

If the results from the actions above are proved insufficient and unsatisfactorily, human psychology of reward and punishment should be implemented, especially in the developed western countries where the most exaggerated consumption of resources is taking place. It is necessary to take irrevocable, rapid and decisive actions and measures. The human behavior is conditioned and driven mainly by two determinant driving forces: the pursuit of reward and the fear and avoidance of punishment. The solution is the increased taxation with regard to the consumption of resources and incentives for the consumers and companies recycling resources. These bad consumption habits the humans have in our days resemble very well to the alcoholism or to another artificially created need. This need for consumption has been artificially “created” using the means already described, and the humans are not using their filter function of reasoning and will, anymore. The sound economic behavior of the humans should be characterized by the fact that not every desire should lead to an effective need and requirement on the market. The psychological manipulation

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at the beginning of the XX century has transformed the humans into consumptionaddicted live beings. Just as the addicted persons, they cannot refrain from the irrational consumption of goods they do not really need. Their filter function of reasoning and will has been wittingly and wickedly canceled by these measures taken at the beginning of the XX century, and today they are not able anymore to master their false necessities, arisen from this subtle, but effective manipulation. The costs for the implementation of effective strategies and tactics to correct this issue should be borne by the states letting this happen in the past. If this is to succeed, the critical mass of the population and thus the kipping point could be reached in order to avoid the imminent disaster evolving under our very own eyes. Much over, so that the mistakes are not repeated, every young person should be raised, trained and educated to properly understand the complex issues the humankind is facing and everyone, instead of being part of the problem should become part of the solution.

Besides exaggerated consumption, much of the present environmental issues, such as temperature rise due to gas emissions causing the melting of the ice mass and the consecutive dramatic climate changes, the deforestations made to add more agricultural fields to economies and the related pollution through the use of chemicals [nitrogen and phosphorus compounds], have been caused by the accelerated growth of the population in the last century. Some solutions for reducing the population growth in the next period are regarding the measures for reducing of poverty, increasing the level of education, and the family planning education. Thus, it could be possible to reduce the rapid growth of population in the poor nations.

Even though the population growth is taking place much more rapidly in the poor

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states, the consumption of the resources is obeying somehow the Pareto law, that is to say up to 20% of the total population of the Earth is consuming about 80 % of the total resources and this 20% of population is representing the most educated population of the Earth. Although there are some 2/3 milliard of people suffering from hunger, huge quantities of food are thrown away in the wealthy countries. This problem should be fixed in the future by finding methods to freeze or recycle the food for those in need.

Another big issue affecting especially the poor population of the planet is the pollution of the air, soil, waters and aliments.

This is occurring due to the environment unfriendly, toxic materials and substances used for certain products. The reduction of the carbon footprint and the reduction of pollution caused by using fossil fuels, nitrogen, phosphorus, metals, a.s.o., should be reduced. The carbon capture and storage facilities should be increased and clean renewable energy should be used. The reduction of the pollution of the soils can be made also by means of big data techniques, used to spread the exact right amount of chemicals on the agricultural fields.

The linear economic model where the dependence between the production and raw materials is direct proportionally should be aborted and the model of the circular economy where nothing gets lost, which is the healthy model of nature, should be adopted. According to ideas in this regard the scientific media but also the European Commission Program in 2011, expressed the opinion and the recommendation that the products should not be only made out of environment friendly materials and should not have only incorporated recyclable materials in their components but they also are to be designed in such a way, that after their lifecycle use, they can be easy and successfully disassembled in their recyclable components.

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Conclusions The “conventional” economy model and the related economic theory [6] should be renounced to. The irrational consumption, the overuse of resources and the pollution, taking place especially in or due to the capitalistic society, should stop. Using the principles of the human psychology the consumer habits should be fundamentally changed.

The ecologic footprint per person should be drastically lowered, especially in the developed countries and the model of the circular economy wherein nothing gets lost, which is the model of nature, should be adopted instead of the “conventional economy model”.

The information provided by big data is starting to be used more and more intensively and it can help nowadays also to calculate more accurately the impact climate change has in the national and global economies.

Based on the models presented in the paper, the big data technology and information can be already successfully used and applied to make today much more accurate estimates of the real value-added in the economy, than it was possible in the past.

Based on big data should also be possible to calculate more accurately the impact of the climatic changes, environmental changes, changes of ecosystems and resources’ consumption. Big data can be, at the same time, used to monetary assess the negative impact of the reckless actions of humans, in order to take necessary measures.

The overuse of resources has reached its limits and perhaps the only solution available is to lower the respective saturation limits in the shortest possible time. This can be made using the recommended method proposed in the subchapter above. Thus one can correct the consumption of certain resources down to an acceptable saturation limit. This is an

example to show how mathematics and big data can work jointly together, so that they reciprocally check one to each other’s results, in order to control and ensure the observance of the process of decreasing down to the acceptable saturation level, exactly in the time interval chosen for the respective process.

Until the present era, human civilizations have perished or immigrated in order to survive (for example the case of some islands civilizations). Their disappearance has been determined either due to the full consumption of their available resources or due to climatic change. Nowadays, both, the crisis of climate change and of the consumption of resources have been generated by the humans themselves and it seems that we are, for the time being, nowhere else to go. The wording “natural disaster” it is not reflecting nowadays’ reality anymore, and it is rather inappropriate and false. Since much of the nowadays’ natural disasters, especially weather related, are due to the actions of humans, the nature is only fighting back to our actions. A much more appropriate term would be that of “human made” disasters.

The problems the humanity is facing today need to be globally addressed by means of global economic policies. The technical solutions for the problems are already available, the only issue remained is the global understanding and action in this respect.

History has proven that significant changes in the planetary cooperation happen only after serious crises. The Coronavirus crisis, assumed also to be caused by the humans entering natural wild habitats is one such crisis and the results should be shortly visible. If the humans are decided to take the radical changes needed to avoid the disaster is about to happen, the human species may will still have a chance to survive.

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God, the Intelligent Creator, created us in His image, which is to say with intelligence and the capacity of reasoning. Now, we have come to the moment when our Creator has become very disappointed with us and thus we begin to experience the consequences of our very own reckless actions, the so called wrath of God. We should stop the imminent disaster profiling at the horizon before it is too late.

[11]

References [1] Catalin Silviu Nutu. “Systemic Approach of the Evolution in the History and Unexplained Gaps Within,” Dialogo, vol. 5:1 (2018), DOI:10.18638/dialogo.2018.5.1.22 [2] Catalin Silviu Nutu. “Quality Measurement and Assessment, International Scientific Conference,” Bucuresti, Romania, Decembrie 2012, Interdisciplinary Approach of Innovation as a progress factor, ISBN 978606-521-978-8 [3] Rolf Becks.

Vorlesungsfolien Volkswirtschaftslehre, Einführung in die Mikoökonomie, [The theory of economics], Universität Politehnica Bukarest, 1995 [4] Catalin Silviu Nutu. PhD Thesis, Statistical Models for the Quality Assessment of the Electrical Equipment, Bucharest, 2015 [5] Rolf Becks.

Vorlesungsfolien Volkswirtschaftslehre, Einführung in die Makoökonomie, [The theory of economics], Universität Politehnica Bukarest, 1996 [6] Hildegard Puvac. Vorlesungsfolien Wirschaftspolitik, [The economic policies], Universität Politehnica Bukarest, 1997 [7] Catalin Silviu Nutu. “Metoda Analizei Valorii de Utilitate. Analiza Factoriala a Caracteristicilor de Calitate,” 6th International Workshop, Bucharest, Romania, May 2013, Stochastic models in technology and economy, ISBN 978-606-23-0161-3 [9] Catalin Silviu Nutu. “Some aspects related to education and marketing,” Bulletin of the General Association of Romanian Engineers, 2016 [10] Ross Alec. The industries of the future,

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Simon and Schuster Inc., 2016 Wijkman Anders, Rockstroem Johan.

Bankrupting Nature. Denying our planetary boundaries, Routledge, London and New York, 2012.

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doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.4

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Determination of essential elements and trace heavy metals in agricrops by photoneutron activation analysis and x-ray fluorescence methods Cristiana Oprea, PhD

Frank Laboratory for Neutron Physics, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

Anatoly G. Belov

Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Reactions (FLNP), Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

Marina V. Gustova

Oleg D. Maslov

Faculty of Physics and Applied Informatics, Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Reactions University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland (FLNP), Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), 141980 Dubna, Pavel J. Szalansky Russian Federation Faculty of Physics and Applied Informatics,

Ioan A. Oprea

Frank Laboratory for Neutron Physics, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

Ruxandra Ciofu

University of Agronomical Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Department of Vegetable Growing, Bucharest, Romania

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 07 November Accepted 10 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.4

Applicative researches in the field of environmental protection like X-ray fluorescence analysis, neutron activation analysis, and other methods, present real increasing importance related to the climate changes that can be observed nowadays. Scientific methods will enter step by step in our life, first of all, due to the accelerated technological development and due to the objective motivations of environmental monitoring necessary to take correct measures for the preservation and protection of nature on the Earth. Determination of some inorganic components, mainly heavy metals, in agricultural crops, is frequently required in health-related environmental studies, due to the high toxicity of trace amounts of such elements for the human organism. The main sources of trace elements to agricrops are their growing media, as soil-water-air ecosystem from which those nutrients are taken up by the root to the foliage. The goal of the present research was to determine the extent to which industrial inorganic pollutants are transferred to the crops. It was achieved by using multielement techniques as photon neutron activation method and X-ray fluorescence methods and statistical modeling in order to determine levels, pathways, and fate of toxic and non-toxic bioactive elements in selected agricrops along with the root soil. Some of the experimental trace metal values exceeded the threshold established by Romanian and EU regulations to protect vegetation and explain the estimated significant crop losses.

Multivariate modeling by factor analysis and neural network simulation of the elemental concentration data showed always the component loaded with specific elements coming from industrial emissions. These kinds of studies are very requested regarding the vegetable meant for the human diet. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Keywords: trace heavy metals; essential elements; photon neutron activation method; X-ray fluorescence; agricrops;

Copyright © 2021 Cristiana Oprea, Marina V. Gustova, Oleg D. Maslov, Anatoly G. Belov, Ioan A. Oprea, Pavel J. Szalansky, Ruxandra Ciofu. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Oprea, Cristiana, and Marina V. Gustova, Oleg D. Maslov, Anatoly G. Belov, Ioan A. Oprea, Pavel J. Szalansky, Ruxandra Ciofu. ”Determination of essential elements and trace heavy metals in agricrops by photoneutron activation analysis and x-ray fluorescence methods.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 55-60. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.4

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on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

I.

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

Introduction

Climate changes observed already at the end of the twenty century have passed beyond the realm of scientific interest in the area of public concern. For example, extreme heat from Europe and from the World from the last decades have seriously affected the health and the capacity of individual persons had led to the decreasing working productivity of entire regions and countries with macro-economical consequences on short, medium and long-range term [1].

Floods, forest fires, intense storms and hurricanes have occurred in regions were these extreme behaviors of nature never manifested [2,3]. The middle and the end of the XX century was dedicated almost totally to the limitation of global warming by reducing the emission of greenhouse gases coming from human activities [4].

For more than two thousand years Christian Church and Faith represent a source of spirituality and cohesion for human society, support, and hope for billions of believers. Christian Church is not a simple complementary institution for humanity; Church and Christianity became for a long time one of the pro-active actors for many laic aspects of our present life. Environmental issues are not exceptions. Ecotheology is a new concept in development and represents a number of concepts, methods, and ethical norms of actions of the Church, and/or in collaborations with state authorities by means of the clergy, believers, and religious institutions in the environmental protection [5].

Cooperation and collaborations between Church and scientific research institute, in the frame of Ecotheology, can be realized considering following ways: educations especially of young generations in the spirit of protection and preservation of the Nature, preparation for the observation of aspects that can be interpreted as factors

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of environmental risks, training of teams in order to help and support scientific groups (sample collection for examples), lessons, meetings for the popularization of environmental protections issues [5].

The present research and our scientific interest join the worldwide focus topic of Food security and environmental changes [6]. The effects of environmental degradation on natural vegetation and agricultural crops are under observation of scientists from all countries reunited in different national and international organizations and laboratories. Determination of heavy metals in agricultural crops is frequently required in health-related environmental studies, because of the high toxicity of trace amounts of such elements for the human organisms.

In the soil-water-crop food-chain, the environmental pollution of agricultural soil results in vegetable contamination which further affects human health [7]. The crop disease reduces the plant quality, changes the chemical composition of infected plants, and makes it inedible.

II.

The Goal of the Research

The main goal of the present research was to determine the extent to which industrial inorganic pollutants are transferred to the crops. The specific objectives included the trace-element polluting effect of the two industrial areas on the agricultural crops, in particular on potato, carrot, and celeriac. For their essay, the photon neutron activation analysis the Microtron MT-25, and X-ray fluorescence methods were used.

III.

Materials and methods

A. Sample and sample preparation The environmental samples were collected from the agricultural area surrounding two towns in Romania, namely

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Turnu Magurele and Oradea, of different industrial profiles. The same types of samples were recorded from a rural remote area chosen as a clean spot. A representative amount of 1 kg from each crop was collected in a perforated polyethylene bag. Prior to the analysis the crop samples were rinsed with distilled water to remove the adhering particles from soil and/or atmospheric deposition. For each type of crop, an average sample was prepared by mixing the samples collected from a site (three pieces).

The plant material was dried for a few days at room temperature. Then about 100 g was dried 48 hours at 400C in the thermostat and then melted and homogenized into a fine powder (as grain fractions < 2 mm) in an agate mortar. The fresh/dry mass ratio determined for crops were 7.25, 5.5, and 8.1, respectively, for carrot pulp, potato pulp, and celeriac pulp, respectively. Aliquots of about 2 g of each sample were used for IPAA and XRF analyses. This paper reports on the screening of element concentration data sets recorded in the studied crops by multivariate statistical methods.

B. Analytical measurements The IPAA procedure was based on irradiation with bremsstrahlung produced in a linear electron accelerator operated at 24 MeV energy. The analytical methodology of IPAA at MT-25 was largely described in our previous papers [7-9]. The method provides uncertainties of the sensitivity values measured by the source method less than 5% for the elemental concentrations in the investigated plant material. Detection limits of IPAA range from 3x10-2 mg/kg (K) for the essential elements to 10-6 mg/kg (Ta, Th, U) for the trace elements.

On the crop samples were done four types of measurements, in order to account the elemental concentrations based on the activity of very short-, short-, medium- and long-lived isotopes which exhibit times of

disintegration of about few minutes, a few hours, 1-3 days and, respectively, more than 4 days.

The XRF method using the 109Cd (Eγ =22.16 keV) and K α 241Am (Eγ=59.57 keV) radioisotope irradiation sources was successfully used for the direct measurement and quantification of the crop materials in the μg/g range [10].

The detection system is based on a Si(Li) detector of 200 eV resolution (Fe Kα line of 6.4 keV). The XRF system sensitivity is defined here as the number of the X-ray counts per s per μg of the corresponding element and sample type. Two methods of using coherent and incoherent scattered peak intensities in quantitative XRF analysis for minimizing matrix effects were used, namely relative and absolute methods. The ratios coherent/incoherent of the peaks in the source spectrum in the determination of the etalons to be analyzed together with the samples are used.

The elements as K, Ca, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Bi(Pb), Se, Br were identified with a 109Cd radioisotope source and some elements as Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Cd, Sn, Te, I, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, by the 241Am radioisotope source have been determined. The XRF measurement sensitivity errors lie in the range 3.5 - 6%. The Quality control of the measurements was checked by the reference standard material Wheat RJI.

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Fig. 1. Gd X-ray lines from a potato sample excited by 59.57 keV from a 241Am isotope source

Fig. 2. Geostatistical maps of some trace toxic metals recorded in potato root (petroleum industry area)

The analysis of the measured spectra was performed using the SPM software developed in FLNR using a nonlinear leastsquares fitting routine which approximates characteristic X-ray peaks with Gaussian curves of various types of background depending on the spectrum region and calculates intensities of X-ray peaks.

Some results on the elemental content in crops by XRF with 241Am source are presented inTable 1.

C. Multivariate geostatistical analysis The statistical methods used for geostatistical multivariate modeling of crop concentration data were based on the factor analysis by R-mode intercorrelations [5].

IV.

Results and discussion

Element ratios for crop and corresponding soil samples collected in the same sampling spots were calculated relative to those for control samples. Further, the concentration factors (CF) were assessed for crops relative to their host soil. Relative to the control zone, significantly higher concentrations were found for various elements in carrot and potato, and to a lower degree in celeriac grown in the polluted areas. Fe, Mg, Mn, Ca, Cl, and K concentrations in carrot pulp, as well as Fe and Cl in potato pulp were found to exceed the normal levels. As, Zn, and Hg concentrations in potato and carrot pulp were found to be lower than the maximum allowable levels in Romania (except for As in carrot pulp which was 1.5 times higher).

Table 1. Elemental content in crops by XRF with 241Am source after crops intercalibration (Element concentrations (ug g-1 dry wt (40 0C))

in agricultural lands and in neighboring gardens performed in this research give an indication of uptake trends of the elements in crops grown in two different polluted environments. Almost in all cases, the metal concentrations found in the vegetables studied are lower than maximum limit (MAL) values for risk assessment in the food chain as permitted by the European Commission Regulation. Therefore they are relatively safe for human dietary consumption. At the same time the characteristics of the rootsoil as pH value and clay content influence the solubility of metals in the soil and their uptake by crops. We obtained good analytical determination for both essential elements and trace heavy metals in analyzed crops, but not for all of them (undetectable detection limits as for example, Dy and Yb). To improve the quality determination of the inorganic components by IPAA and XRF, the calibration procedures and crosssection measurements should be taken into account.

The Ecotheology approach offers the framework of interacting on the horizontal and vertical hierarchy of local, regional, and central state authorities, educational, economic, and research institutions with Church institutions, clergy and believers in order to prevent and recover Earth’s environment and Nature from damages resulting from anthropogenic activities.

Table 2. Significant essential element and trace metal concentrations of celery and carrot root sampled in the vicinity of the fertilizer plant in Turnu Magurele.

Standard references for elements are taken [6-8]

IPAA and XRF analyses of samples of agricrops and their root-soil collected

We are grateful to the staff of the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions for all support provided in the accomplishment of this important research and to local orthodox communities for offering collaboration in sampling surveys.

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[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[8]

[9]

References [1]

[2]

[7]

Acknowledgements

Conclusions

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D. Garcia-Leon, A. Casanueva, G. Standardi, A. Burgstall, A.D. Flouris, L. Nibo.

[10]

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“Current and projected regional economic impacts of heatwaves in Europe,” Nature Communications, 12/1 (2021), 5807 K. Applestein, M.J. Germino. “Detecting shrub recovery in sagebrush steppe: comparing Landsat-derived maps with field data on historical wildfires,” Fire Ecology, 17:5 (2021), 1-11.

Mingfu Guan, Qiuhua Liang, Jingming Hou. “Editorial: Smart Approaches to Predict Urban Flooding: Current Advances and Challenges,” Frontiers in Earth Sciences: Hydrosphere, 9:681751. 20 April 2021 | https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.681751 O. Edenhofer, R. Pichs-Madruga, Y. Sokona, E. Farahani, J.C. Minx, S. Kadner, K.Seyboth, A. Adler, I, Baum, S. Brunner, P. Eckemeier, B. Kriemann, J. Savolainen, S. Schlomer, C. von Stechow, T. Zwickel, Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of climate change. The Fifth Assessment Report, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom, and New York USA (2014) http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ ar5/wg3/ C. Oprea, M.V. Gustova, I.A. Oprea, O.D. Maslov, A.G. Belov, R. Ciofu, Proceedings of XVIIIth International Seminar on the Interaction of Neutrons with Nuclei (ISINN-18), JINR Dubna Publishing Department (2011), p. 322 C. Oprea, O.D. Maslov, M.V. Gustova, A.G. Belov, A.I. Oprea, R. Ciofu, A. Mihul. XVIIth International Seminar on the Interaction of Neutrons with Nuclei (ISINN-17), JINR Dubna Publishing Department, JINR E3(2010)36, p. 306 Oprea, C., and O.D. Maslov, M.V. Gustova, A.G. Belov, P.J. Szalanski, I.A. Oprea.

Vacuum, vol. 83, issue 1, p. S162-S165 (2009) C. Oprea, M.V. Gustova, O.D. Maslov, A.G. Belov, M. Niculescu, I.A. Oprea, A. Mihul, XVIIth International Seminar on the Interaction of Neutrons with Nuclei (ISINN-17), JINR Dubna Publishing Department, JINR E3-2010-36, p. 314 (2010) C. Oprea, Environment & Progress, vol. 3, p.

285 (2005) European Union Commission Regulations No. 488/2014

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[11]

[12]

FAO/WHO food standards program: Codex committee on contaminants in foods (Editorial amendments to the general standard for contaminants and toxins in food and feed), sixth session, Maastricht, Netherlands (2012) Monitoring no. 268, 1999. 23.*** Order No. 176 of 18 February 2009 for repealing the Order of the Minister of Health no. 975/1998 on the approval of the sanitarysanitary norms for food, Order of the Minister of Health, Official Monitoring no. 114 (2009)

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doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.5

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Theoretical analysis of R22 substitution with R417 on board of fishing vessels - thermodynamic, environmental and Islamic aspects Feiza Memet, Ph.D.

General Engineering Sciences Department Constanta Maritime University Constanța, Romania

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 22 September 2021 Received in revised form 04 October Accepted 10 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.5

R22 is a refrigerant that has dominated marine refrigeration onboard fishing vessels till 1 January 2015. Because in its composition exist ozone-depleting chlorine atoms, this refrigerant needs acceptable substitution solutions, to achieve the ozone protection desiderate. For R22 was not found a unique replacement solution. This paper investigates the opportunity to substitute R22 with the refrigerant R 417A, due to its very close thermodynamic properties to R22 and, moreover to its friendly behavior to the ozone layer. Seafood consumption is permitted for Muslims, fishing activity being important for these communities. Fishing depends on vapor compression refrigeration technology, equipment known to be an important energy consumer. In this paper, it is shown that environmental preservation is important in the refrigeration industry and in Islam, as well. The theoretical analysis developed in this paper focuses on the seawater cooling system onboard fishing vessels while catching in tropical waters. The investigation has energetic, environmental, and Islamic components. The comparison between the plant working with R22 and with R417A reveals that the ecologic refrigerant represents a wise solution for retrofitting existing plants.

Keywords: seafood; fishing; energy; ozone layer; global warming; Muslims;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Feiza Memet. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Memet, Feiza. ”Theoretical analysis of R22 substitution with R417 on board of fishing vessels - thermodynamic, environmental and Islamic aspects.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 61-66. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.5

I.

INTRODUCTION

Islam is one of the three monotheistic religions, besides Christianity and Judaism, its appearance being dated in the second half of the sixth century. Islam is not a religion including only practices. Islam is also a code

of life, a guidance for the believers according to which they should behave to each other.

The Holy Book of the Muslims is the Qur’an.

A particularity of this “guidance code” is that Muslims have to be aware of that it is permitted or not for their nourishment.

Eatable is halal and not eatable is haram.

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Related to seafood, the Qur’an states that eating seafood is permitted, in a very accurate manner. In Surah Al-ma’idah 5:96, it is seen that Muslims are allowed to catch from the sea and eat their catch by themselves, with their families, or to share with the travelers [1]. Moreover, for Muslims living in non-Muslim countries, fish is a very convenient solution, when halal meat is not available.

The global consumption of seafood is increasing constantly in the last decades, this reality being in the benefit not only for human health but also for the economies, large fishing vessels, equipped with complex technologies being involved in the capture and transportation process on wide distances [2], [3].

Nowadays fishing vessels are equipped with mechanical refrigeration systems for chilling and freezing their catch. For Muslims, it is not allowed to consume bloodwhich is seen to be very harmful. Chilling the seafood catch on board of fishing vessels is useful not only to prevent spoilage, but also it enables the blood to coagulate.

Refrigeration technology is based on the state change of the working fluid- the refrigerant. Such a system contains the following main components: compressor, condenser, throttling valve, and evaporator.

The refrigeration cycle is used for the heat removal from a lower temperature source to a higher temperature source by mechanical work consumption at the compressor. The energy consumed by the vapor compression refrigeration system is considerably high.

In the actual energy context, the need to reduce the energy consumption of these systems and to increase their performance is more than obvious. But this is not the only challenge to be faced by the refrigeration systems onboard fishing vessels. Global warming and ozone depletion are phenomena related to the impact of this technology use on the environment [4].

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Thus, in the evaluation of the environmental impact of the refrigeration systems, are useful the following indicators [5]: ODP (Ozone Depletion Potential)indicating the damage of the ozone layer because of the harmful molecules contained by a substance, GWP (Global Warming Potential)indicating the harmfulness of a substance because of molecules from its composition, in terms of global warming, TEWI (Total Equivalent Warming Impact)given by the quantity of greenhouse gases evacuated by the plant during its functioning.

Traditionally, in refrigeration systems on board of fishing vessels, we could find Freon R 22 as the working fluid (refrigerant), but from 1 January 2015, this refrigerant is banned in production, import and use in new plants, because of its environmental behavior. In this context, the energy efficiency of fishing refrigeration based on substitutes of R 22 gets significant importance.

As in [6], there is a connection between Islam and ecology, humans being considered as stewards of the world-Allah’s creation; preserving His creation being seen as recognition of Allah.

Consequently, the preoccupation of Muslim environmentalists and the need of Muslims to consume seafood meet the efforts of refrigeration specialists involved in seafood catching, consisting in the finding of alternatives for R22 showing a null ODP and a low GWP, by not neglecting the performance enhancement of the refrigeration plant on board of fishing vessels.

This paper deals with a theoretical thermodynamic analysis of the refrigeration plant on board of fishing vessels used to cool the catch with tropical seawater, in terms of energetic performances. The considered refrigeration fluids are R22 and its more ecologic alternative, R417A.

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II.

Methods and Materials

Freon R22 belongs to HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons).

It is a transitional refrigerant since it contains molecules able to deplete the ozone layer.

According to EU regulations (2037/2000; 842/2006), HCFCs are a subject of gradual substitution with another type of Freon: HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons). HFCs do not harm at all the ozone layer, but they show, in some cases, a quite high GWP. For the moment, the recommendation is to adopt HFCs with low GWP values [7].

As substitutes for R22 might be seen many refrigerants. One of them is R417A due to its close thermodynamic behavior to R22. R417A belongs to HFCs and represents a mixture of the other three refrigerants (R125/R134a/R600 participation in weight: 46.6/50/3.4); initially, R417A replaced successfully R22 in air conditioning, now being seen as appropriate also for other existing refrigeration applications, such as water chillers [8].

From environmental point of view, the impact of the plant working with these two refrigerants is as given below: ODPR22 = 0.055 ; ODPR417A = 0 GWPR22 = 1600 ; GWPR417A = 1950 As it is seen, R417A is friendly with the ozone layer, but shows a slightly higher GWP. This indicates that in the future, HFCs will also be a subject for replacement.

Still, in the light 2000 F-Gas Regulations, HFC refrigerant showing GWP over 2500 will be banned in new plants.

However both refrigerants are included in class A1, indicating no flammability danger; also they show low toxicity- properties accomplished for the personnel’s safety on board.

The performance analysis of the plant

is developed based on the equations given below.

The Coefficient of Performance (COP), showing the performance of the plant, is given by the rate below: COP = ϕR / Wc (–)

(1)

where: ϕR – refrigeration capacity; it indicates the quantity of

heat removed by the refrigerant from the environment, (W),

Wc – compressor power consumption, (W).

As stated above, the compressor of the plant is responsible for the important amount of energy consumed.

The volumetric efficiency (ηvol) of the compressor means the efficiency of the compressor to compress the gas.

The isentropic efficiency (ηis) of the compressor measures the efficiency of the compressor when converting electrical energy into compressed vapor refrigerant potential energy.

The compression ratio (β) of the compressor is a parameter of significant importance for the compressor life.

In order to have a plant with high efficiency (high COP values), these two efficiencies of the compressor should present high values. On the other hand, the values of the compression ratio should be low, so that the plant would result simply and with a low energy consumption at the compressor.

The formula of the mentioned concepts are as follows: * compression ratio: β = pcd / pev (–) (2) where: pcd – absolute condensing pressure, (bar), pev – absolute evaporating pressure, (bar). * Volumetric efficiency:

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ηvol = (v⋅qm) / VDR (–) (3) where: v – specific volume of the refrigerant at the compressor inlet, (m3/kg), qm – mass flow rate of the refrigerant, (kg/s), VDR – volumetric displacement rate, (m3/s). * Isentropic efficiency: (4) ηis = Δhis / Δhact (–) where: Δhis – isentropic enthalpy increase of the refrigerant, (J/kg), Δhact – actual enthalpy increase, (J/kg).

III.

Figure 1 Dependency between the chilled water temperature from the storage tank and the Coefficient of Performance It is observed that the performance of the refrigeration plant is enhanced when the chilled tropical water temperature is high. This trend is seen for both refrigeration agents. COP values when the plant is working with the new refrigerant (R417A) are slightly lower.

The compression ratio (β) versus the chilled tropical water temperature (tcw) is given in Figure 2.

Results and Discussions

It is well known that the sea food capture should be cooled immediately, when waiting for the freezing process.

During fishing in tropical waters, the catch is kept in chilled sea water tanks.

The condenser of the refrigerating plant is cooled with sea water.

In this study, the cooling tropical water inlet temperature is 33oC. Temperatures of the chilled tropical waters from the sea food storage tanks is in the range: –3÷3oC. The refrigeration capacity is 1598 W. The dependency between the chilled water temperature (tcw) and the Coefficient of Performance (COP) is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2 Compression ratio versus chilled water temperature Compression ratio values decrease with the increase of the chilled tropical waters temperatures. The trend is the same for the both refrigerants. Still, slightly higher values for β are noticed when the plant is working with the ecological refrigerant (R417A).

The efficiencies of the reciprocating compressor (ηvol and ηis) behaviors, when the chilled tropical water temperatures vary, are provided in Figures 3 and 4.

Figure 3 Variation of volumetric efficiency with chilled water temperature

Figure 4 Variation of isentropic efficiency with chilled water temperature Both efficiencies increase together with the increase of the chilled tropical water temperature, in both cases.

When adopting the ecological refrigerant (R417A), efficiency values are slightly lower.

The best results, when talking about performance enhancement, are found for the highest value of the chilled water temperature, since the refrigeration effect of the plant is at its best value and work consumption at the compressor is at its minimum value.

Results revealed that the new refrigerant performance is slightly lower compared to R22. The average COP value for R417A is 14% lower than that of R22. The average compression ratio value for R417A is about 8% lower than that of R22, while the average compressor volumetric efficiency value and average compressor isentropic efficiency value for R417A is 11% and respectively 13% lower than that of R22.

Conclusions Cooling of seafood on board fishing vessels prevents spoilage and also blood coagulation – an important aspect for Muslims, for which blood consumption is considered to be haram (prohibited).

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The theoretical study developed above targeted the replacement of R22 with R417A in the refrigeration plant used to chill the tropical seawater used to maintain in good conditions the catch, before freezing, on fishing vessels.

R417A does not harm the ozone layer but contributes to global warming. This means that this refrigerant, so as all HFCs showing high GWP, will be gradually reduced, in the future.

For the present time, R417A results to be a good substitute for R22, in existing plants due to the following results: the average Coefficient of Performance value for R417A is about 14% lower than that of R22, the average compression ratio value for R417A is about 8% lower than that of R22, the average compressor volumetric efficiency value for R417A is 11% lower than that of R22, the average compressor isentropic efficiency value for R417A is 13% lower than that of R22, these percentages being acceptable.

Refrigerant specialists dealing with fishing activities (and not only) are doing efforts to preserve the environment by providing equipment less pollutant and by identifying the conditions in which the energy consumption is lower.

Their interests intersect with the Muslims’ belief: preserving the environment is a recognition of Allah.

Acknowledgment F. M thanks to Constanta Maritime University for the support and encouragement in approaching this interdisciplinary topic.

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References [1] [2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

The Qur’an, 5:96 (Chapter 5, Verse 96).

Guillen, Jordi, Natale, Fabrizio, Carvalho, Natacha, Casey, John, Hofherr, Johann, Druon, Jean-Noel, Fiore, Gianluca, Gibin, Maurizio, Zanzi, Antonella and Jann Th. Martinsohn, “Global seafood consumption footprint,”Ambio 48 (2018): 111-122.

Wang, S.G.and R.Z.Wang, “Recent developments of refrigeration technology in fishing vessels,”Renewable Energy 30 (4) (2005): 589-600.

Bahtkar, V.W., Kriplani, V.M. and G.K. Awari “Alternative refrigerants in vapour compression refrigeration cycle for sustainable refrigeration: a review of a recent research,”Int.J.Environ.Sci.Technol.

10 (2013): 871-880.

Benhadid-Dib, Samira, Benzaoui, Ahmed and G.K. Awari “Refrigerants and their environmental impact substitution of hydro chloroflorocarbon HCFC and HFC hydro fluorocarbon. Search of an adequate refrigerant,”Energy Procedia 18, (2012): 807816.

Koehrsen, Jens 2021. “Muslims and climate change: How Islam, Muslim organizations, and religious leaders influence climate change perceptions and mitigation activities.” WIREs Climate Change :1-19.

Calm, James M., Wuebbles, Donald J. Atul K. Jain, “Impacts on global ozone and climate from use and emission of 2,2- Dichloro1,1,1-Triluoroetahne (HCFC-123),”Climatic Change 42 (1999): 439-474.

Bolaji, Bukola Olalekan 2012. “Performance of a R22 split-air-conditioner when retrofitted with ozone friendly refrigerants (R410A and R417A).” Journal of Energy in Southern Africa 23 (3):16-22.

Ph.D. Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Technical University of Constructions, Bucharest, Romania, 2000-2002 Master Degree in Maritime and Harbor Management from Constanta Maritime University, Romania. Author’s major fields are thermodynamics and marine refrigeration.

She has experience in teaching, research and management activities in Constanta Maritime University, Romania. In 2009, she started her work in Constanta Maritime University as an ASSISTANT. In the present time she is ASSOC.PROF. in the same university. Between 2004- 2009 she was VICE DEAN OF MARINE ENGINEERING FACULTY FROM CONSTANTA MARITIME UNIVERSITY, while since 2009 till now she is CHEAF PART TIME STUDIES DEPARTMENT. She is the author of more than 80 papers, among which: F.Memet, “Aspects to be known by marine carriers involved in halal food chain”, European Journal of science and Theology, vol 15, no 3, pp 79-83, June 2019, F.Memet, “ Is there any link between beliefs and environmental issues within a green energy cluster?”, European Journal of science and Theology, vol 13, issue 1, pp 111-116, 2017, F.Memet, “A performance analysis on a vapor compression refrigeration system generated by the replacement of R 134a”, Journal of maritime Research, vol 11, no 3, pp 8387, December 2014.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Memet is member in different professional association, among them being ModTech Association.

Biography Feiza Memet date of birth: 25 November 1967, place of birth Medgidia/ Romania, educational background: 1987- 1992 Bachelor of Science Degree from Technical University of Constructions, Bucharest, Romania, 1996- 2000

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DIALOGO JOURNAL 8 : 1 (2021) 67 - 76

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.6

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Statistical Analysis in Time and Frequency Domain of the Last Decades Earth Data Catalin Silviu Nutu, Ph.D.

Constanta Maritime University Constanța, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7234-6869

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 04 July 2021 Received in revised form 27 July Accepted 01 August 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.6

This paper analyses data available from the last fifty years, with regard to Earth and it has the purpose to analyze them from both perspectives: the time domain analysis and spectral-domain analysis. Following this analysis, one can conclude about the correlations within the analyzed data or about forecasted future evolution and necessary measures to be taken in order to reduce the dangers.

Keywords: statistical analysis; time domain; frequency domain; Pearson correlation; low pass IIR filter; © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Catalin Silviu Nutu. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Nutu, Catalin Silviu. ”Statistical Analysis in Time and Frequency Domain of the Last Decades Earth Data.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 67-76. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.6

I.

INTRODUCTION

The present paper has the objective to stress, using time and frequency domain analysis, the realities regarding our planet nowadays that has been misused and continues to be. Using data recorded and available for the last fifty years and time and frequency domain analysis, the paper also analyses the correlations and the possible

negative evolutions based on the past data, if no serious measures are taken.

The present paper also has the role to restate the correlations between factors which led to the degradation of the environment, and based upon this to restate how irrational the denial of the current climatic change is. The data used for analysis in this chapter have been collected mainly from the internet sources [2] to [10] in the

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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Data used for analysis

The data used for analysis in this chapter has been taken from the sources [2] to [10] in the References. Some of the information and data therein, also in the scope of the paper, have been left aside, mainly because of the following reasons: insufficient availability, reduced number of recordings or for increased clarity of the paper. The data used, regarding the Population number, Earth’s resources consumed in one year (based on Earth’s Overshoot Day), Annual Deforestation, Annual Temperature rise and Annual Ice Mass Decrease are presented in Table 1, below. This data is the basis for the analysis made within the present chapter of the paper. The software used to statistically analyze the available data is Minitab15.

The Population data is expressed in millions of people, the planets consumed data has resulted by taking into account the Earth’s Overshooting Day from the respective year [5], the Temperature data accords to [6], [7] and [8], the Deforestation data is to be found in [9] and the Ice mass decrease data is recorded in the article [10] from the References.

I.

Analysis of the data in the time domain

Three kinds of statistical time-domain analysis have been performed based on the available data: 1) We know from previous studies and works but also from the realities everyone

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can observe around themselves nowadays, that the analyzed data depends on each other being correlated, but now we want to know how strong the correlation between them is. At first, the correlations between the data recorded in the table are calculated, by calculating the following Pearson correlation coefficients 1.1) The Pearson correlation coefficients are calculated with respect to the data: Population/Planets consumed and Temperature rise, which are recorded for 51 consecutive years (1970/2020) 1.2) The Pearson correlation coefficients are also calculated with respect to all available data but only for 18 consecutive years (2002/2019). Since the amount of data for this calculation is far too low, these Pearson coefficients are not as relevant as for the previous case The data will be then analyzed in the time domain using the following steps: 2) The available data will be plotted in scatter plots, for the time intervals in which the data is available 3) The data available will be projected based on two different scenarios: • one pessimistic scenario, that is generally assuming the linear growth of data and the future pessimistic data is plotted for the next 20 years (green line) • one optimistic scenario, which is generally assuming a growth that is limited by a boundary (limit) and the future optimistic data is also plotted for the next 20 years (green line) • the functions fitted to the respective data are indicated in the respective plots • based on the automatic future prediction which is made based on the recorded data, some conclusions will be drawn. Further conclusions

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are to be added in the next chapter, based on the measures absolutely necessary to be taken with regard to future evolutions

Scatterplot of Population; Planets cons 1000; Temp rise 10000 vs Year

8000

A. Correlations within the data This subchapter presents the Pearson correlation coefficients calculated for the available data. The fact that the presented data depends on one another and that they are strongly correlated, such as stated in the beginning of this chapter, has already been proven and is well known. The Pearson correlation analysis below is designated only to show how high these correlations within this data are. Of course the significantly reduced amount of data for the correlation between all five sets of data (18 instead of 51) is the cause for reduced accuracy of this second statistical correlation analysis.

Correlations: Population; Planets consumed, in the period: 1970/2019 Pearson correlation of Population and Planets consumed = 0,974 P-Value = 0,000

Correlations: Population; Planets consumed; Temp rise, in the period: 1970/2019 Planets consumed Temp rise 0,901 0,000

Population consumed 0,974 0,000

Planets

Variable Population Planets cons 1000 Temp rise 10000

10000

Y-Data

References.

The analysis of the data presented is made using methods from [1] twofold: the data will be analyzed at first using the analysis in the Time Domain [1, 33], using as a tool the software Minitab15, and then the data will be analyzed in the Spectral Domain [1, 110], using MATLAB software.

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6000 4000 2000 0

1970

1980

1990 2000 Year

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Correlations: Population; Planets cons; Deforestation; Temp rise; Ice mass decrease: 2002/2019 consumed Deforestation Planets consumed Deforestation 0,892

Population

Planets

0,916 0,000 0,996 0,000

0,000 Temp rise 0,547

0,792

0,019

0,000

Ice mass decreas 0,857

0,982

0,000

0,000

0,773 0,000 0,979 0,000

0,935 0,000

Cell Contents: Pearson correlation P-Value

Ice mass decreas

Temp rise 0,774 0,000

Cell Contents: Pearson correlation P-Value

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Linear Trend Model Yt = 0,9942 + 0,0142*t

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Planets yearly consumed scenarios Trend Analysis Plot for Planets consumed Linear Trend Model Yt = 0,9942 + 0,0142*t

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

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Fig.9Planets consumed pessimistic Trend Analysis Plot for Planets consumed S-Curve Trend Model Yt = (10**1) / (14,4033 - 5,01477*(1,01172**t))

3,5

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts Curve Parameters Intercept 0,51499 Asymptote 0,69429 Asym. Rate 1,01172

2,5

Accuracy MAPE MAD MSD

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Fig.7 Population pessimistic

S-Curve Trend Model Yt = (10**4) / (25,2211 + 422,978*(0,774362**t))

Measures 2,88925 0,04113 0,00403

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300

Curve Parameters Intercept 22,312 Asymptote 396,494 Asym. Rate 0,774

200

Accuracy MAPE MAD MSD

100

Measures 12,967 11,265 173,079

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Fig.12 Deforestation optimistic

Temperature rise: Trend Analysis Plot for Temp rise Celsius Linear Trend Model Yt = -0,0421 + 0,0179*t

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

1,2 1,0

Accuracy Measures MAPE 11,2844 MAD 8,3011 MSD 92,1899

500

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

4

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Trend Analysis Plot for Deforestation cumm. (Mha)

1,4

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Trend Analysis Plot for Deforestation cumm. (Mha)

Linear Trend Model Yt = -21,24 + 20,3*t

1

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1

Measures 3,30522 0,04536 0,00295

1,2

Planets consumed

Population mill.

5000

14

Fig.8 Population optimistic

Accuracy Measures MAPE 4,9 MAD 104,7 MSD 51258,0

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Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

7000

Measures 3,30522 0,04536 0,00295

1,4

Linear Trend Model Yt = 2232,8 + 85,7*t

9000

Accuracy MAPE MAD MSD

1,6

One can make the following comment on the missing optimistic scenario for Planets consumed data: S shape limitation of the growth/ forecast for the next 20 years does not even exist, hence the conclusion that the increase of the data was so high that one cannot even find the limit of the S shape curve and the linear growth. In conclusion the optimistic scenario based on the data, could mean that the growth of the consumption of Earth’s resources was so high, that with the data recorded until now, no other more optimistic model can be automatically fitted to the most recent data available.

The fact that the software is not able to find a boundary for the data and to fit an S shape model is also a worrying sign, which suggests that disruptive measures are to be taken immediately in order to change the course of this evolution.

Deforestation scenarios

Temp rise Celsius

Planets consumed

1,8

1,2

Trend Analysis Plot for Population mill.

8000

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

2,0

Planets consumed

The forecasting for the data presented in Table 1 is based on the estimations and predictions made automatically by the software used, in this case Minitab15, for the next 20 years. The two scenarios used for the forecasting are made under the following assumptions: one pessimistic scenario which is assuming the linear growth, that is to say a growth with the same rate as in the last 50 years, which proves itself a catastrophic one, and a moderately optimistic scenario which is neither favorable nor sustainable for life on Earth.

Exponential or even linear growth is similar to rapid suicide. Therefore, the maximum limit (boundary) should be deemed as reached or to be reached very soon, and then the consumption of resources and the consecutive degradation should be exponentially reversed (should be exponentially decreased) down to a sustainable and durable acceptable limit/ boundary.

Population scenarios

Trend Analysis Plot for Planets consumed

Deforestation cumm. (Mha)

B. EVOLUTION OF DATA DEPENDING ON TWO SCENARIOS

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Accuracy Measures MAPE 30,6903 MAD 0,0828 MSD 0,0094

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300 200

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Fig.11 Deforestation pessimistic

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rise:

Fig.13 Temperature rise forecasting

Again, a characteristic curve cannot be fitted to the data available which again means that serious disruptive measures have to be taken to stop this trend of temperature rise

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Fig.10 Planets consumed optimistic (missing)

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Linear Trend Model Yt = -276,9 + 140*t

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

Icemass decrease (Gt)

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Accuracy Measures MAPE 43,0 MAD 137,1 MSD 24032,0

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Fig.14 Ice mass decrease pessimistic Trend Analysis Plot for Icemass decrease (Gt) S-Curve Trend Model Yt = (10**4) / (3,75769 + 96,0468*(0,760397**t))

Icemass decrease (Gt)

3000

Variable Actual Fits Forecasts

2500

Curve Parameters Intercept 100,20 Asymptote 2661,21 Asym. Rate 0,76

2000 1500

Accuracy Measures MAPE 24,7 MAD 111,2 MSD 16404,3

1000 500 0 4

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20 24 Index

28

32

36

Fig.15 Ice mass decrease optimistic

III.

Analysis in the frequency domain of the data

The spectral analysis of data will be performed using the software MATLAB. The data used for this kind of analysis is just the data recorded in time intervals larger than 50 years, that is to say only on the data regarding Population, Planets consumed and Temperature rise, since it is only possible on this data to apply Low pass IIR filters which are designed to remove higher frequencies in discrete time data.

From the data plot of the filtered data one

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Spectrogram and Powerspectrum of data: Population Detrended in Figures 16 and 17

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6

5

Time

Trend Analysis Plot for Icemass decrease (Gt)

can then conclude whether it is necessary to preprocess the data or not.

The recorded data is to be analyzed in the spectral domain using the following steps: 1) Since the problem of seasonality cannot apply for the data recorded in Population, Planets consumed or Temperature rise, the respective data which exhibits the clear trend will be first of all trend removed, removing the existent trend. This operation is to be made using the function “detrend” in MATLAB. 2) The power of the signal corresponding to the data recorded with the trend removed will be analyzed using the spectrogram of the data and based upon this, it will be decided which is the normalized passband frequency and the normalized cutoff frequency of the lowpass IIR filter which can possibly preprocess the data.

3) The power level of the data will be additionally analyzed using the “pwelch” function in MATLAB. 4) The filter designed with the help of the previous steps will be applied to data.

5) The delay between the filtered data and the non filtered data, introduced by the filters used, is to be compensated using the function “filtfilt” in MATLAB. 6) Both signals: the filtered signal without the trend and the signal without the trend and with the compensated delay are to be plotted in the same diagram and then decided the additional information gained by using the respective filters for the preprocessing of the data.

7) Based upon the graphs from above, one can interpret better the respective data, such which will also be made for the Population data, since more information can be taken from this filtered data.

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Analyzing the above spectrogram, based on the colors of the spectrogram, one can conclude that the area of lower powers is around the normalized frequency of 0.2.

Hence, the lowpass IIR filter corresponding to the preprocessing of the data should have a passband frequency of around 0.1 and a cutoff frequency of 0.2 Population with the

20

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Fig.18

The filtered Population data with compensated delay is represented in the left panel, whereas in the right panel the Population data without trend is presented.

The filter is applied to the Population data.

The filtered data presented in the graphics above combined with the Population data without trend can be interpreted in the following sense: somewhere at the end of the first decade, in 1980, the deviation from the trend has reached a maximum absolute value, and then around some 10 years later the deviation from the trend was at a minimum. Around the year 2010 the deviation from the trend reached again a value of minimum, followed by increasing values to this deviation.

Welch Power Spectral Density Estimate

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Spectrogram and Powerspectrum of data Planets Consumed Detrended in Figures 19 and 20

data without trend, filtered and compensated delay in Figure 18

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Analyzing the above spectrogram, based on the colors of the spectrogram and also the Powerspectrum, one can conclude that the cutoff frequency is also of about 0.2 and the passband of the filter is of around 0.1. The filtered data Planets Consumed without delay is represented in the left panel, whereas in the right panel the Planets Consumed data without the trend is presented.

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Fig.19 Welch Power Spectral Density Estimate

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Analyzing the above spectrogram, based on the colors of the spectrogram, one can conclude again that the features of the Lowpass IIR filter should have a cutoff frequency of 0.2 and a passband of 0.1 again.

The fact that the LowPass IIR filters used all have the same characteristic is motivated by how strongly correlated this set of analyzed data: Population, Planets Consumed and Temperature Rise, is.

The above graphs are showing how powerful and useful the Spectral Analysis may be, when it comes to more easily interpreting large sets of recorded data.

The data in the right figure corresponds to the unfiltered data whereas in the left it is represented the filtered data. The filters in this subchapter have been used to smooth the data, in order to better observe the tendency of the data with the removed trend.

0.9

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Based on the results of this paper, one can conclude, on one side, that the factors and parameters recorded for our Planet are showing a worrying evolution,

which can be visualized with the help of the plots presented. On the other side, the correlations between these parameters are very high and the different scenarios without intervention are not permissible, if life on Earth is to continue.

Exactly like an inexperienced young driver, human kind has pushed on the gas pedal far too hard, with disastrous consequences for Earth and for the life on our planet. We should slow down this crazy speeding car if we want to avoid a serious deadly car crash.

Therefore, disruptive measures are to be taken immediately to correct these disastrous evolutions. Furthermore, using the analysis in the frequency domain, one can better infer on the variations in the recorded data with their trend removed. Throughout the paper the idea emerges that applied statistics conjoined with software and high calculation power is very useful when trying to understand and to find patterns that fit available data to different models.

References [1] C.Chatfield,The analysis of time series: theory and practice, Chapman and Hall, London, 1975 [2] https://ourworldindata.org/world-populationgrowth, Population data [3] https://www.earthday.org/history/, Resources consumption [ 4 ] h t t p s : / / w w w. t h e g u a r d i a n . c o m / environment/2018/jul/23/earths-resourcesconsumed-in-ever-greater-destructivevolumes, Resources consumption [5] https://www.overshootday.org/, Resources consumption [6] https://royalsociety.org/topics-policy/ projects/climate-change-evidencecauses/question-1/#:~:text=Earth’s%20 average%20surface%20air%20 temperature,%2D1970s%20%5BFigure%20 1a%5D, Temperature data [7] https://www.climate.gov/news-features/

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understanding-climate/climate-changeglobal-temperature, Climate change [8] https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/world-ofchange/global-temperatures, Temperature data [9] https://ourworldindata.org/deforestation#theworld-has-lost-one-third-of-its-forestsbut-an-end-of-deforestation-is-possible, Deforestation data [10] http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/, Ice mass data

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DIALOGO JOURNAL 8 : 1 (2021) 77 - 82

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.7

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Photoneutron activation analysis and multivariate geostatistical approach to assess the spatial occurrence of trace heavy metals in Crisuri Basin Cristiana Oprea

Frank Laboratory for Neutron Physics, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan

Diana Cupsa

University of Oradea, Faculty of Sciences, 410087 Oradea, Romania

Marina V. Gustova

Ioan A. Oprea

Frank Laboratory for Neutron Physics, Joint Institute for Nuclear Research 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

Oleg D Maslov

Fr. Lecturer at The Faculty of Theology, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

Flerov Laboratory for Nuclear Reactions (FLNP), Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), 141980 Dubna, Russian Federation

Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Flerov Faculty of Theology, Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, 141980 Dubna, Moscow Region, Russian Federation

Anatoly G. Belov

Alin Teusdea

Istvan Gergely

Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Flerov Faculty of University of Oradea, Faculty of Environmental Pro- Crisuri Water Bihor County Administration, 410087 Oradea, Romania Theology, Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, 141980 tection, 410087 Oradea, Romania Dubna, Moscow Region, Russian Federation

Doris Cadar

Ion Gruia

University of Bucharest, Faculty of Physics, Bucharest, Romania

1. Babes-Bolyai University, Department of Environmental Protection, Cluj-Napoca, Romania 2. Bruker Corporation, Department of Advanced X-Ray Solutions, Massachussets, 01821 Billerica, United States of America

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 07 November Accepted 10 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.7

The Crisuri Basin, with its total length of 1093 km (among which 670 km in Romania), is subjected to an effective environmental monitoring system consisting of 18 water stations network. Their integrated information is used for the water assessment problem to understand the biogeochemical processes leading to significant pollution levels in some running water sectors. The goal of this research is to predict the most important factors causing the change of the geochemical measured parameters of some components of the Crisuri water resources. In the present paper, we developed a multivariate statistical model to estimate the spatiotemporal distribution of heavy metals in the field and to identify the contamination sources of Basin River waters. Two methods were deployed as an overall approach to fulfill the proposed objectives, namely the photoneutron activation analysis followed by high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry and the multivariate statistical analysis. The elements analyzed by different analytical techniques and introduced in databases were As, Cd, Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Hg, Na, Ni, Pb, Zn, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, P-PO4, fixed residues, S-SO4, Cl, phenols and, additional oil compounds. By combining the spatially distributed geochemical data on trace heavy metals with the spatially distributed geophysical data, we obtained the most significant fingerprint factors and their associated uncertainty information concerning the water quality.

Keywords: multivariate statistical analysis; trace heavy metals (HM); Crisuri Basin; geostatistical modelling; HM spatial patterns;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Cristiana Oprea, Diana Cupsa, Alexandru Ioan Oprea, Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, Marina Gustov, Oleg D Maslov, Anatoly Belov, Alin Teusdea, Istvan Gergely, Ion Gruia, Doris Cadar. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Oprea, Cristiana, and Diana Cupsa, Alexandru Ioan Oprea, Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, Marina Gustov, Oleg D Maslov, Anatoly Belov, Alin Teusdea, Istvan Gergely, Ion Gruia, Doris Cadar. ”Photoneutron activation analysis and multivariate geostatistical approach to assess the spatial occurrence of trace heavy metals in Crisuri Basin.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 77-82. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.7

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.7

on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

I.

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

Introduction

The improvement of the performance of the water sector is necessary to advance and sustain the economic development in Central and South-East Europe. The status of the water supply is predicted to tighten significantly during the next decades and the harmful effects will affect the economic activity and quality of life in this region [1,2].

The Romanian Water Integrated Monitoring System for water quality works under the EUROWATERNET standards, having one surveillance water station for each 1000 km2 hydrographic basin [3].

Usually, normative polluting sources in the Crisuri Basin were classified into five main classes as follows: the system of oxygen, nutrients, general ions, salinity, toxic pollutants, and other specific chemical indicators [4].

The contamination sources result from wastewaters, chemicals, smelting, and power industries and farms, traffic, agriculture, and mining. It reported two cases exceeding the allowable limits generated by oil mining activity downstream of Suplacu and Parhida – on the Barcau River in Bihor county, Romania. Based on the Romanian Standard for Water Quality (STAS 4706/1998), around 86% of the waters in this basin are included in the 1st category, 6.2% lie in the 2nd category and other 7% are considered degraded waters [5,6].

Nowadays climate changes became for a long time already key questions not only for sciences and researchers. Every day in online media, press, and television environmental pollution due to human activities (industries, agriculture, transport and services) induced climate changes that will influence in an irreversible way the mankind civilization on the Earth are mentioned. It is time to put together all the efforts of human, finances, economic and scientific resources in order to avoid the

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so-called “point of no return” in climate evolution. The solutions must be elaborated not only vertically, from decisions coming from specialized organizations to society. It is necessary to develop a horizontal network involving non – governmental organizations, educational institutions, clerical and church organizations, local and regional authorities which will imply a large number of people to be educated and involved in the spirit of environmental protection [7,8].

II.

Objective

The goal of this research is to predict the most important factors causing the change of the geochemical measured parameters of some components of the Crisuri water resources. In this respect, we investigated the potentiality of water pollution with heavy metals and their emission sources in the Crisuri Basin.

III.

Materials and methods A. The samples

Surface water samples and surface sediments were collected along the Crisuri Basin before the Covid-19 pandemic. The pH and the temperature were measured.

Water samples were collected in one-liter polyethylene bottles. All samples were filtered and double acidified by HNO3 agent and then reduced to dry residues prior to analysis. About 2 kg of surface sediment samples were collected from the riverbank from a depth of about 5 cm after removing the top sediment cover. Then they were subjected to a simple analytical preparation as grinding up to a fraction of 100 mm and after pelletized as 2g aliquots. Two different samples from one contaminated site versus an unpolluted location were collected.

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B. IPAA analysis Instrumental Photon Activation Analysis (IPAA) is a good candidate for implementation near trace heavy metals identification in the geological objects [9].

The samples were analyzed to direct rapid measurement by the IPAA method and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) for 29 substances, including heavy metals and organic toxic substances. An intercalibration between IPAA and AAS methods using common determined elements was accomplished. The quality assurance of the measurements was done by measuring SDM-2 soil and SL-1 sediment (issued by IAEA Vienna) aliquots in the same experimental conditions as the samples.

A packet consisting of 10 cassettes with samples and standard samples was irradiated together with flux monitors by a photon flux of 24 MeV at the MT-25 microtron for 5 h.

For the irradiation there was a 7% difference in the flux factors between the upper and lower positions of the container. The overall integrated flux over a 5 hours irradiation is practically constant. Calibration was done using an Europium source.

The method provides detection limits of about 10% for the elemental concentrations in investigated materials. On the samples were done four types of measurements, in order to account the elemental concentrations based on the activity of very short-, short-, medium- and long-lived isotopes which exhibit half-life times of about few minutes, few hours, 1-3 days and, respectively, more than 4 days.

IPAA is a sufficiently sensitive method of elemental analysis using the simplest and accessible source of radiation - a compact electron accelerator – the MT-25 microtron (FLNR, JINR). The accelerated electrons are extracted from the microtron to a stopping target to produce gamma-rays or are directed into a uranium-beryllium converter

to produce neutrons. The uranium-beryllium converter is placed into the middle of a graphite cube with a 120 cm side, which is the main neutron moderator [10.11].

Fig. 1. Scheme of the microtron MT-25. 1 system of high frequency; 2 - wave channel; 3 - ferrite isolator; 4 - resonator; 5 - vacuum system; 6 - magnet; 7 - vacuum camera 8 - orbits of accelerated electrons; 9 - exit of electron beam; 10 - magnet, focusing electron beam; 11 - brake target

Fig. 2. Gamma-spectrum of a sediment sample (ti - 4h, td –1d, tm - 15min) Trace heavy metal ratios for sediment and corresponding upper water samples collected in the same sampling spots were calculated relative to those for control samples (Table 1). Further, the concentration factors (CFW) were assessed for surface water relative to surface riverbank sediment.

In this report, no further details on the AAS procedure and specific calculations

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o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

will be given in order to meet the goal of the research in agreement with the requirements of the editors concerning the paper length.

Table 1. Locations and heavy metal elements concentrations C. Multivariate statistical analysis.

Geostatististical multivariate analysis Concentration values measured in collected samples were analyzed by multivariate statistical methods, particularly

by Principal Component Factor Analysis.

At the beginning of the XXth century, multivariate statistical methods were widely applied in social sciences and psychology [12]. Seventy years later they were used in the processing of experimental data in applied researches [13]. Factor Analysis is defined as a statistical method based on the analysis of the correlations between a large number of observed variables in order to obtain the main properties of the investigated systems

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expressed by a few numbers of observables named factors [12,13].

Multivariate statistical methods allow extracting hidden characteristics of the objects without knowing the internal laws governing of the investigated objects [13]. The success of the multivariate statistical approaches consists mainly in the selection of the samples and variables for data processing [13]. Previously the authors have used Factor Analysis in the investigation of the environmental pollution by the heavy metals extracted from different samples [14].

Data were subjected to statistical analysis using SPSS 10.0.7 for Windows. The distribution of the elemental concentrations contains several elements outliers that deviate from the average central tendency of the data set and the median were used to characterize the pollution levels representative for the region studied [15].

The range of minimum and maximum values was chosen to characterize the variability in the data set. R-mode factor analysis uses the following algorithm in multivariate data analysis: a matrix of variables Xmn or the standardized matrix Zmn can be decomposed into a product of the matrix of the common factors Fmp and matrix of the factor scores Spn plus residual matrix Rmn [12,13]:

Z nm = Fm p S pn + Rm

(1)

where m, n and p are the number of the extracted subjects and factors.

After estimating of the contributions of variables on the main diagonal of the matrix of correlation the problem of eigenvalues by principal components method was solved. To increase the ability to identify the source of the analysis in factors, one select elements released by known sources.

Thus, the following variables will be used for

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multivariate analysis: As, Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mg, Na, Ni, Pb, Zn, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, P-PO4, fixed residues, S SO4, Cl, phenols and oil compounds. To minimize the mean values of variables and maximize the high and low values, we supposed the obtained factors to an orthogonal rotation through the varimax method. Factors scores were used to remove the outliers and to identify the source of each element in the data set.

To obtain the complete independence of factors, the varimax rotation with Kaiser normalization was applied. After the entire statistical procedure, four main factors were extracted, ordered by the level of significance, which described 71.3 % of the total variance in the data set.

The finger-printing methodology used to determine the origin of pollutants in watershed Crisuri Basin area, forensic significance, was based on factor analysis represented by using multivariate geostatistical methods. If point sources are located on or very close to those rivers stretch which are explicitly included in the model, they are introduced in the model as a point emission at the correct location in the network. The remaining point sources are treated as a distributed emission causing a constant load in the river. Diffuse sources are always introduced in the data set as distributed sources. The purpose of R-mode factor analysis as applied to water and sediment samples data was to describe all information contained in the data set in terms of a few factors.

D. Main factors The first factor, which described 36.5 % of the variance, was represented by As, Ca, Mg, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, P-PO4, fixed residues, S-SO4, and Cl and was assigned to municipal waste leachate in running waters.

The second factor accounting for 18.8 % of the variance was mostly loaded with Cd,

Ni, Pb, Zn, Cu, Fe and oil compounds and originates in local industry discharges.

The third factor, describing 11.5 % of the variance presented such components as P-PO4, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, fixed residues, and Zn and indicates the agriculture pollution.

The last factor, represented by 4.5 % of the total variance, was a geological source of elements, composed of rock elements as Ca, Na, Fe and, Cr. Conclusions Compared to European water-established standard limits, the levels of heavy metal contamination in the Crisuri Basin were satisfactory, assessed as moderated to low, relative to the natural background values of the zone. The multivariate statistical analysis separated among the different sources of chemical elements found in the measured samples. Tasks accomplished in the present research contributed to: - accurate knowledge on the environmental status in the Crisuri basin; - environmental management and institutional development in the Region; - improvement of administration practices; - support on forward-looking legislation; - environmental standards set through the local authorities; Inventory activities.

Further investigations will be needed to identify the reasons of these weak performance indicators.

Acknowledgements We are grateful to the staff of the Direction of the Crisuri Oradea Waters and to local orthodox communities for assistance in sample analysis.

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References [1]

J. Kortvriend, A. Hulsmann, “Water 21”, Journal of the International Water Associations, (2006) p. 18.

[2] C. Rodriguez, P. Van Buynder, R. Lugg, P. Blair, P. Devine, A. Cook, P. Weinstein,.

“Indirect Potable Reuse: A Sustainable Water Supply Alternative”, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 6, issue 3 (2009), p. 1174.

[3] A. Caunii, M. Butnariu, T.D. Chioreanu, I. Milosan. “Aspects Relating to the Organization of the Integrated Monitoring System in Romania”, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, vol. 109, issue 8 (2014), p. 483.

[4] P. Thunis, B. Degraeuwe, E. Peduzzi, E. Pisoni, M. Trombetti, E. Vignati, J. Wilson, C. Belis, D. Pernigotti. “Urban PM2.5 Atlas: Air Quality in European cities”, EUR 28804 EN, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg (2017). DOI 10.2760/336669 [5] E. Stoica, A. Ciocasu, V. Coatu, A. Oros, V. Piescu. “Present state of the Romanian Black Sea bathing waters quality,” Cercetari Marine / Recherches Marines, vol. 35 (2004), p. 109.

[6] Romanian National Standard for Water Quality, STAS 4706 / 1998 (1998) [7] C. Oprea, T.C. Ciocan, A. Oprea.

“The ecotheological consciousness in environmental studies,” Dialogo, EDISPublishing Institution of Zilina, Slovakia, vol.

3, issue 2 (2016), p. 207.

[8] C. Oprea, T.C. Ciocan. “Ecotheological applicative researches,” Dialogo, EDISPublishing Institution of Zilina, Slovakia, vol.

3, issue 1 (2016), p. 55 [9] Krausová, Ivana, Jiří Mizera, Zdeněk Řanda, David Chvátil, and Pavel Krist. 2021.

“Instrumental Photon Activation Analysis with Short-Time Irradiation for Geochemical Research” Minerals 11, no. 6: 617. https://doi. org/10.3390/min11060617 [10] Yu.Ts. Oganessian, S.N. Dmitriev, J. Kliman, O.D. Maslov, G.Ya. Starodub, A.G. Belov, S.P. Tretyakov. “RIB production with photofission of uranium,” Nuclear Physics A, vol. 701 (2002), p. 87. ISSN 0375-9474, https://

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doi.org/10.1016/S0375-9474(01)01553-6. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ article/pii/S0375947401015536) [11] O.D. Maslov, S.N. Dmitriev, “Use of MT25 microtron for scientific and applied investigations,” (2003) p. 10-14; Workshop on radioanalytical methods ‘IAA 03’, Prague, Czech Republic, Proceedings of the Workshop, p. 10 [12] C. Spearman, “‘General Intelligence,’ Objectively Determined and Measured.”

The American Journal of Psychology 15, no. 2 (1904): 201–92. https://doi. org/10.2307/1412107.

[13] M. A. Stanley, Foundation of Factor Analysis.

Chapman & Hall / CRC CRC Press, ISBN 978-1-4200-9961-4, Second Edition, Boca Raton, Florida USA (2010).

[14] C. Oprea, A.I. Oprea, A. Mihul. “A neutron transmission study of environmental Gd,” Romanian Reports in Physics, vol. 67, issue 3 (2015), p. 854.

[15] J.C. Davis, Statistics and Data Analysis in Geology, John Wiley&Sons, Third Edition, ISBN: 978-0-471-17275-8, New York, USA (2002).

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SECTION 3

Social Sciences, Culture, Lifestyle Choices & Religion

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Assuming diversity and difference in the educational process. Limits, opportunities, consequences Constantin Cucos, Ph.D.

Professor at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi Romania

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 20 October 2021 Received in revised form 27 October Accepted 28 October 2021 Available online 30 December 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.8

The traditional pedagogy is built following a homogeneous, unitary public speaking from a cultural, ethnic, linguistic, spiritual point of view. In fact, the school was designed to serve a monolithic community with members presenting the same relief and sociocultural characteristics. In the meantime, the design and operation of a ‘community’ have changed. The community is no longer historically linear, undifferentiated, or congruent by ethnic or spiritual lineage. Not to mention the fact that socio-economic unevenness leads to cultural stratification or belonging to different value positions. The class of students brings together dissonances or contrasts that can hardly be modeled or managed by the action frameworks or procedural assumptions of yesteryear. Educational policies at the macro or micro level have also changed, satisfying particular needs or situations that were traditionally not taken into account. What would be the guiding principle for adopting and implementing options when it comes to taking on the different and differentiating in training? By what strategies and ways can the requirement of respecting diversity be met? What are the constraints, limits, and obstacles - objective, technical, circumstantial - that may arise in activating this principle? What are the consequences of dissipation and fragmentation of values or actions from the perspective of didactic teleology and praxeology? These are some questions to which we propose some answers in this intervention.

Keywords: cultural diversity, cultural identity, differentiated education, interculturality, interconfessionality;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Constantin Cucoș. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Cucoș, Constantin. ”Assuming diversity and difference in the educational process. Limits, opportunities, consequences.”

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on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

I.

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

Introduction

The school functions as a space for the unification and integration of all categories of students. Therefore, all principles, strategies and training opportunities must be geared towards this intentionality. On the other hand, we know that people are different in terms of native equipment, personal experiences, and inclusions in particular groups on cultural, sometimes linguistic, religious, ethnic matters. How do we reconcile the principle of universalization and integration of the human being with the principle of preserving the existential identity of the one who enters the school perimeter?

We know that the current school, due to the efficiency of the educational work, resorts to forms of organization or administration of the activities that hardly give satisfaction to the strictly individual or group expectations. The school space is a place of meeting, integration, and homogenization. The school has adopted the Taylor’s form of work organization with a view to achieving increased productivity.

Taylor is known to have devised a method of organizing work that is based on the specialization of workers, the unification of time allocated to each activity, and the division of tasks. The strict sequencing and allocation of tasks, the unification of actions in the perspective of obtaining efficiency could not neglect particularizations, representations, or diversified rhythms of the subjects involved in the training activity.

As for the perspective of the transmitted contents, it goes on alignment to the same value standards, on homogenization, even on massification.

It is obvious that we live in an age of encounters and interference. We, as individuals or communities, to realize who we are, how we act, what we think, etc., or to highlight our identity, compare ourselves

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with others - those of today, or with ourselves - those of the past. On the other hand, we cannot lock ourselves in our own visions and actions, when we aim at general, integralist, even universal practices (see Nedelcu, 2008; Mara, 2008). In terms of training and education, beyond the naive mechanisms of the first years of life, inherited and repeated almost genetically, which are almost the same in all people, regarding the formulas established at the Community level there are different solutions, with multiple etiologies and effects, which they deserve to be subjected to a reflective exercise [cf.

Segall, Dasen, Berry, Poortinga, 1990].

Differentiation in Learning - a II. claimed precept, but difficult to apply The requirement to ensure differentiated and personalized learning is an indisputable principle. For hundreds or thousands of years, education has been exercised, in itself, in accordance with this principle - especially the individual, based on preceptors, or the magisterial, based on the master-disciple binomial. The entire demand (restricted, of course) but also the educational offer were dimensionally circumstantial, taking into account the particularities, possibilities, and needs of the trainee but also of those around him. The requirement became evident when it was “endangered” by adopting a more “effective” action philosophy, the organization of teaching-learning by groups (classes) of students, at first heterogeneous and then chronologically homogeneous. We do not question the depth and performativity of the paideic act consumed by different training formulas, socially established at a given time. Quantitative expansion must not, in principle, jeopardize the qualitative aspect [see Przesmycki, 2000].

What does ‘differentiation in learning’ mean? In short, this would mean ‘giving the educated person what he wants and asking him as much as he can,’ starting

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from the principle that people of all ages are different, have different preferences, interests, and needs, their own learning styles, and rhythms [Algozzine and Anderson 2007]. And this must be done in a class of let’s say thirty students (but there may be more), simultaneously, in a certain unit of time (conventional school time equals 50 minutes). That is, the teacher should speak in thirty “voices”, addressing each student individually on his “meaning”, within the limits of his culture or experience, or involving him in activities specific to his ability to get involved or solve. Of course, this is an ideal track that cannot be translated into reality.

And what to do in such a situation?

Calibrate your teaching discourse in fewer “voices” (say, three: one for weak students, one for middle-aged students, and another for those with special abilities). To divide the class into groups of students of about the same level each and to address each one, especially by assuming tasks with different degrees of explanatory difficulty or evaluative requirement. Or, on the background of a frontal activity, with the whole class, to aim from time to time, by distributing differentiated tasks, additional explanations, etc. for very good students or the poorly trained. Methodical solutions to this requirement can be found, and the psycho-pedagogical literature offers a wide range of strategies and methods.

The heterogeneity of a class is not only of the order of preparation, the aptitudes, or of the motivation of the students that compose it [cf. Wiggins, 1992]. Major complications arise when the school or teacher has to manage the cultural heterogeneity of the educated or to favor the integration of children with disabilities or learning difficulties.

In the conditions of increasing cultural heterogeneity, there will be the problem of structure and maintaining the unity and

completeness of the curriculum, respectively its construction so that all members of a class find themselves spiritually in their sequences (as a sign of valuing their culture), but also by displaying consonances, continuities or cultural differences. The question arises, how will the cultural sharing of the taught contents be done and according to what criteria? If in a class we have children of Romanians, Hungarians and Roma, for example, what percentage of each person’s literature will be found in the curriculum for the disciplines subsequent to the curricular area Language and Communication?

Naturally, sequences from all three linguistic or literary spaces will be foreshadowed and students, regardless of ethnicity, will become acquainted, through reciprocity, with the three perspectives. Their and teachers’ effort will be greater than that of a homogeneous class. The new reality raises other doubts. Will the teacher who teaches this subject to be representative of which ethnic group? What initial training device can professionalize him? To what level of depth or amplitude can one go with the recovery or valorization of the cultural profile of the one educated in the school perimeter?

Regarding the integration of children with disabilities, the prospects are not easy to assume. The philosophy of inclusion has become generalized and important steps have been taken towards foreshadowing strategic paths in this regard (specially equipped schools and classes, adequate content or teaching materials, changes in mentalities, etc.). The purpose of this education is to maximize the skills and performance of those in difficulty, to normalize their existence, to acquire an optimal social competence, which will ensure a beneficial insertion and collaboration for the persons concerned and for the other categories. It also involves adapting the school to the special learning requirements of children and, by extension, adapting the

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school to the diversity of psycho-motor or intellectual profiles of children in a community - which involves rethinking the status and role of the school. There is still work to be done regarding the formation of the attitudes of some social actors (parents, children, teachers), the training of teachers regardless of the subjects they teach - in the perspective of inclusion, the configuration of differentiated evaluation formulas in school or nationally, the allocation of sufficient financial resources (inclusive schooling requires additional assistance and intervention through support teachers, psycho-pedagogical counselors, doctors, etc.). Integration has its limits taking into account both the profile or the level of the child’s psycho-motor condition, and the preservation of the right of others to an education according to their requirements and possibilities. The integrationist vision must pay attention to the objectives and ways of integration, to whom it is to be integrated, at what it can be integrated, and at what cost.

So what would be the guiding principle for adopting and implementing options when it comes to ensuring differentiation in teaching-learning? We believe that we should be guided by the following goal: that all children have something to gain and that no one is harmed - whether it is a single person or a larger school community.

III. The dynamics of cultural closingopening. Educational opportunities and consequences The philosophy of relativizing culture to individuals or groups, of personalizing it in a maximum way is a consequence of contemporary cultural paradigms.

The attention is directed more towards the individual, towards his particular needs. Openness to others and leaving a fixed, locked referentiality seem to be a desideratum of contemporary education.

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It can be seen that classical values ​​such as ethnicity, national or religious affiliation, patriotism, loyalty are questioned and the excess of cultivating these values ​​is often negatively connoted. Cataloged as ‘fixists,’ these values ​​create and nurture feelings of guilt. The axiological dislocation, the breaking of the unique points of support, the de-centering of value are new principles of ordering and structuring the educational processes. We no longer belong to a single culture, we no longer have only one homeland, we no longer have only our history: we have become “universal”.

Of course, this is a utopian perspective that deserves to be discussed. Before we become “citizens of the world” - a pertinent goal of contemporary education, we need to experience a particular culture, through which we will enter (with some of it) into the broader perimeter of universal values.

Without a centering of the first instance, it is difficult to conceive of a broader, multi-referential, and multi-level one [see Dasen, Perregaux, Rey, 1999]. Knowing others means, first of all, getting to know ourselves. But to confine ourselves only to our own, sequential cultural instruments, sacralizing them, is as damaging as militating for an indistinct, ambiguous, hollow internationalism.

Related to “closure”, this is done by reviewing one’s cultural landmarks. Identity is accentuated as we need it, it helps us to break a deadlock. Like tradition, which is invented according to current interests, identity is constantly being built from the perspective of the needs of a socio-historical present. When individuals are blamed for their identity, the social ensemble devitalizes and dissipates very easily. The cultural identity born of negativity (when one’s own values ​​are disavowed by society) leads to precarious socialization of the person, with great consequences for later.

Identity strategies are no longer direct,

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total, and transparent, causing the individual to feel guilty about what he is. Another reality is to be reached: the exaggeration of identity and the total refuge in one’s own identity barriers. Behavior is born, somewhat perverse, duplicitous, of hiding and concealing the Self (precisely because the exteriority does not allow such a thing.

For the full manifestation of personality, it is necessary a free, natural construction of marks of recognition, of laying foundations only axial values, around which other types of values ​​will be also settled, not yet experienced by the person in question. Only in this way the person is ready to be open, when the original “closing” was made freely, non-constraining, transparent, without any hiding or fear.

The reflective attitude on one’s own cultural grounds can be translated as a review of the great existential myths, of the historical references, of the landmarks that have guided us until a certain moment.

Critical positioning towards ourselves is desirable towards the conduct of selfsatisfaction, of glorification of the Self.

From time to time, it is good to review our ideational frameworks in which we move, to re-verify their adequacy to our realities, aspirations, and possibilities. Two dangers can appear in this critical process: a) to exaggerate in this disconnection from the old existential foundations, denying them and torpedoing them in an almost masochistic manner; or, it is known that the one who affirms his identity with dignity and sobriety is well honored; b) to impose ourselves with value standards that do not suit us, only to please others, to reach a state of cultural suspension, a relativism or cultural duplication (breaking with our cultural traditions, but not being able to grab others). It is known that this kind of cultural schizophrenia causes phenomena of intra-psychic or collective dissolution.

The value closing-opening ratio, which

must characterize the individual or the societies, cannot be cut abstractly, without taking into account people, times, contexts.

There are situations when fixations around unique values ​​are desirable and bring real benefits to individuals or communities instead of adopting strategies of decentering and unlimited openness to other values. Such a perspective of action accompanies the strategies of solidarity and coagulation of group energies when the contexts require them. You de-center someone after he has been centered first.

In general, identity strategies, proposed through school curricula and adjacent contents, precede and condition strategies of openness to others [see Cucos, 2000, pp. 152-154]. You can’t do intercultural education with people who weren’t culturally “fixed” at first. It is risky to do interfaith education, from the beginning to children who have not been included in their own confessional references. At some point, depending on the cultural maturity of the individual, the two processes will take place simultaneously. The construction of cultural identity, individual or collective, requires great flexibility and mobility. There are many oscillations between, on the one hand, closing and folding on the Self, autarkic accumulations and storage and, on the other hand, opening, spiritual overflow, groping of another and fulfillment through others. The two states are alternating, contradictory, but possible and desirable in the formation of personality.

We must note that not only the openness to otherness must be valued, but also the selfclosure, the coagulation of cultural integrity is a pole with the same force of interest.

Spiritual centering and de-centering, assimilation of one’s own value references, as well as accommodation with others are correlative, contradictory processes, which increase the cultural comprehension of the being. We need to move from a static

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vision of opening or closing to a dynamic, dialectical, pulsating perspective of the cultural closing-opening relationship. What is important is not the opening itself, or the closure taken in isolation, but the dynamic balance between them, as well as the adequacy of this relationship to given circumstances. Any spiritual closure understood as a formation for the perimeter of a culture must contain in it, at all times, the permeability of opening to external impulses. However, it is obligatory, through this strategy, to permanently maintain the existential coherence at the individual or collective level, not overdoing the intercultural slips. We are therefore dealing with a cyclical journey, with successive, catalytic, and enriching spiritual closings and openings.

We are characterized as a unique constellation of biographical facts [Malewska - Peyre, 1987]. This process leads to the customization and personalization of cultural facts. Our social identity is structured by belonging to a group and is very important in the formation of personal identity. New experiences, changing representations, adherence to new values ​​, and connection to a given space and time call into question the stability and coherence of the identity we have. The use of notions of identity fluctuation and identity strategies accentuates precisely this change in our deep structures. Migratory phenomena are par excellence phenomena that lead to psychological and social changes, individual and collective. Some psycho-sociologists point out several dangers of exaggerated openness and cultural de-centering strategies. Here are some perverse effects of pedagogy centered on the cultural difference [Tajfel 1978]: 1. the fact of inducing to the subject a dichotomous representation on the social environment (formed by a group of belonging and the one outside) has as effect

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the leading to discriminatory behaviors in favor of the self and of one’s own group (intra-group favoritism); 2. the evaluative deviation regarding one’s own group has as an essential function contributing to the construction and maintenance of a positive social identity; the subject will strengthen much more his ties with the group; 3. the distance from another group (the outside group) obviously increases by assigning some negatively evaluated properties; 4. in a situation of inter-group relationship not only the relations between the subject and the outside group are questioned, but also the connections within one’s own group; 5. the images that are made about oneself and about others are not limited to a function of ensuring a sufficient social differentiation between one’s own group and exteriority; they equally translate the type of relationships maintained (cooperation, competition, confrontation, etc.) and contribute to the regulation of the modalities of exchange and contacts to be carried out.

Of course, the personality is organized around a relatively stable axiological core, which instead polarizes, along the way, additional values, brought by the environment. Personal identity is somewhat contradictory: it involves categorical entities, intolerant of change, based on fidelity to their own values, as well as attributive entities, modifiable and open to the value incentives of the environment.

After all, if we remain stiff, irrevocably fixed in definite niche values, we have no chance to sniff, greet or generate the new.

The closeness to another cannot be total, nor is it good to be so. In fact, each, as an individual or group entity, possesses an unmistakable and unfathomable value fund.

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The relationship with another - the stranger has a double dimension: that of stereotyping and prejudice as a result of the process of categorization and attribution, and that of maintaining a cultural distance, of realizing the awareness of the difference of codes, value systems, habits [see Hofstede, 1996].

In connection with this necessary distance, the illusion of abolition must not be created, instead, that of temperance and domination within acceptable limits should. We must not have the ambition of transparency, of total “disclosure” of cultural otherness.

Interpersonal reporting highlights the play between knowledge and ignorance, between clarity and blurring, between transparency and mystery.

IV.

Levels and strategies of assuming ‘the different’ in education

The topic like inter- (cultural, educational, spiritual), so much claimed in recent decades, is not yet “stabilized” from an epistemological, ideational, practical point of view. If initially it was immediately and widely embraced and adopted, today, after multiple slips in socio-community plan (one being illustrated by the terrible attacks, in which the cultural-spiritual component would have been one of the driving factors), the discourse on multi- and interculturality has become more moderate, has become thinner, lacking, of course, extreme attitudes of walling, condemnation, elimination on ideological or political criteria. A criticalconstructive perspective can revitalize this theoretical journey, especially since the one who employs education has reverberations more obviously, immediately but also in the long run. Like any ideational recursion, an interculturalist discourse has become ideological, becoming, unfortunately, a political or strategic tool that has lost or diminished its connection with the humanistic and scientific substratum of this generous position.

In the following, we will review both a series of advantages or opportunities of applying the interculturalist principle, but also a series of disadvantages, risks, challenges that such an approach implies.

A. Advantages or opportunities: - Prevention/mitigation of divergences or interpersonal and intergroup conflicts based on criteria of ethnicity, language, religion, etc .; - Creating an atmosphere of cohabitation and positive relationships in the context of cultural dynamics and multiplicity; - Enriching everyone by knowing different cultural contents; - Valuing the identity frameworks of all actors in the educational space, regardless of their membership; - Creating an effective climate of communication and cooperation for those who meet in the training space; - Forging and preparing for necessary solidarity and good coexistence at the societal level.

B. Risks and slippage: - Inconsistent, superficial, exotic, folklorizing reporting in relation to cultural otherness (superficial, banal reporting, without reaching the true cultural background of otherness); - Inferiorization and symbolic disregard through ignorance or sequential, truncated, even insidious valorizations of the culture of belonging of the newcomers; - Generating an equalizing and uniformizing ideology regarding cultures, without recognizing or highlighting the existence of particularities, differences, even contradictions; blurring differences for fear of affecting someone (of course, cultures are different from each other, not

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superior to each other); - Activation (often tacitly) of some strategies for the forced integration of the one who’s different in the mainstream culture for convenience, professional “obligation”, or community interest.

C. Challenges and obstacles: - At community-societal level, through more or less explicit oppositions (through the collective mentality, the cultural ethos, which has a normal, justified inertia); - At the level of public policies, which is a difficult, unlikely, sometimes voluntary, amateur approach (through the normativelegislative framework, methodologies, related procedures); - At the curricular level (by proposing new programs or manuals, etc. with unevenness, curricular particularizations, including on the cultural line); - At institutional level (through the way institutional management is generated and applied, different from one school to another); - At the strategic-methodical level (through alternations and multiple contextualizations of teaching methods that satisfy the intellectual-attitudinal-value pluralism of the actors involved); - At a subjective-personal level (through restraints or oppositions to the philosophy of inclusion or to the interculturalization on behalf of students, parents, teachers).

perceived, valued, or shared accordingly.

Also, the school is a perimeter of meetings, of “negotiating” values, of their embodiment in knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, behaviors.

Bringing together people involves a priori compatibility of axiological coordinates that different individuals or groups carry (curricular, relational, and strategic).

Intercultural competence is not autarchic, self-sufficient conduct, claimed only theoretically. It “performs” through exercise and experimentation, through situationalization, through a minimal relation to cultural elements that belong to other bearers, to different cultural spaces, to other individual experiences. In fact, only concerning other perceptions, we can realize the specificity of a cultural construct, its significance, contour and axiological pregnancy. And the cultural identity we have will be highlighted precisely through the “game” of confluences, interdependencies, of mutual mirrors.

Bibliography [1]

[2]

[3]

Conclusions We consider that the harsh interrogations of the management of multiple affiliations from a cultural point of view retain their validity and necessity. This is because in the school space, objectively, bearers with different cultural profiles will be met who will bring along ‘luggage’ that must be

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[4]

[5]

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Algozzine, Bob, and Kelly M. Anderson, „Tips for teaching: Differentiating instruction to include all students.” Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth 51, no. 3 (2007).

Cucoș, Constantin. Educația. Dimensiuni culturale și interculturale [Eng., Education.

Cultural and intercultural dimensions]. Iași: Editura Polirom, 2000.

Dasen, P.; Perregaux, C.; Rey, M..

Educaţia interculturală. Experiențe, politici, strategii [Eng., Intercultural education.

Experiences, policies, strategies]. Iaşi: Ed. Polirom, 1999.

Hofstede, Geert. Managementul structurilor multiculturale [Eng., Management of multicultural structures]. Bucharest: Editura Economică, 1996.

Malewska - Peyre, H.. La notion d’identité et les strtegies identitaires, în: Lesamis de Sèvres, mars 1987.

[6]

[7]

[8] [9]

[10]

[11]

Mara, Daniel. Dimensiunile interculturale ale educației [Eng.,The intercultural dimensions of education]. Sibiu: Casa Editorială Tribuna, 2008.

Nedelcu, Anca. Fundamentele educației interculturale.

Diversitate, minorități, echitate [Eng., Fundamentals of intercultural education. Diversity, minorities, equity]. Iaşi: Ed. Polirom, 2008.

Przesmycki, Halina.

La pédagogie différenciée. Paris: Hachette Éducation, 2000.

Segall, M.H., Dasen, P.R., Berry, J.W. & Poortinga, Y.H.. Human behavior in global perspective: An introduction to cross-cultural psychology. New York: Pergamon, 1990.

Tajfel, H. „Social categorization, social identity and social comparizon.” In Differentiation between social groups: studies in social psychology of intergroup relations.

London: Academic Press, 1978.

Wiggins G. Foreward. In R. A. Villa, J. S. Thousand, W. Stainback, & S. Stainback (Eds.), Restructuring for caring and effective education: An administrative guide to creating heterogeneous schools (pp. xv–xvi).

Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes, 1992.

(two editions, 1999, 2009), Education.

Experiences, reflections, solutions (2013), Aesthetic Education (2014), Education.

Re-foundations, dynamics, prefigurations (2017). He is the author of over 250 studies in collective volumes or specialized journals and is part of numerous boards of magazines, conferences, professional associations within Romania or abroad.

Biography Constantin Cucoș is a university professor in the Department for Teacher Training, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi, specialized in pedagogy of culture, philosophy of education, religious education, aesthetic education, teacher training strategies. He has relevant works, published, especially, at Polirom Publishing House: Pedagogy (three editions: 1996, 2002, 2014), Education. Cultural and intercultural dimensions (2000), Time and temporality in education. Elements for a management of school time (2002), Computerization in education. Aspects of training virtualization (2006), Evaluation theory and methodology (2008), Education. Love, edification, perfection (2008), Religious education.

Theoretical and methodical landmarks

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Or, the Role of Education in shaping Exclusivism Constantin Cucos, Ph.D.

Cosmin-Tudor CIOCAN, Ph.D.

Fr. Lecturer at the Faculty of Theology, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

Maria CIOCAN, PhD

Department for the continuous development of human resources; “Mircea cel Batran” Naval Academy; Constanta. Romania article info Article history: Received 09 September 2021 Received in revised form 23 October Accepted 28 October 2021 Available online 30 December 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

Keywords: differentness; bias; stereotype; educational system; ontogenetic developmental stages; religiosity; inclusivism; diversity; behavior; personality;

abstract

The way in which the “traditional” system of education ends up deflecting people’s attention from the things that make us, human beings, a whole, a species, and a unity, is constantly and ascendingly challenged and thought against. Currently, we need to find out what features of the former educational system, especially those institutionalized, maintained by the school and society, are highlighted here to be eliminated and what is their authentic value in the system. In the present approach, we will refer, as an example, to religious education. These characteristics that we intend to discuss here do not target a “radical” pedagogy but question the educational system in relation to the inclusion-exclusion binomial. The stereotype, bias, and pretentious choices strained by exclusivism through education actually dehumanize us and stress on features that do not honor us. Is it possible to ever lose them along with all their harmful social consequences? © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Constantin Cucoș, Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, Maria Ciocan. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Cucoș, Constantin and Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, Maria Ciocan. ”Cultural Education towards Exclusivism. Or, the Role of Education in shaping Exclusivism.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (December 2021): pp. 94-109. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

I.

Introduction on Education

‘Traditional’

The hypothesis of this approach states that we will never “cure” this problem of exclusivism - a feature that seems to become a problem ‘lately’ for a variety of reasons and despite all the attempts and concerted struggles of a new pedagogy to eliminate

and replace it with all-inclusiveness.

One of the motivations of exclusivism derives from our daily judgment because it seems that we each give our opinion on how education should be done, at an individual or social level. We are inoculated from the first days of school what and how to choose, what are the values of guidance, how to

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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Cultural Education towards Exclusivism.

Professor at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iasi Romania

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decide. Having this constant secondary objective in every human education system is but normal and natural for humans to be judgemental, to criticize, ultimately to be picky. From birth to death, all ontogenetic stages of development are trained to have thinking forced to decide. We are put to test at all times. Even for small things, such as color, size, fabric, or shape; a child has to make his mind about so many things. He has to choose either between different kinds of chocolate, toys, night stories, or, if we are to go deeper into the inner life of the child, between children invited to a party, or even between parents (on the background of divorce). Under no circumstances can this type of education - brought into the life of every child, black or white, rich or poor, from a religious or irreligious background, of all cultures - would not mark (for life) anyone in a way that he/she will always be critical of (more or less) at all times. **More or less - which means that not all people are anal(ytical) (as personality), scrupulous, carefully choosing everything only after a meticulous judgment. Some are like that, and they are always very pretentious, others choose only for critical things which come in pairs of opposite issues.

Even the most “laissez-faire” personalities choose here and there, at least for their own pleasure, perhaps even by chance, from the bunch of opportunities.

II.

Stages in which Education builds Grounds of Thinking A. Stereotype and Bias in Education

One feature of the former system of education that is pointed out to be removed as outdated and decrepit is a stereotype.

The history of relating to others through stereotypes [mostly on gender and skin color] is mostly known for it has led to inequalities between men and women,

races, social classes, etc. – a social bias that currently all the educational systems desire to remove from people’s thinking.

But to achieve this target pedagogy should reconsider one of its cornerstone features.

The ‘traditional’ system of education was built on the idea that our learners need to recognize systems that both positively and negatively impact people, animals, and the planet we share so that they may make decisions that align with their personal values. For that matter, their education should be built upon recurrent elements, images, ideas, conceptions, actions, etc.

All these become into a recognizable environment, otherwise, we will be walking on uncharted territories daily, 24/7, and that is not how human psychic operates.

It must analyze information, understands what it represents, and recognize it further on to avoid or use it while building the system of thinking. Without recurrences, memory, reminders, updates, etc., the mind cannot build it; it would be always in the first stage, on analyzing the environment, without connections, without synthesis and interpretation, thus without escalating stairs of knowledge/personality…

B. Ontogenetic developmental requiring exclusiveness

stages

Inclusive or exclusive attitudes and behaviors accompany the development of the human being from childhood to old age. The degree of closure or openness, in relation to the way otherness is thought or believed, evolves from one ontogenetic stage to another, from one cultural context to another, depending on the needs of adaptation or integration into the sociocommunity reality, of statutory and positional prescriptions, of personal, group, or societal needs and interests. Moreover, all components of psychic functions (thinking, language, affectivity, etc.), for

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good practice and use, are subject to this dynamic of permanent closure and opening, by assimilation (interpretation of new experiences in terms of existing patterns), but also by accommodation (modifying existing schemes to suit new experiences), if we resort to the well-known explanatory schemes of Jean Piaget (1976) [1].

Relevant for our discussion is the formation of social competence, by reference to the development of moral consciousness of personality, a process that was described

by L. Kohlberg (1971) [2]. In several positions, this author listed three stages consisting of six stages. The first stage - pre-moral (all pre-schoolers, and 7-year-olds - most, about 70%) is manifested by the fact that the child follows the rules, norms developed by the adult, which are not internalized in the child, and behaves “well” for not to be punished (stage I). Then, the child orients himself to the reward he expects from the adult, being praised for certain actions (stage II). This level is also maintained in 30% of children aged 10 years and 10% of children aged 13-16.

The second stage - conventional morality - is in which the source for moral prescriptions remains external, and is characterized by the fact that the child orients his behavior, based on the need for acceptance, support for relationships with people important to him. In the third stage, the child guides his behavior based on the justification of the expectations and agreement of others, and in the fourth stage, he orients himself towards people who occupy a high social status. Therefore, his behavior is unstable and depends on external influences. This stage is characteristic for children around 13 years old. In the third stage - autonomous morality - moral principles and norms become personal property and manifest in 10% of preadolescents. Behaviors occur not through outside influences, but due to internal premises or causes: first, there is a need for good social status (stage V), then

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the respect for human ethical principles (stage VI).

All this explanatory scaffolding presupposes a permanent dialectic between closure and opening, between exclusion and inclusion, between delimitation and indeterminacy. One pole only makes sense in correlation - not necessarily in contradiction - with the other. There is no openness if, first, the foundations of a closed, determined, self-limited entity have not been laid.

Openness is possible when you sit in your womb. The widening towards the other, the understanding, and the respect of the otherness are conditioned by the research and valorization of the Self, by a primordial self-identification of the land, which can be the basis of the probing and inclusion of the other.

In fact, from an educational point of view, the young child must have stability anchors built, to be fixed in given, nonnegotiable norms, which provide him with confidence and security.[32] As the area of experiences, the receptive and cognitive structures, etc. develop, opportunities will be created for the opening, controlled “destabilization” of the cognitive structures in order to receive and integrate new types of experiences, situations, values. The didactic process, through the curriculum and teaching strategies, must follow this path of ascending development, in a spiral, of the psychological basis of the personality.

The child needs an evident reference system, an attachment to something safe, which will encourage him to explore further. Attachment behavior determines a suitable/compliant reaction, concerning the expectations of some reference persons (mother, father, teacher), but it is permissive and can open the way for further exploration. The first pillars of knowledge and valorization are the people around, from the basic community (family, small community). Such close entities, through

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the given messages or reinforcements, are, of course, based on an exclusion of other rules or models, to restrict the child’s field of understanding and action to a “closed” system. If the reference person does not react satisfactorily on this “exclusive” line, does so too late, inconsistently and distrustfully, then an insecure, problematic attachment will develop, which will call into question the child’s intra-mental stability (see also the issue attachment in the psychotherapeutic relationship [3]).

Education is also a hypostasis or form of enculturation, respectively a process by which a cultural group incorporates in descendants specific value elements to optimally integrate into community life.

And this presupposes adherence to a given, determined, closed value system. This action is not always conscious and does not presuppose only a formal framework for the transmission of the cultural dowry.

In this process, we take over and apply certain basic inferences, signify things, make hierarchies, issue value judgments, all taken from the close context, most implicit, diffuse, regarding the meaning of interactions with the environment, natural or social. Through this act we give meaning to our actions, we make sense of reality and ourselves, we build projects, destinies [4].

We refer, of course, to real, close contexts, but we also scrutinize and orient ourselves towards what awaits us to (cognitively, affectively) conquer in the future. The way we judge things here and now (for example, in childhood) will also determine how to target things anywhere and anytime (for example, at older ages).

III.

Social Education contribute to an Exclusive Thinking

A. Social stereotypes and judgments of individuals Social stereotypes may be defined as beliefs that various traits or acts are characteristic of particular social groups.

As such, stereotypic beliefs represent subjective estimates of the frequencies of attributes within social groups, and so should be expected to “behave like” base-rate information within the context of judgments of individuals: specifically, individuating target case information should induce subjects to disregard their own stereotypic beliefs.[5] Stereotypes are abundant in everyday life and their influence on cognitive and motor performance is well documented.

Of course, there is an unpleasant pun with the stereotype because while it builds strong convictions [a firmly held belief or opinion] it also creates convictions [a pronunciation of guilt, the sentence of a criminal offense], prejudice, discrimination, on grounds of value options or attachments. But humans are decisively and undoubtedly principled, and even now, while trying to convince of the malevolence of the traditional education in building social biases, still this judgment is nonetheless a principled conviction to be followed onward.

Such a receptive, attitudinal and axiological positioning will lead to stereotyping, respectively to that process of issuing generalizing labels that start from particular, accidental beliefs and values. It is difficult for us to understand and master diversity, multiplicity, the particular, and, therefore, we resort to categorization through simplification and reduction. Stereotypes are rigid schemes of understanding others, being refractory to nuances. These labels are always made

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DIALOGO - November 2021

www.dialogo-conf.com/dialogo-journal/

Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

DIALOGO

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

about others, like those of other ethnicities or cultures. Prejudices or a priori judgments are pre-valorizations of some individuals without having the respite to check if the issued judgments agree with reality.

Premature attributions lead to pernicious hierarchies of individuals and groups and constitute discriminatory behavior in themselves. Stereotyping, in general, refers to mental images that organize and simplify the world into categories based on common properties. When used in connection with race or ethnic relations, stereotypes refer to a consensus regarding the generalized attributes of others (both physical and cultural). Although stereotypes are a basic cognitive strategy, used to reduce diversity to an easier amount to process, they interfere with our perceptions and understanding of the world when applied to individuals or groups. Stereotypes often lead to discrimination and racist behavior.

On the other hand, it is but ‘natural’ to think of others in terms of your group memberships; this is known as social categorization – the natural cognitive process by which we place individuals into social groups. Social categorization occurs when we think of someone as a man (versus a woman), an old person (versus a young person), a Black person (versus an Asian or White person), and so on [6]. Just as we categorize objects into different types, so do we categorize people according to their social group memberships. Once we do so, we begin to respond to those people more as members of a social group than as individuals. [7] On this point, we understand that expressing opinions regarding anything but according to a specific vision (learned/ embraced from a group, either family, school, minority, religion/confession, etc.) is an act of membership, of affiliation - a strong feature of personality that shapes it with the sense of belonging, of identity and stability,

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against anxiety, disorder, alienation. This is a distinction supported by extensive evidence in cognitive psychology, linguistics, and philosophy. More than that, clinical studies are proving that gender-related stereotypes affect pain perception as potential mediators partly accounting for sex effects on pain. An influence of stereotypes on pain seems indeed likely as pain measures have proven especially susceptible to expectancy effects such as placebo effects. [8] Thus, it is a positive aspect it worth be taken into consideration when its removal comes into discussion.

Of course, without any doubt, their effects on the stigmatized groups can be detrimental and the effects span such diverse fields as athletics or skilled performance, as well as various cognitive abilities, such as mathematics or verbal skills. It is proven that illness, diseases, pain et al. and their perception and processing are significantly influenced by expectations, caused by stereotypes.

In conclusion, even if the subsequent judgment triggered by any stereotype is directed towards/against individuals [persons, objects, acts] to be chosen over others based on characteristics, attributes, and behaviors of members of a certain group, the stereotypes are a-priori expectations that have little to do with the individual, but rather with the specific role an individual is expected to play.[9] IV. Modeling the Effects of Personality Factors within Exclusiveness In conclusion to the above, education sets the personality in motion for the actions of a lifetime, but the way we pursue education can create a generation’s response towards problems or solutions. “The continuing relevance of education as an emancipatory and transformative project is affirmed, while certain features of modernism inscribed into

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current educational practices are questioned (for instance, exclusivity, subjectivism, and absolutism). Changes in how knowledge is viewed are discussed concerning assessment, learning, research, and the construction of the ‘self’. A reorientation of learning and teaching is suggested around a process-based pedagogy that places particular emphasis on indeterminacy, pluralism, re-visibility, and dialogue.”[10] It is obvious that education is the most important tool in shaping the personality of the next generation. Education transmits cultural values, positive or negative, imprints social stereotypes, beliefs, goals, arguments, but also the defects of previous generations - not only skills and training. It is difficult to eliminate the negative aspects, which multiply exponentially when the educational system is politicized, experiments are made on it, or other socio-cultural influences intervene (religious views, ethnic groups, social differences, economic needs, lack of infrastructure, diverse crises such as the current pandemic of Covid-19, etc.). The influence of this critical tool is maximized due to the lack of the freedom of choice of those educated in a large range of options.

From options over curricula, placement in high-valued schools/classes/teachers, to future choices and work areas and all those in between are considerably distributed rather unequally: children of the bestpositioned social groups of the majority obtain preferred better alternatives.[11] For this reason, a pluralization of formative factors regarding education is desirable. There is a need for training and accountability, in the formative act, not only of the school but also of other forums of the community. Training is not limited to the involvement of the school alone. The paideic act represents the transmission belt of the cultural legacy, but also a safe way of its extension in time and space.

It is the most important tool for handing

over the baton, for moving people and the community forward. The community, for example, has a great advantage: it filters and decants in time what does it well or not, it validates what is useful and discourages or annihilates what does not suit it. Through different types of establishments, brought by the church, school, or other ways of group aggregation, internal mechanisms of sanitation and repair appear when things seem to go crazy. Such forums do not act competitively, the efficiency of training is brought by resonance, cooperation, occasional replacement of an instance when it enters a crisis. It’s like a system with communicating vessels: when political life or school goes through a crisis, it’s good for the other forums to come into operation, making up for possible shortcomings or derailments. The health of education and the whole world - is also given by the way each party does its duty or helps, if necessary, on this substitutive, integrative dimension.

Of course, cultural beliefs involve both positive, valid, and justified aspects in certain spaces, but also problematic, even critical when transcending the emergency space, especially when beliefs as such lead to actions of stereotypization, inferiority, or exclusion.

The circle is like that: Cultural beliefs have a significant influence on stereotypes; stereotypes have a significant influence on executive selection outcome; selectional outcomes influence the content of education, which in turn, is developed under the cultural beliefs.[12] Therefore developing under an education leaning towards a restrictive, clannish, or exclusive manner will always develop all these chain links likewise. For example, if “any connection between poverty, education, and terrorism is implied, could be potentially dangerous.”[13]

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Session 3. Social Sciences, Culture, and Lifestyle Choices

DIALOGO - November 2021

www.dialogo-conf.com/dialogo-journal/

Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

DIALOGO

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

A. Education, religious exclusiveness, and personality development The case with religious exclusivism lies in its power of influence over the personality’s development through the educational system. Religious exclusivism, propagated through education, occurs when the plea for a particular transcendent entity, religious behavior, or ritual is made based on disavowal, minimization, denial of another religious entity, other beliefs, without highlighting the intrinsic value of the particular, reference religious system.

In what lies its leverage powers? Here the value is decisive. The unity of value, not the imperialism of power creates exclusive monotheism. The unity of value is expressed in the idea of justice. With that, the more unjust is treated a person, a group, or a nation, the more emphasis will be placed on the idea of justice, leading to a more exclusive thinking/education. The exclusive, jealous God is a God of history; this exclusive God is concrete, his name is either Jahweh, Allah, or Christ. This is the case in exclusive monotheism, the God of the elected nation, clinging to his promises of ‘correcting’ injustice for ‘his nation’ by empowering it over its enemies. These tensions lead to the elimination of the concrete elements and cultural values against otherness, with negative purposes of destruction, fighting, concurring. While the elimination of these tensions arises the idea of the mediator (messiah). The mediator has a function, is subordinated, is half man, half God; the mystery-God is entirely mythological, without relation to history, therefore without exclusiveness.[14] V.

The Role Religious Education has on shaping Exclusivism

At all times, all religious traditions have been called to create great global currents of thought and education. Despite the core

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of most religions, which is dedicated to the love of neighbor, all of them, considered in relation with others, end up disregarding the same core teaching and producing just the opposite feeling. Different religious traditions urge a reassessment of exclusivity and intolerance for most concurrent views.

It is not something a religious proponent would proudly state or assert about, but it’s a fact and facts have spoken along with the whole human history either we like it or not. Defining exclusivism we recognize that it rests on “the assumption that there is a single absolute truth and a single best way to approach it” (Pargament, 2007, p. 188). Thus it is intimately followed by intolerance, rejection, forms of insensitivity or devaluation (reflecting a lack of respect), and social biases. Theoretically, religion(s) is summoned to fight against all these, but beyond that, rather than fostering understanding, religious/spiritual blindness disrespects the unique spiritual and/or religious commitments and identity of others [15]. For that specific outcome, religion is but a crucial tool in reconsidering its priorities and pattern of thinking [outta the box]. Only itself alone should reemit precepts pointing towards inclusivism, tolerance, acceptance, and love, as it is its primary purpose.

Of course, the last decades have shown great interest in promoting dialogue between cultures and religions, including on religious freedom.

On the other hand, a distinction must be made between the concrete dialogue between religions or denominations (which involves disputes, failures, possibly diversions) and how these realities are reflected at the level of education structures.

It is not correct from a didactic and deontological point of view that all disputes (perhaps objective, real) be transferred to the level of education, of the process of religious education, which must remain

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beyond the introduction of the subject in the religion of affiliation, as well as an occasion for honest, objective knowledge of different religious beliefs or deeds.

In this context, the role of religious education is important because it can play a significant role in cultivating empathy, tolerance, understanding, which leads to the promotion of religious freedom in individuals and the community body.

Through education, communities can learn about the benefits of respecting diversity and at the same time ensure that religious rights do not threaten the rights of others [16]. Religious education also has a role in fostering interreligious tolerance and understanding [17].

A. Why do we assert religious teaching leads to exclusivism?

While emerging any religious thinking focuses on two aims. “The two aims, most succinctly stated, are: (1) to teach people to practice a religious way of life and (2) to teach people to understand religion. The first aim has a singular object: the practice of one, concrete set of activities that exclude other ways of acting. The second aim has a plural object, even if ‘religion’ is written in the singular. The modern use of the term ‘religion’ would not exist except for the recognition of plurality. This second aim of understanding religion begins from one’s own religion but involves comparisons to other religions.”[18] Not until recently – last decade perhaps more actively and broadly embraced – any religious pedagogy involved no other religion/religious awareness of another one. And even when it made a comparison to otherness the presentation was always against them all, regardless of the positive aspects of them; but it was never supposed that one might have certain positive aspects to be speaking of. Thus, left in isolation, hermit, and raised into a virtual

recluse, each religious community gives the most of its pure spirituality and religious teachings.

It is at the intersection of religions and in contexts of increasing religious diversity that exclusivism and opposite feelings grow within the same purity from the instinct of self-conservation. Some say it is the conception of god(s) that strongly assert upon uniqueness within each religion that gives this exclusivistic feeling, others that the claim to be revealed directly by the divinity[19] (which implies the impossibility of different competitive teachings), the label of being elected[20]for a particular job and position within humanity, while the broaden declaration has regard to the concept of salvation[21] and through whom is it brought to humans (brought about by the atoning work of a specific Savior) that gives this feeling. The specific feature that leads to exclusivism of the latter conception is “that the adherents of a particular faith, or group of faiths, will attain salvation while groups that do not share this faith will not attain the blessings associated with such a state”[22].

Taken to the extreme explanation this statement teaches that only the members of one religion or sect will reach Heaven, while others will be doomed to eternal damnation.

Within this view it is hard to extract ‘love’ and still promote inclusivism, embracing love for all. Ultimately, through this shell teaching, the theologians of every religious cult that promotes this conception do nothing but become a substitute for divinity and label everyone else as doomed. By creating this pseudo ‘divine decision’ they withdraw from the role of judge of the world and leave to God the ‘right’ to condemn all heterodox people – “we don’t say that; God is”.

We can ask, of course, if the key to establishing a respectful and fertile dialogue could not be ensured at the level of credible forums located outside the religious regiments, strictly practicing (for

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Session 3. Social Sciences, Culture, and Lifestyle Choices

DIALOGO - November 2021

www.dialogo-conf.com/dialogo-journal/

Multidisciplinary Open Access JOURNAL

DIALOGO

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

example, at the level of the laity, academic, scientific forums) which could create ways of rapprochement and relationship through integration, valorization of specificities or differences, complementarity or value integrity.

On another hand, the premise that makes all this differentness between various religious traditions and teaching is the fundamental idea of dualism, co-existence of Good and Evil, a reciprocal exclusion that is not meant to be leveled, because, theologically speaking, it would lead to confusion even bigger than the embrace of religious pluralism. What would be then the criteria for moral/immoral acts, here and there, now and eternal life, etc.? The very existence of religion would be diminished and left to personal choice without consequences. Therefore, if the idea of dualism is imperative, indispensable then it is rather utopic to consider all its degenerative theological concepts can become optional [one revelation, one salvation, one Saviour, election, etc]? But even so, can we ultimately and unequivocally call for a different type of dualism regarding religious views – instead of considering one [religion] as true and all others wrong [evil], to leave all religions inside the concept of good, while the evil is labeled on non-religious alone? However, modernity is not leaving us this choice either for ‘embracing’ irreligiosity or religious indifference should be also left as a true, genuine, and valid option, thus inside the good area. In this case, we go around and get back to the leveling of God and Evil, where nothing is wrong anymore. As Meg Greenfield astonished emphasized back in 1986 [23], the trap of moral judgment on calling something ‘wrong’ while other ‘good’ is obvious: if calling off ‘the concept of wrong’ we have nothing to label such the ‘old antisocial behaviors’ [sin, crime, drugs, and pornography, terror and brutality, etc]; but if we follow the fundamental

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religious behavior who are going around pronouncing sinners, where should we stop, by whose criteria and under which [genuine] considerations? Thus, you see, there is no escape from this dilemma of the socio-theological utopia of a non-exclusivist education! It is inescapable, we rather ignore this question and don’t think of it while being religious [but this is socially impossible], or get busy and ask it and afterward let us carry the wave wherever it takes us [in the theological trap]. It is futile!

tabu’, thus being intangible, out of scientific touch, observation, and systematic rational explanation. For some reasons that can be easily understood and accepted [while many others aren’t so] religion should have been left aside from scientific experimental inquiry – since it has more to do with miracles and ineffable supernatural than with experimental reasonable research.

A. What do religions fight over then?

Religions are belief systems that relate humanity to spirituality, morality, and eminently to divine precepts. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions, and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to explain the origin of life or the universe. From ancient times religion was assimilated with ‘the law’ as in ‘the system of norms for almost everything’ regulating life and living in all aspects, based on a divine revelation. No religion devoted its theological exposition eminently to dedicated theological matters [e.g., the divine being, the salvation of souls, the existence of angels, services, and rituals related to the crucial moments of life, etc.]. In fact, all religions emerged from the theological core and began to regulate life in general, with aspects that concern religion less or not at all. In this way, she was the one who issued laws for the civil and criminal life of the society [ex. the rule of inheritance in the Bible - Numbers 27; a large number of governmental systems; military order, and many other civil issues, perjury, murder, kidnapping, etc]. If we need to exemplify the fact, often hilarious, when theologians tried to declare scientific truths, even against scientific discoveries or thinking in various fields of research, only based on ‘omniscient divine revelation’.

Considering the theist religions, their belief in God, its worship, and service to the

Question: do religions fight, or do the societies/factors of political power which assume religion, fight among themselves?

Do we not, many times, use our religions or beliefs to further antagonize what the political powers want to antagonize or oppose, to instrumentalize religions for purposes that are not characteristic of them?

“The carnage inflicted upon the world in the name of religion has precious little to do with genuine religion. People fight over doctrine and dogma: we don’t see people being murdered over attaining divine union!

A “religious war” is really large-scale egotism gone berserk. As Swami Prabhavananda, the founder of the Vedanta Society of Southern California would smilingly say, ‘If you put Jesus, Buddha, and Muhammad in the same room together, they will embrace each other. If you put their followers together, they may kill each other!’ ”[24] Everyone agrees more and more that religion, along with any other thinking vein, is determined and shaped by a particular culture, special own experience of the world while living at a particular point in history. With these coordinates there came different religious thinking with no exception whatsoever; it is called ‘religion - culture embodiment’ [mutual influence]. The hitherto religious realm was very much linked with ‘sacred and

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B. The birth of a system of values: the tabu of any culture

supernatural give to the religious system of values a certain flavor is built around the term of ‘guilty/sin. For this type of religion ‘being guilty/sinning’ is essential for its entire value system, as nothing else would matter.

They build everything around this issue, either positively – motivating their followers on entrusting to God their existence and thus following religious precepts without hesitation – or negatively – by destroying everything that was human-built so that God can intervene with His options. Either way, the ‘sin’ makes all religious values count for the followers within their religious living as well as for everything else.

“Values are internalized cognitive structures that guide choices by evoking a sense of basic principles of right and wrong (e.g., moral values), a sense of priorities (e.g., personal achievement vs group good), and create a willingness to make meaning and see patterns (e.g., trust vs distrust).”[25] Values form a circular motivational continuum that reflects their conflicts and congruence and may be universal. Based on that ground utilitarian feature each culture builds its own system of values because people ought to do what they are taught to do the ‘right,’ ‘moral,’ ‘valued’ thing. To question whatever system – because, since it is not an absolute, mathematical, or physical law, but rather human preferences, anyone can raise questions about it – is to cut the branch beneath our feet. Therefore, most of the time, people obeyed the given system of values, without questioning it, something like a tabu of their culture. With that thought, it is understandable why people, regardless of their individual preferences, share a set of common values and entrust their living to the governing system of values. They always obeyed political laws, economical duties, religious impositions, ethical constraints, social boundaries of mores, etc. despite their personal needs, desires, and preferences. Sometimes –

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Session 3. Social Sciences, Culture, and Lifestyle Choices

DIALOGO - November 2021

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doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.9

on th e D i a l o g u e b e t we e n S ci e n c e a nd T heology

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

but always regarded as heretical either culturally, socially, or religiously – few overtly fight against the system, questioning its ground, its workability, or even its internal consistency, therefore producing resistance, imbalance in society. For that matter alone the society fought back, not because the individual was wrong, nor the personal preference mistaken or un-doable, but because such behavior rises riots that lead to social instability. And the system [of values] cracks! For that reason any system fights back almost instinctually to protect and value the idea of the consistency of a value system, making out of it a sort of ‘meta-value’.

In other words, beyond particular, identity values, there is a need to identify and capitalize cultural universals, those constant values, comprehensible or behavioral structures, identical for all people, regardless of their culture or personal experience.

Universal values can facilitate readings and interpretations of totally different cultures but justified and performing concerning a certain reference system.

One explanation would be that man feels an ontological need to entrust himself to someone else and let himself be guided.

“Natural selection builds child brains with a tendency to believe whatever their parents and tribal elders tell them. Such trusting obedience is valuable for survival ...”

[26]. Dawkins reveals that “an automatic consequence is that the trustee has no way of distinguishing good advice from bad.”

And therefore, looking outside the value system implemented and consequently followed, the followers are ‘indoctrinated’ with essential elements that ‘these are valuable for their survival.’ “Because children have no critical spirit, so they must obediently accept everything their parents tell them (criticism or disobedience have fatal results), they will take over the religious beliefs of their tutors.”[27]

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Therefore, religious systems have always been assimilated with totalitarian ones, in which the right to decide is handed over to officials without the right to appeal.

Related to axiological, perhaps even religious, “totalitarianism”: fidelity, confession, sacrifice (sometimes with one’s own life) must be discussed and reflected judiciously, explicitly, sparingly (I mean, for example, the Christian’s – and perhaps others too).

However, we shouldn’t condemn here as discriminatory the religious system of values alone, since, in fact, it is the same case with any other birth of a system of values.

There is none built on inclusiveness alone for it cannot distinguish otherwise between what should be ‘valued’ and ‘non-value,’ what must be followed against those to be condemned. For the proper functioning of a system, a certain edge must be drawn somewhere, whatever loose it might be, it still should be there. Otherwise, there is no such thing as a single ‘system of values’.

It is the fundamental law of logic though; 3VL or the three-valued logic indicating that for any concept/system three truth values are indicating true, false, and some indeterminate third value. Therefore, there is no such thing as ‘all true’ or ‘all accepted’; of course, there is no such thing as ‘the ultimate truth’ either, according to whom the line that is drawn is exactly where it is supposed to be. However, the determining line is where we put it, culturally speaking.

Community solidarity is enhanced by the way in which the reproduction of the great symbols within the respective cultural space is managed, but also by how the openness to other socio-cultural formations is regulated.

Culture is great not only by itself, by its self-reproductive or self-contemplative mechanisms, but also by the “metabolism” of its growth and transformation, through the way it communicates with other value structures, through the way

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it allows, possibly, openings to external reverberations. People, surprisingly, need a tread lay down to know where it is the path to walk on, even if the road is so much wider and with many variants to walk on. Still, we all need guidance and directions almost all the time; and the cultural system of values provides precisely this needed path.

However, with it, we assume also the denial of all other alternatives that thus become ‘non-pathways’.

For that matter, if choosing of a [certain] path is but natural, likewise there is also the pickiness, the desire of allowing some things to pass in our lives, while to all others we deny entrance exactly based on that system of values we have embraced.

C. Trending towards Religious Diversity, valid or not?

Religious diversity is the fact that there are significant differences in religious belief and practice. There were always and always will be such differences, as small or big, but all the same visible and thus significant.

With the latest times, the reality of religious pluralism led to trending towards religious diversity and thus to inclusivism or, at least, tolerance. This is not desirable for its neutral climate brought between different religious people but is the least we can attain from fundamentalists, those in religious leadership. Religious universalism is still ahead of the reality of our times, where all are blessed by divinity [since they are equally gifted with life] and no religious boundaries or interpretations are called to create differentness between adepts of varied cults. As Rig Veda states, “Truth is one; sages call it by various names.”[28] Is this rather impossible to be embraced by all, especially by traditional ways, those inclined more on fundamentalism and eclecticism? Until recently the obvious response would have been Yes, it is

unfeasible. But trends for religious diversity and mutual acceptance and movements of world religions organizations have attained the impossible, mutual acceptance and reciprocal listening. By that we all can attain one universal truth, any parent would speak differently to his children about the same thing, but nonetheless genuine. Through this thought we shall get rid of all those exclusivist statements, escape the need of being [alone] elected, [alone] revealed, [alone] saved, or [alone] proposers of unique, genuine teaching. “Whatever path people travel is My path,” says the Bhagavad Gita. “No matter where they walk, it leads to Me.” Still, the very idea of ‘the parent speaking differently to particular children’ raises another fundamental premise for exclusivism: a parent speaks differently to his children only concerning their hierarchical ages and stages of maturity in understanding the one and only reality; while they grow they tend to get the same, undifferentiated explanation and leave behind the childish explanations they previously based their thoughts.

Religion unites people around certain values, it solidifies beings, cements group unity, and provides important identity support. It has a special power of spiritual impregnation of all daily practices, of particularization of social gestures and behaviors. It is often found that religions can be used, for better or worse, by the dominant political power, to impose or perpetuate it, to legitimize certain selfreproductive practices. Not rarely, religion is instrumented and used in international relations, to justify political, economic, military hierarchies, supremacies, or determinations.

Religion can outline personal or collective identity, but it can also close it if it casts anathema on other forms of faith.

The fundamentalist, activist movements stress on mutual exclusion, territoriality,

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Session 3. Social Sciences, Culture, and Lifestyle Choices

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and militarism. As politics can be fixed in nationalisms of all kinds, religion can degenerate into confessionalism, into the arrogant professing of the faith, into the derogatory manifestation of other denominations. The “value” of one’s own faith must not appear immediately by despising, criticizing, dismantling others.

Manichaeism has nothing to do with a deeply spiritual approach.

Is exclusivism an aberration, and should it be removed without affecting the essence of religion? Or, on the contrary, is exclusivism essential to any religion, so it cannot be removed from their constitutive characteristics? The answer is beautifully anchored in the reality of religious diversity

by Erickson Millard, “Where there is a contradiction or at least diversity in the definitions or descriptions of an object or activity, there are reasons to believe either that the subject has not been sufficiently studied, discussed, or the issue is too rich and complex to be contained in a single comprehensive statement.”[29] This indicates that no religion has a monopoly on holiness or spiritual insight. There cannot be these two lines mutually exclusive all together true: ‘religion is a gift from God’ but ‘religious plurality is evil or merely human’.

Therefore, it would be a tremendous step forward if the trend of RP will succeed in enlightening fundamentalists to embrace this bigger picture of divine revelation, considering ‘the world of religions’ instead of ‘the world’s religion’. As a Christian, I must emphasize thus our core theology, the belief that ‘one’ is not opposed to [the existence of] many, for [we state that] God is ‘one’ but also ‘plural’. Likewise, we should consider His experiences with humans, even if ‘plural’ still [as] ‘one’.

In the conditions of contacts multiplication, the polymorphic universe of beliefs can facilitate impermissible dogmatic or ritual mixtures to which young people

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under formation will adhere especially by ignorance. To tolerate one who believes otherwise or in something else does not mean to borrow from him, uncritically, gestures that have nothing to do with my religion. It is not good to structure ‘composite’ religions, personal, after the game of chance and closeness relationships.

Religion is not an individual business, but a register of communication, even if it does not mean communion (living in the same values!).

Individual religious references will maintain their specific stability and unity in a multi-denominational environment. The slips and borrowings between the elements of some religions do not constitute a sign of authentic interfaith dialogue. Ecumenical behavior does not mean believing or acting like others, but knowing, respecting, and defending those who have manifold beliefs.

[30,33,36] The perimeter of individual existence indeed transcends the traditional limits of the original unique ambiance, of initial formation or socialization. The encounter and dialogue of cultures, despite the distances that separate them in time and space, are inevitable and, in many cases, become problematic and complex. Thus, many dysfunctions can be found, such as failure to adapt to each other, identity ambiguities, refusal, or poor perception of otherness. This situation is also valid for the relations that are established between several cults or religious denominations that are manifested simultaneously in the same community.[31] The task of religious education is twofold: first, to better install the believer in his faith - as in our case Christianity - and then, to make the believer recognize another who has another faith, so as he doesn’t slip into exclusivism, into totalitarianism detrimental even to the true believer.

Contemporary religious multi-

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referentiality, which must keep at a distance or exclude… exclusivism, is a potential wealth, under the condition of not abolishing the identity of each religion, through forced subordination.[34] Even the consciousness of the confessional identity is fortified by the transgression and knowledge of the value landmarks of one’s own religion. Static cantonment within one’s own religion, narrow and static inclusiveness, without reference to other ways of living religiosity, can lead to poor reception and experience of that religion. We need to know something about others so that we can realize what our uniqueness, particularity, and value are.

Conclusion The way of educating the child has as a basic component the exclusivism assimilated by at least two educational principles. First, he is taught that he must make selections, in a given, delimited space, in everything that surrounds him. Second, he is offered with an infinity of levers with which to selfeducate, based on a responsible autonomy, thus creating his system of values, in order to make selections and decisions.

It is therefore impossible to ignore the exclusiveness within the foundation of education since it is not only objective but also absolutely necessary. A pedagogy without choices and the levers of the child’s future choice-making cannot be able to form a strong or at least a ‘normal’ personality.

Instead, it will lay the foundations of a cowardly, impotent personality, unable to make decisions or assume them; it will always run away from responsibilities and the desire to perform a favorite task; it will not be possible to orient towards a certain preference, indistinction that will produce even more psychological chaos in the inner (dis)order cleaved between skepticism and fantasy. Thus, lacking desires, judgments, interest, initiative analysis, and many other characteristics given by the exclusive

education, such a personality risks to remain adrift, undecided, in axiological suspension, in front of the immensity of opportunities that life offers.

On the other hand, it would be at least as damaging to create a personality based only on exclusive training, because this kind, lacking inclusiveness and acceptance, would build an intolerant, severe, rigid, uncontrollable, and ruthless person, lacking affection, mechanical, fanatical and immoral. We see, therefore, that these two characteristics must be harmoniously intertwined – through a balanced dialectic between closure and openness to otherness – leaving neither to take final control over the personality of the educated in this way.

Offering a clear, distinct system of values, demarcating a clear, unambiguous limit, together with the candor of tolerance, compassion, and resonance with the other (diverse) - this must be the target of any healthy and responsible educational system, and yes, the religious one makes no difference.

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J. Piaget, Construirea realului la copil (Eng., Building the real in the child), Bucharest: Editura Didactică și Pedagogică (1976).

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Anne Locksley, Christine Hepburn, Vilma

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John Danvers, “Towards a Radical Pedagogy: Provisional Notes on Learning and Teaching in Art & Design”, in International Journal of Art & Design Education, 22.1/2003:47-57. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5949.00338 Julia Szalai, Vera Messing and Maria Nemenyi, Ethnic and Social Differences in Education in a Comparative Perspective. Budapest, Hungary: EDUMIGROM. Comparative Papers (2010), 99. http://pdc.ceu.hu/archive/00006482/01/ comparativesurveyfinal.pdf Rachel Monyoncho, The influence of cultural beliefs, stereotypes and selection merit on executive selection outcome in multinational organizations in Kenya (PhD thesis).

University of Nairobi, (2014), 52-54. http:// erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/handle/11295/77672 Samantha de Silva, Role of Education in Prevention of Violent Extremism.

Published by the World Bank (2015) 7. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/ en/448221510079762554/120997-WPrevised-PUBLIC-Role-of-Education-inPrevention-of-Violence-Extremism-Final.pdf Paul Tillich. “Part Two. God and the world” In Tillich Online: Courses at Union Theological Seminary, New York, 1936-1938. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2021. https://www.

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degruyter.com/database/TILLO/entry/tillo. egw19.004_002/html Accessed 2021-10-07.

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Paul Hedges, and Anna Halafoff. 2015.

“Multifaith Societies.”

Studies in Interreligious Dialogue 25 (1): 37–42.

Lynn Parker,. “Religious Education for Peaceful Coexistence in Indonesia?” South East Asia Research 22 (4)/2014: 487–504. doi: 10.5367/sear.2014.0231 Maria Harris, Gabriel Moran. Reshaping Religious Education: Conversations on Contemporary Practice, 30.

Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, “God’s immanency in Abraham’s response to revelation: from providence to omnipresence,” Dialogo, doi: 10.18638/dialogo.2015.2.2.15, ISBN: 97880-554-1208-5, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol. 2:2 (2015), pp. 174—182. ***, “Chosen People” in New World Encyclopedia, URL: https://www. newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Chosen_ People.

John Hick, “Christianity and world religions” in Britannica, URL: https://www.britannica. com/topic/Christianity/Christianity-andworld-religions. ***, “Religious exclusivism” in New World Encyclopedia, URL: https://www. newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/religious_ exclusivism.

Meg Greenfield, “Why Nothing Is ‘Wrong’ Anymore”, in The Washington Post, July 22, 1986. URL: https://www.washingtonpost. com/archive/politics/1986/07/22/whynothing-is-wrong-anymore/8ecbcb88efea-4b95-85b5-b42f503786ed/, accessed 4.9.2021.

“Harmony of Religions”, URL: https:// vedanta.org/what-is-vedanta/harmony-ofreligions/.

Daphna Oyserman, “Values, Psychological Perspectives”, International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, 2nd edition, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08097086-8.24030-0

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Stefan Bolea, Book review “Abusive Religion and the Excess of Science. Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, Bantam Press, 2006” in Transdisciplinarity In Science And Religion, 3/2008, 212 Ibidem.

Erickson Millard, Teologia crestina (Eng., Christian Theology), Oradea: Editura Cartea Creştină, 1995, 19.

Fatio, O., Mottu, H., Campiche, R.J., Basset, J. Cl., Fuchs, E., “Pour sortir l’oecuménisme du purgatoire”, Labor et Fides, Geneva, 1993.

Lambert, Yves, 1992, „Les religions également comme composante d’une éducation civique et humaine”, in Enseigner l’histoire des religions dans une démarche laïque.

Repré¬sentations, perspectives organisations des apprentissages. Actes du colloque international de Besançon, 20 21 novembre 1991, CNDP/CRDP, Besançon.

Georges, Jacques, „Écueil et dificultés d’une démarche d’enseignement sur les religions”, in Enseigner l’histoire des religions dans une démarche laïque. Représentations, per¬spectives, organisations des apprentissages.

Actes du colloque international de Besançon, 20 21 novembre 1991, CNDP/CRDP, Besançon.

P. Michalon, Oecumenisme et unité chretienne, Paris: Éditions La Cordelle (1968).

Denis Muller, Les Lieux de l’action. Éthique et religion dans une societé pluraliste, Geneva : Labor Fides (1992).

THABOR, L’Encyclopedie des catéchistes, Paris : Éd. Desclée (1993).

Vladimir Zielinsky, Dincolo de ecumenism (Eng., Beyond ecumenism), Bucharest: Editura Anastasia (1998).

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A Theological Understanding of Ancestor Veneration in the Bapedi Society as an expression of Transcendence and anticipation of Comfort and Hope Morakeng Edward Kenneth Lebaka, PhD

Prof. Dr. at the University of Zululand – KwaDlangezwa Campus; Faculty of Arts, Department of Creative Arts.

South Africa https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-4652-9490

Article history: Received 29 September 2021 Received in revised form 10 October Accepted 15 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.10

Keywords: Ancestor veneration; Bapedi people; comfort; hope; Africa; Bapedi religion; religious rituals; music;

abstract

In the Bapedi society, ancestor veneration is one area that requires scholarly attention.

Historically, in the indigenous Bapedi religion there is far greater acceptance that ancestors are in existence, and ancestor veneration and culture are related. A significant dimension in the role played by the ancestors in the Bapedi culture is how they are believed to transmit and safeguard life. Therefore, an investigation of ancestor veneration as a source of comfort and hope, in the context of Bapedi people’s religious and cultural rituals is inevitable. The present study investigated the Bapedi conception of death, its meaning, the significance of the rituals performed during and after death, and how Bapedi people conceive and deal with ancestor veneration. To achieve this, the study employed direct observations, video recordings, and informal interviews.

Three interrelated research questions, therefore, guided this study: 1) Do Bapedi people believe in the resurrection of the dead and eternal life for the individual after death?; 2) Does the continuing relationship of ancestors with their families have medical, financial, moral, biological, and social implications for the living?; and 3) Do Bapedi people believe in reincarnation of a dead individual in the form of another individual still living, and particularly in the powerful spirit or soul of a dead person which still has a potent functional role which affects the still living? Findings of this study have shown that ancestor veneration seems to offer Bapedi people an opportunity to express their faith and confidence in their ancestors. It has become evident from a thorough analysis of the data that music is a societal need and appears to be an expression of the most basic values and feelings of the Bapedi people. It was concluded that ancestors have unlimited powers over the lives of the living, and there are no restrictions to either the chastisement or the blessings that they can confer on their descendants. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Morakeng Edward Kenneth Lebaka. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Lebaka, Morakeng Edward Kenneth. ”A Theological Understanding of Ancestor Veneration in the Bapedi Society as an expression of Transcendence and anticipation of Comfort and Hope.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 110-118. DOI: 10.51917/ dialogo.2021.8.1.10

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I.

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Introduction

Bapedi people are an ethnic group found mainly in Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality, Limpopo Province in South Africa (Lebaka 2018:1). They speak the Sepedi language, one of the official languages in South Africa. They are religious people and know God, but employ their ancestors as their intermediaries to God. They understand ancestor veneration as an expression of transcendence and anticipation of comfort and hope. In this Municipality, religion plays a significant role in rituals related to death.

The mourning of the dead is a universal practice that is but mediated by religious rituals and cultural practices in different Bapedi tribes within the municipality. Over history, Bapedi people have observed and still observed ancestor veneration, and this cultural practice is intertwined with the Bapedi tradition of death and funeral rituals.

In the Bapedi society, ancestor veneration has become a standard vehicle for Bapedi people to express their faith within the cult (express their transcendence and anticipation of comfort and hope, as well as their collective identity). Bapedi people’s life is essentially religious, and for them, religion is a necessity and not an option. Of vital importance for this paper is the role that ancestors play in affecting the living for good if they are respectfully and properly venerated. According to Olowola (1993:8), the principal elements of African cosmology are i) God, ii) the spirits, and iii) sacrifice.

God is seen in the traditional religion as the Creator, the spirits are understood as His agents, and man in traditional religion must relate properly to this supernatural order by means (of) including sacrifice.

This paper focuses on Bapedi conception of death, its meaning, significance of the rituals1 performed during and after death 1 Baloyi & Makobe-Rabothata (2014:236) write that rituals are representation of cultural performances and rites of passage which mark a people’s life

and how Bapedi people conceive and deal with ancestor veneration.

Figure 1: Geographical Location Map of South Africa showing Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sekhukhune_ District_Municipality#/media/File:Map_of_ South Africa_with Sekhukhune_highlighted (2011).svg [accessed 13 June 2021].

Like in many cultures in the African continent and elsewhere, Bapedi people have ways of establishing and maintaining contact with their ancestors. These include pouring of libation, giving formal and informal offerings (mainly food), making sacrifices, propitiating, praying and fulfilling requests made by the departed. Goats and sheep are much more frequently sacrificed to ancestors of private families, but in the Bapedi tradition, cattle are regarded as the correct offering to spirits of status. Fowls and goats are the most common sacrificial victims, but tribal theories about the experience. These scholars agree that properly construed rituals are an expression of people’s thoughts, emotions, social organization and cultural identities.They believe that they are therefore regarded as viable scientific methods of connections and dialogue (2014:236).

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relative value of goats and sheep as peculiar offerings are incomprehensibly discordant.

This study delves into the practice of ancestor veneration with a special focus on the ancestral belief system and malopo ritual performances of traditional healers and their trainees. Other research questions are: 1) are rituals in the Bapedi society acts of contrition (repentance) so that life may be restored?; 2) Do ancestors have the ability/or are capable to oversee the moral behaviour of the individual, the family, the clan and the entire society with which they are associated?; 3) are ancestors vital to Bapedi cultural heritage and identity?; 4) In the Bapedi society, are ancestors experienced as present through various rituals and dreams, not simply as memory?; and 5) In the Bapedi culture, is death an annihilation or even separation between the living and the living dead? These are a few of the many questions arising from this study. This study is a contribution in furthering knowledge in African culture2 and identity, heritage, African traditional religion and African theological thought. I will begin this article by discussing the theoretical framework of the study, highlighting the aims and objectives, and explaining the research strategy. I will also discuss and analyse the research findings. Finally, I will share the concluding remarks and recommendations for further study.

II.

Theoretical Framework

This study is underpinned by the theory of Afrocentricity as advocated by Asante (1987). This theory views African cultural values, practices and beliefs as the basis of the African-centred or Afrocentric worldview. Asante’s views, thoughts and 2 According to Idang (2015:97 & 98), culture embraces a wide range of human phenomena, material achievements and norms, beliefs, feelings, manners, morals, and so on, and should be understood as the way of life of a people.

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insights are grounded in the African context.

He is convinced that Africans should consider phenomena from the vantage point of an African worldview that is in turn informed by African culture (Lebaka 2019:2).

According to Asante, an African-centred worldview is based on African cultural beliefs, values and practices. He observes that Afrocentricity is a perspective that allows Africans to be subjects of historical experiences rather than objects on the fringes of Europe (Asante 1999:111). Asante’s theory enriches the concept of ‘spiritualism’ from an African perspective, but also incorporates life experience, culture and worldview as the strong pillars of African spirituality. Furthermore, Asante argues that culture-based indigenous knowledge should reflect way of life of African people, arts, skills, habits, knowledge, values, beliefs, and customs. Like in this study, during interviews and observations, it was found that culture-based indigenous knowledge which involves arts, skills, habits, knowledge, values, beliefs, and customs is reflected in the Bapedi people’s way of life.

My interpretation of this theory in relation to the Bapedi people’s way of life is that Bapedi people’s religious life, which involves arts, skills, habits, knowledge, values, beliefs, and customs, is spiritually based.

Corroborating Asante’s views and assertions, Santo’s (2012:6) writes that the attitudes, beliefs and values held by a particular group of people cultivate both an identity for themselves as well as an orderliness to everyday life. Insightful thoughts are found in her research entitled, ‘Theories of culture, identity and ethnomusicology’. Alyssa Santos maintains that ‘through various forms of upbringing and socialization, people are able to place things around them into categories and draw conclusions about the process of life’. The above observations are supported by Mkabela (2005:179), who understands Afrocentric approach as the

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basis of social and cultural immersion as opposed to scientific distance as the best platform or breakthrough to understand African phenomena. The above views are also enriched by the contributions of Asante (1985) and Asante (1987, 1999) who assert that if the research is to be considered as a paradigm, the African indigenous people must be in control of and participate in the entire research process, from the beginning to the end. This is precisely what happened in this study. The participants for this study were interviewed using Sepedi (a local dialect). The researcher attended different malopo rituals and indigenous religiousrelated events to have a theological understanding of ancestor veneration within Bapedi people’s cultural context.

At these rituals and events, all participants and audiences were directly and indirectly involved. As advocated by Asante that ‘all cultural centres must be respected’, during my field research, it was observed that Bapedi people observe their culture, utilize their natural environmental resources for their spirituality in various ways, and continue to perpetuate their cultural identity and heritage inherited from their ancestors. In my view, Asante’s inclusion of African identity in his Afrocentric paradigm serves to clarify and justify why the people under study should be grounded, oriented, located and centered. Similarly, in this study, the subjects under study are grounded, oriented, located and centred.

A. Aims and objectives This paper addresses the issues involved in attempting to protect the traditional knowledge3 prevailing within Bapedi culture.

3 According to Ragavan (2001:4), the term ‘traditional knowledge’ refers to knowledge possessed by indigenous people, in one or more societies and in one or more forms, including, but not limited to, art dance and music, medicines and folk remedies, folk culture, biodiversity, knowledge and protection of plant varieties, handicrafts,

The study investigated the relationship between ancestral belief and Bapedi people.

It argues that ancestors play a prominent role among families, and the main desire of the ancestors is to be honoured, respected and remembered by their offspring.

Furthermore, it seeks to discover how: a) ancestors oversee the moral behaviour of the individual, the family, the clan and the entire society with which they are associated; b) the living and the dead could together constitute the social world; and c) Bapedi people conduct ancestor veneration to appease their ancestors.

B. Research Strategy In this study, the researcher has firsthand experience of indigenous Bapedi religion and ritual sessions. He will therefore give the necessary perspective on the topic.

The study was conducted between 1997 and 2020. Data were collected through faceto-face interviews in Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality. Most of the interviews were informal and spontaneous.

Participants were identified because of their knowledgeable and informative qualities, and Sepedi (a local dialect) was used to communicate with the participants. The designs and literature. In the same vein, McGloin (2009:4) writes that understandings of Indigenous knowledge vary considerably in Indigenous and nonIndigenous communities. According to McGloin, ‘Indigenous Knowledges’ are based in specific ontologies – ways of being, believing, understanding, experiencing, seeing and representing the lived and spiritual worlds – that are specific to particular groups of people (2009:4).

McGloin believes that indigenous knowledges comprise ways of knowing and understanding the world that in many cultures predates what we understand as science in its Western modality (2009:4). McGloin maintains that in the broad and varied realm of Indigenous knowledges, knowledge as an ontological foundation for understanding the world is communicated in a multitude of ways that formulate various local and communal knowledge systems (2009:4).

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study is contextual as it considers the local context (Bapedi people) and the contextual approach has led to the achievement of the research objectives. Interviews were recorded.

Religious practices were solely based on Bapedi rituals, while traditional practices reflected the Bapedi culture. Therefore, death-related traditional practices and religious beliefs were asked separately.

Open-ended questions were about Bapedi people’s religious beliefs and tradition on the meaning of death, ancestor veneration, visits to the cemetery and pouring of libation. Eleven (11) malopo rituals were purposefully chosen and were observed and recorded using videos and photographs to provide information on ancestor veneration within Bapedi people’s cultural context.

The videos and photographs were analysed with regard to the cultural, social and religious functions of ancestor veneration in Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality, as well as the relationship between culture, theological thought, spirituality and identity in veneration in the traditional Sepedi healing context.

III.

Results and Discussion

Literary evidence and interviews have revealed that in African traditional religions, ancestors are part of the social fabric of the living people (Baloyi & Makobe-Rabothata 2014; Lebaka 2014; 2017; 2018; Muga 1975; Baloyi 2008; Omolewa 2007; McGloin 2009; Ragavan 2001). In particular, Baloyi & Makobe-Rabothata (2014:235) state that when people die, they transcend to the spirit world to be in the company of the living dead or ancestors. These scholars believe that from an African perspective, death is a natural transition from the visible to the invisible spiritual ontology where the spirit, the essence of the person, is not destroyed but moves to live in the spirit ancestors’ realm dead (2014:232). According to these

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scholars, it signifies an inextricable spiritual connection between the visible and invisible worlds (2014:232).

Baloyi & Makobe-Rabothata (2014:236) further elaborate by stating that African worldview understands death as an integrated and continuous developmental life process which is inseparable from the interwoven connections between the visible and invisible ontologies. In the same vein, Baloyi (2008) observes that for traditional African people, the deceased is believed to be living in the ontology of the invisible intangible beings, dynamically engaging in an evolving state of existence in the world of the animated being. Attesting to the above views, Muga (1975:53) observes that: “The African traditional religion does not believe in the resurrection of the dead and eternal life for the individual, after death, but rather in reincarnation of a dead individual in the form of another individual still living, and particularly in the powerful spirit or soul of a dead person which still has potent functional role which affects the still living”.

According to Muga (1975:53) this is a belief which is not fundamental in Christianity”. Corroborating these views, Lebaka (2017:56) writes that Bapedi people do not worship their ancestors, but rather venerate them. According to Lebaka, it is important to note that Bapedi are not bound to ‘nature’ spirits (such as rocks, rivers or totem animals), but human spirits’ (2017:56).

In his view, ancestral spirits are still regarded as members of their human families and are primarily engaged in the affairs of their families with whom they perform various tasks (2017:56). Madikedike Simon Sete (personal communication, 22 July 1998) is of the opinion that ancestors have therefore to be respected, honoured, remembered and obeyed (see photo 1). According to him, they have to be thanked for their blessings, and have to be fed through sacrifices

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(Lebaka 2017:54). Supporting the above views, Omolewa (2007:603) observes that ancestral names are those names that are given to new-born babies in recognition and remembrance of the boldness, wisdom and status of a long departed ancestor.

Omolewa believes that both the living and the dead constitute the extended family (2007:603). According to him, the ancestors are the invisible protectors of the living descendants who usually guard, direct and exercise a disciplinary influence over the family affairs, traditional ethics and social relationships of the community they had left behind (2007:603).

Photo 1 Traditional healers assisting the possessed traditional healer-to-be (trainee) to communicate with his ancestors (Mashite village; Schoonoord, 29.09.2007), Photographer: Morakeng Edward Kenneth Lebaka.

Observations and interviews have also revealed that ancestor veneration seems to offer Bapedi people an opportunity to express their faith and confidence in their ancestors. When participants were asked about the existence of ancestors, they all agreed that ancestors are in existence and have the potential power to affect the living both for good, if they are respectfully and properly venerated, and for evil, if their veneration is neglected. These observations

are endorsed by the finding that Bapedi people believe that their ancestors continue to play a vital role in their families and should be consulted by their offspring (Lebaka 2018:1). Along similar lines, it is worthwhile to mention here Morongwa’s view. In a personal interview, with Morongwa Angelinah Tshehla (17 November 2019) at Kotsiri village, Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality, pointed out that like many other African societies, Bapedi people have a belief system that is based on the spiritual world and their lives have always been based religiously, culturally and socially upon ancestor veneration.

Most of the participants described death within Bapedi people’s cultural context as a transition to another world (ancestral realm). During the study, informal discussions with trainees (mathasana), traditional healers (dingaka) and other participants during malopo rituals revealed that Bapedi people observe their culture by exercising spirituality. This view is reinforced

by Lebaka (2018:6), who observes that Bapedi people have ways of establishing and maintaining contact with their ancestors.

According to Lebaka, these include ancestor veneration through religious, social and cultural rituals, as well as divination bones (2018:6). Vaughan (2008:341) agrees with Lebaka when he notes that in Africa, the living and the dead together constitute the social world. Vaughan observes that this characterization is not totally false, but the production of knowledge on death customs and beliefs in Africa has to be seen against the background of a perceived crisis in the ‘Western’ relationship to death (2008:341).

He further endorses the above observations by stating that some aspects of African beliefs in a spirit world could be incorporated into Christian practice and others could not, though the huge variety of Christian practice in Africa makes generalizations hazardous (2008:341). Vaughan (2008:353)

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believes that in ‘traditional’ societies, death introduces forces of physical, spiritual and social rupture (2008:344). In the same vein, King (2013) writes that death is a natural transition from the visible to the invisible or spiritual ontology where the spirit, the essence of the person is not destroyed but moves to live in the spirit ancestors’ realm. King is of the opinion that ancestors protect and provide guidance to those in the material realm and therefore are highly respected, venerated and very important to the community of the living (2013). He believes that there is therefore continuous and unbreakable communication and connectedness between the living and the living dead.

When asked about Bapedi conception of death, its meaning, significance of the rituals performed during and after death, all participants have agreed that death does not annihilate or separate ancestors and their offspring. According to these participants, Bapedi people conduct ancestor veneration to appease their ancestors. With regard to the questions why do Bapedi people visit the cemetery and how do Bapedi people conceive and deal with ancestor veneration, some participants indicated that the belief in life after death is crucial to Bapedi people religion and cultural life, and many people in the Bapedi society observe their culture and adhere to their traditional lifestyle and practices. Most of the participants noted that ancestral beliefs in modern Bapedi cultural practices is crucial, as it might provide solutions to future challenges of diseases, deaths, bad luck or curses from their ancestors. These observations are consistent with other studies conducted in African context and have revealed that Africans transmit their philosophy and values to preserve their cultural heritage (Ekore and Lanre-Abass 2016; Gumo et al 2012; Jaja 2014; Manala 2004; Mekada 1999; Thabede 2008 and Kovach 2010). These

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scholars agree that African religion should not be ignored because it infiltrates deep into people’s attitudes and consumerism patterns. In particular, Kovach (2010:40) shares his research experiences and argues that indigenous knowledge comprises a specific way of knowing based upon oral tradition of sharing knowledge. He suggests that researchers should gather indigenous knowledge around the world (2010:40).

These views are supported by Lebaka (2014:36) who writes that community, to Africans, consists of the living, the dead, and the unborn. In his view, the living ones are those who are in existence in this world and the dead are understood as the ancestors (2014:36). Lebaka argues that ancestors are the dead who are believed to be still alive and who are forming an integral part of the community in the world of spirits; and are referred to, therefore, as ‘the living dead’ as these are called in contemporary African scholarship (2014:36).

African religion scholars, notably Ekanem (2012), Green (2012), Matsui (2015), Owusu-Ansah & Mji (2013) and Udefi (2014) have emphatically asserted that Africa has a wide array of philosophy richly embedded in her culture and tradition in oral form. About African Theological Thought and African Epistemology, Udefi (2014:108) lends credence to the findings of this study when he observes that the idea of African epistemology is based on their acceptance that such concepts as knowledge, truth, rationality, etc. can be interpreted using African categories and concepts as provided by the African cultural experience without recourse to a Western or alien conceptual framework. According to Udefi, this epistemology is abstracted from the collective world-view of Africans and leaning essentially on such materials as myths, folklore, proverbs, folk wisdom, etc.

(2014:108). In his view, the fact that there are cultural elements in knowledge, does not

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necessarily mean that African epistemology is unique, rather it is universal since there is no radical difference between knowledge apprehension and epistemological canons across cultures. The impression created during interviews and observations was that in the Bapedi society, ancestors play a prominent role among families, and the relationship between Bapedi people and their ancestors is not always a harmonious one.

people’s religion and belief systems and/ or daily lives of Bapedi people. The study contributes to the notion that ancestor ancestors are vital to Bapedi people, and ancestor veneration is based on the belief that ancestors are still recognized as part of the family.

[1]

Conclusion

[2]

Findings of this study show that in the Bapedi society, the main desire of ancestors is to be honoured, respected and remembered by their offspring. What has emerged thus far in this study is that, in the Bapedi society, ancestors play an important role in the daily lives of their offspring.

They oversee the moral behaviour of the individual, the family, the clan and the entire society. With regard to the significance of the rituals performed during and after death, the enquiry has revealed that malopo ritual is the best medium of appeasing the ancestors, and Bapedi people engage with malopo ritual, because they find it in some way meaningful, rewarding, or exciting, whether from an aural perspective or some broader behavioural or social point of view. We observe in the present study that ancestors have unlimited powers over the lives of the living, and there are no restrictions to either the chastisement or the blessings that they can confer on their descendants.

This study has further demonstrated that ancestor veneration seems to offer Bapedi people an opportunity to express their faith and confidence in their ancestors. Based on the research findings of this study, it is clear that there are fundamental links between ancestor veneration and Bapedi people’s cultural experience and reality, Bapedi

[3]

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Grigore Nandriș. Bridging the East and the West through the History of Language, Culture, Religion Iulian Isbășoiu, Ph.D.

Nicoleta Stanca, Ph.D.

Rev. Assist. Prof. at Faculty of Theology, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

Assoc. Prof. at Faculty of Letters, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 13 August 2021 Received in revised form 31 August Accepted 03 September 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.11

In a recent context in which Romania is confronted with the problem of emigration, this article portrays the life and works of Grigore Nandriș (1895-1968), university professor and patriot, who offers an example of devotion to his profession and country that could be set as a standard for all the following generations. He defended Romania in the war, as a soldier, and then at home in the academia, at the University of Chernivtsi and abroad, in France, at the Romanian School at Fontenay-aux-Roses, and in England, at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University of London. Brilliant linguist, speaking 14 foreign languages, he left a considerable amount of books, articles, reviews, conferences on linguistics, folklore, religion, and culture, being mainly interested in establishing links between language and place and culture and neighbouring nations.

And above all, Grigore Nandriș’s personality remains a landmark among scholars in his field and colleagues, friends, students, and followers, who admired his devotedness to the Romanian cause abroad.

Keywords: Grigore Nandriș; linguistics; folklore; religious writings; culture; society; Romania; identity; exile;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Iulian Isbășoiu, Nicoleta Stanca. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Isbășoiu, Iulian, and Nicoleta Stanca. ”Grigore Nandriș. Bridging the East and the West through the History of Language, Culture, Religion.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 119-128. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.11

I. Biographical remarks. Directions of the scientific, cultural and social activity of Grigore Nandriș in Romania and abroad

Grigore Nandriș (1895-1968) was born in Mahala village in Chernivtsi, Northern Bukovina, at the time part of the Habsburg Empire. His mother, Maria, and his father,

Dumitru Nandriș, were well-off peasants, Grigore being their third son. He attended first the local school, then the German highschool in Chernivtsi, being supported by his maternal grandfather to pursue the rest of his high-school, university and even doctoral studies [1]. In 1916, he crossed the frontier to fight in the Romanian army against the wrongs in Bukovina. He spent three years on the front, an experience that he felt as

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absurd, yet necessary taking into account the historical circumstances. Back in Bucharest, he graduated the University of Bucharest in 1919, with a degree in Comparative Philology [2]. He was hired to teach German and Latin at Gh. Lazăr High-school in Bucharest.

As early as these years, he was concerned with the Romanian language, literature and history in contact with those of the neighbouring countries, which is going to be one of the major guiding lines of his future scholarly research. Thus, he did-postgraduate studies at the University of Vienna and then at the Jagiellonian University in Cracow, where he took his Ph.D in 1922, with a thesis on the verbal aspects of Putna Gospel [3].

In the period 1923-1925, he went to Paris as a member of the Romanian School at Fontenay-aux-Roses, where he worked with the most distinguished French linguists, A. Meillet, A. Mazon, Mario Roques, G. Meillet, among others, from École pratiques des Hautes Études and École des Langues Orientales vivantes. The relations between the Romanian scholars of École Roumaine, whose Director was Nicolae Iorga, and the French linguists were very close, the support being double oriented, all with a view to enlighten certain topics about Romania in the Western research. The results of their work were published in Mélanges de l’ École Roumaine en France journal (Grigore Nandriș, “Les rapports entre la Moldavie et l’Ukraine d’après la folklore ukrainien.”

1924, pp. 1-36; “Les diplomatiques àliquides dans les elements slaves du roumain, 1925, pp. 1-25). On his collaborations in France, Grigore Nandriș remarks that the best form of gratitude to the ones who supported him to get there was all his work for the benefit of the society everywhere else he was going to be sent [4].

Collaborating with colleagues in the humanities at home and in Austria, Poland and France, Grigore Nandriș made use of

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the scientific methods acquired at all these stages and improved his knowledge of the over 14 foreign languages he knew (Latin, Greek, Old Slavic; French, Italian, German and English; Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, Czech, Slovak, Bulgarian and SerbianCroatian) [5], with the purpose to explain the evolution of the Romanian language, culture and spirituality in close connection with the ones of the peoples across the Romanian borders (Polish. Ukrainian, Russian, Bulgarian Hungarian, etc.). Grigore Nandriș belongs to this generation of Romanian intellectuals trained in the West and who promoted this thesis according to which the Romanian people was essentially shaped in the confrontation between the Eastern and Western civilizations, which we consider he managed to bridge in a very profound manner.

In 1926, Grigore Nandriș returned to the university in Chernivtsi, as Professor of Slavonic Philology. In 1929, he also became chairman of the Society of Culture and Literature in Bukovina, which enabled him to organize a series of cultural activities: conferences, printing works, building a Cultural Palace in the city (1938), a boarding school and a cinema. The society was the core of the Romanian culture at the time. In his native village, together with his brother Ion, he founded a National House and a carpet factory [6]. He was the leader of the Young Liberal Party in Bukovina and then a member of the Romanian Parliament, with Gheorghe Brătianu as a leader. Thanks to his qualities of a winner and hard worker, he later survived away from home, carrying homeland in his soul.

In 1938, he held a series of conferences about Romania at Londonderry, Cambridge, Oxford, London, about which we find out from Romanian newspapers (Universul) and English publications (The Derry Standard).

The Anglo-Irish connection is doubled by a personal tie, as he met, in the 1930s,

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his future wife, Mabel Farley, a NorthernIrish journalist, graduate of Letters and Philosophy of a university in Dublin. The story of the meeting between Grigore Nandriș and Mabel Farley Nandriș is vividly recounted in an article dedicated to great Romanian personalities, benefitting from their son’s collaboration, Professor John Nandriș, from the University of London [7] The latter recalls the romantic meeting of his parents on Ceahlău, his mother being in Romania for nine years by then, how the two got married in Chernivtsi and lived happily there, how his mother, baptized in the Orthodox religion, Maria, always loved Romania and translated stories by Creangă, Caragiale, Sadoveanu, Brătescu-Voinești into English and how he grew up with these stories.

The story moves abroad since 1940 because Grigore Nandriș was sent in 1940 in a diplomatic mission in England and Northern Ireland, and while he was visiting with his wife and son their Northern Irish family, the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact was signed and Northern Bukovina was annexed. The Nandriș family, Anița, Grigore’s sister and her three children, are deported to Siberia and their belongings and Grigore’s manuscripts in Chernivtsi were all destroyed. The fact that he could not help his relatives in Siberia was extremely painful, so the rest of the years in exile were fully dedicated to the Romanian cause, enthusiastically supported by his wife, Mabel Maria Nandriș. He never had the chance to return to Romania for the rest of his life, but his entire scientific activity is centered on defining Romanianness. “I stay here as if in a prison whose cuffs tighten around me day by day,” confesses Grigore Nandriș in exile [8].

In 1942, he had a job in the Romanian Department of the BBC and he was also a visiting lecturer of Romanian at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies at the University of London. In 1946-47, he gave

a series of lectures on Slavic Philology in London and Oxford. In 1947, he was elected chair of Comparative Slavonic Philology and then head of the Language and Literature Department of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University of London.

There, besides teaching, doing research, he insisted on enlarging the collection of Romanian books and on founding the institution of Honours Degree in Romanian Language and Literature [9].

His stay at Mount Athos in 1959 is significant, being recorded later in his studies of paintings and manuscripts. He got sick, suffering from heart disease, worsened by the typhus contracted during the war and by his relentless work, and in 1962 he retired from the university but continued to write and to travel to deliver conferences in New York, Paris, Milano, etc.. In 1968, he died at King’s College Hospital. He never grew roots in England, other than his wife and son, the rest of his Romanian family had been left in Romania. Mabel Maria Nandriș brought the urn with the ashes to the family tomb in Rădăuți.

II. Defining Romanianness through

Language and Culture

One major direction of research in the works of Professor Grigore Nandriș, eminent linguist, considers the relations between Romanians and their neighbours, as reflected in folklore, demographical and ethnographical data. He thus looks at the Romanian presence in the Polish and Czech Carpathians, studied through documents and the Polish Linguistic Map. According to his findings, Romanian shepherds had been present there since the 12th – 13th centuries [10]. Based on linguistic data and toponymy, the conclusion points towards a wide Romanian presence all over the Carpathians up to Moravia and Silesia. The typical pastoral terms used in the region are

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all Romanian.

Secondly, while a member of the Romanian School in Paris, Grigore Nandriș studied the historical, literary and linguistic ties between Moldavia and Ukraine.

Mélanges de l’ École Roumaine en France (1924) in an study dedicated to the folklore in the two place, he analyses popular songs and comments on the historical relations as they come out from these poems. The ages of Bohdan Khmelnytsky (1595-1657) and Stephen the Great (1433-1504) are focused on with references to their achievements and common struggles against the Turks and the subsequent decline of the political power of the regions [11]. The professor rejects the idea of a Russian domination in Moldavia, based on toponymy and in this sense, he publishes studies in journals in Paris and London. He brings as an argument the contribution to the Russian culture of the Romanian immigrants accompanying Dimitrie Cantemir (1673-1723) in Russia after 1711 [12].

With regards to linguistic studies, Corlăteanu mentions other important contributions from the Polish and Chernivtsi period, a study of the origin of name of our national poet, Mihai Eminescu (18501889) and a lecture on the methodology of teaching Romanian, presented with Al. Procopovici at the 3rd Congress of Romanian specialists in Philology (Chernivtsi, 20-22 May 1927). About Eminescu’s name, while he was in Poland, he looked at the local archives for the name Eminowicz and established that it comes from the Tatar root Emin, which became Eminowicz in Poland and then Eminovici in Moldavia [13]. Interestingly, the Professor’s publications as well as lectures and seminars at the University of Chernivtsi could be regarded as embedded within this ideal of spiritual and national unity of the Romanian people, a goal he pursued later in exile as well. “All the nationalities will live a free national life according to their

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ethnic background. They will be able to flourish within the Romanian national state.

Romanians will not inflict onto others the injustice done to them” [14].

While in London, after 1940, when he could not return to Romania, Grigore Nandriș continued his teaching and research activity as chair of Comparative Slavonic Philology and then head of the Language and Literature Department of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University of London. There are numerous contributions in the Slavonic and East European Review (e.g. “The Development and Structure of Rumanian”, 1951; “The Relations between Toponymy and Ethnology in Rumania”, 1956). On the development of the Romanian language, Nandriș remarks that it is “the only Romance language which continues the Latin of the Eastern Roman Empire,” in some respects an older language than the Western Romance languages. It is spoken “in the Danubian Principalities, Transylvania, Bucovina and Bessarabia, i.e. the ancient Dacia Traiana. Outside these lands, Rumanians are to be found East of the Dniester river, along the southern banks of the Danube in Bulgaria, in Old Serbia (in the Timok valley), and scattered over the Balkan Peninsula: in Macedonia, on Mount Olympus, in the Pindus, in the mountains of Karashova, in Epirus, in Thessaly and in Albania” [15]. In order to facilitate the learning of Romanian, he published Colloquial Rumanian, in three editions 1945, 1953, 1961, considered for more than three decades the most authoritative textbook in English for the study of Romanian. In the preface of the grammar book, he mentions, besides the 16 million Romanians speaking it as seen above, the two million abroad, many of them in the US. He also tackles again the conservative nature of Romanian in the context of its evolution separated from the Romance languages in Western Europe and the neighbouring Slav influences it received,

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which had been exaggerated for political reasons [16]. In 1959-1960, he published The Handbook of Old Church Slavonic I, which is considered to be the most complete work of its kind [17].

As a matter of fact, the interest for Romanian studies in Britain was rekindled by the constant and devoted efforts of Professor Grigore Nandriș. He somehow comes in a tradition, but a rather frail one. The first translations into English of Romanian folk songs and literary texts

by Romaian writers date back to mid-19th century. With the appointment of the first Romanian ambassador to the Court of St. James, Ion Ghica, the expansion of the British Museum’s collection of Romanian books and the first Romanian grammar published in English in 1887 by R. Torcianu, Romanian Studies started being better represented. An institutional basis for the study of Romanian in Britain is offered by the setting up, in 1915, of The School of Slavonic and East European Studies at King’s College, meant to allow “small nations” to promote their interests, e.g. consolidate its territory in the case of Romania. After a decade-long break in the presence of Romanian Studies, in 1941 the activity is resumed and Grigore Nandriș takes it over since 1942 as we have described above. Not only does he teach and publish in The School of Slavonic and East European Studies, but he also gathers around him a group of students, colleagues, friends, who will work with him and then continue his projects up to the present [18].

Besides Eminescu, our Romantic national poet, Grigore Nandriș was interested in the creation of our greatest national sculptor, Constantin Brâncuși (1876-1957). He met the brilliant sculptor and his memories from 1951-1952 are captured in an article.

The professor’s interpretation of the perfect shape found by Brâncuși explains the fascination of an entire world with the latter’s works: “The Perfect Egg [….]

is the most accomplished achievement of creation, the beginning and ending of it all. Then I understood the recurrent use of the oval shape in the sculpture of Brâncuși.

This shape brings him closer to the infinite mystery, to the First Creator. And then I though of the philological confirmation of this meaning of the egg (Lat. ovum, Gr. oon).

In all the Indo-European languages, the word is derived from the verb to be, to exist, so, it expresses the ideea of original life, of existence, the principle of being in itself ...

I only know of a parallel case, in our fellow citizen Ion Creangă, who molded into words what Brâncuși carved in stone, metal, wood and marble” [19].

Another example of a topic of interest in the West and East, discussed at length

by Professor Grigore Nandriș is that of the fascinating Dracula. In his 1966 article, he deals with the history and the legend of the character and the origin of his name; the theme in folklore; the psychological significance of the theme in the West and its historical significance in the East. The first section of the article recounts the story of Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897), of the haunted castle in the Eastern Carpathians from where Dracula, count of Bristriza, prepares an invasion of England. The beginnings of the “operation vampire” in England; the attraction – repulsion principle uniting vampire and victim; the undeadliness quality acquired by the victim once with the bite are emphasized in the presentation of the story as one of the greatest “successes in the English horror literature” of the 20th century [20].

The historical personage who features as Dracula is Vlad V, the Empaler, ruler in 1456-1462, and the in 1476, in Wallachia.

In Romanian, a connection has been established between Dracula and the word “devil” (Lat. draco, dracuillu-) and Stoker made it a vampire. Vlad V’s father, Vlad III, had the epithet Dracul (the “Devil”),

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his son, Vlad V, being only known as Vlad Tsepesh “Empaler.” Dracul was an epithet for a member of the Order of the Dragon, created in 1418, to defend the Church of Rome against the Hussites [21]. Historical and ethnographic accuracy was not the aim of Stoker, who wrote a horror novel, based on info gathered in the British Museum and blending it. From the Romanian folklore, the Irish author seems to have taken the undeadnness of Strigoi, the supermanly strength and wickedness of Zmeu, the mystery of Balaur and the attraction of Făt Frumos [22]. Grigore Nandriș looked at English, German, Romanian, Russian and Hungarian sources, blending literary criticism and psychoanalysis to decipher the meaning of the Dracula theme. The Western sources seem to be divided between an image of Dracula doing justice in his country and against the invading Turks and an image of a cruel sadistic monster in the Saxon chronicles just because the Romanian ruler interfered with their trade monopolies in Wallachia.

The Russian chronicles portray him in the context of the defence of Orthodoxy. The conclusion of the article by Grigore Nandriș mentions several aspects: a novel built on the 19th century mass psychology, Romantic historicism and folklore, anticipating 20th century psychoanalytical desire to uncover dark underground instincts in the human soul; a brief bio of Bram Stoker (1847-1912); the legacy of the story in the press, the film industry and many other types of rewritings and responses.

III.

Defining Romanianness through Religious Writings

Grigore Nandriș was a brilliant author and translator of religious art and history writings. The works of religious art appeared in Romanian in a volume entitled The Humanism of Post-Byzantine Mural Painting [23]. This posthumous work, published in

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1985, includes in volume I: Mural Painting in Bukovina, which is the English translation of the first 2 parts of the work of the Polish professor Wladyslaw Podlacha, Malowidla scienné w cerkwiach Bukowiny, by Grigore Nandriș, the third part translated by Anca Irina Ionescu, after the Polish original, and in volume II: Humanism of post-Byzantine Mural Painting in Eastern Europe, the English translation of Grigore Nandriș’s book Christian Humanism in the Neo-Byzantine Mural Painting of Eastern Europe by Anca Vasiliu. It is enriched with notes by Anca Vasiliu, under the supervision of Professor Vasile Drăguț. In 1940, Grigore Nandriș confesses the reasons why he decided to translate Wladyslaw Podlacha’s studies into English. According to him, these works are absolutely necessary for understanding the old Moldovan art, its origin and transformations, claiming at that time that, regardless of the multitude of scientific works published on the subject of mural painting in Bukovina, those of Podlacha are valid in an absolute manner [24].

Mabel Nandriș, Grigore Nandriș’s wife, wrote in the foreword to the English translation of the first two parts of W. Podlacha’s work that “reading the study of the Polish art historian, Professor WP Malowidla scienné w cerkwiach Bukowiny -, my husband realized that, although it had been published in 1912, no other work comparable to it on post-Byzantine painting in Bukovina had appeared before or after that date, so that, with the permission of Professor Podlacha, he translated it into Romanian” [25]. This translation was lost during WW II. Grigore Nandriș did not give up the idea of publishing it and even though it appeared after his death (1968), the English version was published, under the care of his wife, in Germany, in 1970 [26].

Wladyslaw Podlacha’s work can be considered the first monograph of postByzantine paintings in Bukovina that were

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“rediscovered by historians only at the beginning of the twentieth century, first by local amateur researchers ...” [27]. Viennese art historian Strzygovski, Podlacha’s professor, began the systematic study of these works of art.

Podlacha manages to draw attention to the need for a comparative and complementary analysis of different fields of artistic creation: architecture, sculpture, painting, embroidery, etc., as a change of the scientific approach different from that of the times when the fields were researched in a clearly separate way. As stated by the translator of Wladyslaw Podlacha’s work, Grigore Nandriș, the former manages to offer the mural paintings in Bukovina, through his descriptions, a recognition of the value that places them next to those from Mount Athos. The detailed descriptions he left us, together with the accompanying photographs, represent an archive that helps to reconstruct the original image of certain monuments, later restored or even destroyed. This is the case of the church of Saint Procopius in the village of Bădăuți, founded by Prince Stephen the Great, destroyed by the Austrians in WW I [28].

The themes approached by W. Podlacha: the painting elements in the altar, the nave, the narthex, the porch, the apse and the exterior walls of the churches in Bukovina; those with historical and technical content of the art of the icon were the challenge underlying the work by Grigore Nandriș, published in English in 1970.

From the beginning of his work, Grigore Nandriș declares his intention to approach two themes “that illustrate the culturalhistorical aspect of Byzantine art: The Tree of Jesse and the Last Judgment” [29]. After making a presentation of the general characteristics of post-Byzantine iconography, his philology background leads him to identify the names of Greek philosophers represented in the fresco

The Tree of Jesse. He states that “the art historians who dealt with this chapter of Byzantine art were handicapped by the fact that some 12 names of Greek philosophers had not been deciphered and they were obliged to consider only those who were known from the theological viewpoint.

This also led to a misinterpretation of the theme of the Last Judgment, closely related to the representation of the Tree and the philosophers and prophets” [30]. After clarifying this subject, he ideologically and historically interprets the iconographic themes of the Last Judgment and the Tree of Jesse, comparing them with Western representations. He does not overlook topics such as the influences of hesychasm on post-Byzantine painting as well as mural painting in Poland, Lithuania and the Russian lands. A special chapter was dedicated to the connection between Bukovina and Mount Athos, analyzing the representation of some common themes: Sofia, the Divine Liturgy, etc.

In 1959 Grigore Nandriș and his son visited Mount Athos for 6 weeks. During the visit he photographed the foundations of the Romanian princes [31].

Grigore Nandriș’s connection with Mount Athos dates back to the fourth decade of the 20th century when he published the work Romanian Documents in the Slavic Language from the Monasteries of Mount Athos (13721658). Published by Grigore Nandriș after the Photos and Notes of Gabriel Millet. Forty of the documents found in the Monasteries of Mount Athos represent donations of the Romanian rulers to the settlements at Athos. Historian Pierre Năsturel, in his review of the work, after making critical references to the scientific writing techniques, remarks the importance of Grigore Nandriș’s contribution to Romanian history by bringing to light these documents that demonstrate the essential contribution of Romanian rulers to the support of the

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monasteries at Athos [32].

Too give one more example in what concerns Grigore Nandriș’s preoccupations with folklore, in Les rapports entre la Moldavie et l`Ukraine, d`après le folklore ukrainien, which we have already introduced in the previous section, he analyzes the historical connections between Moldova and Ukraine, reflected in Ukrainian folk poetry. Many of these creations contain religious messages, being Christmas carols or historical poems in which divine protection is required.

This is how language, culture and religion are intertwined and reveal in an essential manner characteristics of a nation in relation to the neighouring ones, according to Grigore Nandriș.

Conclusion As proved above, various forms of acknowledgment prove the encompassing dimension of the professor’s activity.

Grigore Nandriș published articles, studies and reviews in 17 periodicals at home and in 19 abroad. He was awarded by the Literature Academy in Poland the silver laurels and “Polonia restuita” order and the title of Professor Emeritus by the University of London. At the International Congress of toponymy at Salamanca in 1953, he was elected president. Professor Norbert Reiter from the University of Berlin mentioned 69 titles on the history of culture and 89 titles on the history of language by Grigore Nandriș.

Many other colleagues, collaborators and former students, Romanian and foreign, wrote warmly about the personality of the Romanian intellectual. In 2014, a memorial plaque was uncovered at the School in Mahala village, which since then, together with a street, bore the scientist’s name, Grigore Nandriș. Thus, he may have found his peace back home in Bukovina.

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References [1]

Nicolae Corlăteanu, Testament [Will], selection, coordonation and foreword by Alexandru Bartoș (Chișinău: Tipografia Serebia, 2010), 156.

[2] E.D Tappe, “Grigore Nandriș” in The Slavonic and East European Review, vol. 47, no. 108 (Jan., 1969): 6.

[3] Corlăteanu, op. cit., 157.

[4] Petre Țurlea, Școala Română din Franța [The Romanian School in France] (București: Editura Semne, 2021) 58; 109.

[5] Corlăteanu, op. cit., 157.

[6] Corlăteanu, op. cit., 164; Tappe. Op. cit., 6.

[7] Ciprian Rus, “Mari personalități românești: John Nandriș (I)” [Great Romanian Personalities: John Nandriș (I)] In Formula AS – year XXXI, no. 1462 (April 2021): 1618.

[8] Maria Toacă, “Grigore Nandriș - triumful sacrificiului și al nemărginitei iubiri pentru neamul său.” [Grigore Nandriș - The Triumph of Sacrifice and Boundless Love for his Country] (January 31, 2015). https://www. crainou.ro/2015/01/31/grigore-nandristriumful-sacrificiului-si-al-nemarginiteiiubiri-pentru-neamul-sau/. The quote has been translated by us from Romanian into English.

[9] Tappe, op. cit., 7.

[10] Grigore Nandriș, “Migrațiuni românești în Carpații Galiției și Moraviei” [Romanian Migrations in the Carpathians of Galicia and Moravia] in Grai românesc, I (București, 1927): 90-100.

[11] ---. “Les rapports entre la Moldavie et l’Ukraine d’après le folklore ukrainien” in Mélanges de l’ École Roumaine en France, Première partie (Paris-Bucarest, 1924).

[12] ---. “The Earliest Contacts between Slavs and Rumanians” in The Slavonic and East European Review, London, XVIII, no. 52 (1939). See also Nandriș, Grigore. “Excursie toponimică. Un suffix toponimic și o teorie politică” [Toponymical Excursion. A Suffix and a Political Theory] in Ființa românească, no. 6 (Paris, 1967).

[13] ---. “Familia Eminowicz în Polonia”

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[Eminowicz Family in Poland] in Junimea literară (Cernăuți, 1923).

[14] translation of passage from Nandriș, Grigore.

“Zile trăite în Bucovina” [Days Lived in Bukovina] in the volume Amintiri răzlețe din timpul Unirii [Scattered Memories from the Time of the Union] by I. Nistor (Cernăuți, 1938).

[15] ---. “The Development and Structure of Rumanian” in The Slavonic and East European Review, London, Vol. 30, nr. 74 (Dec. 1951): 7-39. Nandriș, Grigore. “The Relations between Toponymy and Ethnology in Rumania” in The Slavonic and East European Review, London, vol. 34, nr. 84 (June 1956: 490-494).

[16] ---. Colloquial Rumanian. Grammar, Exercises, Reader, Vocabulary, Fifth impression, (Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, 1969).

[17] ---. The Handbook of Old Church Slavonic.

Part I (Old Church Slavonic Grammar), (University of London: Athlone Press, 1959).

[18] Dennis Deletant, „Studii românești în Marea Britanie” [Romanian Studies in Britain] https://litere.univ-ovidius.ro/stur/Europa/ Marea%20Britania.htm.

[19] Grigore Nandriș, „Întâlnire cu Brâncuși” [Meeting Brâncuși] in Ființa românească, no.

6 (Paris, 1967).

[20] ---. “The Historical Dracula: The Theme of His Legend in the Western and in the Eastern Literature of Europe” in Comparative Literature Studies. Vol. 3, no. 4 (1966, Penn State University Press): 396.

[21] Ibid., 370.

[22] Ibid., 377.

[23] Wladyslaw Podlacha, Grigore Nandriș, Umanismul picturii murale postbizantine [The Humanism of Post-Byzantine Mural Painting] (Editura Meridiane, București, 1985).

[24] Ibid., vol. 1, 34-35.

[25] Ibid., vol. 1, 28.

[26] Grigore Nandriș, Christian Humanism in the Neo-Byzantine Mural Painting of Eastern Europe (Editura „Otto Harrassowitz”, Wiesbaden, 1970).

[27] Wladyslaw Podlacha, Grigore Nandriș, op.

cit., vol. 2, 22.

[28] Ibid., vol. 1, 13.

[29] Ibid., vol. II, 27.

[30] Ibid., vol. II, 29.

[31] Ibid.

[32] Pierre Nasturel, Nandriș (Grigore), “Documente românesti în limba slava din manastirile Muntelui Athos (1372-1658), publicate de... dupa fotografiile si notele lui Gabriel Millet” [Romanian Documents in the Slavic Language from the Monasteries of Mount Athos (1372-1658)]. Published by Grigore Nandriș after the Photos and Notes of Gabriel Millet in Revue des études byzantines, tome 4 (1946): 282-283.

Biographies Iulian Isbășoiu graduated the University of Catholic Theology of “Marc Bloch” University of Strasbourg and received the title of Doctor in Theology with the doctoral thesis: Culte et religion populaire dans l`Eglise Orthodoxe.

Le mariage chez les Roumains Orthodoxes a l`aube du XXI-e siecle. He worked as a teacher at the Theological Seminary and as a cultural adviser at the Archiepiscopacy of Tomis. At present he works as a priest at ”Saint John the Baptist” church in Constanta and as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Theology of the Ovidius University, Constanța.

Among his publications, the most remarkable are: Culte et religion populaire dans l`Eglise Orthodoxe. Le mariage chez les Roumains Orthodoxes a l`aube du XXI-e siecle, French ed. Vasiliana, Iaşi, 2008; “The implementation challenges of the Bologna process in theological orthodox university education in Romania – the dialogue between church and state”, International Scientific Conferences on Social Sciences & Arts, Albena, Bulgaria,

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3-9th September 2014, vol. III Psychology, Psychiatry, Sociology, Healthcare Education, pp. 913-925; “The Personality of the Saintly Prince Constatin Brâncoveanu as Revealed in the Prefaces of the Books Printed in his Age” in the International Journal of Cross-Cultural Studies and Environmental Communication.

Special Issue “Constantin Brâncoveanu’s Legacy from Cross-Cultural Perspectives”, 2015 (Coordinators Florentina Nicolae and Nicoleta Stanca), pp. 39-48; Isbășoiu, Iulian, Nicoleta Stanca. “In the Same Melting Pot? America and Europe.” DIALOGO, vol. 7, issue 1 (November 2020): 126-135.

Nicoleta Stanca is Associate Professor at Ovidius University Constanta.

She has published four book-length studies: Irish-Romanian Cultural Connections.

Travellers, Writers and Ambassadors (2019), Mapping Ireland (Essays on Space and Place in Contemporary Irish Poetry) (2014), The Harp and the Pen (Tradition and Novelty in Modern Irish Writing) (2013), Duality of Vision in Seamus Heaney’s Writings (2009), articles in academic journals and book chapters on Irish-American identity, literary studies and popular culture. She has been a co-editor of conference volumes, the most recent being: Ideology, Identity and the US: Crossroads, Freeways, Collisions (2019).

She is a member of ESSE and EAAS and an alumna of the Multinational Institute of American Studies, New York University (NYU).

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DIALOGO JOURNAL 8 : 1 (2021) 129 - 136

doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.12

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Distance learning during Covid-19 pandemic in Iran Beata Pietkiewicz-Pareek, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor at University of Wroclaw, Department of General Pedagogy Poland https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8450-1707 article info

abstract

Article history: Received 31 August 2021 Received in revised form 14 October Accepted 16 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.12

The article highlights the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Iranian schools.

Education in Iran has relied heavily on traditional teaching methods. In a country such as Iran, affected by economic sanctions and wars, in addition to experiencing one of the world’s largest outbreaks of the coronavirus, the impact of the pandemic Covid-19 on its education system has been significant. Because of this, the education system has reorganized the popular traditional teaching and didactics methods by favoring distance learning work. The article is based on the comprehensive analysis of distance learning educational methods during the COVID-19 pandemic period using the online available documents, articles, and reports posted on the Internet and telephone interviews with Iranian teachers from March 2020 to August 2021.

Keywords: education; Iran; Covid-19; e-learning;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Beata Pietkiewicz-Pareek. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Pietkiewicz-Pareek, Beata. ”Distance learning during Covid-19 pandemic in Iran.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 129-136. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.12

I.

introduction: covid-19 pandemic in iran

The first confirmed cases of COVID-19 infections in Iran were reported on 19 February 2020 in Qom which is an important center of religious education and a place of pilgrimage. In the days that followed the virus spread rapidly both in and around Qom Province, especially in the capital city of Tehran [1].

COVID-19 in Iran reached 17 361 cases on March 17, while the death toll reached approximately 1135. On 10 March, Iran’s

Ministry of Education announced the closure of all schools and universities to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

It is worth noting that Iran has been one of the countries the hardest hit by the virus[2].

As of 31 August 2021, there were 4,992,063 reported cases of COVID-19 infection in Iran, 4,205,927 people recovered and 107,794 people died. The mortality rate in the group of socalled closed cases was 2 percent. After a year, the pandemic situation is not stable.

Iran is among the world’s leading countries with the highest rates of morbidity and mortality[3].

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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II. Methodology

In this article I focus on two problems.

In the first part of the article I present the situation of Iran during pandemic Covid-19.

In the second part I try to present the Iranian educational system and e-learning initiatives in Iran, especially SHAD platform.

Data and information presented in current article are collected from various reports prepared by national and international agencies on COVID-19 pandemic, or collected from various websites.

III. The Educational System in Iran

‘Each educational system is a political instrument which enables the establishment and modification of discourse forms that are deemed appropriate, together with the knowledge and power it entails’ [4] As Z. Kwieciński wrote: ‘a systemic approach treats the school as one of the subsystems of global society or local community. This subsystem, next to other subsystems ‘works’ for the sake of the achievement of social objectives, in particular: it reconstructs culture, prepares personnel for the purpose of local and supraregional economy, introduces people to values they came across. School as a subsystem should adapt as well as it possibly can to the remaining subsystems that achieve social objectives in order to act in the most efficient way and in contradiction towards other subsystems’ [5] I. Illich’s observation that within the framework of the school system, teaching melts together with assigning social roles, perfectly reflects the essence of the system reproduction [6].

Maliheh Rabie shows that in the past monarchy, the major policies governing the education system focused mainly on the two national and western dimensions of Iranian identity[7], while in the current Islamic regime, its Islamic dimension is more

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prominent. In 2011, the Iranian education system, by compiling “Fundamental Education Reform Document”, modified the foundations and aims of education based on Islamic philosophy of education in order to change the predominantly of Western philosophies. The Fundamental Education Reform Document of Iran as the most important document and the reference for the enactment of educational policies and laws, set the six main objectives of education in economic, religious and moral, social and political, biological and physical, aesthetic and artistic, economical and professional, and scientific and technological.

As Maliheh Rabie observes, Fundamental Document on Education Transformation represents religious dimension of Iranian identity: monotheism, world justice, Mahdism [8], and the development of Islamic-Iranian civilization. The “Principles of National Curriculum” section of enactment No. 745, Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution indicated that: Curricula should improve the promotion of national identity through attention and reinforcement of Islamic beliefs and values, culture and civilization of Islam and Iran, Persian language and literature, the values of the Islamic Revolution, patriotism, unity and national independence, and strive to promote the identity of pupils to the level of divine identity [9] According to Saeed Paivandi the religious authorities remained suspicious towards modern education, fearing that it would undermine traditional religious values. They conceived the irreversible rise of the new school a serious threat to their power in an area they traditionally had a monopoly.

They also were afraid of depriving religious teachers of an important source of income.

In general, religious conservatism perceived the new school as part of the overall project of “Westernization” of Iranian society [10]

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IV. E-Learning Initiatives

An important factor that has been stressed by the Przemysław Osiewicz, one of the greatest social challenges has been to ensure universal access to education in the new context of compulsory distance learning. All schools and universities were already closed in the first phase of the pandemic in early March. In practice, however, it was associated with the actual deprivation of access to education for many children and students, especially in smaller urban centers and in the countryside. In poverty areas, there is not only a lack of access to computer equipment and the Internet, but even to television.[11] To minimize the effect of the school closures on the education system, On 4 April 2020 Iran’s Education Ministry introduced an online app, the Social Network of Students (SHAD in Persian), and presents daily lessons for different grades on state TV. The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology ordered companies that provide home internet access to increase network speed fourfold. Online applications help students access teaching materials and allow them to participate in classes and interact with teachers, much like classroom lectures. [12]. (Children must download the SHAD app, enter their national identity number, choose their school and their class and then join their classmates and teachers to follow lessons in the virtual classrooms) [13].

The government also prepared self-study packages and delivered them to students living in areas with poor communications services or those completely cut off from service. The locally designed app can serve as many as 16 million students, including those with physical impairments, but its official launch was delayed to ensure security after recent incidents in which information of millions of Iranians was leaked [14].

Przemyslaw Osiewicz argues that the situation worsened further with the compulsory use of the official SHAD education platform for all teachers and pupils in Iran. The use of foreign applications such as Telegram and WhatsApp, used

by Iranian teachers until that time, was prohibited and SHAD application only worked properly on phones with the latest version of Android installed. In addition, many users reported problems logging in to the website, numerous errors and a very slow data transfer [15].

According to Farnaz Tajik and Mahdi Vahedi, Iranian used WhatsApp, Telegram and Shad (an Iranian educational medium) during pandemic. Shad, Soroush, and Rubica are some Iranian social media also used by teachers. 81% of students stated that they used social media for learning. As teachers created study groups and education channels in applications such as WhatsApp and Telegram, students were able to interact with both their classmates and teachers, with lessons that were taught specifically to their grade level and class subject [16].

According to Suleiman Ahmady et al. in Iran, virtual education for grade-school students is performed through scheduled programs through TV and mobile education through social media; and, in higher education, virtual instruction is performed through mobile messenger systems and learning management systems, such as NAVID, VESTA, and MOODLE [17].

In opinion of Yaghmouri, a co-founder of Iranian educational startup Classgram, a class management tool for primary-grade students, the coronavirus pandemic is a “big test” for the country’s educational system. He urged education officials to end their “monopolistic view,” explaining that distance learning won’t succeed “as long as the ministry continues to be both a decisionmaker and implementer.” SHAD— is a clear indication that it is continuing old policy

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of keeping full control over the education system by Ministry [18].

In the opinion of Alijani Ershad, “poverty is the principal problem for distance learning in the country. According to Iran’s parliamentary research centre, between 40 and 55% of Iranians live under the poverty line. About 80% of Iranian internet users live in cities and around 20% in rural areas [19].

According to Soleiman Ahmady, Sara Shahbazi and Mohammad Heidari in elementary and secondary school education in Iran, conditions of achieving virtual education during the crisis of COVID-19 are complex due to (1) cultural and social contexts, (2) lack of teachers’ preparation for virtual teaching, (3) lack of access to all infrastructures and equipment, (4) willingness to hold presence classes, (5) impossibility of using mobile-based training for all age groups, (6) lack of access to smartphones, (7) insufficient literacy and technological capabilities, (8) inability to virtualize all courses, and (9) large number of learners and the limited time to prepare online courses [20].

V. Digital Exclusion as an Institutional

Marginalisation

A. Jastrzębska and W. Jastrzębska argue that `the essence of digital exclusion is the division of society into people with access to the Internet and modern telecommunications technologies and those without this possibility`[21].

Particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic, school closures have magnified preexisting socioeconomic and political disparities within the education system, especially for the most vulnerable and marginalized, revealing inequities in access to resources and issues related to privilege, power, and control in certain regions of the world [22].

While Iran’s Education Minister claimed only 7 percent of Iranian students have no

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internet access, according to the latest survey by The Statistical Centre of Iran in 2017, 28% of Iranians had no or limited internet access. About 80% of Iranian internet users live in cities and around 20% in rural areas.

The Director General of Education Ministry of Sistan and Baluchestan Province – a poor province in south-east Iran that shares a border with Afghanistan and Pakistan – said that only up to 40% of students in the province had access to internet [23].

Abdolreza Fooladvand, head of the education department in Tehran, said that around 140,000 children are not enrolled in schools in the country. Among Afghan refugees around 81% are engaged in labor in Iran Most of these Afghan children live in the slums of south Tehran, a less-expensive and heavily crowded area of the capital city. They travel to different parts of the city, mostly bus stations, subways, traffic crossings, and sell an assortment of products – flowers, chewing gums, socks, and even poems of 14h century famous Persian poets [24].

VI. “An Epidemic” Child Labour durng

Covid-19 Pandemic

UNICEF defines child labour: if between 5 to 11 years of age, he or she did at least one hour of economic activity or at least 28 hours of domestic work in a week, and in case of children between 12 to 14 years of age, he or she did at least 14 hours of economic activity or at least 42 hours of economic activity and domestic work per week. UNICEF in another report suggests, “Children’s work needs to be seen as happening along a continuum, with destructive or exploitative work at one end and beneficial work - promoting or enhancing children’s development without interfering with their schooling, recreation and rest - at the other. And between these two poles are vast areas of work that need not negatively affect a child’s development.

According to UNICEF statistics from 2012, up

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to 11.4 percent of Iranian children are said to be doing some kind of illegal work. Although children under the age of 15 are forbidden from working by Iranian law, organized crime and poverty make their exploitation a reality. Human trafficking makes tracking child labor immensely difficult. As well as adults, gangs target homeless children, often from the families of undocumented refugees from Afghanistan[25].

With almost one million Afghan refugee cardholders already in country, the Government of Iran has consistently welcomed Afghans fleeing protracted conflict and violence for over 40 years, including through exemplary inclusion of Afghans in national health and education systems. In cooperation with Iran’s Bureau for Aliens and Foreign Immigrants’ Affairs (BAFIA), UNHCR has already provided immediate assistance to new arrivals, including food and water [26][27].

A number of these children are forced to work in agriculture and construction along with adult debt slaves. Organized crime groups begging or selling goods. Some reports have identified children as young as three who were coerced into this work.

Many of the children also undergo physical and sexual abuse from the traffickers, as well as sometimes being forced into drug addiction [28].

In the opinion of the Iran Welfare Organization’s Office of Social Harm Victims, Reza Jafari: “Child workers are so numerous that no organization can single-handedly cope with the problem”. Homelessness makes children especially vulnerable to trafficking and forced labor. According to the government’s official statistics, over 60 thousand children live on the streets in Iran. Non-governmental organizations and charities put this figure much higher at 200 thousand. Child homelessness is particularly concentrated in large urban areas, namely Tehran [29].

The study of Saeedeh Jalili Moayad, demonstrated a relatively high rate of abuses experienced in work environments among Iranian child laborers: 77.6 % of children experienced at least one type of abuse, with emotional abuse (70.4 %) as the most frequently experienced abuse followed by neglect (52 %), physical abuse (5.8 %), and sexual abuse (3.6 %). Furthermore, living alone or with a single parent was a risk factor, while working in home jobs, or being older were the protective factors of abuses experienced at work among child laborers [30].

The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action observes that there are some risk of Child labour during COVID-19 pandemic: -More children pushed into child labour /WFCL including commercial sexual exploitation to meet basic needs of their families.

-Children, especially girls, assuming greater responsibilities for family survival, taking longer hours in domestic and care duties.

-Lack of external workers places more responsibility on children to assist in family activities, including agriculture and homebased industries -Caregivers resort to negative survival strategies including child labour and childmarriage -Child caretakers, especially girls, more exposed to risks of disease contraction bylooking after sick relatives According to The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action there are some contributing risk factors: -Closure of school, learning facilities and limited access to remote learning increase time at home.

-Reductions in family income due to death, illness,quarantine job loss.

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-Reinforcement of traditional gender roles at home: increased role of girls in cleaning, cooking, and care giving; increased pressure on boys to help their family with income generating activities.

-Weakened or overburdened governments unable to prevent exploitation in certain at-risk sectors.

-Essential services for children at risk of child labour are reduced and therefore basic needs are not met.

-Children in isolation do not see their peers and friends and are disconnected from other support networks.

-Family separation due to hospitalization, quarantine, isolation, migration or death.

-Myths around COVID-19 that down play the risks of the disease, especially for children [31].

Conclusions The paper discussed the struggle of Iranian people in the society with limitations such as the inability to establish direct contact between the teacher and the student, the lack of Internet access, the lack of access to libraries and teaching aids, the lack of access to school infrastructure, as well as the inability to use direct help of peers. The Iranian government is trying to improve the existing educational programmes and create new ones based on resources available to Iranian’s poorest people. It is done to avoid children dropping out of school and minimize the gap between poor and rich communities.

Rojin Vishkaie argues that Government as well as non-and for-profit organizations must work hand in hand to enable more students across the globe to have universal access to digital devices and the Internet for lowincome households at subsidized rates. This also includes providing equal levels of service and networks to rural and underserved

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communities so that all students, regardless of socioeconomic status, can participate in remote learning. Inclusiveness also means ensuring that young girls are trained with the necessary digital skills, including the knowledge and skills they need to stay safe online. Having access to computers and the Internet is a crucial necessity for education globally, but that alone is not enough. The incredible power of digital technology for education must also be embraced by training and preserving additional and more qualified staff, alongside new technologies to promote the best application of these resources. In addition, digital literacy as a doorway to socioeconomic and political literacy should educate students for a digital future that is inclusive, sustainable, and collaborative [32].

At this juncture a Spanish anarchist F Ferrer needs to be quoted who thinks that: ‘in the past schools were available for elites and the control was exercised to keep the people in ignorance (...) Today education is universal, and yet the constraints have remained, the scope of control has not changed. The introduction of general education is linked to the new conditions of production. The state did not ensure the organisation of the general system of education in order to give people the possibility of full development, but because it needed a large number of workers adapted to the system of the division of labour. The old system has been abandoned as it did not guarantee economic growth. Under the new system control over schooling is essential in order to preserve the beliefs which give foundation for social discipline [33]. Emile Durkheim suggests that `when the deviation from norm disappears, the educational system redefines its norms in order to reconstruct the deviation. When all citizens gain education, the nation will redefine anew in such a way as to reconstruct the margins.

Institutional marginalization, under which

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term education indubitably falls, is therefore systemic in nature and is characteristic of the modern social system` [34].

References [1] P. Osiewicz, The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran: Managing pandemic threat under political and economic sanctions https://wnpid.amu.edu.pl/__data/assets/pdf_ file/0021/224490/10.-Osiewicz-P_.pdf, p.2 [2] A. Raoofi, A. Takian, A. Akbari Sari, et al.

“COVID-19 pandemic and comparative health policy learning in Iran.” Archives Iran Med. 2020;23(4):220-234.

[3] https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ country/iran/ [4] S.J. Ball, Foucault and Education. Disciplines and Knowledge, Kraków 1994, pp. 13-14 [5] Z. Kwieciński, “Thinking models on educational reforms,” Neodidagmata 33/34, Poznań 2011-2012, pp. 111-112 [6] I. Illich, A society without a school, PIW, Warsaw 1976, p. 44 [7] In accordance with Wallerstein’s theory, the world has not been composed exclusively of modern states and primitive peoples. In the 19th century, areas of ‘highly developed civilisation’ existed in India, Persia, the Arab world. They had some common features: literacy, dominant language and religion other than Christianity. However, on account of underdeveloped technology the pan-European world did not consider it as modern. In the context of the economic expansion of the world system, they were incorporated into the system as colonies. In reality, a colonial state constituted the weakest state type in the international system with the lowest degree of autonomy and the highest susceptibility to exploitation from the country that is a metropolis. One of the coloniser’s aims was not only ensuring control over manufacturing processes in the colony, but also guaranteeing that no other state in the world system would have access to its resources or markets.

I. Wallerstein, World Systems Analysis.

Introduction, Wyd. Akademickie Dialog, Warsaw 2007, pp.22, 84

[8] In the Twelver branch of Shia Islam, derived from the belief in the reappearance of the Twelfth Shiite Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi as the savior of the apocalypse for the salvation of human beings and the establishment of peace and justice. Mahdism is a kind of messianism.

From this perspective, it is believed that Jesus Christ and Khidr are still alive and will emerge with Muhammad al-Mahdi in order to fulfil their mission of bringing peace and justice to the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Mahdism#Political_Mahdism [9] M. Rabie et al., “A Comparative Study of Social Education in the Primary Education of Iran and Japan,” Iranian Journal of Comparative Education, 2019, 2(4), 452- 480. https://journal.cesir.ir/ article_105264_482fc0e46e820e2bab2988e9 cd3cec9a.pdf [10] S. Paivandi, “The meaning of the Islamization of the school in Iran,” in M. Ahmed, Education inWest Asia, London: Bloomsbury 2012, pp.

79-102.

[11] P. Osiewicz, The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran: Managing p...

[12] M. Bizaer, Pandemic reveals Iran`s online learning challenges, https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2020/04/ iran-pandemic-online-learning-challengescoronavirus-covid19.html [13] A. Ershad, In Iran, poverty and lack of internet make distance learning impossible, France24, 21.04.2020, https://observers.france24.com/ en/20200421-iran-internet-covid19- distancelearning-poverty [14] M. Bizaer, Pandemic reveals ...

[15] P. Osiewicz, The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran...

[16] F. Tajik, M. Vahedi, Quarantine and education: an assessment of Iranian formal education during the COVID-19 outbreak and school closures, International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology (IJEDICT), 2021, Vol. 17, Issue 1, pp. 159-175 [17] S. Ahmady, S. Shahbazi and M. Heidari, “Transition to Virtual Learning During the Coronavirus Disease–2019 Crisis in Iran: Opportunity Or Challenge?,” Disaster

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Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, May 2020 DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2020.142.

[18] https://www.al-monitor.com/ originals/2020/04/iran-pandemic-onlinelearning-challenges-coronavirus-covid19. html.

[19] A. Ershad, In Iran, poverty and lack of internet make distance learning impossible, ...

[20] S. Ahmady, S. Shahbazi and M. Heidari, Transition to ...

[21] A. Jastrzębska, W. Jastrzębska, “Wykluczenie cyfrowe – przyczyny, zagrożenia i bariery jego pokonania. Studium Przypadku,” Nierówności społeczne a wzrost gospodarczy 2012, no. 25, p. 92.

[22]http://interactions.acm.org/archive/view/julyaugust-2020/the-pandemic-war-and-sanctions [23]http..Amar.org.ir/Portals/0/amarmozuii/ infographics/Presentation1-Internet-980631. pdf.

[24]https://www.globalvillagespace.com/childlabour-in-iran-a-national-epidemic/ [25] UNICEF (2012), The State of The World`s Children 2011. http://www.unicef.org/ sowc2011/pdfs/SOWC-2011-Main-Report_ EN_02092011.pdf P.23. [ 2 6 ] h t t p s : / / w w w. u n h c r. o rg / n e w s / press/2021/8/611141ec4/afghan-refugeesreach-iran-violence-escalates.html [27] Borders between Iran and Afghanistan are officially closed since 16 August 2021, except for two that remain open for commerce.

Informal routes are likely being used to come into Iran. https://reliefweb.int/report/iran-islamicrepublic/afghanistan-situation-emergencypreparedness-and-response-iran-19 Iran has set up temporary camps to receive Afghans fleeing recent events, but said those who enter the country will be repatriated once conditions improve. h t t p s : / / w w w. t h e n e w h u m a n i t a r i a n . o r g / analysis/2021/8/30/Afghan-refugees-escapeTaliban-rule [28] UNICEF (2012), The State of The World`s Children 2011..

[29] S. Kia, “Iran: child labour situation to worsen,” NCRI National Council of Resistance of Iran

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https://www.ncr-iran.org/en/news/society/ iran-child-labour-situation-to-worsen/ [30] S. J. Moayad, “Child labor in Tehran, Iran: Abuses experienced in work environments,” Child Abuse & Neglect, Volume 117, July 2021, 105054.

[31] The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, Technical Note: COVID-19 and child labour, 2020. https:// www.alliancecpha.org/en/covid19childlabour [32] R. Vishkaie, “The Pandemic, War, And Sanctions: Building Resilience For The Digital Divide In Education,” The Handbook Of Multimodal-Multisensor Interfaces, Volume III XXVII.4 July - August 2020, p.36 http://interactions.acm.org/archive/view/julyaugust-2020/the-pandemic-war-and-sanctions [33] P. Laskowski, Sketches from the history of anarchism, Wyd. Literackie Muza, Warsaw 2006, pp. 484-485.

[34] I. Wallerstein, The End of the World As We Know it, Scholar Scientific Publishers, Warsaw 2004, p 144.

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DIALOGO JOURNAL 8 : 1 (2021) 137 - 143

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Aristotle’s Mean in Politics and Religion Spyridon Stelios, Ph.D.

The National Technical University of Athens, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Athens Greece

Alexia Dotsi, Ph.D.

The National Technical University of Athens, School of Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Athens Greece

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 24 September 2021 Received in revised form 03 October Accepted 05 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.13

In this paper, we investigate the political and religious projection of Aristotle’s Doctrine of the Mean. According to Aristotle and his virtue ethics theory, humans succeed the mean when they acknowledge in what they are physically inclined to. If someone knows towards where she is deviating, either in terms of exaggeration or understatement, then she can, at some point, achieve the mean as the end goal of ethical virtue. But what if these moral evaluations refer to collective processes, such as politics, culture and religion? In this case, the notion of “intermediate” could be paralleled with the notion of ‘optimized’. A way of locating the optimized point on the political or cultural public sphere is to acknowledge in what people are politically or culturally inclined to. This seems to be guided by their cultural traditions, political history and aims. In politics and modern democracies, the doctrine may be applied in virtues, such as justice. Excess in the administration of justice causes “witch hunts” and deficiency lawlessness. Respectively, in today’s religious-oriented societies - countries that could be ranked according to their religiosity – where there is little tolerance in their permissible cultural patterns, the application of Aristotle’s mean reveals interesting findings. More specifically, in the case of the virtue of honor, the excess may lead to honor crimes and deficiency to contempt. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Keywords: politics; religion; virtue; mean; public sphere;

Copyright © 2021 Spyridon Stelios, Alexia Dotsi. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Stelios, Spyridon, and Alexia Dotsi. “Aristotle’s Mean in Politics and Religion.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 137-143. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.13

I.

Introduction

In this paper, Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics approach and especially the Doctrine of the Mean is been investigated. The overriding question is whether the Doctrine can be projected to the public sphere and lead

to true happiness (or in Aristotle’s words, Eudaimonia). The two areas examined are a) politics and specifically democracy and b) religion as a key parameter of a nation’s cultural identity.

Politics studies mostly social behavior.

It refers to activities associated with the

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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governance of a distinct entity in political geography. It is about making decisions that apply to members of a group and deals with the production of ideas and the way they are applied, both on vital issues of human existence (freedom, security, justice, culture, etc.), as well as on other issues concerning the nation, the community, the citizen, the worker, etc.

Religion may be described as a personal set or institutionalized social-cultural system. It involves designated behaviors and beliefs that relate humans to metaphysical elements through ardor and faith [1].

A common component between Politics and Religion is moral action and the discipline to study it is Ethics. Moral philosophy involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct. It concerns matters of value and seeks to resolve questions of human morality by defining concepts such as good and evil, virtue and vice. It is a common component between Religion and Politics because it analyses and, maybe, attempts to regulate human behavior.

One major area of study within Ethics is Normative Ethics. It concerns the practical means of determining a moral course of action. One of the main theories of Normative Ethics is Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics (VE) theory. Rather than focusing on specific actions, it focuses on the inherent character of a person. It emphasizes the virtues, or moral character, in contrast to the approaches that emphasize duties or rules (deontology) or the consequences of actions (consequentialism). A right conduct is a virtuous conduct.

II.

Aristotelian virtues

Let us begin with the basic term of VE. What is a virtue? It is generally agreed [2] to be a character trait (f.i. courage, honor, justice). A habitual action or settled

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sentiment (feeling), a positive trait that makes its possessor a good human being.

Aristotle takes virtue and its exercise, aiming at the mean, to be the most important constituent in Eudaimonia - a rather objective state of true happiness, welfare, human flourishing or prosperity. He acknowledges also the importance of external goods such as health, wealth, and beauty.

Aristotelian virtue is defined [3] as a purposive disposition, lying in a mean. Every ethical virtue is a condition intermediate (a “golden mean”) between two other states, one involving excess, and the other deficiency [4]. Furthermore, a virtuous actor chooses virtuous action knowingly and for its own sake. It is not enough to act kindly by accident, unthinkingly, or because everyone else is doing so; you must act kindly because you recognize consciously that this is the right way to behave. Most importantly, virtue is determined by the right reason. To act from the wrong reason is to act viciously.

If we accept this mean, virtues seem to be no different from technical skills: every skilled worker knows how to avoid excess and deficiency, and is in a condition intermediate between two extremes. The courageous person, for example, judges that some dangers are worth facing and others not, and experiences fear to a degree that is appropriate to his circumstances. So, a scale in the virtue of courage might be: deficiency=coward and excess= rash.

III.

The doctrine of the mean

This assumption is known as the Doctrine of the Mean (meson, mesotēs). Every virtue of character lies between two correlative faults or vices consisting respectively, of the excess and the deficiency of something of which the virtue represents the right amount.

In his two ethical treatises: the Eudemian Ethics and the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle

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draws a distinction between two kinds of mean: a mean with “reference to the object” and the mean “relative to us”. In the Eudemian Ethics Aristotle argues that “the mean relative to us is best” and produces the best state [5], but says nothing about what sort of mean is that. This is made clearer in Nicomachean Ethics (the passage which begins at [6]), where the distinction is drawn. More specifically (see [7]: • The mean “with reference to the object” is the simplest form of meson (mean) in mathematics. Schematically, it could be represented by a scale.

• The mean “relative to us” neither goes to excess nor is deficient. It is not one thing, nor the same for all. Schematically, it could be represented by a spinning top with a central balancing point.

According to [8], as cited in [7], “The contrast seems to be that between the midpoint [“mean,” meson] on some scale, which is a matter of calculation” and “[t]he second mean, which involves an evaluative element and cannot be determined without reference to human needs and purposes – hence the phrase “relative to us”. We can call the first scale a quantitative one and the second measure a qualitative one. And it seems as though the arithmetical mean (quantitative) serves as a basis for the mean relative to us (qualitative).

The mean relative to even one of us is not one thing (b). For example, the various ways in which “extremes” are to be balanced (in proportion) for a healthy, “mean” diet, described in the ancient medical literature, show us how to do so. They took the weight and age of the patient to be relevant. The same applies in the ethical level.

So, virtuous people and experts aim at the mean “relative to us,” but the nonvirtuous and novices do not. All humans’ end is the human good, the supreme good “relative to us”; this involves excellent

activity, acting and feeling well. This end/ purpose determines which circumstances are relevant for the agent in a given situation. In the ethical context, the mean “relative to us” can be one thing for you and another for me. This applies if and only if a difference between us makes for different circumstances relevant to the end of each of us acting well. So, the contrast between the arithmetical mean and the mean “relative to us” is a contrast between what is always the same and what varies according to the particular circumstances. Furthermore, the mean “relative to us” cannot be determined without reference to human goods [9].

IV.

From personal to social sphere

The moral Doctrine of the Mean is quite challenging, and for this we will now proceed to its projection to the collective level. Personal virtues are represented in the social sphere by what we might call ‘collective virtues’ which in turn are represented by institutions and traditions.

Virtues in the public sphere play a crucial role. They may safeguard communities from poor leadership, threats of a lack of concern for truth, authoritarian rule etc. [10] For example, the virtue of justice, which could be defined as just behavior or treatment not for oneself but for the other (see also Book V of Nicomachean Ethics), suggest the proper distribution of roles, tasks and rewards within a community. By referring to political justice individuals can discern what their appropriate ethical role might be [11]. This is particularly important, since often people have the impression that the justice system is unfair and governmental institutions serve only certain interests [12].

In addition, within any given society, there are many prominent and vital shared goals. Justice as well as democracy are among them. They are group-level phenomena rising up as group features and

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not as individual possessions. Individual cannot have them independently. Any person cannot have more justice than the other participants, because this kind of goal and virtue only exists to the degree that is fully shared [13].

Virtues in the public sphere concern specifically human purposes, such as good and noble flourishing. It is impossible to understand flourishing solely at the individual level. Man is a social and political animal and any purpose must first be understood socially and politically, in a sense that includes the cultural and religious priorities [11].

So, the purpose of human flourishing may be related to religion. Within religious conduct, the virtue of honor has a prominent place. The way honor is constructed within morality is an important topic in the study of the connections and divergences between culture and religion. These correlations are expressed both symbolically and socially.

The moral concept of honor may be viewed as sign of distinction and belonging that remains important in communities and cultures [14].

It is worth mentioning that Aristotle discusses honor under the headings of greatness of soul or magnanimity (megalopsychia) (1123b-1124a of Book IV of Nicomachean Ethics). In the virtue of magnanimity, honor is the tipping point in the overall question of virtue and at the same time the one that shapes the perception of our inherent good. Greatness of soul is about finding a mean between deficiency, represented by being overly modest, and excess represented by vanity and boastfulness. The virtue of magnanimity, thus, is about estimating one’s own worth properly and claiming due honor for it. So in Aristotle the concept of honor has a different ethical meaning than what is implied today, especially within religious conduct [15]. In the treatise it is associated with the proper

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rendering of honors to the magnanimous person, while today within a community it is often associated with specific religious customs, beliefs and traditions of a particular culture.

If we attempt a definition of honor today, that would include high respect for onerself and other people and quality of doing what is morally right. It is a life lived by virtues and rules and by keeping one’s word, regardless of what others are doing or saying. Honor seems to represent a lifestance of integrity involving all those presuppositions and theories upon which such a stance can be made.

Based on the above, we will briefly examine the virtue of justice at the political level and the virtue of honor at the religious/ cultural level. As already mentioned, these virtues are considered collective, belonging to the public sphere and having different deficiencies and excesses which of course concern all members of the community.

A. Political Level In (full) democratic governments (such as those in the Scandinavia region, [16]. the doctrine may be applied in virtues, such as justice. There, the excess in the administration of justice may cause “witch hunts” and deficiency lawlessness. The same applies to less democratic governments [17]. The difference is not a definitional one.

It is a pragmatic, qualitative one. As already said, the difference between these two kinds of government makes for different circumstances relevant to the end of each of them governing well. And this difference is the ‘degree of democracy’.

• In democratic governments the circle of judicial system balances on the right mean relative to that democracy and to those circumstances (the state of the judiciary and the crimes committed).

These countries have exercised the

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virtue of justice within their political history for the purpose of maintaining order (socially-inclined human good), and reached to such judicial systems that lead to Eudaimonia - an objective, not a subjective, state. And indeed this seems to be confirmed if we define Eudaimonia as happiness and, by comparison, see the similarities between happy and democratic states (see [18] and [16]).

• In less democratic governments, the mean of justice “relative to these countries” is not achieved. A reason for this, according to this approach, is that what is assumed as an end (i.e. human good) determines different circumstances as relevant. The mean here is sensitive to the requirements of the country and its current situation.

Those countries have exercised the virtue of justice within their political history for the purpose of maintaining power instead of order. It is actually a politicallyinclined human good. By doing that, they reached to such judicial systems that, after all, cannot lead to a somewhat collective Eudaimonia.

Overall, justice must be determined by the right reason. Judiciary has to effortlessly, perceive the right reason, that is human good and flourishing, and to have an inner state of virtue that flows smoothly into action. This way, the virtuous judiciary can act as an exemplar of virtue to other institutions.

B. Cultrural/Religious Level For the cultural/religious level we cannot so easily rely on any world report. Even the modern or traditional status of a country is debatable (traditional economy, traditional way of life or what else?). Nevertheless, there are countries in the world that could be ranked according to their religiosity [19].

• In societies that tolerate little variation in

their permissible religious (and cultural) patterns the excess in acts concerning honor may cause a high rate of extreme reactions, such as honor crimes and deficiency may lead to contempt of morality. The circle of specific cultural manners has to balance on the right mean relative to that culture and to those circumstances, which might be religious, ethnic, etc. Honor is determined with a reference to human needs and purposes of that society. These might be the preservation of cultural identity which represents a culturally-inclined human good. If in accordance with the Doctrine of the Mean, those circumstances may lead to Eudaimonia.

• The same applies to not so traditional and religious cultures. The difference is not a definitional one. It is again a pragmatic, qualitative one. Honor is determined with a different reference to human needs and purposes. One purpose might be the pursuit of a cultural evolution (see progress) leading to a culturally/ evolutionary-inclined human good.

It should be noted though that, according to [20], national cultures appear to have a more important impact on moral values than do religions. They better explain the differences in virtues between nations.

Furthermore, [21], as cited in [20], argue that national traditions, reinforced by national institutions, seem to shape the values of a nation’s members, regardless of diverging religious heritages and practices.

Conclusion The basic conclusions drawn from the above may be formulated as follows: • As discussed, the Doctrine of the Mean refers to the mean “relative to the state or culture”. It is the sort of thing that neither goes to excess nor is deficient.

Moreover, it is not one thing and not

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the same for all communities. It involves an evaluative element, and cannot be determined without reference to human needs and purposes. For justice, as discussed above, it is not just a matter of range and severity of court sentences.

It concerns the political system in which this virtue is manifested and practiced.

• Therefore, we might argue that it is the ‘quality’ of the state/government or culture that sets the mean in the public sphere. The two opposite types of injustice or dishonor are one of disproportionate excess and the other of disproportionate deficiency determined by the political or religious setting.

• For a community’s ‘moral compass’ the collective ‘magnetic fields’ move the needle according to political or cultural processes. Based on Aristotle’s Doctrine of the Mean, the ‘needle’ must indicate the intermediate or optimized point on the political or cultural “horizon”. A way of locating this point is to acknowledge in what people are politically or culturally inclined to. And this is guided by their cultural traditions, political history and aims.

Based on the above, it is quite challenging how this specific moral doctrine is understood and discussed in cases where the answer to various ethical dilemmas, concerning governmental, judicial and social decisions, is not just a yes or no. By this theoretical scheme, any political and social practice can be interpreted to offer useful insights both into the present and into the future.

Most important, however, is the way in which Aristotle’s mean can be associated with Eudaimonia. Our brief investigation indicates that true happiness is intertwined with the pursuit of universal goals such as human good and flourishing. Only when such purposes are defined can the Doctrine of the Mean constructively highlight the

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nature of the all-important collective virtues.

References [1] “Religion,” Merriam-webster, last modified September 20, 2021, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/religion.

[2] Hursthouse, Rosalind and Pettigrove, Glen.

“Virtue Ethics,” The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2018 Edition), https:// plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2018/entries/ ethics-virtue/.

[3] Aristotle, Taylor C C W. Nicomachean Ethics.

Books II-IV. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.

[4] Idem, II, 1106a26–b28.

[5] Idem, II, 1220b26–30.

[6] Idem, II, 1106a26.

[7] Hursthouse, Rosalind. (2006). “The Central Doctrine of the Mean.” In The Blackwell Guide to Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, edited by Richard Kraut, 96—115. Blackwell, 2006, 101-102.

[8] Woods, Michael. Aristotle’s Eudemian Ethics, I, II and VIII. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1982, 111-112 [9] Hursthouse, Rosalind. (2006). “The Central Doctrine of the Mean.” In The Blackwell Guide to Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, edited by Richard Kraut, 96—115. Blackwell, 2006, 105.

[10] Arthur, James. Virtues in the Public Sphere: Citizenship, Civil Friendship and Duty.

Routledge, 2020, i.

[11] Idem, 3.

[12] Jacobs, Jonathan (2020). “Moral Education, Skills of Civility, and Virtue in the Public Sphere.” In Virtues in the Public Sphere: Citizenship, Civil Friendship and Duty, edited

by James Arthur, 39-50. Routledge, 2020, 43.

[13] Fowers, Blaine, J. (2020). “Is There a Plausible Moral Psychology for Civic Friendship?” In Virtues in the Public Sphere: Citizenship, Civil Friendship and Duty, edited

by James Arthur, 79-91. Routledge, 2020, 87.

[14] Rasmussen, Susan. “Understanding Honor in Religious, Cultural, and Moral Experience: Commentary on “Diasporic Virginities:

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Social Representations of Virginity and Constructions of Identity Amongst British Arab Muslim Women” by Howarth, Caroline; Amer, Amena; and Sen, Ragini.” Culture & Psychology, 21, 1 (2015): 20-36.

[15] Olsthoorn, Peter. Honor in Political and Moral Philosophy. New York: State University of New York Press, 2015, 16.

[16] “Democracy Index 2018,” Economist Intelligence Unit, last modified September 20, 2021, http://enperspectiva.uy/wp-content/ uploads/2019/01/Democracy_Index_2018. pdf. , 36.

[17] Idem, 38-40.

[18] “World Happiness Report 2018,” World Happiness Report, last modified September 20, 2021, https://worldhappiness.report/ ed/2018/.

[19] “Religiosity Highest in World’s Poorest Nations,” Gallup, last modified September 20, 2021, https://news.gallup.com/poll/142727/ religiosity-highest-world-poorest-nations. aspx.

[20] Van Oudenhoven, Jan Pieter, de Raad1, Boele, Carmona, Carmen, Helbig1, Anne-Kathrin, and van der Linden1, Meta. “Are Virtues Shaped by National Cultures or Religions?”

Swiss Journal of Psychology, 71, 1 (2012): 29–34, 34.

[21] Inglehart, Ronald, and Baker, Wayne.

E. “Modernization, Cultural Change, and the Perseverance of Traditional Values.”

American Sociological Review, 65 (2000): 19–51.

Biography Dr Spyridon Stelios is a member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA).

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Public Administration from National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (UoA) and a Master’s Degree (MA) in European Communication Studies from University of Amsterdam. He obtained his PhD in History and Philosophy of Sciences and Technology from UoA. He

lectures at several schools of NTUA. His main research interests are in ethics, epistemology and experimental philosophy and he has authored several (more than 20) book chapters, articles in international peer reviewed journals and conference proceedings in these areas. He has served as a reviewer for several academic journals and he is a member of the International Society for Engineering Pedagogy (IGIP).

Alexia Dotsi is an academic researcher, theatrologist and actress. She is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law of the National Technical University of Athens in the field of Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art. Her dissertation focuses on the role of art on children and young people. She holds a master’s degree from Harokopio University of Athens in Education and Culture Pedagogical Psychology. As a graduate of theatrical studies from University of Patras, she has extensively studied drama, acting for children, theatrical play, screenplay, directing and has concluded her studies in Athens on direction-scenography. She has attended numerous seminars on culture arts and psychology. In her academic life, she has participated as a speaker on several major conferences, highlighting the importance of arts and aesthetics, moral philosophy and culture in life. Professionally she runs Theaterplay, a small production company in which she acts directs and coordinates.

She has worked as an expert on several theatrical projects in schools, museums and art galleries and enjoys directing children and teenager drama groups.

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How ‘odd’ is an oddity and how ‘peculiar’ peculiarity?

Cosmin-Tudor CIOCAN, Ph.D.

Fr. Lecturer at The Faculty of Theology, ‘Ovidius’ University of Constanța, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8801-7426 article info

Keywords: symbol; differentness; belief; separation; ontogenetic stages; sexual perversion; religiousity; cross-cultures; fetish of culture; stock exchange; religious views; tatoos; LGBTIQ; social stigma; divergent;

abstract

We have used the term ‘fetish’ in a broader sense and especially related to the functions that a ‘fetish’ has in society. We are talking either about the tags that any ‘fetish’ receives [as undesirable, unwanted, forbidden, and peculiar], or about the uncertainty of its social approval, about the coagulating role it plays on individuals with the same repulsive vision/orientation that were previously unidentifiable, or many other aspects under which a so-called fetish works socially. The object or action in question passes from individual preference to the group emblem and then determines its actions and ideas, internally as well as in social exchanges with other groups. This is done in a fetishistic way with everything that is ‘new’ emerging in society, either previously non-existent, or competitive with something already standardized, or - as in the case of many fetishes forbidden and socially stigmatized. If the first category does not meet a social resistance and does not end up turning into a fetish, for the group and the society, the other two have all the advantages to do so. The odd - competitive and forbidden alternatives becomes the fetish for the group that adopts it as its emblem because it later regulates all its actions, as well as for the Society, because it keeps around the group and its actions the atmosphere in the sphere of fetishism - equivocal, promiscuous, and detestable.

But precisely these very fetishistic attributes are the same ones that determine society to fight against the group and its ‘fetish’, new and peculiar, that also help disparate individuals to identify with that fetus, to coagulate as a group borrowing precisely this infamous, shameless identity. Therefore, the question we try to find answers here is but legitimate: since and until when oddity is ‘odd’? © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Ciocan, Cosmin-Tudor. “The sociological MRI of a fetish. How ‘odd’ is an oddity and how ‘peculiar’ peculiarity?” DIALOGO, ISSN: 23931744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 144-157. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.14

I.

Introduction about Different

Being

Being peculiar, unusual, different in comparison to the rest of the population was at least odd within our entire human

history. There was never been easy to stand alone and confront all others for a diverse idea, out of the ordinary, and moreover to convince them that you – the only proponent of it – are the only one right, or at least, that you have the same right to think as such, as

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The sociological MRI of a fetish.

Article history: Received 05 July 2021 Received in revised form 10 September Accepted 15 September 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.14

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all others think their way. There has always been a problem with humans accepting differentness, diversity, peculiarity…well, it was so until they accepted. On the other hand, everybody knows that there is no progress if we all stick to the ‘old’ ways, thus ‘differentness’ is not only in our nature, but also it is an imperative of our living. Day by day, an age after another, humans promote differentness, mostly peculiarity, for their own development, even if, on the same level, they strive to ban and punish all kinds of differentness.

It is thus a general, universal bipolar way of acting: on the one hand, listening to the instinct of self-preservation which has this component of walking on the same (known) track and avoids unknown [to stay on the safe side of the road], and on the other hand, listening to ‘the call’ from beyond, adventuring into the abyss, driven by the desire of changing the topic, the need of being different. “These instincts in their pure form perform a very important role. The instinct of survival — or self-preservation — aims at gaining, maintaining, and improving life. By its very nature, it works against anything that destroys or endangers life.

Just as the body needs health to live, so the soul needs health to live most constructively.

In order to live, one needs to be safe from destruction and damage.”[1] The instinct of preservation holds emotionally on things that provide security, comfort, harmony; psychoanalysis links it with the life inside the womb, you learn to become increasingly aware of the feelings of utter threat and bypass everything that comes between or against these secure feelings. With these feelings governing your life/thinking, you cannot help feeling threatened, endangered, thus you stay inside the trust circle at all times.

In opposition, being/acting differently is also a human need, inseparable from the stages of human development. “After the

symbiotic phase, in which the child isn’t yet able to see themselves as separate from their mother, comes the separation-individuation stage. This stage plays an important role in shaping your personality and helping you consider yourself unique.”[2] Separation, differentiation, detachment, distinction are but natural and moreover crucial, indispensable in the process by which a child differentiates himself from his/her mother.

Individuation is the process by which a child is aware of their existence and starts to develop their individual traits. A constant in this process is negation, the need to say ‘no’ to the past, to the elements of their fastening, retention of their development.

As annoying as this constant opposition is, it’s an important stage for maturation and development. This constant negative response is brought on by the fact that the child has begun to identify themselves as different and independent. It’s a necessary step for the child to have an awareness of their individuality.[3] David Elkind called this phenomenon “personal fable”[4], the teens’ egocentrism of self-considering as “the center of attention, the adolescent comes to believe that it is because he or she is special and unique”. Feelings of uniqueness may stem from fascination with one’s own thoughts to the point where an adolescent believes that their thoughts or experiences are completely novel and unique when compared to the thoughts or experiences of others.[5] This belief stems from the adolescent’s inability to differentiate between the concern(s) of their thoughts from the thoughts of others, while simultaneously over-differentiating their feelings. According to David Elkind an adolescent’s intense focus on oneself as the center of attention is what ultimately gives rise to the belief that one is completely unique, and in turn, this may give rise to feelings of invulnerability.[6] These feelings are even more intense than the self-preservation instinct and overcome

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them along with the conflict between these two instincts/basic needs. Considering the other way around is but pathologic and thus pathogenic, becoming inauthentic and even destructive behaviors, themselves bearing clear proof of the struggle between the obedient Id, the peculiar Ego, and the conservative Superego (defined by Sigmund Freud’s structural model of the psyche).

What drives this overcoming struggle of differentiation from obedience? According to Carl E Pickhardt “five psychological “engines” fuel much of that drive, each one having the same objective: the achievement of grown-up independence. These engines are separation, expansion, differentiation, opposition, and responsibility. The function of SEPARATION is to detach enough from the past to open up more freedom to grow in the present.”[7] This distancing is both painful and liberating at the same time, but once started the process should not be cut, interrupted, or delayed by the parents with hugs, emotional blackmail, overwhelming care, financial anchors, or any other means.

“The function of EXPANSION is to increase the range of one’s life experience beyond that of childhood and the bonds of family and learn how to successfully operate more independently in the larger more impersonal world. To ease the tension from expansion, parents need to respect the adolescent’s desire to enlarge his or her life experience.

The function of DIFFERENTIATION is to experiment with alternative interests, images, and associations to create an older and more individually fitting identity than the one by which one was known in childhood. This is a sensitive process of growth because not only is one’s developing self-concept at stake, but one’s social standing is as well.”[8] This awful but necessary process of ‘becoming’ [i.e. something else then your parents] is full of traps from the self-preservation instinct, both of individual as well as his/her parents – all unwilling to give up to the past and the

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parenting environment, thus disagreement and conflict can result.

II.

About

Fetishes and Influence

Cultural

A. What a Fetish is?

Being different lets you appreciate diversity and adapt to it more easily. It makes you flexible and open-minded. Being different therefore is not the annulment of the roots and of the past, but on the contrary their recognition and acceptance by inserting them in the new patterns of life and thinking that the individual shapes, but also their overcoming.

“Fetishism, a word much in vogue in late nineteenth-century anthropology, no longer appears in serious scholarly use, except among art historians, psychoanalysts, and Marxist economists.”[9] According to Freud’s explanation of fetishism[10] sexual excitement is absolutely dependent on the presence of a specific object (the fetish). Apart from its conceiving as a sexual perversion, the fetish can be viewed as a psychological version of the figure of speech known as synecdoche wherein a part is used to represent the whole. For one, Charles De Brosses coined the term writing in 1760 about the use of the term to describe the religious practices of worshipping objects.

He referred to the worship of inanimate objects as gods, a practice that had been recorded by travellers to West Africa. In its ancient origin fetish [Latin word factitius = made by art and its Portuguese word feitiço = a charm, sorcery] refer to witchcraft and was part of the language of sailors in the 15th Century travelling from Portugal to the Guinea coast of West Africa.[11] It is thus linked with the act of belief, involved in such performance as part of a whole that might do the same function as the whole itself. It the work of Slavoj Žižek the key element of

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the fetish is the belief itself, illustrating how crucial, paradoxical element of how belief works - the concept of fetishistic disavowal.

“Belief is not a simple unilineal thing; rather, it is an innately reflexive phenomenon – it is possible to believe in belief itself as opposed to the normally supposed need for there to be a content of belief”.[12] Explaining how the concept of fetishistic disavowal works in practice Žižek uses the concept of Santa Claus of which the majority of children know that Father Christmas does not exist, instead of the only ones who believe in parents pretending to pretend to believe hiding behind a purported fantasy so that they do not have to confront their defining need to believe in the existence of innocent and guileless children – self-deception in the service of innocence![13] Therefore, it is not the object itself that makes belief work, but the belief itself, thus making the fetish the object invested with significance, not with inner value. So, we can call it a summedvalues-object (SVO), one that bears all the values, needs, desires, etc. invested in it by the worshipers’ group.

Edward Tylor (1832-1917), the first professor of anthropology at Oxford University, considers that, by defining religion minimally, we can put on the “same uninterrupted line” both “the savage with his fetishes” and “civilized Christianity”[14] For him, religion is, in its essence, intellectual, in the sense that religious practices and doctrines are cultural phenomena, products of human reason and not supernatural inventions.[15] Beyond the evolutionary investment of religious constructs, from simple - animist to complex-monotheism, Tylor’s idea [so virulently challenged by Father Wilhelm Schmidt in Der Ursprung der Gottsidee / The Origin of the Idea of God], helps us to understand the religious transposition of Adler’s explanation of fetishism. For Alfred Adler (1870 – 1937) in the face of psychological problems, the

individual isolated from social connection, try to become master of the problem by adopting elements invested with the power to serve it, fetishes, and totems.

These objects invested with power, either religiously, magically, sexually, politically or in any other domains of life it is used [undoubtedly with the same significance and for the same purpose], possess the power and influence to overcome an [psychological] obstacle that blocks their wearer achieve certain goals. In fact, Tylor even etymologically links the term fetish to these two investments, ‘potens et factiosusy’[16], marks of the creation – from the Latin facticius - facere, root for the Portuguese feitiço from which was derived the English word fetish.[17] I personally like more this definition to that focused on the adoration of the object instead of a deity/ person. Still, regardless of the definition and the angles we take it, it is for sure a symbol abounding in gestures, signs, significance, and capability of expressing something else[ 18].

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Picture 1. Reliquary figure, Angola. Collection of the Seminary of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit. Photo by Aurélio Lorente (ADF/ DGPC), courtesy of the Museu Nacional de Etnologia.

Using Karl Marx’s philosophy of fetishism, commodity fetishism, I place the ‘materiality’ of a fetish in a more general comprehension and acceptance of it. Gifts or commodities do not only have to be things; skills or services, animals or people, ideas or speech acts, festivities, ceremonies, spiritual salvation, and so on, can also be given as a gift or sold. Becoming a gift or a commodity does not add any constitutive qualities to things, services, or living beings.

Rather, gifts and commodities are social and/or economic mechanisms through which objects are mobilized and ‘put into circulation’.”[19] At the same time, the group that embraces the social value of such commodity fetish became the ‘worshipers group,’ conceived of as autonomous, and it operates under specific conditions so to promote and trade with it, thus it functions according to fundamentally different codes.

The society in which such group operates, with direct impact on worshipers’ group and vice versa, establishing relationships, influences, interactions, networks of traffic and exchange, represent the ‘environment’ for it.

“Being unique is a gift. Thus, it’s important to learn to appreciate it. It’s one of the greatest virtues a human being can have.”[20]

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Picture 2. At the voodoo “power object” market in Lomé, Togo. Photo By Dominik Schwarz, 20 March 2008. URL: https://upload. wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/ Voodo-fetischmarkt-Lom%C3%A9.jpg B. Does a fetishist behavior distort reality or not at all?

Is a fetish a disorder, or is the fetish person a disturbed one? Is he/she living in an un-real world, imaginary, not grounded on reality? Can we assume such persons are utterly wrong grounding their lives, core values, and creeds on a fantasy? Can we expect that they eventually wake up and correct things in accordance to others?

Not at all! We know that reality is mentally reconstructed through personality factors [heredity, culture, education], and on the other hand, our imagination can change thoroughly our perceptions of reality.

A study from Karolinska Institutet[21] shows, that our imagination may affect how we experience the world more than we perhaps think. What we imagine hearing or seeing ‘in our head’ can change our actual perception. This study sheds new light on a classic question in psychology and neuroscience – about how our brains combine information from the different senses. According to scientists, the mechanisms by which the brain fails to distinguish between thought and reality in certain aspects of life, create paths of living identical to all others that are [more or less] built upon an accurate perception of reality.

Everyone remembers how the ‘world’ was [presented] half a century ago via blackwhite television; the mind trains itself to color things it perceived only in black and white so that the ‘real’ picture doesn’t create an unrealistic reality. It wasn’t unreal perception, only less perceived. So, from where we stand today we can state that everything we ‘knew’ previously was either

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illusory, based on sensory information from one sense changed or distorted one’s perception of another sense, or admit that we always [in all stages of our development] perceive partially and thus have partial knowledge of reality, but this DOESN’T leave us living wrong or distorted, but rather underdeveloped.

With this information from neuroscience we see that living under the influence of a certain package of values elaborated meticulously, without discontinuities or gaps, does not make us live illusory, imaginative and thus utterly wrong, but only with encoded perception of reality. Other research from the Weizmann Institute in Israel[22] released on June 25, 2013, and other subsequent[23] found that mental training can reshape brain waves and leave an archive of experience and expectation for 24-hours and longer. Therefore, there is no difference in envisioning reality by a person constructing living on a fetishistic ground, from any other one having a strong belief in a set of values [political, scientific, religious]. We all are ultimately building our lives/way of living upon certain values cultural impregnant that make us different from eachothers, but never disturbed or utterly wrong. For example, wearing lots of rings all over the body can be rather strange in most cultures, but the normality of fetishistic behavior for some.

Picture 3. Cafe De Anatolia Radio. URL: https://cafe-de-anatolia.com/

I know that this statement creates a sense of relative understanding and thus it leads us to acceptance of diverseness, for it means that all cultural ways of reality perception are nothing else but validated paths of human knowledge. Therefore, what may seem strange to some is normal to others; but, in the light of what has been stated, neither party is wrong or exaggerating. For that matter, we should ask furthermore…

III. There is Nothing Wrong (anymore) or Is there Something Wrong anymore!?

A. From personal to social value Unlike the significance of a fetish with a personal value, something of social value seemingly cannot be alike, on the contrary even, for a couple of reasons. In the case of a fetish as Freud and Marx link it with personal values, involving attributing properties to objects that they do not ‘really’ have and that should correctly be recognized as human. On the other hand, social value is the quantification of the relative importance that people place on the changes they experience in their lives. Sometimes the significance of an object, which transforms it into a fetish for one, afterwards it gets recognition from a group of people with its entire significance. By extension of the narrow, personal significance of a fetish, under the analysis of the ‘commodity’ form [Marx], we witness the displacement of desire that such an object acquires special social value, indicated by the reverence, worship, or fascination with which it is treated. And, while doing so, do these objects exert an influence on the group? Of course, the specialness with which the object is treated makes it special; through the very process of attribution, the object may indeed manifest such powers. The fetish object will, for example, utterly influence the lives of its human worshippers, determining most of

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their actions and modifying their beliefs.[24] As Karl Marx explains in “Capital. Critique of Political Economy” (1867) as a form of reification, ‘commodity fetishism’ perceives economic value as something that arises from and resides within the commodity goods themselves, and not from the series of interpersonal relations that produces the commodity and evolves its value. The forged relationship between the fetish and the people who assume it, is stamped with that specific, particular, odd significance. Once invested with this special social value by a group, the whole group will be regarded by others through the perspective of that invested value. All their social, interpersonal relationships will bear the imprint of the assumed fetish. Hence, in an exchange society, social relations between people/ groups are perceived as social relations among these invested objects. Depending on the social function of the exchange, objects acquire a certain form (for example, if the function is to render possible exchange, the object acquires value; if its function is one of hiring a worker, then the object becomes capital).[25] On the market [the pluralistic society], the commodities of each individual producer/group appear in a depersonalized form as separate exemplars of a given type of commodity regardless of who produced them, or where, or in which specific conditions,[26] thus obscuring the social relations of production.

Let’s exemplify with a certain cases: For a first example, we meet a small group that becomes aware of their differentness in sexual gender attraction [LGBTIQ orientation] and publicly states that preference. Subsequently, those persons will be publicly stigmatised, being tagged with the social value of their fetish.

In another case, if for some reason, a religious leader produces entanglements within a parish, no longer producing “sensuous appetites” to his people,

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consequently it might lose interest in the Church represented there. Subsequently, that community will be viewed differently by outsiders / other groups, while it is also valid that the Church has not lost its significance for the first group. Another example is about several individuals, unimportant or disregarded by their group, who decided to embrace its most valuable asset, receive its ‘baptism’ or get through the initiating trial of a sorority/fraternity.

In the first case, the function of the fetishobject has no correspondence or exchange with other contingent groups, therefore the fetish worship group is disregarded and deprived by its value. In the second situation, the function of exchange has also a negative function for the group loses its fetish amid worship society and thus it is also deprived by cultural benefits. However, the third case presents a positive example, of a value-gaining group, which, along with assuming the mainstream fetish, also gains social value within the producer society.

It gives us just the opposite situation with pre former two, for this group with no significance [at all, or with a negative one previously] amid society assumes the fetish of the majority and became also worshipers of that summed-values-object.

Commodities, the products of individual commodity producers, circulate and are evaluated on the market. So is with the producers; each group, issuer of a specific fetish – significant object, is evaluated by the pluralistic society in regard to its fetish [the set of values produced within the group to which it belongs] and handled as such. The real connections and interactions among groups are thus brought about by comparing the value of goods and by exchanging them. In this case, we can assume that this fetish, as SVO, is the tap that regulates the group’s relationships, exchanges, and values within its social framework: when its value is socially recognized, the value of

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the worshipers’ group increases concerning how great the expansion is; when the value is zero, unknown, so is the value of the group also zero, and when the value of the fetish is negative, unrecognized or even socially repudiate, then the value of the group is negative, and its exchanges with other groups are fragile or even interrupted.

A notorious case in this last situation was that of the abolitionist movement in the late 18th century. It took over a century, until the American Civil War, to make the final emancipation of the black people from slavery. All this time all white people with decent, well-known, or high-assumed positions in society were discredited, banned and haunted for their beliefs.

In this way, located as a barometer of the internal states of the worship group and also of the relationship/exchange with the external society, the fetish philosophy needs a methodology to understand on the one hand what the obstacles that decrease its value are, and on the other what are the options to grow it.

B. How do things acquire social value and turn into fetishes?

Therefore, after a prime attribution with specialness, the fetish becomes the one shaping beliefs, world/life views of its worshipers, triggering emotions, modeling behaviors, etc. It is thus important to emphasize once more that “the power of the fetish is not reducible to its material form any more than the meaning of a word can be reduced to its material representation (its sound or graphic shape)”[27]. For that matter, certainly, it is not in its fabric that lies its power of influence, nor in its size, intrinsic [commercial] value, use, or complexity; it transcends all of those for a larger perspective and benefits. Knowing that we thus can understand that almost anything can ‘become’ a fetish under

certain circumstances, and such a loaded object arouses attention and desire to any [interested] person.

Before we exemplify to understand how wide is the range of things that can become a ‘fetish of culture’ [CF], we must emphasize first what we mean by that, apart from the regular ‘fetish’ [RF] concept. While a ‘regular’ fetish They both are objects of fixation, but it is used for the RF to endorse personal pleasure, while CF uses this fixation also for much more purposes, e.g. to make a public statement of the creed this CF is built upon, to develop an element of cohesion and attraction for individuals who share the same fixation to create a group linkage.

On the other hand, they both share ground features for they are objects of extreme desire, objects or concepts ascribed with more value than they intrinsically have, they are objects empowered, have irrational existence for the outta society, DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition) says that almost any body part or object can be a Fetish. To exemplify here with whole types of fetishes becoming a group label would be a tremendous consume of time.

However, it is useful to do so to emphasize the ‘oddity and peculiarity’ we are seeking to whitewash. From the fixation for skin [as tattoos, piercing, scarification, and other skin adornments], for body parts [a various forms of body modification], for the body itself as an entity [clothing, body exhibiting, human enhancements], for objects in intimate relation to the body [clothes, shoes, stockings, gloves, hair, or latex] to objects or concepts. The condition for an object or act [which starts as a trend from a particular person] to become a ‘fetish of culture’ [CF] is therefore that it becomes emblematic, to produce a conditioned response of arousal through the sensory stimuli of the smell, appearance, and texture…

In principle, anything can be fetishized

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by a person or a group in relation to society.

This ensures him with a certain autonomy, it conceals his emotions [mostly fears] and uses it as a tool to promote own values for those of social life who have proved inefficient in his case. “Bourgeois man makes a fetish of his own inner experience and tries by the fiat of his own choice to legitimate the values that in public life no longer appear to have validity.”[28] In any circumstances, we should emphasize here that this particular meaning of an object, of personal or social value, “such distinctions are embedded within cultural codes that are emergent in sets of practices within the culture. This is precisely why the fetish object cannot be decoded by a realist perspective in any transcultural way; what is ‘real’ in one cultural code is ‘unreal’ in another.”[29] For that matter all sociologists studying interfaith or other cross-cultures issues make a strong statement not to make comparisons but to treat each phenomenon in its very environment as it is culturally embedded. On the other hand, since there is no object-fetish to be unanimously adored by all societies and embraced by all cultures, we can strongly say that there is also no truth of universal value, objective, fixed, and stable synthesizing all the features of particular fetishes. In this sense, we can conclude that any society / social group can alter [positively or negatively] the social value of a fetish using appropriate means.

Ultimately, as Marx said, social relationships are not based on individuals or groups, but on the commodities they offer.

Using metrics of social value (SV) all the market stakeholders find out the direct impact any information can have on altering SV. From politics, education, religion to natural disasters, telecommunications (or its absence), roads, street crimes, TV news or urban gossips – all send pieces of information that cannot be ignored in the establishment of cost-benefit assessments,

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and ultimately the SV of a fetish. A society with a single mainstream religion, for instance, would tend to lower SV for things of lesser religious/moral significance, while a pluralistic one would be more permissive with them. At the same time, a group that managed to impose its fetish SV in its own society will struggle to do the same for similar groups in other societies [e.g., the EU LGBT community has openly supported the similar movement in Romania since February 2011, when it was publicly stigmatized for religious reasons].

C. Can it be otherwise as well, for a fetish to lose its social value?

However, as it transfers, by extension, from personal to societal significance, we must also assume that the reverse of the process happens, that the significance of an object with social value loses it and remains empty of interest. In this way, the social fetish will be abandoned, replaced or even destroyed with social aplomb. In this way, the social fetish will be abandoned, replaced or even destroyed with social aplomb. Any of these three ways lead to the same result, the de-fetishization of the object which, stripped of social value, returns to the womb of normalcy, this path being usually fatal because there are rare situations of fetish ‘recovery’, and in most of these situations the interest is only a personal one, without social value.

If an object or concept can acquire social value through certain stock exchange methods, it can also be downgraded with the same methods. When a stockbroker invests in a previously worthless object, draws attention to it, arouses curiosity and if this is supported from several social angles, then its market value increases considerably. When it gains adepts to embrace it as their logo and motto in living things go crazy around it. What makes the difference? Merely plain

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information - and that doesn’t have to be real; it can be imaginary, experimentally created, or intentionally distorted. In the end, it creates the same effect.

D. How can social value be lost?

I said before that social value can be abandoned, replaced or destroyed; what makes these to happen?

Can a fetish be now undesirable and tomorrow accepted or even promoted?

What could be the levers through which a social fetish becomes accepted or, on the contrary, loses the support of the group and society? Is there such a possibility?

Certainly what is raised [in value] by society can be just as well lowered, devalued. Usually when the group/company no longer finds the utility of the object/ action along with its current interests, or moreover, if the functionality of that fetish has too many disadvantages, then surely the group/society will struggle to remove it from its emblems in which he no longer finds itself. As compared with the technics in stock exchange any insignificant object placed under its spotlights gains SV, but it doesn’t have to be a positive one for a change; it can also be a negative one as well.

Thus, when a peculiar behavior is brought to public attention it can raise curiosity and followers if found ‘lovely’ [i.e. needed, useful, valuable], or it can start a public crusade against it if found ‘undesirable’ [i.e. a menace to current values].

As with anything else of social value those issues that are targeted by the current research – producing oddity and subsequently social biases – are bound to their social value, which for start, is a negative one. Tied with past views and stuck to the past customs people, in general, are so adamant about sticking to old traditions as opposed to creating new traditions.

Before judging this ontological custom we

must understand why is this happening at all times and with almost anything in human history, even if for a majority of situations what came as new(er) proved to be [almost] always better than its former version. Let’s remember for example the succession of the cosmological theories, one that is linked with mass implications, in human knowledge, religion, politics, social engagements, and many other stakeholders. We cannot leave out of our awareness how adamant we can be about this change; however, I already talked[30] about the resistance to change we usually display when something new lays ahead for it is a well-known concept already.

Traditions seem to help people orient themselves. Old traditions (some more than others) have stood the test of time: they have been passed down from generation to generation because of their effectiveness.

It is Baudrillard who begins to treat fetishism as a sign of social value; the fetish object is taken to stand for the owner’s social status. Here the fetish is no longer an unreal object, believed to have properties it does not really have but is a means of mediating social value through material culture.

This happens with all the clashes between two different cultures. Whenever something ‘old’ [known for a longer period, not necessarily older as age] meets something ‘new’ [newly brought to attention, not specifically younger] the ontological custom of rejection takes place and levers of removal start the removal process. It happened with the clash between the Arabic culture coming in Europe, with the European culture coming to America, with the European culture coming to Africa, etc. The same rejection and fear of replacement occurred and the self-conservation instinct brought every culture to fight for supremacy and used any stock exchange technics to downgrade the SV of the concurrent culture and its fetishes, even if they were all the same in right to be.

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IV.

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IS THERE STILL A (MEANING FOR) COMMON-SENSE

Once you cross the line…there is no turning back! And that idiom has still a meaning for everyone, even if the social policies started a trend of embracing almost everything ‘before’ was unaccepted. In the current tendency the only questions [left] are is there still a meaning for common sense, and How far can we go with accepting someone else’s values? Because once you crossed that line…

With this ‘inclusiveness’ trend the meaning of ‘not acceptable’ gets narrower with every second. Thus, in the beginning, the meaning of what’s ‘acceptable’ was revealed by grace; there was a time when this meaning was dictated by religion, then by common sense, and now there seem to be no measures for ‘not acceptable’. This state of things is given by the lack of limits for ‘what is to be accepted’. And while the extensive area of acceptance grows exponentially, that of ‘not acceptable’ shrinks to almost nothing.

‘Social acceptance’ is a topic that is rapidly growing in importance, becoming a key subject for all kinds of social stakeholders, managers, or “innovators” in the development of new products and services.

As a consequence, it also becomes a new challenge for directors and leaders when launching these ‘products’ on the market.

Pressures have been made and are still being carried on those who [have not yet] accepted. For example, currently, EU puts pressure on Romania, Hungary and Poland to accept ‘European values’ materialized in marriages / civil partnerships of the LGBTIQ population. “Following the European Court of Justice ruling “Coman & Hamilton”, which found that “spouse” provisions in the Free Movement Directive also apply to same-sex couples, the Commission should take enforcement action against Romania,

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where the government has failed to update national legislation to reflect this ruling, MEPs ask.”[31] But in cases like this, as it is with all issues while sustaining minorities nowadays society pressures upon the ‘old/traditional ways’ to accept [NOT Tolerate], and by doing so the same premises you build a case on to support the formers is to be violated for the latter. In this particular case for example it is of these nations with mainstream religion [Romania as Christian Orthodox, Poland and Hungary as Catholic] that have as national ‘value’ the heterosexual relationships.

However, while imposing regulations to level these nations to EU ‘values’, the own values must be infringed.

Some time ago being ‘deviant’, abnormal, departing from usual or accepted standards, was not only disregarded but also stigmatized, fought against. In time those ‘divergents’ in any situation possible were simply recognized and thus became tolerated, accepted. Of course, their rights and opportunities were never equal with the mainstream for various reasons, mostly because they usually cannot sustain the same aspects as the majority. For example, while trying to accommodate children with different handicaps in public schools they cannot face the same duties or sustain the same activities as the rest. Therefore, in such situations ‘accommodation’ means that you artificially integrate a divergent into the mass population but establish a new set of rules and features [previously unnecessary] especially for their special needs and lack of certain attributes. These come with costs for these accommodational changes are 1. previously not needed and 2. the difference between ‘normal’ people and divergent needs always to be sustained with compensations.

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CONCLUSIONS We, therefore, have three stages in this social determinism. The first stage refers to an object/activity/personal preference becoming the preference of a social group, and being invested with all the necessary attributes to constitute its emblem and energetic support; it turns into a fetish with characteristics of totems. For that matter, the investment with authority over the members of the group gives the fetish the ability to regulate all their ideas and actions, individually and as a group, both internally and in exchanges with the external social environment. The last stage belongs to the society in general, which through its cultural, geopolitical, religious, economic, and other similar levers regulates the social value of the respective fetishes, decreasing or increasing them depending on a multitude of factors.

At this stage, the Society’s culture acts like a stock exchange in which human values of all categories are permanently negotiated without any sparing.

Considering that all those so-called ‘oddities’ or ‘peculiarities’ society labels them in the first place can, with time, become ‘normality’ or an ‘alternative accepted normality’ people/society get used to it, we can assert a strong point over that.

It is obvious that for understandable reasons [explained in the current study] everything that is new is greeted with hesitation and circumspection, therefore faces an unfriendly, adverse welcome and is labeled as unwanted. Besides that, all ‘new’ things/ activities start as ‘odd’ for people always compare them with the ground knowledge, that is thus ‘traditional’, regular, obvious, and certain. For this inertia, new things will always pass as strange and undesirable until they are no longer so, and this process has the same evolution, even if the methods may be different to achieve the same end goal, familiarizing society with the ‘new’.

There can be an obvious functionality, an irrefutable utility, the covering of a previously unmet need - in which case the ‘new’ will be easily and without-too-muchresistance embraced. It can also be about an alternative to something already existing and established as a solution in a certain field [an alternative remedy, a new religion, a new approach, a new working hypothesis, ] to try social insinuation by comparison with what is grounded. In this situation, the social resistance will be doubled by the ‘anti’ campaigns made by the already existing variants. It is possible that the directly proportional relationship between the new and the old, the peculiar and the established to suppress drastically its ‘life’ [the more optimal the solution given by the new alternative, the greater the opposition of the ‘traditional’ and its attempt to ‘kill it in the diaper’ will be]. The notoriety of the latter will always have a significant word to say for the jury at the ‘social trial’ of the concurrent ‘new’, always accused of wanting to change trends, to cancel history - even if this goal is never aimed.

It may also be the case that the ‘new’ embodies exactly what society and culture have previously indicated as undesirable, odd, wrong. In this case, this label will also be its birth certificate, and its entire existence will be thus continuously under this sign, always fighting between survival and preferment. This can be the case, for example, of inflicting tattoos in a straightforward society or embracing LGBTIQ sexual orientations, confessing an unappreciated or forbidden [in a particular culture / society] religious creed, supporting the candidacy of a non-grata person, etc.

Instead, it will never have the problem of highlighting, being continuously under the social magnifying glass and in the sights of those associations born especially with the aim of eradicating this undesirable/ repulsive from society. But the tendency

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of non-conformity and eccentricity of the human beings, together with the need for new, equivalent and alternative, will always exist, so strange values will always appear becoming over time accepted, basic, and then maybe even traditional, resuming the cycle of innovations. In conclusion, things are odd and culturally peculiar until they are no longer so! :)

[2]

[3]

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[5]

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*** “Distortions of the Instincts of SelfPreservation and Procreation”, Pathwork Guide Lecture No. 85 | May 12, 1961. URL: https://pathwork.org/lectures/distortionsof-the-instincts-of-self-preservation-andprocreation/, accessed 30.7.2021.

Margaret Schönberger Mahler, “Thoughts about development and individuation”, in Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 18:1 (1963), 307-324. DOI: 10.1080/00797308.1963.11822933.

“Is Being Different a Need, a Burden, or a Virtue?” in ExploringYourMind. URL: https:// exploringyourmind.com/is-being-differenta-need-a-burden-or-a-virtue/, accessed 30.7.2021.

David Elkind, “Egocentrism in Adolescence”, Child Development, 38: 4 (1967), pp. 10251034. DOI: 10.2307/1127100. *** “Personal fable”, from Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_fable, accessed 30.7.2021.

David Elkind, “Egocentrism in Adolescence”.

Carl Pickhardt “Five Psychological “Engines” that Drive Adolescent Growth”, in Psychology Today, Posted September 13, 2011, https:// w w w. p s y c h o l o g y t o d a y. c o m / u s / b l o g / surviving-your-childs-adolescence/201109/ five-psychological-engines-drive-adolescentgrowth, accessed 30.7.2021.

Ibidem.

W. MacGafley, “Fetishism Revisited: Kongo Nkisi in Sociological Perspective”. Africa 47(2) 1977:172.

Fetishism is rooted in the preoedipal triangle of mother-child-phallus. https://nosubject.

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com/Fetish/Fetishistic_disavowal#Sigmund_ Freud Tim Dant, “Fetishism and the Social Value of Objects.” The Sociological Review 44, no. 3 (August 1996): 495–516. https://doi. org/10.1111/j.1467-954X.1996.tb00434.x., ISSN 0038-0261. https://nosubject.com/Fetish/Fetishistic_ disavowal#In_the_work_of_Slavoj_.C5.BDi. C5.BEek Ibidem.

Edward Tylor, Religion in Primitive Culture, (New York: Harper 8c Row) 1950, 83.

Robert Deliège, Une histoire de l’Anthropologie. Ecoles, auteurs, theories (Eng., A history of anthropology. Schools, authors, theories). Editions du Seuil, 2006, 36.

A.C. Haddon, Magic and Fetishism. (London: Constable and Co.) 1921, 66.

Robert Pool, “Fetishism Deconstructed.”

Etnofoor 3, no. 1 (1990): 114-27. Accessed August 1, 2021. http://www.jstor.org/ stable/25757713. Also, see DSM-5, American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed. Washington D.C.: 2013.

Charles de Brosses, Du culte des dieux fétiches ou Parallèle de l’ancienne religion de l’Égypte avec la religion actuelle de Nigritie.

Publisher: [s.n.] 1760, 11. URL: https:// gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k106440f. texteImage, accessed 1.8.2021.

[Anon.]. “III. Commodity Fetishism” In Fetishism and Culture: A Different Theory of Modernity, 223-295. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2014. https://doi. org/10.1515/9783110303452.223 “Is Being Different a Need, a Burden, or a Virtue?” in ExploringYourMind.

Christopher C Berger, and H Henrik Ehrsson.

“Mental imagery changes multisensory perception.” Current biology: CB vol.

23, 14 (2013): 1367-72. doi:10.1016/j. cub.2013.06.012 https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/ news-releases/past-brain-activation-revealedin-scans/ (accessed September 26, 2021)

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Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences. “Mental training changes brain structure and reduces social stress.” ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily. com/releases/2017/10/171004142653.htm (accessed September 26, 2021).

Tim Dant, “Fetishism and the social value of objects”, 6.

Isaak I. Roubine. Essais sur la théorie de la valeur de Marx. Paris: Syllepse (2009). p. 55.

ISBN 978-2-84950-218-1.

Isaak Illich Rubin. Essays on Marx’s Theory of Value. Detroit: Black and Red (1972).

URL: https://www.marxists.org/archive/ rubin/value/ch01.htm Ibidem.

Donald M. Borchert (edit-in-chief), Encyclopedia of philosophy, 2nd ed.

Macmillan Reference USA, 2005, 509. ISBN 0-02-865780-2 Ibidem.

Ciocan Tudor Cosmin, “Local’s impact on a new spreading religion” in Jurnalul Libertăţii de Conştiinţă [Journal for Freedom of Conscience], Les Arcs, France: Editionis Iarsic, 4/2016, pp. 739-759. ISSN 2495-1757. Ciocan, Tudor Cosmin, ”A new version of religion, the megalopolitan one.

How the overcrowding society interact with traditional local religion. Secularization, the new messiah,” in DIALOGO, vol. 4, issue 2 [2018]: DOI: 10.18638/dialogo.2018.4.2.11, ISBN: 978-80-554-1408-9 ISSN: 2393-1744, pp. 95-104; “Same-sex marriages and partnerships should be recognised across the EU”, URL:https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/ en/press-room/20210910IPR11913/samesex-marriages-and-partnerships-shouldbe-recognised-across-the-eu, accessed 16.09.2021.

2010. He was ordained as an orthodox priest in 2002. Highschool teacher from 1998, then Professor assistant and Lecturer from 2012, he has written more than 65 articles on theology and psychology, along with 4 single-author books in the past two decades.

In 2013 he started a multidisciplinary program aiming to engage scholars from different files into friendly and academic debates with theology, and in the same year, a Research Center was founded in Ovidius University with researchers from 11 fields. In less than one year, he managed to gather people from around the globe around this idea, and thus the Dialogo Conferences project has started. In 2014 he received a Fulbright scholarship, and spent the summer in California along with four other states in the USA, gathering data and understanding how religious pluralism is possible at a high level of involvement; in the meanwhile he made friends from many different countries and religions that are now involved in this project or another, helping in his endeavor. Now he researches and teaches in this direction, towards building bridges between science and theology on the one side, and interfaith dialogue, on the other hand, and Dialogo endeavor, conferences & Journal, is his greatest, international achievement ever since US-CA experience.

Biography Tudor Cosmin CIOCAN, born in Constanta/ Romania in 1977, attended several theological and psychological faculties (BA, MB, Ph.D.), obtained his Ph.D. in Missiology and Doctrinal Theology in

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Ovidiu Hanc, Ph.D.

Department of Theology Emanuel University of Oradea Oradea, Romania article info

Keywords: gender identity; morality; biblical view; biological sex; cisgender; transgender; revisionist view; traditional view;

abstract

In today’s society, gender identity is redefined. This identity is now disconnected from biological sex and redefined as a cultural phenomenon. The implications are diverse not only from an anthropological point of view but also from a moral stand. As gender becomes a fluid concept, the war between the traditional point of view and the revisionist/progressist one is inevitable. This research reviews how in the last centuries society moved from Theism to Post-Theism and from Post-Theism to Post-Humanism.

These shifts reflect a tendency of moral change not only in terms of human identity but also of human sexuality.

In this paper, it is argued that a moral dimension is vital for a definition of gender identity. The theological assessment of this topic starts the epistemic endeavor analyzing the biblical foundation of cisgender and sexual dimorphism. In the nature vs. nurture paradigm a thorough analysis of the biblical account of creation and fall of man, attest to the fact that, regardless of how man is born, God’s redemption outlines anthropology, hamartiology, and soteriology.

At the practical social level, the struggle for unity in diversity varies from a desideratum to a utopian reality. Nevertheless, the concept of diversity cannot be emptied of its moral dimension. From the Biblical point of view, the solution to this war on sexual identity is redemption, while from the secular point of view the solution to this war is relativism. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Ovidiu Hanc. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Hanc, Ovidiu. “Unity in Diversity: A Theological Analysis of the War on Gender Identity” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 158-166. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.15

I.

Introduction

Any study of society and culture will bring into discussion the issue of human identity, social values, and meanings. Our values are embedded in our culture, nevertheless, culture changes over time and humans

change as well. Does this mean that values are also changing? This aspect triggers an analysis of the nature of human identity and of social virtues. The greatest struggle at the beginning of the 21st century gravitates on the issue of human rights and human identity.[1] This covers aspects of identity,

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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Unity in Diversity: A Theological Analysis of the War on Gender Identity

Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 12 October Accepted 15 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.15

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diversity, race, and gender. At a deeper level, this unfolds the issue of morality and ethics. It is inevitable to analyze such an issue without addressing the spiritual dimension that is inherently present.

Nevertheless, in this paper, it will be argued that as God is necessary for defying morality, so God is necessary for defying gender identity. Thus, in order to define gender identity, objective moral values are intrinsic obligatory. Epstein defines humanism as “good without God”. For Epstein “good” is an intrinsic reality that exists without a supernatural reality. In his view, humanism is what defines our reality and our existence. For him, non-religious people (e.g. agnostic, skeptic, secular, naturalist, atheists, etc.) have a meaning in life without needing a God or a higher being to define their values. Epstein does not argue for morality without a belief in God, but for morality without God. Without an ontological theological framework, the only measure of all things that is left is the human being, hence human-ism. This paper highlights the fact that from a theological point of view it is futile to define an anthropological system without objective moral values. Without the existence of God, the issue of gender identity has no objective point of reference and is just a conjectural convention.

Gender identity and sexuality issues pose new challenges for today’s society from the judicial, cultural, social, political, and medical points of view. While some consider that a subjective definition of gender and/or “gender fluidity” characterizes a personal decision, others consider that aspects of gender identity are biological absolutes that cannot be defined as cultural or preferential.

Because of this, it is virtually impossible to look for a balanced view on the matter of gender identity without stirring a theological analysis and debate between these two opposing views. There are more and more

legal challenges that appear because of this redefinition of gender identity, but also the ethical dimension is inevitably involved.

This paper argues that morality is not just a mere framework for social behavior.

Morality represents the DNA of society, and without it, society will eventually succumb to meaninglessness. Because of this, it is imperious to define gender identity considering the necessity of a moral structure. The social, political, and legal aspects of gender identity are not to be neglected at all, but they must also be viewed from a spiritual perspective. This research emphasizes that challenges that come with the emergent trend of redefining gender identity should take into consideration the Bible as a source for human identity and morality.

A. Definition of terms The term “gender” has shifted dramatically from the cisgender twofold milieu (i.e. male and female), to a manifold dimension of gender expression. From a linguistic point of view, gender is a concept used to differentiate between biological sex. In the last few decades, the progress toward a fluid gender identity and the rise of transgenderism represent some of the most debated topics in today’s society.

Especially after the Sexual Revolution that started in the 1960s, gradually a revolution of gender identity took place. Nowadays there is a general tendency to redefine gender, not as a given biological reality but as a social construct that is developing in time. Thus, terms like trans-gender, cisgender, gender-less, third gender, binary, gender fluid etc. are used more and more to redefine today’s society. The language is also affected (the use of formal address ‘ladies and gentlemen’) and ID cards are redefined (the identification of sex is no longer present) since the gender identity is

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no longer linked to biological reality.

Those who argue against traditional view of gender identity and defend a ‘revisionist’[2] or progressist view, consider that gender is a cultural phenomena and a personal preference. The two divergent views are at war. Is there a common ground for agreement and unity in diversity? For those arguing the conservative view, gender identity disorder or dysphoria represent some psychological and spiritual issues that reflect fundamental moral values. Those arguing for the progressist view generally respond to the traditional viewpoint on gender identity as being intolerant, bigot, and restrictive to fundamental rights. The nonbinary people accuse repercussion of the binary (cis)gendering across religious traditions.[3] The war is in fact between fundamental moral values and fundamental rights.

The question that inevitably is posed here is twofold. First: On what grounds the fundamental moral values are defined?

Second: Can we define fundamental rights void of a moral framework? This paper tries to analyze this conflict from biblical and a theological point of view.

II.

Anthropological milestones

A. Modernism: From Theism to Post-Theism From a theological point of view, we can observe in the last centuries a transition in the way society related to God. We can observe this trend looking at the philosophical and theological framework of some representative figures. For Darwin’s theory of evolution (he lived between 1809-1882), God’s sovereignty was no longer necessary. The next step was seen in the philosophy of Nietzche (1844-1900) for whom God’s existence was no longer necessary. Recently, for scientist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), the God hypothesis was

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no longer necessary. These trends, which have an implicit theological substratum, are inevitably applied to anthropological aspects, including gender identity.

As society has developed, various sociocultural trends have emerged to influence thinking and values. The development of society in the modern period also meant a move away from biblical values and the sovereign presence of God was no longer necessary. Nietzsche postulated not only the idea of Übermensch, a Superhuman, but at the same time the idea that God is dead, thus removing God from the moral fiber of society. Unfortunately, as man became the measure of all things, it became obvious, looking at the historical realities of the following centuries, that freedom in terms of distancing from God’s authority is a road that leads to disaster. The two World Wars that significantly marked the 20th century, making it the bloodiest century in history, show that society without God is not on a path to progress. In this sense, material progress can be dissociated from spiritual progress, but the consequences are harmful.

From a spiritual and moral point of view, true freedom, paradoxically, means being under God’s sovereign authority. From the point of view of sexual identity, the removal of God as the final authority in defining human ontology is only the first step in a process of moral decay. In post-theism, all ontological premises are is emptied of the spiritual dimension. The implication is that this will inevitably determine a redefinition of the identity of human being and sexuality.

The dimension of human sexuality has often been perceived as a basic function of physiological needs. In this context sexual need is seen only as a physiological reality and sexual identity is seen as a psychological one.

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B. Post-Modernism: From Post-Theism to Post-Humanism When theology no longer defines anthropology, the implication is not only on who God is, but on who man is. In the last century the society has become not only post-theistic, but also anti-theistic. As man denied God, the shift that followed was not only to move from theism to secularism but also from post-theism to post-humanism.

While the transition to a post-Christian era was seen more than half a century ago as nonsense, as the famous theologian Karl Barth affirmed, today this reality is not only imminent but present.[4] This shift is pivotal because with the move away from Christian origins, modern society not only has redefined what it means to be human, but has jumped into post-humanism. In terms of gender identity there is an increasing talk of the post-human or trans-human period.

In 1998, philosophers Nick Bostrom and David Pearce founded the World Transhumanist Association. Critics of the concept of transhumanism regard the idea as “the most dangerous idea in the world.”[5][6] In the posthuman or transhuman age gender identity is devoid of any moral dimension. This is why concepts of man’s sexuality are seen today as fluid, ranging from the various genderundefined types of man to the cyborg-man or hybrid humans. All these transitions attest to the idea that simultaneously to man’s estrangement from God, human relativity is unstoppable. In this context of dehumanization and depersonalization any attempt to define human identity or dignity becomes impossible.

III.

Biblical view on gender identity

We cannot look at issues of gender identity and sexuality without a certain cosmogony about the origin and development of the universe. This article focuses on the biblical

studies, especially the Genesis account when it comes to the origin of the universe in general and of the man in particular. The act of divine creation finds its highest point in the creation of man, the image bearer of God and the crown of the divine creation.

McCoy correctly noted that both male and female are equal manifestation of the imago Dei.[7] The creation of man is fundamental for anthropology and other human related dogmas as hamartiology and soteriology.

The act of creation is explicit in the creation of man as male (‫ ׁשיִא‬ish ‘man’) and female (‫ ָּׁהשִא‬ish.shah ‘woman’), but also in the creation of the union between the two (Gen. 1.27; 2.22-24; 5.2). There is indeed, as Mason argued, a givenness to reality, and therefore a givenness to our sexuate condition, which is inscribed by God in our bodies in creation.

[8] The two genders represent not only the boundaries of gender identity provided by Scripture (monogamy and heterosexuality) but also the framework within which the covenant of marriage was defined by God. In the act of creation, the term separation (‫ ַל ָדּב‬ba.dal ‘to separate’) has a special meaning. It appears five times in the first chapter (Gen. 1.4, 6, 7, 14, 18) and has similar meaning to the term to make holy (‫ׁשדָק‬ ַ qa.dash ‘to consecrate, to set apart’) that appears in Gen. 2.3. God created man distinct from woman and for the first time in creation something is joined togheter (Gen. 2.24 uses the term ‫ ַק ָבּד‬da.vaq ‘to cleave, to stick, to join to’). This element of joining is unique in the creation account (contrasting everything else that is being separated: light from darkness; day from night, waters below from waters above; sea from land), and becomes a meta-narrative in the biblical discourse as it illustrates not only the concept of marriage, but is also symbolizing the connection of God with His people as a husband and a wife.[9] After man’s fall into sin, all aspects of life and activity were affected, including

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aspects of sexuality. When man fails in his relationship with God, he will also fail in interpersonal relationships, including sexual ones. Only in Genesis we can identify multiple effects of the distortion of human relationships, in an array of sexual crises: polygamy (Gen. 4.9); voyeurism (Gen. 9.2027); homosexuality (Gen. 19.5-25); rape (Gen. 34.2-7); incest (Gen. 38.12-26); seduction (Gen. 39.7-12).

There are many biblical passages that deal with issues of sexuality and sexual identity (e.g. 1 Kg. 14.24; Is. 3.9; Jer. 24.14; Amos 4.11; Matt. 19.4-12; Rom. 1.24-27; 1 Cor. 5.1-11; 6.9-11, 15-20; 7.2-5; 10-16; 1 Tim. 1.9-11; Heb. 3.4; Jude 1.7; Apoc. 22.14-15).

Old Testament Hebrew and New Testment Greek use a wide range of terms that form a rich biblical taxonomy of sexual sins (πορνεία porneia ‘sexual sin’), fornication (‫ ָהנָז‬za.nah; ἐκπορνεύω ekporneuō ‘to fornicate’), adultery (‫ ףַאָנ‬na.aph ‘to commit adultery’; μοιχεία moicheia ‘adultery’), incest (the concept is present but there no specific word used: see the case of Herod Antipas and Herodias in Mk. 6.17-18; see also 1 Cor. 5.1-12), homosexuality (ἀρσενοκοίτης arsenokoitēs one engaging in homosexual acts), etc. In the Old Testament the term ‫ׁשדָק‬ ֵ qa.desh ‘male cult prostitute’ (in opposition to ‫ׁשדָק‬ ַ qa.dash ‘to consecrate, to sanctify, to set apart’) was strictly forbidden (Deut.

23.17; 1 Kg. 22.46, Job. 36.14), while in the New Testament ἀρσενοκοίτης arsenokoitēs the one engaging in the homosexual acts are among the unrighteous that will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 6.9-11).

Gregg Johnson correctly argued that a biblically informed and rational perspective on sex roles and gender identity, includes a search of our current biological understandings of sexual dimorphism.[10] On the other side, Robert Gnuse argued that the most cited biblical passages that refer to homosexuality or sexual related sins (Gen. 9.20–27; 19.1–11; Lev. 18.22, 20:13;

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1 Cor. 6.9–10; 1 Tim. 1.10; Rom. 1.26–27) are not in fact related to free adult individuals that are loving each other. [11] Gnuse’s new arguments in this matter are just mesmerizing the text from exegetical point of view, ignoring the fact that passages like these are not only descriptive but also prescriptive.

Biblical theology on gender identity envisions an identity in which biological gender defines gender identity, and sexual bonds are divinely based on holiness and love in a heterosexual marriage. John Piper and Wayne Grudem argued that the confusions and frustrations of sexual identity often explode in harmful behaviors.[12] The Bible condemns sexual relations outside the framework established by creation and ordained by revelation. However, deviation from this order is met by God with the possibility of forgiveness and sanctification (1 Cor. 6:9-11). Any sexual practice outside of God’s plan can find forgiveness through Christ (Eph. 4.17-24).

IV.

The challenge of diversity

A. Nature vs. Nurture paradigm The Nature vs. Nurture paradigm relates to the discussion whether sexual identity or orientation is part of the natural dimension (i.e. hereditary factors like gene, physical appearance, personality, etc.) or is part of the dimension that is nurtured by someone in the diverse context of his environment.

Traditionally speaking, sexual identity was unequivocal regarded as part of biological reality. From a psychological point of view, up until the second part of the 20th century, issues of sexual identity and preference have been classified as mental illness. In 1973, following research, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) voted to remove “Ego-syntonic Homosexuality” from the Diagnostic and

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Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).[13] Homosexuality was no longer regarded as a mental disorder. Following this historic decision, today, most of the people consider that the sexual orientation is best explained by ‘nature’ than by ‘nurture’.[14] From a biblical point of view manhood and womanhood is a God-given identity and is linked to the natural and biological identity. Kidner noted that in this context to define humanity as bisexual is to make each partner the complement of the other, and to anticipate the New Testament doctrine of the sexes’ spiritual equality (‘all one’, Gal. 3:28; ‘heirs together’, 1 Pet. 3:7b; see also Mark 12:25).[15] The Genesis account of creation of man as male and female is quoted

by Jesus in the New Testament in a way that shapes the concept of marriage as well (cf.

Gen. 2.24, 27 and Mk. 10.6, 7). The Bible has a high and holy perspective on gender and sexual identity. Beginning with the act of creation that culminated in the creation of man as male and female and continuing with the union of the two, God’s revelation displays from the very beginning a paradigm of sexual identity and sexual union that is absolute. Jesus’ teaching attests that God’s initial plan is the only legitimate revelation regarding manhood and womanhood.

B. Unity in Diversity: desideratum or utopia?

The concept of diversity cannot be emptied of its moral dimension. Hence, the concept of unity in diversity cannot function on divergent moral grounds. The well-known Tübingen theologian Hans Küng, in his famous speech at the opening of the Exhibit on the World’s Religions at Santa Clara University that took place on 31st of March 2005 postulated the idea that “there will be no peace among the nations without peace among the religions and no peace among the religions without dialogue among the religions, and there will be no serious dialogue among the religions

without common ethical standards.”[16] These core values were drafted and incorporated in The Declaration Toward a Global Ethic after consultation with scholars and representatives of various religions, approved at the Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago in 1993 and 2018.[17] The core principles of this declaration (Humanity and the Golden Rule), and the five directives (Non-violence; Justice; Truthfulness; Equal rights and partnership; Ecological responsibility) represent an attempt to engage in dialogue and exchange. However, although humane treatment of all human beings and the “Golden Rule” are at the heart of Christian faith, at the theological level unity at the price of nullifying the core of Christian dogma is a utopian view that cannot function. From a Biblical point of view, to succumb holiness to unity is futile since this will imply a denial of truth that has absolute value. The truth is absolute and exclusivist by sheer definition. The mathematical truth of one plus one is the absolute value of two, a value that excludes any other options.

Similarly, any attempt to build harmony and mutual respect among different views on gender identity will touch the core of Judeo-Christian values. God’s creation of man/woman and of sexuality is the cornerstone of biblical anthropology. From a biblical point of view, the Bible presents the creation of man as male and female. Thus, any other definition in relation to gender is gender dysphoria in which biological sexual identity differs from personal experience and psychological sexual preference. This conflict between someone’s natural sex and fluid gender identity stands in open conflict with the biblical anthropology. An attempt to find unity in diversity at the cost of redefining the fundamental aspects of the Christian faith is a price too high to pay.

From the biblical point of view human sexuality must be rooted in the holiness of

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God (1 Thess. 4.3-5). The human body was created by God to be the locus of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6.19). To cancel the sanctity of manhood and womanhood and to advocate for unity between other anthropological paradigms that denies the concept of holiness, it is like trying to create unity between an offender and its victim. This war for unity in diversity cannot be won, and such peace cannot be attained.

The difficult task to find unity in diversity from a Christian point of view does not imply discrimination, conflict of social unrest, but neither compromise regarding its values. The bible does not render any aggression or hatred in the name of Christ, on the contrary, it advocates respect for life.

Nevertheless, acceptance is not equivalent to an agreement. From the other point of view, the Christian position is fiercely attacked by secular society and is regarded as intolerant, bigot, and racist (described in terms similar to refusing to serve Black customers).[18] This utopian view of unity must also be viewed from the point of view of those who argue for a secular fluid relativistic gender identity. Those who argue that society should agree on issues like these on the basis of fundamental constitutional rights, neglect the right of those that are advocating moral beliefs as a basis for personal and social life.

Since no man is an island, diversity must be integrated within a social framework, however, the clash of personal beliefs is imminent and often irreconcilable. The need for an objective moral code is inherent, but in the relativism and secularism of today’s society defending morality is equivalent to discrimination or bigotry.

From the Biblical point of view, the solution to this war on sexual identity is redemption (ἀπολύτρωσις apolutrōsis) (1 Cor. 6.9-11; Col. 3.1-10). Although one might argue that aspects related to sexual identity are ontological, from the biblical point of

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view all men are born sinners (Eph. 2.1-10; 1 Pt. 1.18). For example, if one would argue that was born kleptomaniac (with solid or questionable scientific proofs), from the biblical point of view this aspect of living is defined as sin that can be redeemed through Christ. The Judeo-Christian principles can offer a viable set of core values that can define and explain the issue of gender identity. From the secular point of view, the solution to this war is relativism­ and the dissolution of moral values into social redefinable elements.

C. The challenge of diversity The issue of sexual identity, for the most part of history, was framed within the traditional paradigm of biological identity: male or female. The paradigm shift has occurred as the concept of diversity has been increasingly promoted. However, the concept of differentness must consider the moral dimension when establishing a certain taxonomy. It is true that two objects can be categorized as different without considering that one is right or wrong, nevertheless the use of objects sometimes needs to be defined within a moral dimension. A knife is different from a spoon, while the use of a knife to cut bread or to stab someone should be described not only as different but also within the category of right or wrong.

Today, society has changed so much in terms of the sexual identity paradigm that sexual diversity is no longer considered an alternative but is becoming a normative paradigm. The problem with diversity in relation to sexual identity is that it lacks a moral dimension. In order to acknowledge the possibility of diversity, one must define the difference between diversity and morality. Apparently, diversity operates in an amoral category. Diversity can be defined in terms of several social criteria, ethics, race aspects, physical appearance aspects, etc.

However, diversity cannot be absolutized as

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amoral because it often operates in moral categories.

It has often been said that gender identity is a fluid reality that is up to each person and transcends biological reality. Today’s relativism postulates that identity belongs exclusively to the individual. However, if a person has total freedom to define their sexual identity ignoring the biological dimension, then we should use this principle of relativism in many other personal aspects.

If relativism is the absolute norm, then If we allow the individual to define the truth in a subjective manner, we should be consistent to this working paradigm and generally apply to all the areas of life. If relativism is the absolute norm, then relativism should be equally applicable in other spheres such as mathematics or medicine. However, this principle is not applicable and determines us to recognize that relativism is only a form of hypnotizing the truth, which in a practical way does not work in either individual or social life.

Conclusion From a secular point of view, moral norms are seen as conventional norms.

From a Biblical point of view, the foundation of morality is built on God’s revelation. Thus, humanity finds its origin and definition in God. Anthropology is not a dogma that can be defined in a purely naturalistic system.

It needs a moral system, otherwise, all the characteristic elements of immaterial reality (e.g. love, compassion, conscience, memories, etc.) become realities that cannot find a satisfactory answer. Gender identity is also an element in which biblical anthropology provides a necessary explanatory framework. Gender identity needs an objective moral dimension rooted in God. Without God’s revelation, any anthropological system is lost in relativism.

As far as gender identity is concerned,

without the moral dimension, there is no other solid ground that can give a coherent definition of human identity. In the Christian understanding, human sexuality is a divine gift that involves not only a physical union but also a spiritual reality (1 Cor. 6:16-17).

Humanism cannot provide satisfactory explanations that can function as moral benchmarks. From the biblical point of view, our personhood is essentially connected to our biological sex, and morality springs from God alone.

The war between these two paradigms with either theistic or naturalistic roots is far from settled. Legal, social, and personal issues are far from being reconciled outside a moral framework. Therefore, the need to recognize the importance and prominence of morality as a defining element for the individual and society is vital, otherwise, the personal and social disarray will only increase. In terms of biblical theology, gender identity cannot be uprooted from the soil of creation. Thus, the revelation of God represents the only viable ontological point of reference for anthropology and gender identity. Humanity and sexuality are defined correctly only insofar as the man as bearer of God’s image discovers his meaning in God. References [1] Fleischman, Jinil. “Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Issues, and Worldview.”

Journal of Unification Studies 21 (2020): 111–19.

[2] Cornwall, Susannah. “The Future of Sexuality Debates in the Church: Shared Challenges and Opportunities for Theological ‘Traditionalists’ and ‘Revisionists.’” Modern Believing 62, no.

1 (2021): 10–23.

[3] Darwin, Helana. “Navigating the Religious Gender Binary.” Sociology of Religion 81, no.

2 (2020): 185–205.

[4] Herman, Paul. “‘Our Post-Christian Age’: Historicist-Inspired Diagnoses of Modernity,

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1935-70.” In Post-Everything: An Intellectual History of Post-Concepts, by Adriaan van Veldhuizen and Paul Herman, 17–39.

Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2021.

[5] Fukuyama, Francis. “Transhumanism.”

Foreign Policy, no. 144 (2004): 42–43.

[6] Sorgner, Stefan Lorenz. On Transhumanism.

Translated by Spencer Hawkins. 1st edition.

University Park, Pennsylvania: Penn State University Press, 2020.

[7] McCoy, Katie J. “God Created Them, Male and Female.” Southwestern Journal of Theology 63, no. 2 (2021): 49–64.

[8] Mason, Matthew. “The Authority of the Body: Discovering Natural Manhood and Womanhood.” Bulletin of Ecclesial Theology 4, no. 2 (2017): 39–57.

[9] Schmitt, John J. “Gender Correctness and Biblical Metaphors: The Case of God’s Relation to Israel.” Biblical Theology Bulletin 26, no. 3 (1996): 96–106.

[10] Johnson, Gregg. “The Biological Basis for Gender-Specific Behavior.” In Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, edited by Piper, John and Wayne Grudem. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway, 2012.

[11] Gnuse, Robert K. “Seven Gay Texts: Biblical Passages Used to Condemn Homosexuality.”

Biblical Theology Bulletin 45, no. 2 (2015): 68–87.

[12] Piper, John, and Wayne Grudem. “An Overview of Central Concerns. Questions and Answers.” In Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, edited by Piper, John and Wayne Grudem. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway, 2012.

[13] Rubinstein, G. “The Decision to Remove Homosexuality from the DSM: Twenty Years Later.” American Journal of Psychotherapy 49, no. 3 (1995): 416–27.

[14] Saad, Lydia. “More Say ‘Nature’ Than ‘Nurture’ Explains Sexual Orientation.” Poll results. Washington, D.C.: Gallup, May 24, 2018. https://news.gallup.com/poll/234941/ say-nature-nurture-explains-sexualorientation.aspx.

[15] Kidner, Derek. Genesis. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries. Downers Grove:

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IVP Academic, 2008.

[16] Küng, Hans. “The World’s Religions: Common Ethical Values.” Santa Clara University, 2005.

[17] Global Ethic. “Declaration Toward a Global Ethic.” Accessed October 6, 2021. https:// www.global-ethic.org/declaration-toward-aglobal-ethic/.

[18] McClain, Linda. “The Rhetoric of Bigotry and Conscience in Battles over ‘Religious Liberty v. LGBT Rights.’” In Religious Freedom, LGBT Rights, and the Prospects for Common Ground, edited by William N. Eskridge Jr. and Robin Fretwell Wilson, 213–32. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018.

Biography Dr. Ovidiu Hanc was born in Arad, Romania in October 1977. He studied theology and has a BTh from Emanuel University of Oradea (2001); an MTh (2005) and PhD (2014) from Queen’s University of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

He is lecturer in New Testament Theology at Emanuel University of Oradea and pastor of Dragostea [Love] Baptist Church of Arad.

He currently serves as Vice President of Education at Arad Baptist Association and as Director of “Ethics and Society” Research Centre at Emanuel University of Oradea.

Dr. Hanc is a member of the Theologians Network and Academic Network of the European Leadership Forum.

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Rules on Decarbonization and Human Rights Law Nazibrola Chinchaladze, Ph.D.

Doctor of Law, Associate Affiliate Professor at the Law Faculty in Sulkhan-Saba-Orbeliani University Tbilisi Georgia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4890-0273

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 20 September 2021 Received in revised form 13 October Accepted 15 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.16

In the 21st-century pandemic world faces, the challenge of global climate change in the form of temperature increase resulting in global warming, extremely crucial for small Iceland states. States from the South Pacific region are the biggest emitters of GHG. Rules of International Environmental Law are being called upon to address the protection and preservation of each environmental media including atmospheric air as substantial media for livelihood on the planet earth. Covid 19 disease strikes human’s breathing system and it is possible, that somehow this is reasoned from changes in the climate system. Thus, the rights of humans proclaimed and established on an international scale under ECHR and 1966 Covenants on separate rights of Humans are correlated with rules of environmental law, likewise, sedentary rocks on the sea bed are connected with the deep seabed, for the sustainability of their lifecycle. If the rights to life, to private and family life are protected and respected for the enjoyment by human beings, the Rules of International Environmental law on climate change mitigation are respected and implemented simultaneously because UNFCC, Paris Agreement, and Kyoto Protocol aim to protect the global atmosphere from GHG emissions ultimately to keep life on the earth, which includes Human’s opportunity to live in a healthy environment under rights to life, private life, and family living standards. The present article tries, briefly to describe how rules of IEL on Climate Change (Hard Laws) and Human Rights Norms interrelate with each other.

Keywords: Environmental law; sustainability; GHG emissions; UNFCC; international Treaties; climate changes; Convention on Climate Change;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Nazibrola Chinchaladze. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Chinchaladze, Nazibrola. “Rules on Decarbonization and Human Rights Law.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 169-175. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.16

I.

Introductory Explanations

The fashioning of International law of Human Rights and the establishment of some new international Human Rights organizations (including quasi-judicial) have in important respects dated positivist notions

about the relationship between individual and international law. International Human Rights law posits the direct application of international law of individuals and in some instances even gives individuals direct access to international legal machinery.

More than anything, these developments

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eISSN: 2393-1744, cdISSN: 2392-9928 printISSN: 2457-9297, ISSN-L 2392-9928

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demonstrate that individuals regardless of strict positivist doctrine, are now to be properly considered subjects not only of private but also of public international law.

[1] This definition of Gonzalez is the author’s point of view as Humans have no international legal personality like sovereign states, International Governmental Organizations and Holly See, but they have accessibility to such regional judicial institutions as ECHR in Strasburg and they are Actors under principle 10 of Declaration of Rio De Janeiro in the field of International Environmental Law (IEL).

IEL is also a subfield of Public International Law which is the system of rules (soft and hard, written and unwritten) aiming at controlling cost affecting environmental activities. The dilemma of IEL serves in the problem, - How can legal control of economic activities avoid environmental harm? The question is still to be answered.

II.

Active Rules[2] of International Environmental Law

From 1992 Rio De Janeiro Conference on Environment and Development world gained an international treaty[3] in the form of the Framework Convention on Climate Change, as it had already faced the challenge of temperature increase. The convention set the basic standard of states behavior in the direction of moving towards decarbonization. Under Article 2 of the convention, the Objective is “stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.

Such level should be achieved within a time frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner.”[4] Afterwords

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in article 3 the UNFCC sets principles for reaching its aims and in par.1 of article 3 proclaims “the Parties should protect the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations of humankind, on the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. Accordingly, the developed country Parties should take the lead in combating climate change and the adverse effects thereof.”

In such a manner UNFCC sets general obligation of states parties to protect the climate system, for ultimate target Human Being and separately determines the role of developed country parties, duty to lead motion of mitigating climate change as well as its unpleasant influence on lives of present and future generations[5] of humans.

When touching present and future generations the UNFCC covers present and foreseeable processes, which must be transformed from negative to positive results with the efforts of the states parties.

Measures and Standards are differently set for developed and developing countries with due consideration of their abilities to fulfill obligations under UNFCC. Principle of Public International law from the Law of Treaties pacta sunt servanda set in article 26 of 1969 Vienna Convention on the law of treaties mentioned above “every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith,” appeared not enough for states parties 194 for the moment, to reach climate change mitigation action for the purpose of protecting basic human rights and another international treaty in the form of Paris Climate Change Agreement was adopted on December 12, 2015, with its entry into force on 4 November 2016.

For March 2021 194 sovereign states became parties to it. This continues efforts of states demonstrates, that a greater part

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of states on the planet understands the importance of the standards which are to be implemented in accordance with the above mentioned two treaties on Climate System Protection and Preservation.

Paragraphs a, b, and c of Article 2 of the Paris Agreement is the primary target and all states parties wear the duty to reach this target by the implementation of harmonization policies in their national legislations and executive actions on a domestic level to reach the aims of stabilization of temperature on a global scale. “(a) Holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change; (b) Increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that does not threaten food production; and (c) Making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development.”[6] The issue of food production is the topic of the food industry, but the industry mentioned above is functioning for feeding humans and in this manner is supporting the right to life.

Without healthy food every human faces fatal results. Thus the obligation of parties under paragraph. “b” of article 2 of the Paris Agreement is the indirect duty of the states parties on protection of the inalienable human right to life. Paragraphs “a” and “c” of the same article set standards on temperature levels and financial efforts to be implemented by the parties. These paragraphs are interconnected with such

rights of humans, as the right to a healthy environment, right to private and family life.

I am a citizen of the small developing post-soviet state of Georgia which is bound under all international treaties on climate system protection mentioned above.

But as it becomes evident, from a recent publication in AJIL by Benoit Mayer[7], states like Georgia not bound by such treaties wear obligations under customary international law.

The process of harmonization of domestic legislation with international standards continues, because of difficulties of execution of adopted standards on local levels.

For non-lawyer readers, I would like to describe that, international Customs are unwritten hard rules of International Law, which are defined in article 38(b) of the Statute of ICJ as “state practice recognized as a rule of law”.

So this is the state’s behavior reflected in obeying unwritten norms for a long time.

The advantage of international custom is that after a separate period of time it may be codified in international treaties like conventions, pacts, etc.

It may likewise be reflected in international declarations which are considered to be soft laws but influential ones, in case of deficit of relevant laws.

For instance, the 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an example of codification of customary international law in this field.

The declaration created a background for the adoption of the ECHR text. This regional human rights instrument that sets human rights laws is reflected in the domestic legislation of states parties to it, in the form of the Constitution or organic law.

In the case of Georgia, human rights laws are part of its Constitution section 2 entitled

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fundamental rights and freedoms of human beings.

In many countries of Europe rules on the protection of the environment and human rights are included in other laws like codes, or laws on torts.

Thus the duty to protect on climate system as an environmental obligation and the duty to protect human beings’ right to life stand on the same level.

But the difference for a particular state is in the scope of protection.

All states parties to climate treaties are obliged to protect the rights of their citizens on their territory or the territory under their jurisdiction. But indirectly they wear obligations about foreign citizens on their territory or the territory under their jurisdiction within the scope of the general principle of cooperation and pacta sund servanda.

In IEL general principle of good neighborliness and international cooperation reflects the duty of cooperation on bilateral, regional, and global levels.

If States cooperate to protect the climate system they simultaneously cooperate for human rights protection I suppose.

The principle of cooperation in IEL is reflected in many treaties and is supported by state practice, particularly concerning hazardous activities and emergencies, is joined with the maxim sic utere tuo et alienum non laedas,[8] use your own property in such a manner as not to damage the property of the other. In this maxim property rights of sovereign states are touched in the context of general principle to cooperate. Property here means land, air, subsoil, freshwater resources, species on the legitimate territory of the state, the primary subject of International Law. Thus atmospheric air is covered as one, among others.

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III.

Incorporation of Human Rights With Mitigation Action

When criticizing incorporation theory Benoit Mayer suggests that the problem of incorporation theory is that it denatures the process of legal interpretation. Instead of taking general mitigation obligation into account, to make sense of human rights treaty, this theory overlooks the text as well as the object and purpose of the treaty at issue, focusing exclusively on general mitigation obligations.[9] In this intercourse Knox points out that “the content of the obligations of states to protect against environmental harm, depends on the content of their duties with respect of the particular rights, threatened by the harm.”[10] Commenting on Knox’s report Alan Boyle suggests that “the UN Special Reporter is right in principle to argue that human rights law as a whole requires states to comply with expectations set out by the mitigation objectives in Paris Agreement.”[11] Andre Nollkaemper and Laura Burgers are skeptical of the analysis of the Netherlands Supreme Court decision in the Urgenda case, as it blurs the “distinction between law and non-law.”[12] Neither Boyle nor Nollkaemper and Burgers objected to the possibility for a court when interpreting a human rights treaty as implying a mitigation obligation, to require the state to comply with any or all its obligations on climate change mitigation arising from any source.

Benoit Mayer arguably thinks that “the obligation to protect the right to life, does not imply the same mitigation obligation as the obligation to prevent discrimination against women and these obligations should apply differently in states where the enjoyment of these rights is more or less exposed to climate impacts, that mitigation action could avoid.

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In another example, Mayer concludes not without ground that “the obligation of the state to protect the right of coal miners, to an adequate standard of living may not imply state’s obligation to mitigate climate change at all, for closing coal mines - a measure that the state would take to mitigate climate change would deprive the coalminers of their livelihood.” In such situations, there is no doubt that the state wears a duty of care and afterwards the duty of protection.

The Incorporation theory is problematic.

It allows judges to bypass rules on jurisdiction and admissibility. The applicants in Urgenda had the standing to invoke the duty of care of the state and its obligation to protect human rights, but not its customary international law obligations.

“In addition to the international treaties on climate change, norms of customary international law also apply in the International climate change regime”.[13] “Certainly, international climate governance has been questioned, inter alia, for the blatant ways in which it has reproduced neo-colonial forms of dominance; and for the alleged political interference from non-state actors, where multinational corporations are able to influence the climate change policy-making processes by putting ‘pressure’ on decisionmakers”[14] In the Kyoto Protocol, States Parties agree to reduce their emissions by at least 5% below their 1990 levels, which can be fulfilled either individually or jointly.[15] On this ground, it was criticized. For instance, Dehm argued: … Some have described the UNFCC framework as promoting a form of “carbon colonialism” or “CO2lonialism” these mechanisms perpetuate inequalities at the heart of the climate crisis… These schemes are an ineffectual response that abrogates the responsibility of key polluters while threatening the livelihoods of those

communities with limited responsibility for and high vulnerability to climate change.[16] Conclusion Human rights laws in treaties may be interpreted as requiring a state to cooperate on climate change mitigation in good faith as the principle of pacta sund servanda requires, to the extent that this helps to protect the rights of individuals within its territory or under its jurisdiction.

This implied mitigation obligation allows the interpreter of human rights treaties to open a window into a general mitigation obligation arising from climate treaties and customary law.

Yet this window is extremely narrow, as human rights treaties do not fully take into account the broad benefits of climate change mitigation on human welfare, the interests of future generations, and the protection of nature per se, they do not require full compliance with general mitigation obligations.

The size of a window of applicability – that is to say, how far a human rights treaty requires a state to comply with its general mitigation obligations – depends on the personal scope of the treaty and the importance of the right at issue, as well as the potential benefits of climate change mitigation for the enjoyment of the right and its unintended consequences for the enjoyment of rights, within the state’s territory or under its jurisdiction.

Overall, international human rights law encourages each state to protect the rights of individuals within its territory, rather than to cooperate on the global common good.

This inherent tension between national interests and international cooperation will not be solved through an incremental extension of the international law of human rights.

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Bibliography [1]

[2] [3] [4]

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***Paris Climate Change Agreement 2015.

“The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ***Change’s (UNFCCC) 21st Conference of the Parties” (COP 21); ***Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, 1992. ***Stockholm Declaration on Human Environment, 1972; ***United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. 1992. FCCC/ INFORMAL/84 GE.05-62220 (E) 200705; Bachram, Heidi. “Climate fraud and carbon colonialism: the new trade in greenhouse gases,” Capitalism Nature Socialism, 15:4 (2004), 5-20, DOI: 10.1080/1045575042000287299; Bodansky, Daniel. “Customary (And Not so Customary) International Environmental Law.” Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies: Vol. 3 : Iss. 1 , Article 7. Available at: https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ijgls/ vol3/iss1/7; Boyle, Alan, and David Freestone (editors).

International Law and Sustainable Development: Past Achievements and Future Challenges. 1999. Oxford Scholarship Online March 2012.

DOI:10.1093/ acprof:oso/9780198298076.001.0001; Boyle, Alan. “CLIMATE CHANGE, THE PARIS AGREEMENT AND HUMAN RIGHTS.” International and Comparative Law Quarterly 67, no. 4 (2018): 759–77. doi:10.1017/S0020589318000222.; Dehm, Julia. Carbon Colonialism or Climate Justice Interrogation the International Climate Regime from a TWAIL Perspective’33.

Windsor Y.B. Access 2016; Janis, Mark W. An Introduction to International Law, second edition. Canada: Little Brown and Company, 1993; L. Diaz-Gonzalez, “Second Report on Relations Between States and International Organizations (Second Part of the Topic),” U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/391(1985); Mayer, Benoit. “Climate Assessment as an Emerging Obligation under Customary International Law.” International and Comparative Law Quarterly 68, no. 2 (2019):

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[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

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271–308. doi: 10.1017/S0020589319000095.; Mayer, Benoyt. “Climate Change Mitigation as an Obligation Under Human Rights Treaties?”. American Journal of International Law 115, no 3 (2021); Nolkaemper, Ander, and Laura Burgers. “A new Classic in Climate Change litigation: the Dutch Supreme Court Decision in the Urgenda Case.” European Journal of International Law: Talk! Jan 6, 2020. URL: https://www. ejiltalk.org/a-new-classic-in-climate-changelitigation-the-dutch-supreme-court-decisionin-the-urgenda-case/; Sands, P., and J.Peel, A.Fabra, R.Mackenzie.

Principles of International Environmental law, fourth edition. Cambridge, 2018; UNFCCC (1997) Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted at COP3 in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997. URL: %20http://unfccc. int/resource/docs/cop3/07a01.pdf; Voight, Christina. Sustainable Development as a Principle of International Law: Resolving Conflicts between Climate Measures and WTO law. Brill | Nijhoff (2009). DOI: https:// doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004166974.i-428; Vormedal, Irja. “The Influence of Business and Industry NGOs in the Negotiation of the Kyoto Mechanis: The Case of Carbon Capture and Storage in the CDM”. Global Environmental Politics 8:4, November 2008, 36-65. DOI: 10.1162/glep.2008.8.4.36.

[3]

[4] [5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

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[2]

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L. Diaz-Gonzalez, Second Report on Relations Between States and International Organizations (Second Part of the Topic), U.N. Doc. A/CN.4/391(1985). See also Mark.

Janis, An Introduction to International Law. Second Edition Canada: Little Brown and Company 1993.

Rules that are in force after the ratification and signature procedures in case of treaties and customary rules which are binding as much as international customs are principal sources of public international law under article 38 of the Statute of ICJ. See statute full text available https://www.icj-cij.org/en/statute

[9] [10] [11]

[12]

An international agreement concluded between States in written form and governed by international law, whether embodied in a single instrument or in two or more related instruments and whatever its particular designation; is defined in article 2(a) 1969 Vienna Convention on the law of Treaties available at https://legal.un.org/ilc/texts/ instruments/english/conventions/1_1_1969. pdf See UNFCC art.2 available at https://unfccc. int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf.

This is the element of principle of sustainable development, one of the seven general principles of IEL which is broadly discussed in book Principles of International Environmental law by Ph.Sands, J.Peel, A.Fabra, R.Mackenzie fourth edition Cambridge 2018, Part II pp. 206-210. See also A.Boyle and D.Freestone, International law and Sustainable Development 1999; C.Voight, Sustainable Development as a Principle of International Law: Resolving Conflicts Between Climate Measures and WTO Law, 2009.

See Paris Agreement available at https:// unfccc.int/sites/default/files/english_paris_ agreement.pdf Benoit Mayer, “Climate Change Mitigation As an Obligation Under Human Rights Treaties?”, American Journal of International Law Cambridge, Vol.115:3 (2021): p.409-451.

The maxim was invoked as a ‘fundamental rule’ by Hungary in its original application in the Gabcikovo-Nagimaros Project case, para.32(citing in support of the maxim the Corfu Channel case (1949), the trail smelter case (1941), the Stokholm Declaration (1972), the World Charter for Nature(1982), the ILC Draft Articles on International Liability(1990) and the Rio Declaration(1992)) Id. AJIL, p. 442 Id. Alan Boyle, Climate Change, the Paris Agreement and Human Rights, international and comparative law quarterly 2018. See Also HR Council Res. 41/21.

Andre Nolkaemper and Laura Burgers, “A new Classic in Climate Change litigation:

[13]

[14]

[15] [16]

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the Dutch Supreme Court Decision in the Urgenda Case,” EJIL: Talk! (Jan 6, 2020) at, https://www.ejiltalk.org/a-new-classic-inclimatechange-litigation-the-dutch-supremecourt-decision-in-the-urgenda-case.

See Daniel Bodansky, ‘Customary (And Not so Customary) International Environmental Law’ 3(1) Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies (Symposium; International Environmental Laws and Agencies: The Next Generation) (1995) 105; and Benoit Mayer, ‘Climate Assessment as an Emerging Obligation under International Customary Law’(2019) 68(2) International & Comparative Law Quarterly 271.

Irja Vormedal, “The Influence of Business and Industry NGOs in the Negotiation of the Kyoto Mechanisms: The Case of Carbon Capture and Storage in the CDM” Global Environmental Politics 8(4) (2008): 36, 62.

Kyoto Protocol, article 3, para. 1.

See Julia Dehm, ‘Carbon Colonialism or Climate Justice? Interrogating the International Climate Regime from a TWAIL Perspective’ 33 Windsor Y. B. Access Just (2016) 129; and Heidi Bachram, ‘Climate Freud and Carbon Colonisation: The New Trade in Greenhouse Gases’ (2004) 15(4) Capitalism, Nature, Socialism 5.

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How to reason about religious beliefs Daniele Bertini, Ph.D.

Adjunct Professor of Philosophy University of Rome Tor Vergata Department of Literary Studies, Philosophy, and History of Arts Via Columbia 1, 00133, Rome, Italy https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7235-7952

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 17 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 November Accepted 16 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.17

Intractable disagreements are commonly analyzed in terms of the semantic opposition of (at least) couples of disputed beliefs (purely epistemic view, from here on PEV).

While such a view seems to be a very natural starting point, my intuitions are that such an approach is misleadingly unrealistic, and that an empirical modeling towards how individuals hold beliefs in intractable opposition constitutes a strong defeater for PEV. My work addresses disagreements within the religious domain. Accordingly, I will be concerned with developing my empirical understanding of religious beliefs, and will show the consequences of such proposal on how to answer the problem of religious diversity.

Keywords: Epistemology of Religious Beliefs; Epistemology of Disagreements; Religious Diversity; Stance Epistemology; Vagueness;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Daniele Bertini. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Bertini, Daniele. ”How to reason about religious beliefs.”

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I. Analyzing intractable disagreement scenarios I’m a non-affiliated theist. I believe in one God, who is a perfect, omnipotent and omniscient person. Further, I believe that God is eternal and is the creator of the world. Suppose that I meet a religious individual who claims that divinity is not exhausted by a single divine person, but it is to be understood in terms of a plurality of gods. Both of us feel curiosity for the view opposite to our own, and are eager to understand better the rival position.

Accordingly, I display a few reasons for my belief, and my doxastic opponent does the same for theirs. After some conversation, we realize that our disagreement will not come at an easy point of arrest. What shall we do with our dissent, then?

Three intuitions seem ordinarily involved in how to deal with disagreement scenarios like the one above (call this kind of disagreements intractable disagreement): that there are a high number of puzzling disagreements between people who mutually recognize each other competency

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on the matter at stake; that the views of experts should be regarded as a source of knowledge; that we cannot give up our convictions any time someone raises objections against them (on pain of accepting an intolerable degree of skepticism virtually on any issues).

Lara Buchak (2021) provides a clear conceptual framework for regimenting such intuitions. Let’s call epistemic peers individuals who mutually acknowledge that the other is as epistemically capable as they are. Let’s call disputed claims couples of opposing beliefs. In light of these definitions, the three intuitions can now be translated into the following principles: FREQUENCY. There is widespread disagreement among peers about the disputed claims. HUMILITY. When an epistemic peer forms a very different opinion about a claim than I do, I ought to drastically alter my opinion.

TENACITY. I ought to maintain my opinion about the disputed claims.

The assumption of the three principles can be shortly justified. FREQUENCY is a matter of fact, at least for anyone familiar with how scientific debates go. HUMILITY relies on a consideration difficult to reject: if someone who is capable as I am from an epistemic viewpoint has reasons for a belief opposing my own one, evidence of contrary evidence is evidence against my belief (Feldman 2006). As a consequence, both my opponent and me should reconsider the content of the evidential support relation for our beliefs in order to assess how the new available evidence might impact on our starting belief (Kelly 2010; Bertini 2021).

Finally, TENACITY is a necessary move to stopping the unavoidable skepticism where HUMILITY leads once that it be radically applied to disputed claims.

Now, the disagreement between my

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polytheist opponent and me constitutes an exemplification of FREQUENCY (suppose that our conversation suggests us that we should acknowledge each other the status of the epistemic peer). Accordingly, we should drastically alter our starting opinions because of HUMILITY. Nonetheless, we should also maintain our starting opinions because of TENACITY. Consequently, the use of the three principles appears to originate contradictory commands: it is plain that we cannot alter and maintain our starting opinions at once.

To the purpose of overcoming this practical contradiction while not setting aside the ordinary intuitions involved in intractable disagreements, Buchak advances a refined phrasing for FREQUENCY, HUMILITY, and TENACITY: FREQUENCY. There is widespread disagreement among peers about the disputed claims. HUMILITY (applying to evidence). When an epistemic peer forms a very different opinion about a claim than I do, the balance of my evidence for that claim changes significantly. TENACITY (applying to belief). I ought to maintain my opinion about the disputed claims.

Assume that credence and belief are two logically independent propositional attitudes (Jackson forthcoming).

Credence is the propositional attitude that proportionates the degree of acceptance of an evidence claim; belief is the propositional attitude that considers a claim expressive of that it is the case that things stand in a certain manner. Particularly, belief depends on both evidence and a number of other cognitive (and possibly non-cognitive) features. For example, while I have nearly full credence that I will not win the lottery, I also want to believe that I will win the lottery. My will to believe that I will win the lottery is a reason for my believing that I will win the lottery, but evidence also plays a role: someone will win, and the winner will

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win against the low probability that they possess the winning ticket. Giving to the fact that my ticket will be the winning one the status of a live possibility is the outcome of evidential reasoning and constitutes part of the body of evidence for my belief that I will win the lottery. According to the distinction, credence constitutively depends on evidence, whereas belief does not.

Since HUMILITY applies only to evidence, and TENACITY applies to belief, the two principles apply to different objects. As a consequence, the use of such principles in handling intractable disagreements may not raise any vexing problem.

The rephrased construal highlights indeed that the practical contradiction generates only if a further principle is assumed: SYNCHRONICITY: My belief after I encounter peer disagreement should depend only on the balance of my evidence after I encounter peer disagreement.

Given that HUMILITY applies to evidence, HUMILITY constitutively impacts on credence. On the contrary, TENACITY applies to belief. This being case, the availability of new evidence in face of an intractable disagreement necessarily requires a new balance of evidence for the credence at issue; however, this fact may have not any normative consequences for belief. Suppose indeed that belief should not depend on the necessary balance of evidence at every time I access to evidence against it (this move is a denial of SYNCHRONICITY). It follows that, while I should rebalance evidence for my credence whenever I have a doxastic exchange with an opponent to my belief because of HUMILITY, I could stand firm on my belief because of TENACITY. Naturally, that rationally believing requires evidence appears a grounding assumption for almost any theory of justification (for example, that credence and belief are two logically independent

propositional attitudes is denied by credencefirster reductionists: credence is belief above some threshold). Nonetheless, intractable disagreements seem to be the paradigmatic case involving a credence/belief distinction.

In the controversy on polytheism and theism, my opponent’s reasons and my address ordinary beliefs, namely, beliefs whose justification constitutively depends on evidence (e.g., earthquakes are not caused by divine anger towards humankind), as well as different kinds of beliefs, that is to say, beliefs to whose soundness we are committed independently of a perpetual evaluation of relevant evidence (e.g., there exists a God/there exists a plurality of gods).

The former exemplify the credence attitude.

The latter are properly beliefs representing our fundamental views. Our fundamental views are the convictions that we once accepted because of facts and reasons that we found forceful, persuasive, and definitely enlightening at the time of the assumption.

Commitment to such convictions needs not at every time to depend on the balance of evidence at any given time: since we once reputed that the evidence for our belief was deeply persuasive, we committed to that belief in a way that it became a nonnegotiable conviction. Buchak provides a formal apparatus for showing that standing firm in our own convictions is often the most justified attitude because it produces and sustains desirable epistemic benefits.

Back again to the disagreement about theism. My belief in that there exists a perfect person who is God and the belief of my doxastic adversary that there exists a plurality of persons who are gods are two convictions. Accordingly, SYNCHRONICITY does not apply to them.

A conclusion follows: disagreement on theism is an exemplification of FREQUENCY, and doxastic opponents in such a situation can act in conformity with both HUMILITY and TENACITY without experiencing any

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contradictory performance.

II.

Flaws in Buchak’s view intractable disagreements.

of

Is this the end of the story? Does the conceptual apparatus introduced by Buchak provide a credible account of how people do dissent?

While the regimentation by FREQUENCY, HUMILITY, TENACITY, and SYNCHRONICITY points at relevant facts (i.e. that individuals accept, withhold or deny claims by actualizing manners of believing which are different in kind; that convictions are resistant to counter-evidence; that believers might be justified in standing firm, disagreements notwithstanding), I’m afraid that to an overall consideration the regimentation does not work fully.

Admittedly, I maintain a conviction concerning that the balance of evidence has a normative relation to the justification of a belief. However, I think to have also some independent reasons for the belief that Buchak’s regimentation is not a good exit strategy from the challenge of intractability.

Empirical issues.

Descriptive considerations first. Buchak spends much time developing a formal model capable of pointing at when changing belief on the ground of new evidence is the most sound option. According to the model, the new evidence can increase or decrease the probability of credence whose correspondent belief is held by an individual.

The purpose of conditionalization is to understand in which situation the balance of evidence for credence suggests a change in the propositional attitude towards belief. Be Pc credence in claim P, and Pb the correspondent belief (i.e., belief in claim P).

Buchak considers three options relating to how the acquisition of evidence for Pc may or may not impact on Pb: standing firm on Pb, rejecting Pb, becoming agnostic towards Pb.

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Such an approach, however, seems unfit to represent real intractable disagreements because the availability of new evidence provided by these situations acts on the relevant propositional attitudes in a sensibly different manner from how the model supposes. When my opponent and me disagree about the number of gods, each of us is not abstractly considering whether the evidence advanced by the rival promotes an update of our propositional attitude towards our starting belief. Abstraction here characterizes that belief revision in face of disagreements is a process wherein an individual weights whether reasons for the opposing belief constitute also reasons against their starting belief (so that an update of their propositional attitude is required). That is to say, abstraction is related to considering the evidence for one single belief (their own one) independently of the opposite belief: just evidence for the other belief enters the epistemic evaluation, the opposite belief remaining out of the field of inquiry. Buchak’s approach gives voice to an abstracted view of belief revision because it involves that disagreements on a claim P provide new evidence addressing the claim; and that belief revision consists in weighting whether the evidence against the claim at issue impacts or not on the degree of acceptance of Pc to a degree that implies to update the starting believe attitude towards P. Whole this process looks like consisting in taking notes of pro and contra to a claim on a white page, and, subsequently, evaluating where evidence leads.

On the contrary, real intractable disagreements present a situation wherein doxastic opponents together compare (at least) a couple of opposing claims. Drawing a table assigning points for and against an isolated understanding of theism and an isolated understanding of polytheism, so that you can visualize which of the two beliefs scores better, does not help because

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evidence for theism and polytheism cannot be disentangled as single items for a neutral evaluation: in ordinary situations, it emerges from the mutual comparison of the opposing views, and maintains such a relational character. Suppose that my polytheist opponent holds the credence that earthquakes are not caused by divine anger towards human beings and I denied it. They advance as reasons for their credence that geology provides a mechanistic account for earthquakes, and I endorse it, but I add that God makes use of the mechanistic frame of nature for pursuing his ends; thus, God really causes earthquakes. Note that in sharing my evidence, I move from evidence related to credence to evidence related to my convictions (that is, I import evidence for credence by the cognitive storehouse containing my evidence for belief: that God makes use of the mechanistic frame of nature for pursuing his ends is clearly a fundamental belief of my global religious view, namely, it expresses a non negotiable conviction). At this point, my adversary will probably intend to analyzing whether the notion of divine anger make sense.

According to their polytheist view, gods may prove anger towards human beings, but it is hardly the case that they can express a unified standpoint and act collaboratively as a single entity that intends to punish human beings. One god may prove anger, another not. Gods in polytheist religions often think differently, acts one independently on and against others, and pursue different purposes. As a consequence, divine anger may be the cause of earthquakes, but holding the claim requires a theory of hierarchical relationships between gods in order to explain which god can cause an earthquake and which cannot. Also for my opponent, then, evidence for credence relies on evidence for belief (i.e., a substantive theory of how the pantheon of gods is constituted cannot be other than a conviction). Conclusion follows: in

the religious domain at least, evidence for credence is construed in terms of evidence for belief (that is, convictions largely shape, justify, and individuate criteria for what count as evidence for credence) to a degree that they cannot be disentangled.

Considering evidence for credence soon leads to introduce evidence for the correspondent belief in the debate: you cannot then balance isolatedly evidence for the credence which opposes your own one.

Actually, evaluating that kind of evidence involves evaluating the opposing belief too.

The real process of evidence sharing is indeed a global comparison of the respective merits of the two opposing beliefs. It is not a matter of establishing whether standing firm on theism, denying it, or becoming agnostic about it, and, subsequently, take a position towards polytheism. There is not a claim, that is, theism and the negation of that claim, that is, non theism, which challenge each other. Rather, the focus is on the dialectical fight of two opposing claim, theism and polytheism. The kind of evidence at stake originates from an oppositional comparison, and constitutively depends on the particularities of such opposition. This means that my opponent and me face each other by executing simultaneously a number of dialectical epistemic actions: defending the benefits of our own view in respect to the flaws of the other one; answering objections from the other side by highlighting their relevance or irrelevance to our own view; considering the opposite viewpoint with an inquisitive attitude in order to assess whether I could have endorsed it if my epistemic situation had it been different; and so on. Beliefs in opposition are the content of the whole process.

To my view, the most importance consequence of dealing with intractable disagreements in terms of the opposition of beliefs, instead of in terms of the balance

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of evidence for isolated beliefs, consists in that it highlights a common feature of belief revision which remain obscured by Buchak’s model. According to Buchak, there are situations where evidence for a credence suggests in fact to change the starting propositional attitude towards the starting view. Such a change is pictured as a shift from belief to agnosticism due to a growing accumulation of counterevidence to our starting belief. However, people do change ideas by moving from a positive claim to another positive claim, and the change is not ultimately due to accumulation of counterevidence. If I lost my faith in theism as a consequence of a comparison with a polytheist, it would be misleading to expect that I would endorse agnosticism towards theism. What happens in situation like this is that, if my doxastic exchange with an opponent pushes me to strongly revising my view, I would probably move towards theirs. This being the case, I would not become agnostic towards theism: I would deny it. Literature and sociology of conversion abounds of reports about how the outcome of highly participated meetings between doxastic opponents, do not produce agnosticism, but the assumption of the belief of others (Harline 2003; Bertini 2016). Furthermore, it would be wrong to characterize similar processes of belief revision in terms of evidence evaluation: they are better understood as epiphanies.

Understanding that others are right or realizing that evidence points at a view alternative to the one to which we previously assented is an instantaneous state of mind, is an inner revelation of a truth that was always out there, but that we did not acknowledge as such. This is not a kind of irrationalist mysticism towards belief revision, neither the statement of a voluntarist stance.

Simply, the claim is that understanding the consequences of evidence against a belief is not an accumulative process leading to agnosticism, but happens as a

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sudden comprehension that things stand in certain manner. Things were clear in their presentation out there; it sufficed to look in the right way! Such an observation is not related to religious thinking alone.

Scientists too achieve basic knowledge this way. Consider the words by the leading microbiologist Lynn Margulis concerning her distancing from neo-Darwinism: “I’ve been critical of mathematical neoDarwinism for years; it never made much sense to me. We were all told that random mutations — most of which are known to be deleterious — are the main cause of evolutionary change. I remember waking up one day with an epiphanous revelation: I am not a neo- Darwinist! It recalled an earlier experience, when I realized that I wasn’t a humanistic Jew” (Margulis 1995).

This anecdote is instructive because highlights that, although Margulis had not supported the neo-Darwinian synthesis over the years, she was still thinking to belong to the parish of orthodox biology, which was naturally neo-Darwinian. Evidence that she did not in fact inhabit such a palace was available to her. However, she seemed not to draw the right consequences from her data. Understanding came as an unexpected intuition: all that she did in science was not compatible with the contemporary account of biological evolution! The lack of convergency with the descriptive features emerging from empirical situations of intractable disagreements is a common property of the mainstream approach to religious belief and dissent. Such a property is a consequence of the conceptual apparatus which is ordinarily assumed and uncritically employed in normative epistemology and philosophy of religion. This suggests moving to a few conceptual considerations.

Normative issues.

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Buchak’s proposal is a paradigmatic exemplification of the mainstream approach. The reason why I address her work is that she clearly develops a model wherein the consensus view is set forth with outstanding accuracy and defended with a depth of argumentation and a reasonssustained analysis. Particularly, given its principled picturing of disagreement scenarios, it makes plainly evident the main shortcomings of the mainstream approach.

Back to the three principles advanced

by Buchak. The basic assumption is that a claim is immediately significant and opposes alternative claims in terms of such significance immediacy. There is no need to specify requirements for how claims oppose each other. Probably, the idea is that the simple phrasing of a proposition establishes a discrete and clear meaning for belief.

Linguistic analysis is not the concern here.

The evident fact in Buchak’s proposal is that disagreements are logical relations between beliefs: one belief has easily accessible semantic features Sk; another belief has easily accessible semantic features Si; Sk and Si plainly conflict (i.e., the semantic value of a belief is the opposite of the other: they cannot be both true). According to the model, the individuals holding a belief have immediate, unproblematic, definitive access to such semantic features, and, consequently, immediately, unproblematically, and definitely understand the conflict between their belief and those ones which oppose theirs in their semantic features. It is not relevant whether the phenomenology of dissents shows that disputes often imply an effort to achieve a satisfactory understanding of the rival views.

All history is bracketed: disagreements start when doxastic opponents obtain a stable and discrete expression of their beliefs (be that the outcome of a linguistic work or other activities does not matter), and assign oppositional semantic values to their claims.

In light of these considerations, I will label the mainstream approach as the purely epistemic view (PEV) of intractable disagreements. Naturally, I hold that disagreements are a matter of epistemically evaluating the semantic value of opposing claims. However, I do not assent to that they are purely such an affair, because the semantic features of belief are not immediately, unproblematically, and definitively available to individuals (as PEV assumes).

Religious beliefs are indeed constitutively vague (Bertini 2018; Bertini 2020b), and anecdotally justified (Bertini 2019; Bertini 2021). To make a long story short, religious propositions make use of designators for their referential targets in a rigid manner, and associate to such rigid designators a degree of imprecision in the expression of the relevant features of their reference (Bertini 2020a). Imprecision is due to the communitarian accumulation of interdependent but slightly different interpretations of such relevant features.

As a consequence, religious facts do not receive unambiguous representations in beliefs shared among coreligionists; rather, a plurality of continually fluctuating analyses of religious core events and doctrines attest an irremovable degree of semantic indeterminacy of religious beliefs (even mandatory beliefs for adherence to a group).

Such semantic indeterminacy is not caused by the paucity of evidence, as in Quinean contexts (1959). On the contrary, religious traditions provide their adherents with a mass of informations which turn out to be fully unmanageable by reason of their wide extension: a core of revelatory materials which vary upon different texts, some thought to be orthodox, other thought to be not; canonical interpretations of these materials; a number of denominationally differing doctrines about revelation; a thousand-years old history of works by

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authors from very distant fields of inquiry; an indefinitely huge quantity of personal experiences, and so on. The moral of the story is that, within religions, beliefs are not underdetermined by evidence, but overdetermined. Vagueness is an effect of such superabundance, and the anecdoticity of justification practices depends on that there are not any established method for determining an interpretation of religious materials which is univocally shared across coreligionists.

An example will help clarifying my characterization of religious beliefs.

Christians confess one God, and three Persons. Along Christian history, virtually any theologian gave an interpretation of what the doctrine of the Trinity is. Reasonably, also priests (which received scholarly training on doctrinal topics) have a personal interpretation of the Creed (i.e, they teach and confess it literally, they understand it anecdotally). Moreover, non scholarly trained believers too have their ideas about what the Trinity is. Now, suppose you can make a list of all these interpretations, and can order them in the following manner: at the left bound of the doxastic spectrum put the claim that there are three Gods, who have the same nature (i.e., divine Persons are numerically distinct exemplifications of the same nature: this being the case, being God is analogous to natural kinds in biology); at the right bound put the claim that there is one single God, who presents to us in three manners (i.e. there is just one divine Person, who plays three different roles for us). Dispose all other interpretations in terms of their affinity to one or the other bounds: the more a claim construes the Trinity as a relation between three distinct gods, the more the claim stands in the neighborhood of the left bound; the more a claim construes the Trinity as a relation between three different manifestations of a single Person, the more the claim stands in

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the neighborhood of the right bound.

Just beliefs at the bounds of the whole spectrum are clearly unorthodox (they exemplify two heresies in fact: tritheism at left, modalism at right). However, choose an area of the spectrum as you like. For any area not containing the absolute bounds, at the left bound of the area, beliefs focus on personal distinctness; at the right bound of the same area, beliefs focus on substantive identity. Given that beliefs are ordered in terms of the degree of acceptance of the threefoldness or the onefoldness of God’s nature, beliefs shifts progressively from a view to the proximal one. In such a situation, the claim that God is a Trinity reveals to be semantically indeterminate: differences between proximal views are nearly impossible to detect, and the threshold distancing threefoldness from onefoldness cannot be established (e.g., when you choose an area, the left bound is more tritheistic than the right bound; nonetheless, the left bound is the right bound of the left proximal area, and, accordingly, such bound is less tritheistic than the left bound of this proximal area; but, it is nearly impossible to detect what differentiates the bound of an area from the proximal view at its left; conclusion follows: it is nearly impossible to determine when a view is clearly tritheist, except from the left absolute bound of the doxastic spectrum).

I call substantive the kind of vagueness introduced above. It relates to the nature of divinity. Other varieties are the interpretive one and the epistemic one. Interpretive vagueness concerns what counts as an authentic religious fact. It regards whether an alleged appearance of a religious character (i.e., a god, a prophet, a saint, etc.) is a true appearance. It is also exemplified by little divergencies in local cults within a region, and by rituals whose performance varies upon different localities. Finally, epistemic vagueness affects any explanatory role

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for our experience, the world, and human history, which is attributed to the divine realm. Prominent instances of this kind of vagueness are soteriological doctrines (How many items warranting salvation/liberation are necessary for that an individual achieves salvation/liberation?; Which degree of intensity in performing an action warranting salvation/liberation is necessary for that an individual achieves salvation/liberation?) as well as debate on theodicy or on creation/ evolution (How many natural evils are necessary for disqualifying creation as oriented to the good? Which degree of intensity of a natural evil should be realized for disqualifying creation as oriented to the good?).

Three elucidations are needed. First, religious vagueness has a clear linguistic origin, and is ultimately a doxastic phenomenon. Given rigidity in designation of religious referential target plus evidential superabundance, vagueness follows.

However, my characterization is neutral to the semantic versus ontic debate on the nature of vagueness. If a proposition is vague, I cannot decide on the basis of the proposition alone whether its content vaguely refers to a precise entity or precisely refers to a vague entity (Bertini 2020b). Second, vagueness is not a defect of religious language. It does not prevent an individual from making informative claims about their religious views. Think to the previous example of the Trinity. It may be the case that it is indeterminate whether Bonaventure’s doctrine of the Trinity provides a fully understandable representation of the Trinity; however, it certainly constitutes an orthodox view since it can be clearly detached from fullblown tritheist or modalist approaches.

Generally speaking, all vague statements may be informative notwithstanding their semantic indeterminacy: Everest is a vague term, and none has socially shared methods

for deciding the exact border separating Everest from everything else. In any case, Everest is not Kilimangiaro or Everest does not belong to the Alps are informative propositions (whoever denies them, utters a falsity). Third, internal plurality is the constitutive scenario of any religious tradition. Because of vagueness and superabundance of evidence, coreligionists are committed to anecdotal practices of justification. This leads to a variability in beliefs and interpretations of them which should shift the epistemic focus of the explanation of intractable disagreements in religious domain from a comparison between traditions to different religiosities within a single tradition.

If I am right in characterizing religious beliefs in terms of vagueness and anecdoticity, PEV should be rejected. Given that individuals engaging in intractable disagreements have a vague and anecdotal understanding of their beliefs, they cannot have an immediate, unproblematical, and definitive understanding of the semantic features of their beliefs. Whether they commit themselves to a debate after the doxastic encounter that presents their opposition to them is an a posteriori matter. However, in case they do it, they will drift to a common enterprise of meaning clarification: any time one of the two assesses their conviction, the other criticizes it by reason of theirs, pushing the first to set forth a refine understanding of the starting belief in order to show whether the adversary’s criticism hits the target; and so on for each step of their debate. PEV is irrelevant to reasoning about religious beliefs and disagreements exactly because the cognitive practice of religiously believing frames taking responsibly the challenge of religious diversity more as a matter of explaining our doxastic views in the religious domain (enhancing this way justification for our convictions by embodying replies

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to adversary’s counterevidence), than assigning points on a board to opposing but unrelating beliefs. That beliefs in opposition promote a dialectical conflict in need of a simultaneous evaluation of their respective merits, and that such an evaluation is not a consequence of the logical relation between beliefs but an existential fact concerning individuals which engage in a lively debate by elucidating their own viewpoint and trying to understand that of the other (to the aim of learning from the whole process), focus that intractable disagreements are not a purely epistemic affairs; rather they are also a relational fact. Such a process is anecdotal in nature: individuals justify their beliefs by a limited, particular, and contextualized access to relevant evidence. Therefore, the doxastic content emerging from the debate depends on the anecdotal nature of religious disagreements. Again, PEV is unsatisfactory because obscures such a doxastic feature of religious diversity.

All considered, PEV correctly assumes that religious disagreements are epistemic.

Nonetheless, it ignores that they are also relational and anecdotal. The arguments that I set forth above pushes me to the conviction that soundly reasoning about religious beliefs implies approaching religious diversity by an epistemic, relational, and anecdotal manner at once.

III.

Traditions: stances versus systems of belief.

The rejection of PEV implies a rejection of a common view on religious diversity, which can be spelt out as religious traditions are to be construed in terms of their belief system, at least when inquiring their epistemic dimension (call the view Tradition as Belief Systems, TBS). Such a rejection is essential to a right epistemic positioning towards religious belief: dealing with religions, faith, and the epistemic commitments of believers needs saying a few words about it.

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According to TBS, any tradition can be picked out by reason of a system of belief (Pouivet 2013). Such a system is constituted of a set of framework propositions expressing a structured worldview. All adherents to a tradition assent to such a set of propositions (Alston 1992, Plantinga 1999, Harrison 2006, van Inwagen 2010). A notable consequence of this reduction of religious tradition to their system of belief concerns religious affiliation: any individuals adhering to a tradition may be represented as a prototypical exemplar which stands for any other individual adhering to that very tradition. This being the case, from an epistemic viewpoint, all members of a religion are interchangeable. This is exactly where the doxastic dimension of believing vanishes into the epistemic one. Suppose that all adherents to a tradition T give a literal assent to belief P. Real differences concerning how to understand the content of P are obscured by the alleged epistemic stability of the semantic value of P. That is, whichever interpretation of P which is thought to be legitimate in T has the same semantic value, represents the same content, and can be validly translated by any other claim having the same semantic value in relation to the same content.

Apply this to the polytheism/theism debate. My polytheist opponent would accept a general framework which gives voice to their faith: it is the logical system of polytheist belief. According to TBS, any instance of historical polytheism reduces to this logical system (at least regarding its epistemic dimension): historical polytheist religions express such a logical system, namely, express their content by a web of inferential relations between basic propositions (there may be groups of historical polytheist religions which turn out to be irreducible to a common belief system; nonetheless, such a fact would be the outcome of some particular couples of

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propositions within one and the other belief system, so that their existence in the web of inferential relations affects the core belief system common to any polytheism).

Suppose that my opponent is a Hindu (I understand with the term Hindu religion the contemporary synthesis of traditional materials largely due to colonial relationships between Britons and the different people from the Indian subcontinent, Pennington 2005). It may be the case that a theorist endorsing PEV and TBS thinks that Hindu polytheism has a taxonomical relation with other forms of polytheism, for example Greek-Roman ones, and, accordingly, TBS correctly describe polytheism because brackets historical relationship among traditions and jumps to the common semantic content of polytheism: history would be the actualization of logics.

However, even if they do not think this way, a theorist accepting TBS thinks that polytheism as such is a fully determinate religious view, which is established by its system of belief.

Naturally enough, the characterization of religious beliefs in terms of vagueness and anecdoticity suggests that traditions should be construed in alternative manners. The relevant facts which is important to take into consideration are as follows: 1.

Traditions grow around a revelation corpus which is historically negotiated as a composition of a plurality of different sources (the historical-critical method addressing holy literature within any tradition provides evidence in support).

2.

Traditions host a number of publicly competing interpretations. Some are institutional, namely, the authorities for that very tradition stipulate the right way to understand the content of holy literature by the canonization of their views on it. Others are scholarly ones, namely, any tradition internally develops public devices for establishing schools devoted

to professionals of revelation. Along history, institutional and non institutional interpretations may converge or diverge.

3.

Religious beliefs within a tradition have clear inferential relations, although no closure principle make sense in religious matters. The issue is not that if you know that P, and P implies Q, then assuming that you know Q is not a valid inference. My claim is that no kind of weaker closure principle which seems plausible in other domain of inquiry works in religion (an instance of a weaker closure principle is: if you know that P, and P implies Q, then you are in the position of knowing Q, once that the relevant epistemic conditions actualize). The reason why no such principles work is that inferential relations between religious beliefs are not globally valid (i.e., ordinary transitive inferences are not sound in religion, as the following example clearly highilights: God created the world; the world created Nazis; Nazis created concentration camps; God created concentration camps). Individuals assume that some inference from — say — a belief A to B is available, but generally hold that such inferences prove to be valid only limitedly to what they assume. That the world is a good thing inasmuch it is the work of a divinity is a recurrent belief in most traditions (the belief is justified by inferring goodness of the world from the goodness of divinity); nonetheless, most believers do not take this as a reason to evaluate positively natural phenomena as earthquakes, floods, or similar.

4.

Religious beliefs differ in kind, and are supported by different kinds of evidence. Substantive religious beliefs directly concern the divine realm and how to engage with it. They may be highly generic (e.g., there is a plurality of Gods) or specific (e.g., you should perform an action such and such in order to worship X). Auxiliary religious beliefs concern nonreligious assumptions which have some

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logical, epistemic or interpretive relations to the content of religious beliefs (e.g. if every A is a B, then there cannot be fewer B’s than A’s). Their importance consists in that, while they do not directly bear on religious matters, they specify what a certain religious belief means (Dormandy 2018). For example, Christians assume that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. According to the principle that if every A is a B, then there cannot be fewer B’s than A’s, it would result that there are at least three Gods. Consequently, Christians should not assume the principle and should count entities by alternative criteria; that is, the principle is not an auxiliary belief for the Christian system of beliefs. Two further elements of religious belief systems are that they involve a large amount of concepts, and that they assess, establish, and convey values.

To my intuition, the best way to make justice of (1)-(4), is to construe the cognitive architecture of religious tradition as a stance.

Stances oppose belief systems because they characterize doctrinal views as a bundles of values, emotions, policies, preferences and beliefs (van Fraassen 2002). Such an approach declines the normative obsession of traditional epistemology, and resolutely shift towards a descriptive understanding of what a theory of knowledge should be.

An evident merit of the proposal is that stances account for why claims can be the object of different propositional attitudes.

For example, convictions are beliefs motivated by values and preferences, and certainly satisfy established policies for the stance at stake, whereas depend lesser on evidence. Think to Gregory of Nyssa’s rejection of polytheism. In his treatise On not three gods, he condemns the infantility which governs the relationships between Greek-Roman deities, and takes it as a reason for not considering the Trinity a polytheist

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belief, appearances notwithstanding.

Plainly, such a criticism relies on a positive evaluation of collaborative actions and a negative evaluation of interpersonal conflicts. Both are evaluations relating to values and preferences. It is exactly this focus on values and preferences that weakens the strength of evidence on our conviction. On the contrary, credences concern matters having no fundamental role in our commitment to the stance, because they may not involve values, emotions, and preferences, satisfaction of policies and evidence being the only criteria for their evaluation. Consequently, adherence to a tradition may be spelt out in terms of the assumption of a complex cognitive apparatus wherein claims which are expressive of our doxastic positioning promote a plurality of different propositional attitudes forming a web of informal and locally accepted relations between credences and beliefs.

A further relevant feature of stances is that they provide an expressivist understanding of doxastic change. Dynamism is a main aspect of traditions: these ones develop in history, and ordinarily accomodate old doctrines to new contexts. As I argued in section 2.1, changing views is not a matter of calculating how evidence supports a belief: doxastic change is not contained in the initial doxastic condition plus the impact of evidence available. Rather, it consists in realizing that things attest something different from how I was previously used to explain my views. As such, doxastic change depends on how the starting standpoint and the final standpoint interact: it is expressive of our options in believing. van Fraassen sets forth the idea as follows (2011): “ [ . . . ] decisions are not arbitrary: they express both the history and the project which constitute the subject’s current stance on the matter, while defining the change therein. A decision - a commitment,

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an intention formed, an act - is like a Dedekind cut. [W]hile the prior does not uniquely determine the posterior elements in this cut, the decision is an arbitrary caprice only if it cannot be seen as expressing central elements in the prior. [T]hese two aspects, which I think are too much ignored, explain the extent of our responsibility: that the prior does not, on pain of irrationality, uniquely determine the posterior, and that the rationale for the shift found in the prior is determined in part by selectivity in our retrospection”.

A final remark before moving to considering how all this impact on religious diversity. Some may hold that being rationally responsible to our views consists in avoiding cognitive dissonances and accepting a fully inferential model for the objects of our propositional attitudes. As a consequence, the reference to stances as an interpretation of the cognitive architecture of religious tradition may sound nothing more than having a playful approach to serious reflection on epistemological issues.

I resolutely disagree. In the notorious Appendix to his A Treatise on Human Nature David Hume claims that most inconsistencies of his treatment of personal identity and free will derive from his assumption of two semantically incompatible principles.

He could not give up any them, he acknowledged that they leads to patent contradictions, and, nonetheless, he still accepted both. Accordingly, Hume seems to be declaring that he worked out the Treatise under the rule of a degree of cognitive dissonance, and that consistency (scilicet, the assumption of a logically inferential frame for beliefs, which is something along the ways of TBS) is not the most important feature of a serious knowledge inquiry.

Whoever condemns Hume of irrationality and inability in philosophical research might have some reasons. For my part, I am still finding Hume’s Treatise as one of the

highest product of human understanding, mostly because it concerns an expressivist approach to knowledge (i.e., knowing is at least in part to express our views in a clear articulation).

IV. Religious diversity in light of the equivalence of stances and tradition.

I will conclude by stating a few consequences of the preceding reasoning.

To my view, two arguments are supported by my analysis. They run as follows: A. Precisification from vagueness.

Pi. If religious beliefs are vague, religious beliefs require a precisification of their meaning; P2. Traditions are stances containing vague beliefs; C. Adherents to a tradition have the epistemic duty of precisifying their religious beliefs.

B. Making explicit from anecdoticity.

Pi. If religious beliefs are anecdotal, religious beliefs require to be made explicit by their holders; P2. Traditions are stances containing anecdotal beliefs; C. Adherents to a tradition have the epistemic duty of making explicit their religious beliefs.

Simultaneously taken precisification from vagueness and making explicit from anecdoticity show that claims in opposition originate intractable disagreements only after a process of meaning clarification by the dissenting parties. Such a process mainly consists in evidence sharing to the purpose of setting forth our doxastic views in a clear and valuable manner. After meaning clarification, it may be the case that people disagreeing on a claim realize

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that they hold the same belief. Otherwise, it may be the case that people agreeing on a claim realize that they do not hold the same belief. Finally, it may be the case that people disagreeing on a claim realize that they do not actually hold the same belief. However, once people engage in honest process of meaning clarification and evidence sharing, they develop a common enterprise which qualifies both of them as respectful and responsible epistemic peers. Respect and responsibility usually promote accordance, if not as to the epistemic issue, certainly yes as to the practical consequences of an epistemic comparison. However, the epistemic benefits of similar process are quite obvious, and concern whichever doctrines about how to reply to religious diversity. Exclusivists may achieve more justified beliefs: disagreements give them the opportunity of focusing on unperceived problems in their views. For the same reason, inclusivists may learn from others.

Finally, pluralists (among whom I position myself) may acquire a deepest substantial understanding of their faith.

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Idem. 2019. «The Anecdotal Nature of Religious Disagreements». The International Journal of Philosophy and Theology 80 (3): 215-29.

Idem. 2021. «Anecdotal Pluralism, Total Evidence and Religious Diversity».

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Philosophia 49 (1): 155-73. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11406-020-00248-9.

Idem. 2020a. «The Conflict of Rigidity and Precision in Designations Logos & Episteme 11: 19-27. http:/ /logos-and-episteme. acadiasi.ro/the-conflict-of-rigidity-andprecision-in-designation-pages-19-27/.

Idem. 2020b. «The Vagueness of Religious Beliefs». European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 12 (2): 181-210.

Buchak, Lara. 2021. «A Faithful Response to Disagreements The Philosophical Review 130:191-226.

Dormandy, Katherine. 2018. «DIsagreement from the Religious Margin». Res Philosophica, 2018.

Feldman, Richard. 2006. «Epistemological Puzzles about Disagreements».

In Epistemology Futures, a cura di Stephen Hetherington, 216-36. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Harline, Craig. 2013. Conversions: Two Family Stories from the Reformation and Modern America. 0 edition. New Haven, Conn.; London: Yale University Press.

Harrison, Victoria S. 2006. «Internal Realism and the Problem of Religious Diversity».

Philosophia 34 (3): 287-301.

Jackson, Elizabeth. forthcoming. «On The Independence of Belief and Credence».

Philosophical Issues.

Kelly, Thomas. 2010. «Peer Disagreement and Higher-Order Evidence». In Disagreement, a cura di Richard Feldman e Ted A. Warfield, 111-74. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Margulis, Lynn. 1995. «Gaia is a tough bitch».

In The Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution., a cura di John Brockman, 12951. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Pennington, Brian K. 2005. Was Hinduism Invented?: Britons, Indians, and the Colonial Construction of Religion. Oxford; New York: OUP USA.

[18]

[19] [20]

[21] [22] [23]

Plantinga, Alvin. 1999. «Pluralism: A Defense of Religious Exclusivism». In The Philosophical Challenge of Religious Diversity, a cura di Philip L. Quinn e Kevin Meeker. New York: OUP USA. Pouivet, Roger. 2013. Epistemologie des croyances religieuses. Paris: CERF. Quine, Willard van Orman. 1959. «Meaning and Translations In On Translation, a cura di Reuben A. Brower. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. van Fraassen, Bas C. van. 2011. «On stance and rationality». Synthese 178 (1): 155-69.

Idem. 2002. The Empirical Stance. New Haven, CT: Yale Univ Pr. van Inwagen, Peter. 2010. «We’re Right.

They’re Wrong». In Disagreement, a cura di Richard Feldman e Ted A. Warfield, 10-28.

Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.

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Transcending and including diversity Pier Luigi Lattuada, PhD Integral Transpersonal Institute Ubiquity University Milan Italy https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1182-3673

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abstract

Article history: Received 21 October 2021 Received in revised form 10 November Accepted 11 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.18

Lead with differences is typical of the mental process itself.

This paper hypothesizes that there are different levels of thinking and that in order to handle differences in a non-judgmental way by welcoming them, transcending, and including them, rather than excluding or judging them, it is necessary to tap into the supra-rational levels of thinking. A specific transpersonal outlook is expounded, characterised by a particular cognitive process called Transe-cognition, whose founding elements are Second Attention, Further Mode, and Integral Thinking.

Keywords: Circuit of the Experience; Stages of Thinking; Transe-cognition; Further Mode; Second Attention; World of Knowledge; World of Awareness;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Pier Luigi Lattuada. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Lattuada, Pier Luigi. “Transcending and including diversity.”

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I.

II.

Introduction

The Circuit of Experience

Dealing with difference and diversity means dealing with cognitive processes; understanding how the mind and thinking works can help us understand how human beings respond to diversity.

The first significant fact is to consider how difference represents the central element of mental activity, the mind in fact functions by grasping differences, drawing boundaries, we might say, and organising these boundaries according to certain orders.

In fact, human experience is a circuit that winds its way back and forth between the inner and outer worlds, marked by a synergy between functional subsystems such as feeling, acting, and thinking.

Percepts, i.e. data from the external and internal worlds, are felt, organized into concepts by thought and acted upon in behaviour. (Steiner, R., 1995).

It is evident that thought plays an essential role in this circuit, i.e. the way in which we organize the data of perception. It

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is also evident that the mind, remembering Bateson, is a process that crosses the entire circuit of experience, involving all three subsystems and the data of experience itself. (Bateson G. 1972)

(Fig 1) The Circuit of the experience We could therefore say that differences are grasped by mental activity through perception and organized into concepts, which often turn into pre-concepts, of diversity by cognition which in turn will determine the type of action.

Let’s take an example of sad actuality: an American policeman stops a car for a control, notices that the man behind the wheel is black, notices the difference in skin color, organizes this difference according to a pre-conception, ‘blacks are criminals’, (thinking) feels threatened, (feeling), points a gun at him and immobilizes him (acting).

It should be noted that the policeman’s actions are absolutely consistent with his system of thinking.

I have just introduced a term, system of thinking, which will be crucial to our argument.

From what has been said so far, we can outline a picture in which human experience is always a mental process because our

experience, experience itself, is never separable from hermeneutics, that is, our way of organising experience.

(Fig 2) Integral Experience Hermeneutic Circuit In other words, not only do we grasp differences, which is necessary for an experience, but we also organize these differences into diversities, in a way that is specific to us.

This hermeneutic depends on a multiplicity of psychodynamic, cultural and social factors and characterizes our uniqueness, but in it we can recognise regularities, archetypal ones we might say, stages of thinking.

III.

In order to better understand the stages of thinking and thus what we do to differences and how we turn them into concepts and often pre-conceptions of diversity, which then give rise to prejudgments, we need to take a look at how the mind works.

Calasso suggests these four archetypal functions of the mind which he calls the Wind Rose of the psyche: simulation,

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The Wind Rose of the psyche

imitation, possession, metamorphosis.

The simulation deserves clarification, which we will entrust directly to Calasso: “With the same word, ‘simulation’, we indicate two processes that diverge in an extreme way. One speaks of simulation when one imitates in order to deceive. A process in which the will is doubly involved: the will to imitate is superimposed on the will to deceive.

But we also speak of simulation in the case of devices (machines) that imitate something: a process in which all will is excluded, since the programmer acts before the simulation process is triggered.

What do the two modes have in common?

Incompleteness... ... It is as if the external world not only grants the brain the ability to process constructs that correspond to it, but is flexible enough to accommodate largely incomplete constructs without rendering them ineffective.” Calasso R. (2016, p.121) To summarize, we could liken the process of simulation to the functions of the unconscious mind, thinking of short subcortical circuits typical of instinctive consciousness.

The concept of imitation is easier to understand, it implies a certain degree of willingness and attention, think of the child who learns by imitating the parent.

Possession is a bizarre term to associate with the mind but very effective in my opinion, it indicates that act of making one’s own a concept, a teaching through a work of incorporation. Think about how often we use terms such as, making an idea mine, digesting a concept, etc., and how many times we use these terms.

Metamorphosis or transformation is perhaps the most characteristic aspect of mental activity and refers to the symbolic function, to the ability to produce metaphors, to play with differences by recognizing their similarities, that is, to produce concepts,

ideas.

The way our mind uses the elements of the Wind Rose will determine what we do with the differences.

An excess of simulation or imitation is typical of a superficial mind operating in a subject, we might say, little connected to itself.

The more we eat an idea, we are total, we could say taking full responsibility for our own beliefs, the more we will prepare the way for their transformation, i.e. we will be willing to change, to tolerate epistemic uncertainty, (Bozgaran F., 2020, p. 64) to be open to the new and the different.

How can this desirable process be encouraged?

IV.

The Fourth Element

We return to our circuit of experience: feeling-acting-thinking to notice a difference that makes a difference. It is a difference of level or stage, which requires a vertical leap in the way we use our mind.

The terms in question are identification, observation, attention.

The ordinary mind is used to thinking, a task it often performs automatically unless we decide to pay attention to it.

By paying attention to our thoughts we can improve them, thus developing what is called critical thinking, which brings with it a certain ethics that, for example, helps us to fade the sense of diversity that differences give us. Critical thinking, by reflecting on itself, purifies its biases, tries to recognise its own beliefs and judgements and not be influenced by them but by procedures dictated by methodological rigour, in the case of science, or by moral values in the case of ethics.

We will call this level of attention: first attention. (Lattuada P.L. 2010).

The good news is that there is a possibility

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to direct our attention to ourselves, to our feeling, to our acting, but above all to our thinking.

When I realise that I can observe my own thinking, another world opens up: the World of Awareness.

The intent of my argument is to point out that the cognitive abilities of the rational mind alone fail to accommodate diversity due to the fact that the ordinary mind functions according to an inadequate system of thinking.

V.

(Fig. 3) The Fourth Element We therefore call the World of Knowledge the cognitive dimension characterised by thought and first attention; we call the World of Awareness the meta-cognitive dimension of conscious observation capable of observing thoughts. (Lattuada P.L. 2018).

We call Second Attention that metacognitive function necessary to observe oneself thinking and consequently feeling and acting. (Lattuada P.L. 2010).

We call the literal mode, the mode of knowing of the ordinary mind in first attention, founded on commonly understood thinking, and the Further Mode, the mode of knowing of the conscious mind, in second attention, founded on insight.

(Lattuada P.L. 2018).

The hypothesis is that the leap from Worlds of Knowledge (Literal Mode, Thinking, First Attention) to Worlds of Awareness (Further Mode, Second Attention, Conscious Observation, Insight) is a key to understanding differences and welcoming diversity.

We have just defined two systems of thinking, one rational based on commonly understood thinking and one supra-rational based on conscious observation.

For the sake of completeness we should also mention the pre-rational systems of thought, which can be grouped according to Wilber’s nomenclature into archaic, magical and mythological. (Wilber, K. 2011).

I will only highlight the evolutionary process of human thinking systems from the supra-rational to the rational characterised by a gradual growth in the mastery of the elements of the Wind Rose, resulting in a more effective management of differences.

If, for primitive man, difference was a threatening diversity, think of the beasts, to be managed according to instances of attack or escape, gradual evolution has led to the development of magical thinking capable of simulating, imitating and being possessed by its power to become different and fight it better.

The most effective magical operations were organized into myths and passed on to succeeding generations, thus creating tribal cultures based on myth. Mythological thinking makes it possible to standardize differences by obeying the taboos decreed by the myth and thus to live in relative peace among peers. The different is kept away or fought as an enemy.

This is clearly a significant evolutionary advantage that has allowed civilizations to flourish.

That flourishing happens thanks to the

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Systems of thinking

development of the system of rational thinking that was the originator of modernity thanks to the science and the moral conscience.

The long evolutionary journey of rational thinking, far from being concluded, shows a slow and gradual, sometimes tumultuous, acceleration of transformation over the centuries.

Think of the birth of science, the end of slavery, universal suffrage, human rights, the birth of the great world organizations, etc.

However, the rational mind contains within itself a limit that can only be crossed by transcending it.

Cognitive ability, i.e. our mind’s ability to organize differences, to create patterns, to recognise them, to react to them and to use them effectively, as De Bono remind, works so well that they are difficult to change, except very slowly. (De Bono, E. 1990).

The result is identification with these models, whether they are conditioning, beliefs, cultural paradigms or value systems.

This makes it extremely difficult to tolerate uncertainty, to welcome change, to rely on the flow of events and consequently to accept diversity, the specter and simulacrum of what the rational mind fears more than anything else: chaos, the loss of control.

The time has come to question the perennial philosophy of humanity’s ancient sapiential traditions, that mystical soul that has accompanied the evolution of human consciousness behind the scenes, often reciting its message of unity, disidentification, compassion and awareness unheard.

Think of messages like: love your neighbor as yourself, or we are all brothers, or you are that, stand still and know that I am God, the true nature of reality is emptiness, all is one, and so on.

As much as the human being desires it, he remains trapped in his fears and envy,

jealousies and passions, selfishness and beliefs, desires and illusions. A dimension where differences are judged and become diversity, threatening our emotional and even physical survival.

The hypothesis presented here is that there is a dimension beyond the rational mind that is accessible to the individual who is able to observe himself: the World of Awareness.

It is a transpersonal, universal, archetypal, transcultural, essential, timeless, inclusive dimension capable of accommodating the most genuinely human qualities and organising them into an adequate and coherent system of thinking.

I have called this system Transe-cognition.

(Lattuada P.L. 2020).

VI.

Transe-cognition

If cognition accumulates knowledge, meta-cognition reflects on knowledge, transe-cognition notices knowledge.

Transe cognition tools are: Second Attention, Further Mode and Integral Thinking.

(Fig. 4) Transe-Cognition Thanks to Second Attention it realizes that what appears is only one aspect of reality and learns to see its complementary aspect, usually hidden or not evident.

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(Fig 5) The Further Mode The Further Mode is that mental attitude that allows us to see the two polarities of each event together, to notice, in order to limit the field to our topic of discussion, in the differences the equalities, in the separation what unifies, thus naturally welcoming what is similar in diversity.

(Fig. 6) Transe-cognition

By Integral Thinking I mean that particular system of thinking based on insight rather than rational understanding, and it describes a precise methodology for achieving that particular form of knowledge which in various forms is described in the history of human thought.

It is “a direct, immediate and prompt knowledge of reality that reaches the spirit without the need for reasoning”, highlights its essential value for any system of knowledge that wishes to provide

guarantees of validity.

Thinks to Aristotle and Plato who recognized the possibility of perceiving the first principles directly through intuition.

(Treccani, vol.VI, 28) Think to Plotinus, (Plotinus, 2018) St. Augustine (St. Augustine, 2001) and medieval mystics that indicated intuition as “the only way for man to come into contact with God”.

Or we could consider Saint Thomas (Aquinas, 1949) who believed that Divine Knowledge itself, seen as the creator of its own objects, had an intuitive character.

In modern philosophy the concept of intuition overlaps with that of evidence; Descartes defines intuition as “the immediate perception of individual contents that are absolutely certain” (Descartes, 2003), while Locke recognizes intuition as “the privileged way of perceiving immediately and with certainty, concordance or discordance between different contents” (Locke, 1794) Spinoza attributes intuition to the ability to “make the subject part of the nature of the object” (Treccani, vol.VI, 25) and in so doing affirms the superiority of intuitive science. Kant’s approach is more complex.

He distinguishes between a sensitive intuition seen as an immediate perception of the object and an intellectual intuition, specific to God, through which the object itself is created (Kant, 1992). With Hegel and idealistic philosophy, intellectual intuition also becomes a human quality and is defined as the means by which man cooperates in the creative process of the object. (Hegel, 2001) “Bergson, in turn, speaks of intuition as “a privileged form of perception that allows one to go beyond intellectual schemes to achieve a more realistic understanding of the object in all its dynamism and plasticity” (Bergson 1986); in the same way, Husserl considers eidetic intuition as the only way to

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achieve essence. (Husserl, 2006).

To end with David Bohm (Krishnamurti, Bohm, 1985) who invites the man of science to observe in a broad and open way, to feel the important characteristics to access the understanding, the immediate perception out of time that Krishnamurti (Krishnamurti, Bohm, 1985) believes to be the essential condition to grasp the phenomenon in its true nature. This is the condition to realize the “understanding of a new order that unfolds naturally” in every field of culture, science and therapy.

Integral thinking as method provides four interconnected steps proceeding from listening to the inner and outer percept, to expand consciousness to get the field and let insight flow from emptiness.

Through Integral Thinking, Transecognition is integrally capable of grasping first of all the unity and intercession of all things both here and now, from within and without, thus transcending and including differences in higher-order equalities.

Some call it love.

Bibliography

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Conclusion

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Bateson, G., (1972), Steps to an ecology of mind, Chandler Pub. Co., San Francisco.

Bergson H., (1986), Opere 1889-1896, a cura di Pier Aldo Rovatti tr. Federica Sossi, Mondadori, Milano.

Bohm D. (1985). The Ending of Time, with Jiddu Krishnamurti, San Francisco: Harper Bozgaran F., (2020), “Methods of Exploring Transpersonal Lucid Dreams: Ineffability and Creative Consciousness,” Integral

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Apple Books. P 121 De Bono, E. (1990). Lateral Thinking. A Textbook of Creativity. Penguin Books Lt. London.

Descartes R., (2003), Discourse on Method and Meditations, Dover, NY Hegel G., (2001), The Philosophy of Spirit, Blackmask Online Husserl E., (2006) Basic Problems of Phenomenology, Springer, Dordrecht Kant I., (1992), Theoretical Philosophy, Cambridge University Press Lattuada P.L. (2010). “Second Attention Epistemology.”

Integral Transpersonal Journal, 0, 7-52 Lattuada P.L. (2012). “Second attention epistemology: Integral process evaluation grid (III part)”. Integral Transpersonal Journal, 2, 13-27.

Lattuada P.L. (2013). BioTransenergetics. ITI ed. e-book, Milano Lattuada P.L. (2018). Beyond the Mind. ITI ed. e-book, Milano Lattuada P.L. (2020). “Integral Transpersonal Inquiry.”, Integral Transpersonal Journal n.

15, Dec. 2020, 13-38 Locke J., (1794), The work of J. Locke, vol I., Longman, London: Law and son.

Plotinus, (2018), The Enneads, University Printing House, Cambridge, United Kingdom Steiner, R., (1995), Intuitive thinking as a spiritual path: philosophy of freedom, Anthroposophical Press, Inc. Hudson, N.Y. Treccani, Encyclopaedia, vol. VI. Wilber, K. (2011). Sex, Ecology, Spirituality: The Spirit of Evolution. Boston. Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc.

Biography Pier Luigi Lattuada M. D., Psy. D. Ph. D. Founder of Biotransenergetics a new integral transpersonal psychotherapeutic approach.

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Pier Luigi is the CEO of the Integral Transpersonal Institute of Milan. He is also director of the Transpersonal Psychotherapy School in Milan, fully recognized by the Ministry of Education University and Research since 2002.

He is Faculty and chair of the Department of Integral Transpersonal Psychology at Ubiquity University.

He is President of EUROTAS, Global Transpersonal Network. Pier Luigi has published twenty books and several scientific articles.

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A Reality Based on Consciousness Stephan A. Schwartz

Distinguished Consulting Faculty, Saybrook University, Pasadena, CA USA https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5632-7673

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 11 October 2021 Received in revised form 13 October Accepted 15 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.19

This paper addresses the central idea of nonlocal consciousness: that all life is interconnected and interdependent, that we are part of a matrix of life, but even more fundamentally than spacetime itself arises from consciousness, not consciousness from spacetime. It is not a new idea. The excavation of burials dating to the Neolithic (≈ 10,200-2,000 BCE) has revealed that early humans had a sense of spirituality and some concept about the nature of human consciousness. It discusses the bargain made between the Roman Church, and the emerging discipline of science in the 16th century, one taking consciousness (packaged as “spirit”), the other spacetime, and how this led to physicalism taking root as a world view and becoming the prevailing materialist paradigm. It describes the emergence of a new paradigm that incorporates consciousness and lays out the four relevant descriptors helping to define what this new paradigm will look like. They are: • Only certain aspects of the mind are the result of physiologic processes. • Consciousness is causal, and physical reality is its manifestation. • All consciousnesses, regardless of their physical manifestations, are part of a network of life which they both inform and influence and are informed and influenced by; there is a passage back and forth between the individual and the collective. • Some aspects of consciousness are not limited by the time/space continuum and do not originate entirely within an organism’s neuroanatomy.

Keywords: Circuit of the Experience; Stages of Thinking; Transe-cognition; Further Mode; Second Attention; World of Knowledge; World of Awareness;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Stephan A. Schwartz. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Schwartz, Stephan A. “A Reality Based on Consciousness.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 205-217. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.19

I.

Introduction

I am endlessly fascinated by the Hubble Telescope Deep Field images, and have different ones as screen savers on my computer’s two screens. I look at them and always marvel that what might be taken for stars in the sky are, in fact, galaxies,

each containing billions of stars. The European Space Agency estimates there are “something like 1022 to 1024 stars in the Universe,” that’s ten followed by 22 to 24 zeros.[1] I have no idea what that number would be called but it is very vast.

The astronomers at ESA note, “This is only a rough number, as obviously not all galaxies

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are the same.” And of course many of those stars have a system of planets. Star plus planets, that’s a number too large to conceptualize. One might as well ask how many grains of sand make up the dunes of the Sahara? And whatever the number named it would probably be smaller.

Now imagine that the astronomical vastness of that space is undergirded by consciousness. Can this be possible?

The physicalist worldview says no; consciousness arises from physiology. Yet thousands of well conducted experiments and case studies insist there is an aspect of consciousness that is not physiologically based, and that is not limited by spacetime.

More than that they propose consciousness itself is the foundation of all that is. Journals in fields as disparate as physics, biology, and medicine publish papers on this research.

There are so many that each discipline has its own literature. On Pubmed, index of the National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health, “meditation” will return 3,257, “quantum biology” 3,367. This is not yet the dominant view in science but that is the direction of the trend. Increasingly this non-physiological aspect of consciousness is being called nonlocal consciousness, a term of art coined by Integrative Therapy pioneering physician and author Larry Dossey, who used it for the first time in 1987.[2] This aspect is a basic premise of the integral map of cosmos and consciousness described in this book.

The collorary to the idea of nonlocal consciousness is that all life is interconnected and interdependent, that we are part of a matrix of life, but even more fundamentally that spacetime itself arises from consciousness, not consciousness from spacetime. It is not a new idea. The excavation of burials dating to the Neolithic (≈ 10,200-2,000 BCE) have revealed that early humans had a sense of spirituality and some concept about the nature of human

consciousness.[3],[4] In recorded history it dates back at least two millennia. To cite just a few from a much larger list, Patanjali (≈ 500-200 BCE) clearly expounds upon the concept. Empedocles (≈ 490-430 BCE), considered one of the greatest pre-Socratic philosophers, put it this way, “The nature of God is a circle of which the center is everywhere and the circumference is nowhere.” Plato (427347 BCE) explicitly had a concept of the relationship of materiality and the nonlocal information architectures now being studied, saying, “And do you not know also that although they make use of the visible forms and reason about them, they are thinking not of these, but of the ideals which they resemble; not of the figures which they draw, but of the absolute square and the absolute diameter, and so on -- the forms which they draw or make, and which have shadows and reflections in water of their own, are converted by them into images, but they are really seeking to behold the things themselves, which can only be seen with the eye of the mind?”[5] Plotinus (≈204 CE) is generally recognized as the first person in the West to attempt a formal study of consciousness. University of Tennessee professor of philosophy and history Richard E. Aquila describes Plotinus this way, “for the first time in its history, psychology becomes the science of the phenomena of consciousness, conceived as self-consciousness.”

I cite these ancient thinkers to make two points. First, that the idea of nonlocal consciousness is universal across time, culture, and geography; probably because it is so often based on personal experiences.

For as long as we have had records some in each society have recognized consciousness as fundamental and in part nonlocal.

Second, I cite them to remind us that they were as smart as we are today, anatomically equal, capable of close observation, and just

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as concerned with cause and effect as we are. But they lived in a time when there was a different paradigm, a different reality.

Pre-modern science writers and thinkers had no other way to describe what they were experiencing and witnessing in others than in religious terms. They speak of it as contact with a god, or a spirit, or a genii, or the many other terms human culture has devised across the ages to explain the experience of oneness -- “timeless time” and “spaceless space,” and a sense of connection with “a great unity.” But all this would change.

In the bargain made between the Roman Church, and the emerging discipline of science in the 16th century, one taking consciousness (packaged as “spirit”), the other spacetime, physicalism took root as a world view and became the prevailing paradigm. One effect was the severing of a feeling almost all humans had had up until then; a sense of being embedded within a great universe of life and in an interactive relationship with this whole.

Yet paradoxically as science, particularly physics, proclaimed materialism, many of its greatest thinkers, particularly those who created modern physics, expressed a different view. Consider the observations of the Olympiad of German physicists in the early 20th century: Max Planck, Wolfgang Pauli, Werner Heisenberg, Erwin Schrodinger, Albert Einstein and others.

Planck, the father of Quantum Mechanics, framed his thinking clearly in an interview with the respected British newspaper, The Observer, in its January 25, 1931 edition: “I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness.”[6] After more that a decade of additional research, in 1944 in a lecture in Florence,

Italy, Planck doubled down on his point.

“As a man who has devoted his whole life to the most clear headed science, to the study of matter, I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter.”[7] Einstein explained it this way, “A human being is a part of the whole, called by us ‘Universe,’ a part limited in time and space.

He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. [italics added] This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.”[8] Schrodinger, whose famous cat thought experiment is one of physics’ best known stories said, “If we have to decide to have only one sphere, it has got to be the psychic one, since that exists anyway.”[9] And he was in agreement with his fellow physicist, friend and colleague, Wolfgang Pauli, who was equally straightforward: “It is my personal opinion that in the science of the future reality will neither be ‘psychic’ nor ‘physical’ but somehow both and somehow neither.” [10] In the next generation, physicist Oliver Costa de Beauregard observed, “Today’s physics allows for the existence of so-called ‘paranormal’ phenomena .… The whole concept of ‘non-locality’ in contemporary physics requires this possibility.”[11] It wasn’t just physicists, however, who saw that what had formerly been conceived of as religious could, with science, be approached through objective measurement. Consciousness could be

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explored. Nineteenth century German polymath Adolf Bastian described what he called Elementargedanke – literally ‘elementary thoughts of humankind.” It was an early attempt to recognize and try to study the nonlocal informational matrix, and it was enormously influential. It made a particularly significant impression on all the German physicists I have just mentioned.

Carl Jung and Franz Boas, the founder of American anthropology, were both also strongly affected by the idea of a matrix of consciousness. It is from these roots that Jung developed the concept of the Collective Unconscious.

William James said, “The whole drift of my education goes to persuade me that the world of our present consciousness is only one out of many worlds of consciousness that exist, and that those other worlds must contain experiences which have a meaning for our life also; and that although in the main their experiences and those of this world keep discrete, yet the two become continuous as certain points…. By being faithful in my poor measure of this overbelief, I seem to myself to keep more sane and true.”[12] I understand that quoting famous scientists is not practicing science. But I go into this at some length because I think it is notable that while materialism dominates and consciousness is thought to be the result of physiological processes, all of these individuals who rank amongst humanity’s great minds and who created modern physics seem to have come to a different conclusion regarding the foundational nature of consciousness, and felt it was important enough to talk about on the record.

And I think they were right. I think the evidence is sufficiently strong that we can say that they are.

After decades in which the research into the nature of consciousness has been dismissed as “The Ghost in the Machine,” a fundamental change is going on in science.

Whole new sub-disciplines have emerged driven by the results of this experimentation.

II.

One such is quantum biology which posits: Life is a molecular process; molecular processes operate under quantum rules.

Thus, life must be a quantum process.

Experimental evidence is beginning to accumulate that this quantum view of life processes is correct. U.C. Berkeley chemist, Gregory S. Engel, led a team that ingeniously found a way to directly detect and observe quantum-level processes within a cell using high-speed lasers.[13] Another of the new subdisciplines is neurotheology. Radiologist Andrew Newberg at the University of Pennsylvania, using standard imaging technologies, has focused on monitoring the brain activity of spiritual practitioners as they exercise their practice. His data has led him to conclude, “It is important to infuse throughout the principles of neurotheology the notion that neurotheology requires an openness to both the scientific as well as the spiritual perspectives.”[14] And there is research data showing collective effects as well. Johanna Sänger, leading a team at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, reports that when musicians play duets their brains synchronize. The detail in the data is so fine that they can distinguish which musician is playing lead, and which is backup. “When people coordinate actions with one another, small networks within the brain and, remarkably, between the brains are formed, especially when the activities need to be precisely aligned in time, for example at the joint play onset of a piece,” says Sänger. [15]

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The Emerging New Disciplines

Threaded through all of this work is a growing awareness of a new reality based on consciousness as Planck stipulated.

One of the most interesting aspects of this process validating Planck’s truth is that this transition is being driven not by a discipline like parapsychology which explicitly explores nonlocal consciousness but, as I have said by physicists, neuroscientists, physicians, and biologists. Researchers who did not set out to explore the new reality but whose data compelled them to do so.

And their work has begun to suggest how nonlocal consciousness through quantum processes projects itself into the physiology of consciousness. One example of this can seen in the insight studies of Mark JungBeeman being one example. Beginning in 2003 and continuing with a shifting list of collaborators, he has steadily sought to understand the neurobiological process of insight: that aspect of consciousness that solves problems that cannot be worked with the intellect alone.[16] This work has yielded many insights, most notably: “We observed two objective neural correlates of insight. Functional magnetic resonance imaging revealed increased activity in the right hemisphere anterior superior temporal gyrus for insight relative to non-insight solutions.”[17] Contemporaneously, Jeanne Achterberg’s studies in Hawaii showed changes in the brain of the recipients towards whom a healer has expressed therapeutic intention.

“Each healer selected a person with whom they felt a special connection as a recipient for Therapeutic Intention. Each recipient was placed in the MRI scanner and isolated from all forms of sensory contact from the healer.

The healers sent forms of (TI) that related to their own healing practices at random 2-minute intervals that were unknown to the recipient. Significant differences between experimental (send) and control (no send)

procedures were found (p = 0.000127).

Areas activated during the experimental procedures included the anterior and middle cingulate area, precuneus, and frontal area.

It was concluded that instructions to a healer to make an intentional connection with a sensory isolated person can be correlated to changes in brain function of that individual.”[18] Let me stress these are but two series of studies chosen from a large and growing corpus of peer-reviewed research, these chosen because they clearly illustrate the point.

III.

What is the Standard of Proof?

Today there are eight stabilized parapsychological protocols used in laboratories around the world. Each of them has independently produced 6 sigma results.

Six sigma is one in 1,009,976,678 or the 99.9999990699 percentile.[19],[20] Those that have been analyzed in detail are: Nonlocal Perception: RV: Remote viewing Presentiment The Bem Future Feeling Protocol Retrocognition/ precognition Nonlocal Perturbation: REG: Random event generator GCP: Global consciousness project And then there are other experimentally studied phenomena that may involve both, or there may be only one category: • Staring • Therapeutic Intention In addition to these laboratory protocols, recent well-conducted studies reveal that 4.2% of the American public has reported a

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Near Death Experience.[21] The population in the U.S. is a bit more than 317 million.

So 4.2% is 13 million people in the reported NDE population. That is equivalent to all the Jewish people, all the Mormons, and Muslims as well, and most of the Buddhists.

The NDE population though is almost certainly larger, since research has also revealed many people do not immediately report experiences.[22] Often they don’t speak of it until years later, which was what initially laid the research open to criticism.

That criticism fell away in 2001, however, when Dutch cardiologist Pim Van Lommel published in Lancet a landmark large n prospective study of Dutch patients.

[23] But perhaps most important of all is the emergence of the new medical subspeciality Resuscitation Medicine. This new work has taken the monitoring of the body’s processes to a much more sophisticated level providing new insights into when death occurs, and made hallucinating dying brain scenarios and similar criticism impossible to sustain. [24] And there are studies of both post-death communications,[25] and reincarnation[26] that have also withstood aggressive criticism. The implications of all this are clear: Some aspect of nonlocal consciousness exists before corporeal birth, and exists after physical death, and episodically manifests another incarnated personality. Accepting that will be part of the new reality.

The fact is nonlocal consciousness events are, perhaps, the most broadly experienced mystery for which the culture seeks an explanation because, at sometime in their lives, almost everyone has experienced deja vu, had a precognitive dream, or a premonition that came true. And consider the role of nonlocal awareness in religion.

Consider all the religious services across human history; they have certain elements in common. There is a designated place to gather, appointed times for gathering; a

statement of shared belief and intention; a period for music, dance, chant, or choir; and then a time when some but not all of the group may have a nonlocal experience that is witnessed by the other members of the group. Whether it is Christian Charismatic speaking in tongues, or the pronouncements of Voodoo possession, the point is to affirm the validity of the faith and manifest evidence of the living connection the faith has with divine (read nonlocal) consciousness.

Although Western society rarely speaks of it, altered state of consciousness experiences are woven through the culture, and it is this larger cultural context which gives these issues their importance. The mysteries of subatomic particles are of great interest to scientists, and of enormous importance, but average men and women are not confronted with them in their normal lives, as they are with altered states of consciousness and the froward phenomena of nonlocal consciousness. That is why it is so much a part of myth and art.

IV.

But there is also enormous resistance to this new reality, this new paradigm in which consciousness is fundamental. I mean here something different than skepticism.

All good experimentalists are skeptics; that’s why they do experiments. And when skeptics do experiments or read compelling rigorous research studies they change their worldview. Consider Carl Sagan. In 1977 in his classic Dragons of Eden he wrote, “[The brain’s] workings - what we sometimes call mind - are a consequence of its anatomy and physiology, and nothing more.”[27] In 1996, in his last book, The Demon Haunted World, Sagan said, “… there are three claims in the ESP field which, in my

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The Role of Denierism and the Emergence of Paradigms

opinion, deserve serious study: (1) that by thought alone humans can (barely) affect random number generators in computers; (2) that people under mild sensory deprivation can receive thoughts or images projected at them; and (3) that young children sometimes report the details of a previous life, which upon checking turn out to be accurate and which they could not have known about in any other way than reincarnation.”28 What had changed? In the interim Sagan had met his Cornell faculty colleague, psychologist Daryl Bem. When Sagan made the usual skeptic assertions about poor research quality Bem asked him whether he had actually read any recent research. Sagan admitted he had not and asked Bem to send him a copy of a paper Bem had recently done. After reading this research Sagan, a true scientist, bowed to the evidence.[29] Deniers are something different. Whether their denial is of consciousness, evolution, or climate change, their position is marked by a kind of willful ignorance completely impervious to data. I was once in a debate at a university in Virginia as a kind of mid-point between a Creationist and a Materialist, both equally fervent. I was “nonlocal consciousness but not religious.” I asked the Creationist, “What is wrong with the speed of light?” He replied, “Nothing.” Then how I asked “can I be looking at light from half a million years ago or more if the earth is less than 10,000 years old?” His response was, “It is one of God’s mysteries.”

In the case of the physicalist who asserted that all consciousness was physiologically based, I asked him what he found wrong with the remote viewing data from thousands of rigorously controlled double and triple blind remote viewing sessions demonstrating nonlocal consciousness.

Data I was particularly familiar with, having been one the creators of the remote viewing protocols. He hadn’t read any of it, but he

felt very strongly it must be impossible.

It is important to understand this kind of resistance because Denierism is a powerful force in both science and society. Science in the 21st century is the arbiter of what is real, and the transition to this new reality is a process that will in large measure be controlled by the science community’s acceptance. If we are to understand how the integration of consciousness into science is going to happen we must comprehend not the mythology but the authenticity of how science works.

Thomas Kuhn is generally acknowledged to be the most influential historian and philosopher of science in the 20th century.

In 1962, Kuhn published his masterwork, the classic text, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.[30] In it he argues that the popular notion that science, through the gradual accumulation of information over centuries, consciously and purposefully moves toward the basic “truth” about the universe and everything in it is a myth. Kuhn describes the process thus: “The developmental process has been an evolution from primitive beginnings—a process whose successive stages are characterized by an increasingly detailed and refined understanding of nature. But nothing... makes it a process of evolution toward anything. Does it really help to imagine that there is some one full, objective, true account of nature and that the proper measure of scientific achievement is the extent to which it brings us closer to that ultimate goal?... The entire process may have occurred as we now suppose biological evolution did without benefit of a set goal, a permanent fixed scientific truth of which each stage in the development of scientific knowledge is [an improved] exemplar.”[31] As Kuhn explains it, scientists are a special self-selected community dedicated to solving certain very restricted and selfdefined problems whose relevance is

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delineated by a world view or paradigm.

Kuhn, who is the father of the concept, explains it, thus: “universally recognized scientific achievements [in a given field] that for a time provide model problems and solutions to a community of practitioners” [emphasis added].[32] For scientists who are immersed in it, a paradigm is their world view. Its boundaries outline for them both what the universe contains and, equally important, what it does not contain. Its theories explain how this universe operates.

Paradigms are absolutely essential to science, although ultimately they become self-limiting. Without the set boundaries provided by the paradigm, no observation has any greater importance or weight than any other. Without this differentiation, western science is impossible. The benefit it confers is that with boundaries comes depth, and with depth comes detail. The narrowness of this definition increases as a science matures, and manifests itself in increased subspecialization; one is not simply a chemist but an organic chemist.

It should be obvious then, to quote Kuhn again, that “one of the reasons why normal science seems to progress so rapidly is that its practitioners concentrate on problems that only their own lack of ingenuity should keep them from solving... intrinsic value is no criterion for a puzzle, the assured existence of a solution is.”[33] This efficiency in puzzle solving collectively is “normal science.” Obviously, this normal science is accumulative, but does it also seek the Copernican leaps, the insights that will change the course of history? No, it specifically does not. Normal science, in fact, is specifically not interested in the very thing it is popularly supposed to be obsessed with doing. It is this which is the source of denierism. It threatens the paradigm.

“The scientific enterprise as a whole does from time to time produce anomalies that open new territory, and test long-accepted

beliefs. But the individual engaged on a normal research problem is almost never doing any one of these things [emphasis Kuhn].”[34] He finds himself instead working from a different motivation, the desire to demonstrate that he is capable of solving a problem within the paradigm that no one has ever solved before, or has not solved as elegantly. “On most occasions any particular field of specialization offers nothing else to do, a fact that makes it no less fascinating to the proper sort of addict...

Scientists normally [do not] aim to invent new theories, and they are often intolerant of those invented by others.”[35] In fact, most deniers of nonlocal consciousness are nearly illiterate concerning the actual research. It’s outside of the paradigm; it can’t be any good. QED. The great irony is: where does an Einstein, a Newton, a Planck, a Ramanujan, a Jung, a Salk come from? The answer, as each of them has said quite clearly, is that their great insight came in a special state of consciousness, when all things seemed interconnected and interdependent, and out of space and time.[36,37] Science is by nature narrow and rigid — and this should not be construed as a pejorative description because the vast bulk of research could be practiced in no other way — normal science always produces anomalies in the course of its work, and as it proceeds inevitably to reach its boundaries the encounters with anomalies increase.

The reason is simple: Before paradigm is achieved, clearly nothing can be anomalous; after paradigm, a great deal will be; and as the limits of paradigm are reached, what lies beyond is that much closer.

Normal science, however, abhors anomalies since they are not tailored to the scheme by which it defines the universe.

At first, then, anomalies are ignored on the assumption that subsequent normal science research will deal with them when either

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instrumentation or theory articulation or both are improved. If this does not happen, an attempt is made to extend the endangered theory in the hope that an extension of the paradigm’s accepted propositions will bring the anomalies back into the fold.

In the beginning of a paradigm’s lifespan better instrumentation or theory extension does eliminate most of the anomalies by making them conform; some, though, will not conform, no matter how artful the experiment or ingenious the development of the original premise. Most scientists are happy to leave these anomalies in a state of limbo, which is why parapsychology is both science and non-science at one and the same time. Everyone knows anomalies are out there, lurking on the edges of the paradigm like hungry beasts around a campfire. But scientists assume, mostly correctly, that the majority of problems can still be contained within the paradigm, and so for a time, at least, normal science continues, and the paradigm provides a reasonably secure framework.

However, as normal-science research continues to get closer to the edge of the “known” it pushes so intensely, and with such specific focus that its explorations produce just the opposite effect from that desired. Not only does such research fail to strengthen the paradigm, which was its original purpose, but it produces still more anomalies. Ironically, at the end of the paradigm’s lifespan, the better the instrumentation the more intractable the challenge presented by anomalies. These begin to cluster until so many exist that not only theory but the paradigm itself is called into question. When this happens, the science enters a state of crisis from which there is no turning back. This is the phase we are now entering.

There is extraordinary resistance in the scientific trenches to this final phase — in an

individual it might be called denial. Scientists hate crisis even more than anomalies.

Researchers delay retooling as long as they can, since it is expensive, involves much aggravation, and threatens careers and hard-won status. Paradigm crisis is the last stage in a process of scientific death. When it becomes irresistible, and the limits of the paradigm’s lifespan are acknowledged by a critical consensus of its practitioners, several significant events take place. This is what is happening now.

The assumptions of normal science include: 1) the researcher and the experiment can be isolated from affecting each other except in controlled and understood ways; and, 2) since the experiment exists in a time-space continuum, the conditions under which it is carried out can be duplicated and the experiment replicated by any other researcher if it is valid.

All of this, the common techniques, the various levels of the collective fundamental assumptions that often go unspoken seem to irresistibly argue for the conception with what I will call the Myth of Gradualism.

Yet both that myth, and the materialism its supports are refuted by the undeniable reality of scientific change, and how it actually comes about. Those individuals who produce extraordinary research do so not by force of intellect or will alone, although these are important, but because they have had nonlocal intuitional insights at the same time that there was a crisis.

It is on this point that most commentators describing the development of scientific breakthroughs are uncomfortably silent.

One who has tried was John Mihalasky who invoked intuition as an overt explanation, but tentatively.[39] He echoes Kuhn, who notes that it represents a change in gestalt, a change in “beingness.” “Normal science,” he says, “ultimately leads only to the recognition of anomalies and to crises. And these are terminated not by deliberation

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and interpretation, but by a relatively sudden and unstructured event like a gestalt switch. He notes that scientists then often speak of the “scales falling from the eyes” or of the “lightning flash” that “inundates” a previously obscure puzzle, enabling its components to be seen in a new way that for the first time permits its solution.”[7] To someone interested in the field of nonlocal informational interactions this wording is virtually identical to that used by healers, remote viewers, spiritual pilgrims, and great artists.[12] Kuhn is willing — since the evidence is so great that it cannot be denied — to invoke the inspiration of dreams, although how this actually works he does not venture to say. He makes one speculation on the nonintellectual aspect of puzzle solving.

He notes, “No ordinary sense of the term ‘interpretation’ fits these flashes of intuition through which a new paradigm is born.

Though such intuitions depend upon the experience, both anomalous and congruent, gained with the old paradigm, they are not logically or piecemeal linked to particular items of that experience as an interpretation would be [emphasis added.]”[40] What makes these key figures revolutionaries, then, is not just the quality of their work.

They are also revolutionaries because of the source, mechanism unknown, from which their information derives. At the deepest level the process by which the information is obtained is as revolutionary as the information itself.

Intellectual excellence and intuitive insight, however, are not the only criteria for success as a “paradigm shifter.” A careful analysis of the process also suggests that some kind of inter-connectedness between breakthrough researchers and their peer communities is involved. A kind of interactive collective awareness must coalesce until it comprises a critical consensus. How many people is that? A study done by the Social

Cognitive Networks Academic Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute provides data-based guidance: “To change the beliefs of an entire community, only 10 percent of the population needs to become convinced of a new or different opinion.

At that tipping point, the idea can spread through social networks and alter behaviors on a large scale.”[41] As Gunther Stent demonstrates, if an intuitive researcher is premature, no matter how great the insight, the response of peers is indifference at best, and martyrdom at worst.[42] We all know the story of Galileo. Not as well known is that in 1499 Leonardo da Vinci figured out what fossils were when they were turned up as he oversaw the dredging and repair of Milan’s St. Marco Canal, critical to both defense and commerce. At the time the paradigm held they were anything but the mineralized casts of ancient plants, animals, and sealife. Some thought that fossils were the products of “a cosmic force, vis plastica.

Others felt that they were the result of mysterious emanations from the sun, moon, and stars. Still others held they were the remains of giants, elves, and fairies.”[43] A middle aged Leonardo with a lifetime of close observation of the world around him recognized them as fossilized life forms, some of which he could identify. But that was outside the paradigm and no one could absorb what he was saying.[44] Only when intuition and crisis are correctly juxtaposed can the necessary change in gestalt occur.

Genius is an individual experience, but its acceptance is a social phenomenon. We are getting there.

V.

I believe there are four relevant descriptors helping to define what the new paradigm will look like. They are: • Only certain aspects of the mind are

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Descriptors of a New Reality

the result of physiologic processes.

• Consciousness is causal, and physical reality is its manifestation.

• All consciousnesses, regardless of their physical manifestations, are part of a network of life which they both inform and influence and are informed and influenced by; there is a passage back and forth between the individual and the collective.

• Some aspects of consciousness are not limited by the time/space continuum, and do not originate entirely within an organism’s neuroanatomy.

Larry Dossey puts it well: “If nonlocal mind is a reality, the world becomes a place of interaction and connection, not one of isolation and disjunction….”[45] Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic says much the same: “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there.

“When the soul lies down in that grass, the world is too full to talk about.

“Ideas, language, even the phrase each other doesn’t make any sense.”[46] The prudent question I propose is: what happens when a cultural gestalt change of this magnitude happens. Even the most superficial assessment makes it clear this new reality will be a much greater transformation than anything produced just by technology. As profound as the internet, or the iPhone have been, a paradigm change of this existential magnitude is greater.

How do we know? Because this kind of transformation has happened before.

As I wrote in an earlier book: “Consider what German psychiatrist and philosopher Karl Jaspers (1883–1969) called the axial period, roughly the eighth to the second

century BCE, and mostly centered in the two centuries from 800 to 600 BCE. In that historically small time period, most of the world’s great pre-Christian religious movements and philosophical lines developed. Confucius (555–478 BCE) and Buddha (567–487 BCE) were almost exact contemporaries, as was Zoroaster, according to the best approximation, as well as Lao Tzu, the founder of Taosim, and Mahavira, who is the most probable founder of Jainism.

“In the Middle East, the line of monotheistic prophets, which began with Amos of Tekoa midway through the eighth century, reached its culmination near the end of the sixth century with DeuteroIsaiac Judaism. At this same time, in the northern Mediterranean area the Greeks were experiencing the birth of philosophical speculation with the work of Thales and his successors. And in Athens democracy was established.”[ 47] In my view we are now in the beginning of the third century – I date this from the founding in 1882 of the Society for Psychical Research -- in the emergence of a scientifically grounded consciousness-based reality. And I think it will ultimately be seen as a change of a similar magnitude to its BCE predecessor. We should start thinking about what this new reality entails.

But even accepting both the unity and individuality of nonlocal consciousness, and Earth’s matrix of life and consciousness, how is one to reconcile that consciousness with what is seen looking at a Hubble Deep Field image? Because if consciousness is causal then the unnumbered vastness of galaxies, stars, solar systems, and planets spread across millions of light years of distance are its creation. It is consciousness at an unthinkable scale, and yet the research suggests, no scale at all. Are we ready to accept that? Not yet. But it is coming.

As I look at the Hubble distant galaxy

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images on my screen millions of light years away, I try to imagine that unity of consciousness in what I see. It is very humbling.

References [1]

[2] [3]

[4]

[5]

[6] [7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

8:1 (2021)

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How Many Stars are there in the universe?

European Space Agency. http://www. esa.int/Our_Acti. ities/Space_Science/ Herschel/How_many_stars_are_there_in_ the_Universe/%28print%29. Accessed: 27 September.

Dossey L. Recovering the Soul. NY: Bantam, 1989: 1-11.

Pearson, M.P. The Archeology of Death and Burial. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M Press, 1999.

Clark, G. and Riel-Salvatore, J. 2001. “Grave markers, middle and early upper paleolithic burials”. Current Anthropology, 42/4: 481–90.

Plato. The Republic, Book VI https://www. gutenberg.org/files/1497/1497-h/1497-h.htm.

Accessed: 12 November 2015.

“Interview with Max Planck.” The Observer.

January 25, 1931.

Planck M. Lecture, ‘Das Wesen der Materie’ [The Essence/Nature/Character of Matter], Florence, Italy (1944). Archiv zur Geschichte der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Abt. Va, Rep. 11 Planck, Nr. 1797 Albert Einstein Quoted in: Eves H. Mathematical Circles Adieu. Boston , Mass: Prindle, Weber and Schmidt; 1977.

Schrodinger E. My View of the World.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 1960. p. 62.

Pais, A., & Pauli, W. E. (2000). The genius of science. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

De Beauregard O C. “The paranormal is not excluded from physics.” J Sci Exploration.

1998;12:315–320.

William James Lecture XX, “Conclusions & Postscript” The Varieties of Religions Experience. A Public Domain Book. E-book location: 7162.

Panitchayangkoon G, Hayes D, Fransted KA,

[14] [15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21] [22]

[23]

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Session 8. Epistemology, Metaphysics and Communication Sciences

Caram JR, Harel E, Wen J, Blankenship RE, Engel GS “Long-lived quantum coherence in photosynthetic complexes at physiological temperature.” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jul 20;107(29):12766-70. doi: 10.1073/ pnas.1005484107. Epub 2010 Jul 6. PMID: 20615985.

Newberg A. Principles of Neurotheology.

Burlington, VT:Ashgate, 2010.

“Making Music Together Connects Brains.” Science Daily 29 November 2012. http://www.sciencedaily.com/ r e l e a s e s / 2 0 1 2 / 11 / 1 2 11 2 9 0 9 3 4 1 7 . h t m .

Accessed: 29 November 2012.

Bowden EM, Jung-Beeman M. “Aha! Insight experience correlates with solution activation in the right hemisphere.” Psychon Bull Rev. 2003 Sep;10(3):730-7. PMID: 14620371.

Jung-Beeman M, Bowden EM, Haberman J, Frymiare JL, Arambel-Liu S, Greenblatt R, Reber PJ, Kounios J. “Free in PMC Neural activity when people solve verbal problems with insight.” PLoS Biol. 2004 Apr;2(4):E97.

Epub 2004 Apr 13. PMID: 15094802.

Achterberg J, Cooke K, Richards T, Standish LJ, Kozak L, Lake J. “Evidence for correlations between distant intentionality and brain function in recipients: a functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis.” J Altern Complement Med. 2005 Dec;11(6):96571. PMID:16398587 Schwartz S. Six Protocols, Neuroscience, and Near Death: An Emerging Paradigm Incorporating Nonlocal Consciousness, in Mysteries of Consciousness, ed. Ingrid Fredriksson. McFarland: Jefferson, NC, 2015.

Schwartz S. “Through Time and Space: The Evidence for Remote Viewing,” in The Evidence for Psi, ed. Damien Broderick and Ben Groetzel. McFarland: Jefferson, NC 2015. van Lommel P. Consciousness Beyond Life, New York: HarperOne 2007. p.62 van Lommel P, van WeesR, Meyers V, Elfferich. Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands. Lancet. 2001:358:2039-2045.

Greyson B, Holden JM, van Lommel P. ‘There is nothing paranormal about near-

[24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29]

[30] [31] [32] [33] [34] [35]

[36]

[37]

[38]

[39]

[40]

death experiences’ revisited: comment on Mobbs and Watt. Trends Cogn Sci. 2012 Sep;16(9):445; author reply 446. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2012.07.002. Epub 2012 Aug 3.

Beischel J. Modern Mental Mediums.

Windbridge Inst: Ticson, 2015.

Stevenson I. Reincarnation and Biology vol.

I-II, Praeger: Westport, Conn, 1997.

Carl Sagan. The Dragons of Eden. New York: Random House, 1977, p. 7.

Carl Sagan. The Demon Haunted World. New York: Random House, 1996, p. 302.

Schwartz S. Opening to the Infinite.

Nemoseen: Budha, TX 2007. pp. 33-34.

Kuhn T. Structure of Scientific Revolutions.

Chicago, Phoenix: the University of Chicago Press 1962.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Ibid.

Hadamard J. “Subconscient intuition, et logique dans la rechere scientifique.”

Conference faite au Palais de la Découverte le 8 Decembre 1945 Alencon n.d. pp. 7-8.

Schwartz S “Nonlocality and Exceptional Experiences: A Study of Genius, Religious Epiphany, and the Psychic.” Explore jul/Aug 2010. 6(4):227-236.

J. Mihalasky ESP: “Can it Play a Role in Idea-Generation?” Mechanical Engineering, Dec. 1972.

Kuhn. “Minority Rules: Scientists Find the Tipping Point.” Discovery, August 4, 2011. http://news.discovery.com/human/opinionminority-rules-110804.htm. Accessed: March 1, 2015.

G.S. Stent. “Prematurity and Uniqueness in Scientific Discovery.” Scientific American.

Dec. 1972.

Schwartz S. The Secret Vaults of Time, Grosset & Dunlap: New York, 1978. Revised and reissued, The Author’s Guild: New York 2000.

Selected for “The Classics of Consciousness Series,” edited by Russell Targ. Hampton Roads: Charlottesville, 2005. p.

[41] [42] [43]

[44]

Ibid.

Dossey, pp. 1-11. from Rumi: The Book of Love: Poems of Ecstasy and Longing by Jalal al-Din Rumi translated by Coleman Barks. Harper-Collins: New York and San Francisco, 2003.

Schwartz S. The 8 Laws of Change. Park Street Press: Rochester, 2015, pp. 118-119.

Short Biography Stephan A. Schwartz is a Distinguished Consulting Faculty of Saybrook University, BIAL Foundation Fellow, editor of the daily web publication Schwartzreport.net, and columnist for the peer-reviewed journal Explore. He is an award winning author of both fiction and nonfiction books, and His latest book is The 8 Laws of Change, winner of the Nautilus Award for Social Change.

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Maniu and Popoviciu. Different Views on National Self-Identity of Romanians from Transylvania George E. Oprea, PhD

Moscow State Pedagogical University Malaya Pirogovskaya street, 119435 Moscow Russian Federation

Alexandru I. Oprea, PhD

Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, 141980 Dubna, Moscow Region Russian Federation

article info

abstract

Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 October Accepted 20 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.20

The activity of two great personalities representing the interest and the rights of Romanians ethnics from Transylvania during the dualist period from 1867 to 1918 are analyzed here. Iuliu Maniu and Aurel Constantin Popoviciu were members of the Romanian National Party from Transylvania and Hungary with a different vision on the national assertion of rights and freedom related to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and another ethnic group of Dualist State.

Keywords: National Principle; Dualism; Comparative Analysis; Federative State; Emancipation;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 George E. Oprea, Alexandru I. Oprea. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Oprea, George E., and Alexandru I. Oprea. “Maniu and Popoviciu. Different Views on National Self-Identity of Romanians from Transylvania.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 221-229. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.20

I.

Introduction

In 1867 the agreement on the establishment of the dual Austro-Hungarian monarchy was concluded. Fearing national unrest in the Habsburg Empire, Emperor Franz Joseph made a compromise by receiving the post of King of Hungary. The empire was divided into two regions with two formal capitals (Budapest and Vienna), two different political structures and 3 common ministries: finance, foreign affairs

and defense. At the same time, the two states shared their authority in two parts of the empire: Cisleitania, with its capital in Vienna (it included, among others, the Romanians from Bucovina1) and Transleitania with its capital in Budapest (under whose authority 1 Bukovyna is a historical region in Eastern Europe.

At present, its northern part (Northern Bukovina) is the Chernivtsi region of Ukraine (without the Dniester region), and Southern Bukovina is the Romanian county Suceava.

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was Transylvania2, Maramureș and Banat3).

Under these conditions, the situation of the Romanians in Transylvania became difficult. In the beginning of the 60s, they had benefited from a series of political rights, as they constituted the majority in the Diet of Transylvania. The full integration of Transylvania into Hungary was also followed by the restriction of the rights to use the Romanian language in state, justice and administration schools, reflected in the Laws of Education, Press, Election and Names. In the century when National Principle raised peoples and ethnic groups in the great empires on the irreversible path of national affirmation, Hungarian elite did not accept for others the national ideas for which Hungarians fought at 1848 Revolution4.

2 Transylvania is a historical region in the northwest of Romania. The Partium region, divided into the historical regions of Banat (south), Krisana (center) and Maramures (north), is also referred to as Transylvania, although historically it is not part of it. The territory of Transylvania belongs to the Western, North-Western and Central regions of Romania’s development, where 16 counties are located: Alba, Arad, Bistrita-Nasaud, Bihor, Brasov, Karash Severin, Cluj, Covasna, Maramures.

3 Banat is a historical region in Central Europe, divided between Serbia, Romania and Hungary. On three sides, the borders of Banat are defined by rivers: in the north by the Mures, in the west by the Tisoj and in the south by the Danube. The eastern border is formed by the Carpathian Mountains. The area of Banat is comparable to the territory of Belgium. The traditional symbol of Banat is the lion, which is used on the coats of arms of Vojvodina and Romania. The region got its name from the title “ban”.

4 The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was a local version of the pan-European revolution, complicated by the acute crisis of the Austrian Empire and the growth of the national identity of the Hungarians. The main goals of the Hungarian revolution were the decentralization of the Austrian Empire, democratization and Magyarization.

The driving force behind the revolution was the liberal middle nobility and the urban intelligentsia. However, the revolutionary policy of the Hungarians ran into

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The resistance of the Romanians was manifested by adopting two directions: passivism - the refusal of politicians to cooperate with the Hungarian authorities and activism - involvement in political life in order to gradually obtain concessions from the Hungarian state. The actions took the form of manifestos and memoirs addressed to Vienna or the establishment of political parties. Among the documents claiming the rights of the Romanian nation we can mention: the Blaj Declaration5 of 1868 and the Memorandum 6 of 1892.

The main political parties were: the National Party of Romanians from Banat and Hungary and the Romanian National Party from Transylvania. In 1881 the two united under the name of the Romanian National Party of Transylvania. Its objectives were: regaining the autonomy of Transylvania, introducing by law the right to use the Romanian language in all lands inhabited

by Romanians, both in administration the resistance of the Slavic peoples, whose interests were not sufficiently taken into account, as well as the Russian monarchy, which saw a threat to its existence in the growth of the national consciousness of the Hungarians and other peoples. As a result, the revolution was expected to be defeated by Russian troops.

Hungary’s independence was postponed for 70 years, and the Hungarians lost their positions in Transylvania, Slovakia and Vojvodina.

5 The National Assembly in Blaj was an assembly of Romanians in Transylvania, which took place on May 15, 1848 during the Romanian Revolution of 1848, with the participation of 30,000-40,000 people. The proclamation adopted at Blaj demanded the emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abolishing serfdom, freedom of the press, the establishment of educational institutions in the Romanian language, etc.

6 The Transylvanian Memorandum was a petition presented on May 28, 1892 by the Romanian leaders in Transylvania to the Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Josef, requesting for the Romanian population ethnic rights equal to those of the Hungarian population, as well as the cessation of persecution and attempts at Hungarianization.

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and justice, autonomy of churches and denominational schools, universal suffrage, fight against the policy of Magyarization promoted by the authorities of Budapest.[1] Romanians continued in the period of dualism the struggle for recognition, national representation, school and administration in the national language. The formation of a strong Romanian intellectuality led to the diversification of the means of this fight against forced denationalization, with ethnic, linguistic and religious assimilation and with the encouragement of emigration, along with bringing settlers of other nationalities.[2] The Russian historiography on this issue considers that the demonstrative reconciliation of the enemies of the later World War I in Paris did not arouse debate: for many European countries this major anniversary is an opportunity to reflect and argue not only about history. Among them is Romania, which lost the war in 1918, but doubled its territory after it.[3] The main celebration the occasion of the centenary of the end of the First World War, as it is known, gathered on November 11 at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris the heads of seventy powers, some of whom opposed each other a century ago [4]. The noble assembly bypassed the sharp corners, but neither the debate nor the triumph ended there. Which is not surprising: the collapse of empires in the aftermath of the Great War rebuilt the map of Europe: some states were squeezed, others were born, and others grew beyond recognition. Among the latter - Romania in the broadest borders[5].

Before talking about the fact that Romania received such territories must be considered the laws of international relation and not in the last the great efforts of Romanian Old Kingdom diplomacy before entering in the War[6]. The Fourteen Points is a draft peace treaty to end World War I, developed by US President Woodrow Wilson and presented

to Congress on January 8, 1918. It included the reduction of armaments, the withdrawal of German units from Russia and Belgium, the proclamation of Poland’s independence and the creation of a “general association of nations” (called the League of Nations).

Grudgingly endorsed by the US allies, this program partially formed the basis of the Versailles Peace. Wilson’s 14 points were an alternative to the Peace Decree developed

by V.I.Lenin, which was much less acceptable to the Western powers.[7] The 11th point of Woodrow Wilson reads as follows: “Romania, Serbia and Montenegro must be liberated. The occupied territories must be returned. Serbia must be given free and reliable access to the sea [8].

The relations of the various Balkan states must be determined in a friendly way in accordance with the historically established principles of belonging and nationality.

International guarantees of political and economic independence and territorial integrity of the various Balkan states must be established.”[9] Remember how it was. On December 1, 1918, at the National Assembly in the city of Alba Iulia, 1228 delegates from all constituencies of the country with the Romanian population voted for the union of Transylvania (at that time - part of AustriaHungary) with the “old kingdom “. At the beginning of that year, Bessarabia7 (now Moldova) and Bukovina8 entered Romania.

7 Bessarabia is a historical region in southeastern Europe between the Black Sea and the rivers Danube, Prut, Dniester, the eastern part of historical Moldova. The name (Roman. Jara lui Basarab - “Basarab Land”) comes from the name of the Wallachian governor Basarab I the Great (1289-1352, ruled from 1310). According to the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, in the 16th-17th centuries a part of present-day Romania was called Bessarabia (Wallachia with Babadag region along the Danube) 8 Bukovina (literally the land of beech; Ukrainian Bukovina, rum. Bucovina) is a historical region in

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The country has doubled: from 137 to 295 thousand square kilometers; population from 7 million in 1912 to 18 million in 1930.

“Greater Romania” began to claim the role of a regional leader.

The union of 1918 is considered the most important event in the history of Romania: on December 1, the parliament declared a national holiday. In the anniversary year, however, the passions are furious. Some see in this event the fulfillment of the unification dream of the Romanian century, others see what they were lucky enough to win in historical roulette. How was it really? The argument is not over.

In this situation, there was already a Romanian intellectuality that built complex plans to create a balance between Romanians and Hungarians for the equation of two peoples rights. In this context, there will be a review of two main figures: Iuliu Maniu and Aurel C. Popoviciu.[10] In the paper political opinions and activities of two well-known figures were analyzed and compared [11].

In the same year, he crossed the border clandestinely for the first time in Romania, taking part in the Congress of Romanian students in Roman city9. The arrest of the authors of the Memorandum was followed by their imprisonment in Vácz10. Particularly relevant was Maniu’s support for his uncle, Ion Ratiu11, both through visits to the prison and through a long correspondence with him. The graduation was followed by the occupation of the position of jurisconsult of the United Romanian Metropolitan Church of Blaj, in 1898, a year ago being elected, at only 24 years old, in the Committee of the Romanian National Party.

Iuliu Maniu view on Transylvania situation and political activity

In 1904, Maniu ran for the first time in elections in the Vinţu de Jos12 constituency in Alba, but lost. However, a year later he was

II.

Maniu’s political debut came in 1891, when he was among the supporters of the Reply given by the politician Aurel C. Popovici, in response to the Hungarian university youth, which sought to justify the dualist pact. Popovici thus supported the antiquity of the Romanians, most of them in Transylvania, as well as the illegitimacy of the act of annexation to Hungary. A year later, we find him at the head of the Petru Maior Academic Society, as its president, organizing the reception of the authors of the 1892 Memorandum in Vienna.[12] Eastern Europe. At present, its northern part (Northern Bukovina) is the Chernivtsi region of Ukraine (without the Dniester region), and Southern Bukovina is the Romanian county Suceava.

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Fig. 1. Iuliu Maniu

III.

Activity in the Budapest Parliament

9 Roman is a city located in the central part of Western Moldova, a traditional region of Romania. It is located 46 km east of Piatra Neamt, in Neamt County, at the confluence of the Siret and Moldova rivers.

10 A city in the northern part of Hungary, in the Pest county.

11 He was a Romanian Transylvanian politician, lawyer, one of the founders of the Romanian National Party in Transylvania, whose president he was between 1892-1902. He was one of the main authors of the Memorandum addressed on May 28, 1892 to Emperor Francis Joseph I on behalf of the Romanian nation in Transylvania.

12 Vintu de Jos, also known as Vint (in the Saxon dialect Wints, Wants, in German Unter-Wintz, Winzendorf, Weinsdorf, in Hungarian Alvinc, in Latin Sanctus Vincentius), is the village of residence of the commune of the same name in Alba county. , Transylvania, Romania.

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elected with 558 votes. Maniu tried to act to bring the politicians from Vienna closer to the Romanians’ struggle for identity within Hungary. Maniu’s speeches in the Budapest Parliament were particularly relevant.

Appearing as a speaker, he spoke on behalf of the “Party of Nationalities”, an alliance of a group of Romanian, Slovak and Serbian parliamentarians, who had joined forces for coordinated action. The first speech, on May 21, 1906, was met with more than 50 interruptions and accusations of treason

by Hungarian parliamentarians. On this occasion, Maniu demanded the observance of a wider autonomy of the peoples, according to the Croatian model (Croats benefiting from a series of additional rights in relation to the rest of the nationalities attached to the Hungarian monarchy). In his second speech, delivered in 1908, Iuliu Maniu criticized the destruction of Avram Iancu’s13 cross and the stone on the Liberty Plain in Blaj by a group of Hungarian extremists. To the reply of a Hungarian deputy that “Romania was a small ragged Balkan state”, Maniu replied that “It is not ragged, but torn”.[13] Another speech, dated February 16, 1909, showed the Romanian leader’s opposition to the introduction of Hungarian-language commands in the Austro-Hungarian army [14].

The struggle for the emancipation of the Romanians from Transylvania did not have a unitary character. There were several points of view regarding the achievement of

the national objectives. It should be noted among them the idea of federalization of the empire, stated by the Romanian politician Aurel C. Popovici. This supposed the realization of a state based on a wide internal autonomy, within the Habsburg monarchy.

His project was exposed in the work “United States of Greater Austria”14, published in 1906 in Leipzig. Among the supporters of the project was Franz Ferdinand, the famous heir to the throne, who will be assassinated in 1914 in Sarajevo. On February 28, 1907, the Romanian politician Alexandru VaidaVoievod was received by Franz Ferdinand at the Belvedere Palace from Vienna. During the meeting, the archduke expressed his deep dissatisfaction with Hungarian rule over the other nationalities in the empire. In a second hearing, Vaida stated that the Romanians would have received encouragement even from King Carol I for the realization of a confederation. Such a structure can bring even Romania within it. Maniu’s position on this project can be clarified in June 1909, when he was among those who sent Brătianu an Aide-Memoire. This confirms the loyalty of Romanian politicians to Bucharest, despite negotiations with Vienna. The 1910 elections were a great failure for the Romanian National Party - out of 15 deputies, the Romanians failed to elect more than 5. The result of the elections was also attributed to the commission of acts of violence by the Hungarian administration on elections day. Maniu tried to inform the international opinion about the Transylvanian political realities through a letter sent to the British journalist Seaton Watson. The friendship with him also determined the attempt to support

13 Avram Iancu was a Transylvanian lawyer and Romanian Pasoptist revolutionary, who played an important role in the 1848 Revolution in Transylvania.

He was the de facto leader of Wallachia in 1849, commanding the army of the Transylvanian Romanians, in alliance with the Austrian army, against the Hungarian revolutionary troops under the leadership of Lajos Kossuth.

14 United States of Greater Austria - The concept of federalization of the Habsburg state on principles more just in terms of the national aspirations of individual peoples, which was compiled by a group of intellectuals close to the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and declared by Aurel Popovich in the book with the same name in 1906. The project was not implemented due to the death of the Archduke.

IV.

Visions on the emancipation of the Transylvanian Romanians

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a Romanian Transylvanian bank with English capital, in spite of a Hungarian one that fully benefited from German and French capital.

The imminent approach of the war, as well as the desire to impose the universal suffrage by the power in Vienna determined the Hungarians to reconsider the relations with the Romanian population of Transylvania. In these conditions, Maniu tries to impose in Arad a point of view on the Romanians’ claims for reaching an agreement between the two nationalities (granting rights and freedoms to Romanians and recognizing the Romanian National Party as a political body). Failure to acknowledge these wishes inevitably led to the failure of the negotiations [15].

Aurel Popovici. His view on the V. situation in Transylvania and political activity Current events often lead me to the modern history of Romania and the geographical context in which we live.

Some forgotten, others hidden. I think it’s time to remember them in the current contexts [16].

Aurel Constantin Popoviciu (1863 - 1917) was a Romanian jurist and politician who in 1906 proposed the federalization of Austria-Hungary in the so-called United States of Greater Austria. From a young age, he expressed his opposition to the Hungarianization policy in Transylvania and Banat. Miraculously, he manages to join a group of people around Franz Ferdinand and tries to promote the idea of restructuring the Austro-Hungarian Empire into a union of federal states.

In this context, he conceived in 1906 a federal structure, totally inspired by the model of viable federal republics (as they were at the time, United States of America, Mexico and Brazil imitating the American model), which he called the United States of Greater Austria. The concept involved the

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establishment of 15 autonomous provinces (states), established on the principle of nationality, respecting ethnic borders, benefiting from a wide internal autonomy, according to the Swiss or American model.

Fig. 2. Aurel Constantin Popoviciu There was also a considerable strengthening of the central executive and the systematic use of German in the administration and as an official language. One of the most important consequences was the loss of importance played by Hungary. The statement must be understood in the logic of the nationalist exercise and in correlation with the environment of confrontations between nations, against the background of their first geopolitical statement in European history.

Due to resistance from the Hungarian side and the assassination of Prince Franz Ferdinand, Popovici’s proposed model lost any chance of being implemented.

Aurel C. Popoviciu was interpreted as a counterpart to the critical, destructive and centrifugal context in Central Europe, through his strongly centralist theory of a strong central government, coordinating a federal context. Apart from the complexity of A.C. Popoviciu ‘s political theory, his attraction to the wave of racism and xenophobia present in Central Europe must be emphasized. His articles, of a virulence sometimes rare, are directed against the Jews, the Hungarians, the “Balkan Levantines”, in his own language peoples from Oltenia and Moldavia and his compatriots from Old Romanian Kingdom.

Popoviciu’s nationalism, however, must be understood in a manner dependent on the time in which he lived: the nation was understood as a moral and political rather

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than racial unity, of course not including elements that were not viewed with indulgence by Popoviciu, such as the Jews.

However, Popovici used the theories of the racial ideas, especially using them against the cosmopolitan current, which he detested.

Along with the idea of a strong state authority, meant to shape society, Popoviciu was a supporter of a form of noninterventionism in social issues, and was also in favor of decentralization. The school system was seen as detached from an authoritarian form of state intervention. The two components of his thinking must thus be looked at together.

With the beginning of the twentieth century, the main problem facing the dual monarchy in Austria-Hungary became more and more visible, namely that the empire consisted of 11 distinct ethnic groups, of which only two, the Germans and the Hungarians (who together formed only 44 % of the total population) had the power to control. The other nine ethnic groups (Czechs, Poles, Ruthenians, Romanians, Croats, Slovaks, Serbs, Slovenes, and Italians) had almost no power. The system of dual monarchy of Franz Ferdinand’s uncle, Emperor Franz Joseph, had divided the old Austrian empire into two nations, one dominated by the Austrians and the other dominated by the Hungarians.

Fig. 3. United States Greater Austria (Vereinigte Staaten von Groß-Österreich) H o w e v e r , after a series of demonstrations and uprisings, it became clear that this situation in which two ethnic groups, practically in the minority, dominated the other nine ethnic groups could not resist

for a long time [17].

Fig. 4. The Map of United States of Greater Austria Franz Ferdinand planned a radical redesign of the map of Austria-Hungary, creating a number of semi-autonomous states based on ethnic and linguistic majorities, all of which would be part of a larger confederation called the United States of Greater Austria. In this new situation, the identification of language and culture would have been encouraged and the balance of power control would have been balanced, at least in part. From the outset, the idea met with fierce opposition from the Hungarian side of the dual monarchy, because as a direct result of such a reform, the Hungarian nobility would have lost much of its power [16]. The states proposed by Aurel Popoviciu.

The following territories should have become states after the reform according to A.C. Popoviciu (“Deutsch refers to the German language, not Germany): - Deutsch-Österreich (German Austria, today Austria and South Tyrol) - Deutsch-Böhmen (German Bohemia, the north-western part of the Czech Republic today) - Deutsch-Mähren (German Moravia, the

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north-eastern part of the Czech Republic today) - Böhmen (Bohemia, the southern and central part of today’s Czech Republic) - Slowakenland (Slovakia) - West-Galizien (Western Galicia, part of present-day Poland) - Ost-Galizien (Eastern Galicia, part of present-day Ukraine) - Ungarn (Hungary) - Seklerland (Szeklerland, part of today’s Romania) - Siebenbürgen (Transylvania, Banat and Bukovina, part of present-day Romania and Ukraine) - Trento (Trentino, part of today’s Italy) - Trieste (Trieste), part of today’s Italy) - Krain (Carniola, Slovenia today) - Kroatien (Croatia) - Woiwodina (Vojvodina, part of presentday Serbia) In addition, some German-speaking enclaves in eastern Transylvania and elsewhere would have had limited autonomy.

The Archduke was assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914, leading to the outbreak of World War I, lost by Austria-Hungary. As a result, the empire was dismembered by the victorious powers of the Entente. Thus, several new states were formed, and other Austro-Hungarian territories were ceded to existing neighboring countries [17].

VI. Comparative analysis of the activities and points of view of Maniu and Popoviciu Despite the fact that Maniu and Popovic had one main goal, they had slightly different views. Maniu was inclined to believe that the Romanians and Romania itself are still a Balkan country and have their own identification, and, protecting their tradition

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and the way of life of his fellow countrymen, he adhered to the idea of Transylvania as a separate state outside Austria-Hungary, although he supported the United States ideas with a single Austria. Also, if you follow his main activities, then he was closer to the Romanian National Party, and not to the court of Emperor Franz Joseph, which is quite an important factor.

Aurel Popovici, given that his education was medicine doctor, he was involved in the activities of the struggle for the Romanians of Transylvania, and he understood that the policy of Magyarization was a hindrance not only political, but also social, and it would not give any development to the Romanian intellectuality. Popovich himself was selected with incredible luck by Franz Joseph among those who can create a comprehensive reform of the state. The idea of creating a federal system in a multinational state showed that Popoviciu still considered the Romanians to be a central European state, for sure, if not Western European.

Conclusions As a result, having seen two main figures in one party, we see how the identification and development path of the Romanians of Transylvania differ, and this was not the only view of the Romanian people. Maniu, who considered Romanians as a people of the Balkans and Popovici, who considered Romanians as a people of Central or even Western Europe.

Although Transylvania, like all the main territories, was united, as a result, it gained identification as a people of Western Europe, or rather, a people that has the spirit of both Italy and France. But there is a possibility that if the clergy would completely lead the main branches of power in the Romanian kingdom, then even if it could be purely traditional.

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References [1] Activitatea lui luliu Maniu in lupta nationala a romanilor de sub Imperiul Austro-Ungar (Iuliu Maniu’s activity in the national rising of the Romanians under the Austro-Hungarian Empire) URL: https://www.historia.ro/ sectiune/general/articol/activitatea-lui-iuliumaniu-in-lupta-nationala-a-romanilor-desub-imperiul-austro-ungar; [2] Unirea Transilvaniei, Banatului, Crisanei si Maramuresului cu Regatul Roman [Eng., The union of Transylvania, Banat, Crisana and Maramures with the Romanian Kingdom.].

URL: https://www.mvu.ro/index.php/cums-au-unit-transilvania-banatul-crisana-simaramuresul/ [3] Румыния в Первой мировой войне [Eng., Romania in the First World War.]. URL: https://topwar.ru/137015-rumyniya-v-pervoymirovoy-voyne.html [4] Mircea Petrescu-Dambovita, Istoria Românilor (Romanian History), vol. VII, tom II, De la Independență la Marea Unire (18781918) (From Independence to the Great Union (1878-1918)), Bucharest: “Editura Enciclopedică” Publisher (2003).

[5] Romania in the First World War (Russian Historiography).

URL: https://topwar. ru/137015-rumyniya-v-pervoymirovoyvoyne.html [6] Romania in the First World War. URL: https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romania_in_World_ War_I [7] Decree on Peace. URL: https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Decree_on_Peace [8] Эдуард Александрович Иванян «Четырнадцать пунктов» Вильсона, Энциклопедия российско-американских отношений. XVIII—XX века. — Москва: Международные отношения [Eng., Edward Alexandrovich Ivanyan “Fourteen Points” by Wilson, Encyclopedia of Russian-American Relations. XVIII-XX centuries. - Moscow: International relations] (2001) [9] Fourteen Points. URL: https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Fourteen_Points [10] Николай Морозов, Неподъемное величие, Журнал “Огонёк”, Москва, №

46, 03 Декабря (2018). Nikolay Morozov, “Overhelming Greatness,” “Ogonek” Journal, Moscow, № 46, 3 December (2018) [11] Idem, Overwhelming greatness. URL: https:// www.kommersant.ru/doc/3812019 [12] Ioan Scurtu. Iuliu Maniu: activitatea politics.

Bucharest: Ed. Enciclopedica 1995, p. 12.

[13] Apostol Stan, Iuliu Maniu, Biografia unui mare roman (Biography of a Great Romanian), Bucharest, “Ed. Saeculum”, Publisher (1997), p. 23.

[14] Ibidem.

[15] Ioan Scurtu, Iuliu Maniu: activitatea politică (Iuliu Maniu: Political Activity), Bucharest, “Editura Enciclopedică” Publisher (1995).

[16] Aurel C. Popovici, Naţionalism sau democraţie. O critică a civilizaţiunii moderne (Nationalism or Democracy: A critique of modern civilization), Bucharest, Albatros Publisher (1997).

[17] Aurel Popoviciu and The United States of Great Austria. URL: https://politeia.org.ro/ magazin-istoric/aurel-popovici-si-stateleunite-ale-austriei-mari/14708/.

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History and future of life on Earth - a synthesis of natural sciences and theology Andreas May

Independent Researcher, GERMANY https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6714-3925 article info

abstract

Article history: Received 17 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 November Accepted 16 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.21

A synthesis of research results of modern natural sciences and fundamental statements of the Christian faith is attempted. The creation of the universe is addressed. Four important events in the history of the Earth as well as the diversity of living beings are shortly discussed. There are good reasons to believe that the universe was created by a transcendent superior being, which we call God, and that this superior being intervened in evolution and Earth history to promote the development of intelligent life.

Furthermore, it can be concluded that intelligent life is very rare in the universe. This is the explanation for the “Fermi paradox”. Intelligent life on planet Earth has cosmic significance.

Keywords: Earth history; intelligent life; palaeontology; Fermi paradox; astrophysics; Christianity; Christology; eschatology; human evolution;

The overabundance of this universe inspires the hope for participating in the fulfilled eternity of the Creator in transcendence. Prehistoric humans had long had hope for life after biological death. While scientific speculation about the end of the universe prophesies scenarios of destruction, the Christian faith says that humanity is destined to be united with Jesus Christ. Furthermore, all evolution will be completed with the Creator in transcendence. Then the whole of creation will “obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God”. From the first primitive living cell, an abundance of the most diverse living beings has evolved. Comparably, humanity has differentiated into a plethora of different cultures. This entire abundance will find its unification and fulfilment in transcendence with the Creator of the universe, without its diversity being erased. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Andreas May. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: May, Andreas. ”History and future of life on Earth - a synthesis of natural sciences and theology.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 233-251. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.21

I.

Introduction

In the last 200 years, the natural sciences have achieved extraordinary success by investigating the observable world of matter and energy in ever greater detail. In this

way, they give us a vast amount of detailed answers to important HOW questions, such as “How big is the universe?”, “How did life evolve on Earth?” and “How did humanity differentiate into races and cultures?”. But to other questions that interest us even

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more, the natural sciences cannot give us adequate answers. These are questions such as “Why does anything exist?”, “What is the meaning of life?” and “What is the purpose of humanity?”. The natural sciences cannot provide comprehensive answers to these questions because these questions transcend our universe of matter and energy. By their very nature, these questions aim at the transcendent.

Therefore, any attempt to answer these questions with the natural sciences alone must inevitably produce unsatisfactory results.

However, if one attempts a synthesis of the findings of the natural sciences with the statements of the Christian faith, an impressive picture emerges in which not only the individual human being, but also the whole of humanity and even life on planet Earth finds its place. This paper makes the attempt to create such a synthesis from research results of modern natural sciences and fundamental statements of the Christian faith.

II.

Methodological Approach

As a logical consequence, the methodological approach in this article is to present concisely results of modern natural sciences and to bring them into a dialogue with the Christian faith. This is done in different ways: • Presenting research results of the natural sciences that harmonise with Christian faith.

• Contrasting astronomical hypotheses about the future of the universe with statements of faith.

• Interpreting biblical passages of the New Testament with scientific knowledge of the 21st century.

One of the central findings of modern natural sciences is that our world is embedded in a history spanning billions

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of years. This is taken into account in a special way in this article. Considerations about the universe, observations from the history of the Earth and evolution as well as speculations about the end of the universe are taken from the natural sciences.

III.

The Beginning of the Universe and related Topics

It is a generally accepted theory, confirmed by a vast amount of observations, that at the beginning our universe was concentrated in one point and has been expanding ever since. This “Big Bang” occurred 13.8 billion years ago [1]. However, there is no generally accepted view of what happened before the “Big Bang”, or why the universe exists at all. Atheistic scientists and philosophers have tried to present explanations that do without a transcendent superior being as Creator of the universe. These attempts of explanation could be refuted again and again. For example, the attempt by Hawking and Mlodinow [2] to make the Creator superfluous through the law of gravity has been refuted by numerous authors [3]– [6]. In contrast, the Kalam cosmological argument provides good reasons for the belief, that our universe was created by a transcendent superior intelligence [7]–[11].

Let us go one step further: If an intelligent superior being created the universe, then it had an intention in doing so. And to whom could his intention have been directed in a special way? Perhaps to the gas molecules and the stones that cannot think or feel and always obey the laws of nature? Certainly not! Who then can think, feel and make free decisions? Only the representatives of intelligent life who have free will. Only intelligent beings can have a conscious dialogue with each other. If an intelligent superior being has taken the effort to create this universe, then it must have a special interest in communicating and entering into

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a conscious relationship with the intelligent living beings of its creation [12]. And here, on planet Earth, it is us, the human beings.

The ability of human beings to search for God and to enter into a conscious dialogue with God makes us God’s image, the “Imago Dei” (Genesis 1:27; Psalm 8:6).

The line of thought that the Creator of the universe might have a special interest in the development of intelligent living beings is supported by the observation that there is a “fine-tuning” of the fundamental physical constants that are necessary for the development of life. For many authors, this “fine-tuning” proves the existence of an intelligent Creator [13]–[18].

IV.

Evolution and Earth history

I have dealt with the topics of evolution and Earth history in detail in a recently published paper [19]. Therefore, I will only briefly present the most important aspects here.

More than 3.9 billion years ago, the first, primitive, bacteria-like living cell lived on Earth, from which all organisms living on Earth today are descended [20]. From this extremely simple single-celled organism, the whole abundance of life on Earth has developed through biological evolution. To get an idea of the diversity of life: According to Chapman, if all the kingdoms of living beings are taken together, 1.9 million (!) species are known and it is supposed that a total of 11 million different species exist in the world [21].

In order for the first primitive living cell to develop into today’s abundance and diversity of life and human civilization, various extraordinary circumstances and events were necessary throughout the history of the Earth. In my paper, I highlighted four events in particular [22]: • About 4.53 billion years ago, a body about the size of Mars collided with

Earth. This collision formed the moon, tilted the axis of the Earth, and created the strong magnetic field of the Earth.

Only because of this collision do we have tides, seasons and the Van Allen belts, which protect us from highenergy charged particles from space.

Without the Van Allen belts as well, primitive life could have originated in the oceans. Nevertheless, the high-energy charged particles from space would have prevented or at least made very difficult to leave the water. Seasons and tides caused changes in environmental conditions that stimulated the further evolution and diversification of living beings.

• The Sun’s brightness has increased by about 25 percent over the past 4.5 billion years. In the beginning, Earth had an atmosphere without free oxygen, which produced a much stronger greenhouse effect. The invention of water-splitting photosynthesis by cyanobacteria released oxygen. 2.4 billion years ago, the atmosphere contained a significant amount of oxygen. The more oxygen there was in the atmosphere, the less was the greenhouse effect. If water-splitting photosynthesis had been invented much earlier, or if too much oxygen had been produced too early, our planet and life on it would literally have frozen. But if the production of oxygen had started much later, or had been too low, life on Earth probably would have died trough overheating...

• The impact of a giant asteroid 66 million years ago caused the mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous period. It wiped out 76 percent of all species, including all dinosaurs. While the dinosaurs lived, the mammals were small and only of minor importance. Only after the extinction of the dinosaurs were the mammals able to develop their present diversity and

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importance. If this asteroid had passed the Earth, dinosaurs would probably still dominate the world now and the most highly developed primates would not be humans, but the prosimians!

• All races and tribes of the modern-day Homo sapiens who live outside Africa or north of the Sahara are descendants of a single group from Northeast Africa who emigrated from Africa about 70,000 years ago. Shortly after this group of Homo sapiens emigrated from Africa, about 55,000–60,000 years ago, they interbred with the Neanderthal Homo neanderthalensis in the Near or Middle East. This introgression of Neanderthal DNA into modern human genome brought us many advantages, such as an improvement of our immune system and an expansion of our genetic diversity, which had been drastically reduced in the course of emigration from Africa.

Without this interbreeding with the Neanderthal the emigration of Homo sapiens from Africa would probably not have lasted, and today there would be Homo sapiens only on the African continent.

These four events in themselves are extraordinary and very unlikely, and their combination in that order is even more unlikely. Let us begin with the first event, the Earth’s collision with a Mars-sized body.

How rare might such a thing happen? And how rare might it be that the results of such a catastrophe lead not to the permanent and complete uninhabitability of the planet, but to an improvement? The collision of the planets could have blown up both planets. Or the axial tilt of the Earth against the orbit of the Earth around the Sun would have become so large that extreme differences between the seasons and devastating storms would have hindered the development of life. In the second event, the production of free oxygen, the

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time and extent of the release of oxygen was of extraordinary importance for the further development of life. And for the third and fourth events, too, the timing was of crucial importance.

How can it be that in the course of the Earth’s history this sequence of events occurred at exactly the right time?

Theoretically, it is possible, that life on Earth and humanity are the random result of an extremely unlikely random chain of unlikely events that chanced to happen at exactly the right time. However, I cannot imagine that all this is just coincidence, because the probability of this is negligible. It is much more plausible to assume that the Creator of the universe deliberately intervened to promote the development of intelligent life.

If the Creator has intervened in the history of the Earth to promote the evolution of (intelligent) life, then (intelligent) life has great significance for the Creator.

V.

Intelligent life in the universe

Modern astronomy has shown us that our Sun is one of hundreds of billions of suns in the Milky Way, and our Milky Way is only one of about 2 trillion galaxies in the entire universe [23]. And certainly many suns have planets [24], [25]. How many planets may remain in the universe where not only life originated, but where life evolved into intelligent life?

It is possible for the most primitive forms of life to develop on a planet. From numerous experiments we know that it is plausible that the simplest forms of life develop by organizing abiotically formed organic substances, if certain circumstances are given and sufficient time are available [26]–[31]. But what are the prerequisites for a diverse life to evolve, or even for intelligent living beings to develop? In the previous section I listed four events that were of central importance for the development

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of life and mankind. Certainly there have been more events of vital importance in the course of Earth’s history. But these four events in themselves are extraordinary and very unlikely, and their combination in that order is even more unlikely. Automatically, the question arises how likely it is under these circumstances that there are more or even many planets with intelligent life in the universe. When I look at the series of events and circumstances that were necessary to produce what we now see on Earth, I cannot imagine that many planets remain; for the events are so extraordinary, and the need to happen at a certain time, or at least in a certain sequence, is so compelling that the probability becomes very small. We must therefore seriously consider that we are the only planet with intelligent life in the Milky Way. In this way, the sequence of events that has taken place throughout Earth’s history becomes the explanation for the so-called “Fermi paradox”, which can be summarized as follows: “Why do we not find traces of extraterrestrial intelligent life anywhere, when we have many suns in our galaxy?”

Sandberg, Drexler, and Ord provide a condensed compilation of scientific data on the subject [32]. Various attempts have been made to explain the Fermi paradox.

As one attempt among many, some authors argue that technological civilizations do not exist long enough to leave their home planet [33], [34]. Vakoch sees the reason in the fear of an invasion by aliens [35]. Other scientists suspect that extraterrestrial civilizations have agreed not to contact us [36]. The sobering answer to the Fermi paradox is: It is not enough that a solar system has planets on which life is possible.

In order for intelligent life to develop, a series of extraordinary events is also necessary, which must happen in a certain order in certain periods of time.

Let us take this thought further: Could

it be that our Earth is the only planet with intelligent life in the entire universe?

The thought seems outrageous. But the facts speak a different language, because although Sandberg, Drexler, and Ord have a different approach in their model calculations for the Fermi paradox, they too come to the conclusion that there are probably no other civilizations of intelligent life in our galaxy, and possibly even in the entire observable universe [37]. Conway Morris and Snyder-Beattie et al. come to similar conclusions [38], [39].

By the way, the idea presented above, that the Earth may be the only planet in the entire universe that carries intelligent life, fits very well with important aspects of Christology: Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, incarnated himself once in the universe created through him, on Earth 2000 years ago, to redeem the entire universe through his life and death on Earth. These statements are clearly understandable and conclusive if there is intelligent life throughout the universe only on the planet Earth. But if there is intelligent life on other planets as well, different questions and problems arise [40]–[47]. Among other things, the question arises whether the transcendent Creator of the universe may have incarnated on these planets as well. If not, why not? And if so, what consequences would that have for the evaluation of the incarnation of Jesus Christ on Earth? And many more questions depend on that...

VI.

Hope for transcendence

This universe of matter, energy, space and time is limited and much in it is transient. Perhaps even the whole universe is transient. And yet there are indications in it that not everything passes, but that there is the possibility of participating in the fulfilled eternity of the Creator in transcendence. I will limit myself to two clues: the overabundance we can observe

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and the hope of prehistoric humans that goes beyond death.

The overabundance observable in creation can be demonstrated with the unimaginably large number of suns in the universe and the unimaginably large number of different species of living beings on planet Earth. There are also other ways to perceive the exuberant abundance, complexity and beauty of this creation, and presumably almost every human being has had an idea of it. Observing this overabundance and beauty inevitably the question arises: Is that it? Does all this have to go away at some point? For all people who believe in the existence of a Creator, it is tempting to trust that the transcendent Creator will not leave for final destruction a creation which he has made so magnificently. Contemplating the creation evokes the hope that the Creator will at least save the most valuable in it forever into transcendence.

I have already pointed out that the intelligent life in this universe is most valuable to the transcendent Creator.

Because only the representatives of intelligent life can think, love, make free decisions and commune with him, the Creator. And here, on planet Earth, we, the human beings, are the intelligent life. From these considerations one can justify a hope for a continuation of life after biological death without resorting to a specific religion.

Can this hope of survival after biological death already be observed in prehistoric man? Among palaeoanthropologists there is an intensive discussion regarding burials in prehistoric humans [48], [49]. Attempts are made to distinguish between “disposal” (without transcendental dimension) and “funeral” (with transcendental dimension).

But why should a prehistoric man – fully occupied with survival – bury his dead in the earth or hide them in cave systems that are difficult to access? Only for hygienic

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reasons, so that no epidemics spread? In contrast to today, there were only a few people at that time, but many scavengers, such as vultures, who within a very short time eroded all animal and human bodies down to the bones. To avoid diseases, it would have been sufficient to remove the dead from the camp site so that the vultures would eat them. For this reason I consider burials in prehistoric man to be a clear indication of a hope reaching beyond death.

Even the relatively primitive human species Homo naledi buried its dead about 236,000– 335,000 years ago in caves that were difficult to access [50]–[53]. Toit sees here the natural beginnings of religious thought and supposes that Homo naledi already posed the question of the fate of the deceased [54]. Herce is sceptical about such an interpretation, since so far no further evidence of intelligent behaviour has been found in Homo naledi [55].

But not only Homo naledi buried his dead in caves; the same applies to the well-preserved skeletons of Homo heidelbergensis steinheimensis from the cave “Sima de los Huesos” near Atapuerca in the province of Burgos (Spain), which are about 448,000 years old [56], [57]. (Manzi divides Homo heidelbergensis into four subspecies [58].) While a religious dimension can still be questioned in Homo naledi, since we have not yet found any further evidence of intelligence, this possibility of criticism does not apply to Homo heidelbergensis.

We know that Homo heidelbergensis could create advanced stone tools and was capable of conscious geometric design [59], [60]. Martínez et al. and Sikorska-Piwowska et al. show that Homo heidelbergensis could speak [61], [62]. Furthermore, there are indications of symbolic thinking in Homo heidelbergensis [63].

The Neanderthal Homo neanderthalensis developed from the Homo heidelbergensis

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steinheimensis [64]. Despite all discussions about whether and to what extent the Neanderthals buried their dead [65], it is certain that some Neanderthal groups started burying their dead about 80,000 years ago [66]–[71]. The oldest known burials of Homo sapiens are 100,000–120,000 years old and took place in Israel [72], [73].

In summary, it can be stated that not only Homo sapiens but also other extinct human species have buried their dead since at least 448,000 years ago. It is worth mentioning that Rappaport and Corbally consider it possible that Homo neanderthalensis believed in an afterlife, and they also concede certain basic religious abilities to Homo heidelbergensis and Homo erectus [74]. So the hope of survival after biological death is something that is very fundamental to us.

VII.

The future of the universe and humanity A. Astrophysics and Christianity

Modern astrophysics tries to make predictions about the future of the universe.

The considerations of Adams & Laughlin [75] and other authors come to the conclusion that in an unimaginably distant future, the entropy (= disorder) in the universe will have increased to such an extent that not enough energy can be released to make life possible [76], [77]. This scenario is called the “Big Chill”. Another scenario, the “Big Crunch”, imagines that the universe could stop expanding and collapse back into a lump [78], [79]. A third possibility offered is a scenario, the “Big Rip”, in which the universe destroys itself and both celestial bodies and elementary particles are pulverised [80], [81]. These dystopias stand in sharp contrast to Christianity’s hope for the future: • Christians believe that God created this

universe and intervened in its history.

He created a universe full of beauty and abundance and patiently accompanied the development of life on Earth. Why then would God, as its Creator, allow this universe to run into one of the three catastrophic end states of “Big Chill”, “Big Crunch” or “Big Rip”? Therefore, I agree with Bollini and Russo when they trust that God will not abandon this universe to destruction [82]–[84].

• All Christian churches teach that at the end of time, at the “Last Judgement”, all people will rise from the dead and be judged. Depending on this, a person will then be eternally in communion with God, “heaven”, or in exclusion from God, “hell”. Then also the “first heaven” and the “first earth” will be transformed into the “new heaven” and the “new earth” (Revelation 21:1).

• The New Testament passages that speak of these last things speak of the “whole creation” (Romans 8:18-23) or the “new heaven” and the “new earth” (Revelation 21:1; 2 Peter 3:13).

The authors of the New Testament could not have had any idea of how vast our universe is. Nevertheless, it can be supposed that these authors assumed that these events would affect the entire universe and not just planet Earth.

• This planet Earth and we, humanity, have a special significance for God; because in this very planet, in the incarnation of Jesus 2000 years ago, the Creator of the universe became a part of His own creation. And in the ascension of Jesus, he took a human body with him into transcendence. So we have good reason to believe that the transformation of the “first heaven” and the “first earth” into the “new heaven” and the “new earth” (Revelation 21:1) will not only affect this planet, but the entire universe.

Finally, we have seen above that an

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extremely unlikely sequence of improbable events in Earth’s history was necessary for intelligent life to unfold on Earth. Based on this, I made the assumption that intelligent life develops only very rarely in the universe.

It is even possible that Earth is the only planet in the entire universe with intelligent life. In this case, the future of planet Earth would be of truly cosmic significance. This gives us reason to hope that the Creator of the universe will protect this planet and its inhabitants from final annihilation.

Although as immanent beings we cannot reach transcendence by our own power, we have a deep longing for transcendence.

Human beings have had a longing for transcendence for thousands of years. Not only in religions, but also in all philosophical considerations that assume that matter could approach transcendence by its own power, this longing for transcendence becomes visible.

At the beginning of this article we worked out that for the Creator of the universe the most valuable thing in this universe are the intelligent living beings. One could even go so far as to say that the universe was created to produce intelligent living beings; so that the intelligent living beings are the fruits of the universe. Seen in this light, the Second Coming of Christ and the Last Judgement will be the harvest in which God gathers the fruits of his sowing to take them to himself in transcendence. Through this, our longing for transcendence will be fulfilled finally.

In the Second Coming of Christ and the Last Judgement, our longing for transcendence and our longing for complete communion with God, our Creator, will be completely fulfilled; for God, through his action, will overcome the separation between immanence and transcendence. Through the return of Christ, a comprehensive healing, sanctification and fulfilment will happen. This salvific action of God takes place on the three levels of

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creation, humanity and individual persons: • At the level of the individual human being will be the resurrection and the Last Judgement. Those human beings who have not decided against God will then live eternally with body and soul in intimate communion with the Triune God. • All humanity will be united with and in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:9–10) [85].

Teilhard de Chardin interpreted this unification of all humanity in Jesus Christ as the aiming point of all evolution and called it point “Omega” [86].

• The whole of creation – and I understand here: the whole universe – will be completed and “obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Romans 8:21).

B. The future of all creation in the Letter to the Romans The interpretation of Romans 8:18–23 gives conclusions about the future of all creation, because in this section of the Letter to the Romans Paul contrasts the present state of creation with the final state of creation. Today creation is “subjected to futility” and there is suffering. But Paul does not see the present only negatively, for he highlights that God gave creation a hope.

This hope that Paul speaks of is echoed in the hope I spoke of in the chapter “Hope for transcendence”. While the hope of the chapter “Hope for transcendence” is fed by the contemplation of creation, the hope of which Paul speaks has been given by the Creator Himself.

This hope of the whole creation is inseparable from the hope of human beings, “for the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God”. What might Paul have meant by “the revealing of the children of God”?

Paul himself gives a partial answer when he

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speaks of the “redemption of our bodies”, that is, the events of the resurrection and the Last Judgement. This means that the completion of creation is linked to the Last Judgement (see also Revelation 11:18 and Revelation 21:1–4). Personally, I believe that this is only a partial answer, because in my opinion “the revealing of the children of God” begins earlier, already now: It begins initially every time a person discovers the meaning of his or her life, lives in conscious communion with God and strives to become more and more like Jesus Christ. The children of God become especially clearly visible when they proclaim the gospel of the resurrection to life and salvation to all people and the whole of creation. It becomes apparent that the destiny of humanity is inextricably linked to the destiny of all creation; not only in this universe, where the survival of humanity depends on natural resources and fellow creatures; but also in the “new heaven” and the “new earth”, which the “children of God” are already helping to prepare.

The goal of all creation is “the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Romans 8:21). This will complete something that God has placed in his creation from the very beginning: freedom. A first step towards the freedom of his creation took place through the indeterminacy of quantum physics, which is described by Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle [87]–[89].

The evolution of living beings enabled further steps towards freedom [90]–[92]. And through the making of the “new heaven” and the “new earth”, creation will also participate in the highest degree of freedom possible: the freedom of the children of God. So, if we take the Letter to the Romans and the Book of Revelation seriously, we can expect that Jesus Christ will complete all evolution at his Second Coming. What that will mean I cannot tell you; but I am sure it

will be more magnificent and beautiful than we can imagine. Various theologians, such as Russell [93], hold the view that this “new heaven” and this “new earth” will emerge from the “first heaven” and the “first earth” through a transformation comparable to the transformation of the earthly body of Jesus Christ into his resurrected body.

C. Humans and other living beings on the “new earth” We humans are the only living beings on planet Earth to have a transcendent soul [94], [95]. This transcendent soul given by God fundamentally distinguishes us from all animals and other living beings. This gives us a special position on the “new earth”.

But we can assume that on the “new earth” there will also be room for the animals and the other living beings. In the New Testament we find two passages that prove that animals and other living creatures will also be part of the new creation. Firstly, there is the passage Romans 8:18–23, and secondly, there is a hint in the Book of Revelation that the animals and the other living beings will also participate in the eternal praise of the Creator in the new creation (Revelation 5:13) [96].

A very personal assumption of mine is that on this “new earth” perhaps all living beings of all times will live side by side, and we humans, as now only the Creator, will be able to contemplate them all. Why would God permanently abandon to death any of what he has created out of his overflowing love? Deane-Drummond writes [97]: “The new community is, in other words, inclusive of the evolutionary history of creation, not just the history of individual human beings. The question of which form(s) may or may not have their place in heaven — do dinosaurs enter the kingdom? — is impossible to answer, but with Balthasar, we can affirm a universal hope for the whole

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cosmos.”

VIII. Diversity, Unity, and the Purpose of Human Evolution In the context of this article, there are several points of connection to the motto “Diversity & Differentness” of this DIALOGO conference. On the one hand, there is the biological evolution of a very diverse life (including intelligent beings) on Earth and, on the other hand, the unfolding of the cultural diversity of Homo sapiens.

The biological evolution of life on Earth began with a very primitive cell. From it, the entire diversity of life has evolved. So it is a process from unity to diversity. In my recently published paper, I have worked out that “freedom” plays a central role in this evolutionary process [98]: From the very beginning, God, the Creator of the universe, prepared everything so that we humans have the greatest possible freedom, starting with the indeterminacy of quantum physics. This is not yet freedom in the sense of a conscious decision, but it is a step in this direction. Then God let all living beings arise through biological evolution, which led to further degrees of freedom.

Presumably, God chose the way of evolution to ensure that we, the intelligent living beings, have the perfect freedom to believe in Him or to let it be, as well as to love Him, ignore Him or reject Him. Humans are the crown of creation on Earth; for only humans are able to accept or refuse God’s love in conscious free decision. From this point of view, we can accept all the suffering that has occurred in the context of evolution as part of God’s very good creation. The Bible documents how much God strives to lead people to freedom. Christianity teaches that the ultimate and comprehensive liberation of man is the liberation from the slavery of sin and death. This liberation took place through the death of Jesus Christ on

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the cross.

A similar pattern emerges in the unfolding of the cultural diversity of Homo sapiens. As was mentioned above, all races and tribes of the modern-day Homo sapiens who live outside Africa or north of the Sahara are descendants of a single group from Northeast Africa who emigrated from Africa about 70,000 years ago [99]– [105]. This means that all human races and all cultures that originated outside of subSaharan Africa stemmed from a small group of Homo sapiens.

When we look into the future with the eyes of Christian revelation, we see that all this fullness and diversity is to be united in Jesus Christ: “He has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth” (Ephesians 1:9–10).

This biblical passage evokes a comprehensive unification of all creation.

Whereas up to now, in both biological evolution and cultural unfolding, we have experienced an ever-increasing diversity, an ever-expanding difference and an everdeepening separation, in the future all shall be united in Jesus Christ. This unification in and with and through Jesus Christ will not erase the diversity and differentness but accomplish it. The diversity and differentness will not be erased, because all creation will participate in the highest degree of freedom possible: the freedom of the children of God (see above).

This process of unification in Jesus Christ exceeds the possibilities and abilities of creation. Therefore, God, the Creator, who conceived this plan of salvation, must and will carry it out. Even though God is the actual agent, all human beings, and especially all Christians, are called to support God in this plan of salvation. It is of existential importance that more and more

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people become aware that they are called to follow Jesus Christ and to become more and more like him [106], [107].

Every person who follows Jesus Christ seriously will feel the invitation from God to give back his freedom, for which Jesus Christ died on the cross, to Jesus Christ as loving obedience. “By giving back our freedom to God-Son as loving obedience, our own freedom does not diminish; on the contrary, it increases: the more we obey Jesus Christ, the freer we become, and we share in the freedom of the children of God. This is an important paradox of Christianity: obeying Jesus Christ will set us free” [108].

A person, who decides to follow seriously Jesus Christ, will inevitably experience a kind of evolution, becoming more and more close and similar to Jesus Christ. To a similar kind of evolution, becoming more and more united to Jesus Christ, the whole mankind is called. Consequently, from a Christian point of view, the purpose of human evolution is [109]: • Development of increasingly just, peaceful and human societies, in which the people care for each other and all human beings can live and develop their genuine personalities.

• Construct societies which allow all human beings not only to develop their corporal and mental abilities but also to develop their spirituality and allow them to prepare themselves for the deepest sense of their lives: to live in community with God, their creator – in this world and in the beyond.

• Unify the whole mankind in peace, justice and love. This means inevitably that mankind has to become similar to Jesus Christ and to be unified with Jesus Christ and unified within Jesus Christ.

Only in God, in Jesus Christ, mankind can be effectively unified. Any other attempt which is based only on human capacities

will fail as much as the construction of the tower of Babel (Genesis 11, 1–9).

The Christian purpose of human evolution has a transcendental, eternal goal – the communion of love with God –, but it implies very concrete activities in this world. Therefore, all persons of good will, whatever kind of belief they may have, are invited to cooperate with the Christians in our efforts to realize the Christian purpose of human evolution.

IX.

Overcoming the Environmental Crisis

Global

During the discussion of this paper at the DIALOGO conference, the question was raised whether and to what extent religions can contribute to overcome the global environmental crisis. It is generally accepted that the role model function of religious leaders can make an important contribution. A highly recommendable example is the encyclical letter Laudato Si’ of Pope Francis [110].

However, Christianity can do much more. It could do a crucial contribution in diminishing pollution and resource consumption, because for every human being, the living, honest and personal relationship with the God of Christianity could become an extraordinary driving force in the fight against injustice and environmental destruction.

To understand this better, one must look at what the root cause of injustice and environmental destruction is: It is man’s insatiable longing for happiness and fulfilment. Every human being desires a happiness and fulfilment which this world can not give. Christianity knows that these desires ultimately are directed to the communion with God. However, our societies are focussing these desires to material things and consumption. As long as a person tries to

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satisfy this longing with material things, he will always suffer lack and want to have more and more. Other people are no longer experienced as fellow creatures with their own dignity, but either subjected to his desires or perceived as obstacles, or competitors, on the path to his happiness.

With such an inner condition, injustice and environmental destruction are unavoidable, and sharing with other people is very difficult because one suffers lack oneself.

From the moment on that a person becomes aware within himself, or existentially, that he is unconditionally loved

by God and that this love of God is the truly decisive thing for his life, a fundamental change occurs in that person: • As the love of God increasingly fills that person’s heart, it becomes easier for him to realise that he does not need certain things in order to be happy. Therefore, it becomes easier for him to let go and renounce consumption.

• He will discover more and more in the poverty-stricken persons (e.g. of the Third World) his brothers and sisters with whom he wants to share more and more of his wealth.

• And in creation he will discover more and more the overflowing love of the Creator, to which he will respond more and more protectively.

In this way, Christianity can enable persons to share with other persons and to reduce their level of living to a degree which is compatible with our resources.

For these reasons, the following sentence of the Apostle Paul is even more relevant today than when it was written almost 2000 years ago: “…the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God” (Romans 8:19).

X.

Practical Implications

Throughout the ages, people have tried

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to understand the world comprehensively in order to find their place in it. Today, the natural sciences and Christian faith are very often perceived as contradictory or mutually exclusive ways of understanding the world.

Many people give greater credence to the natural sciences than to the Christian faith.

This is where the article comes in; for the contemplation of nature and the results of the natural sciences give numerous indications that our material world is not everything, but that there is a transcendent reality beyond it. In this way, one can approach the Christian faith from the natural sciences and overcome reservations about the Christian faith. Therefore, it is highly recommendable for all Christian denominations and groups to maintain an intensive dialogue with all those interested in the natural sciences.

This article shows that natural sciences and Christian faith complement each other.

The synthesis of both helps us to understand our world better and more deeply. We can see much better what our place is in the world and in the whole universe. This gives life a meaning and an orientation that makes it happier and more fulfilling.

Conclusions An attempt was made to create a synthesis from research results of modern natural sciences and fundamental statements of the Christian faith.

Considerations about the beginning of the universe, observations from the history of the Earth and evolution as well as speculations about the end of the universe are taken from the natural sciences.

The synthesis with the Christian faith shows: • We have good reasons to believe that the universe was created by a transcendent superior being, which we call God, and that this superior being intervened in

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• •

• •

•

•

•

• •

evolution and Earth history to promote the development of intelligent life.

Life, and especially intelligent live, is of great importance for God, the Creator of the universe.

Throughout the history of the Earth, various extraordinary circumstances and events were necessary for to develop today’s abundance and diversity of life and human civilization.

The explanation for the “Fermi paradox” is that intelligent life is very rare in the universe.

Intelligent life on planet Earth has cosmic significance. On the one hand, this can be substantiated by the rarity of intelligent life in the universe. On the other hand, in this very planet, in the incarnation of Jesus 2000 years ago, the Creator of the universe became a part of His own creation. And in the ascension of Jesus, he took a human body with him into transcendence.

Within this universe of matter, energy, space and time, there are indications in it that not everything passes, but that there is the possibility of participating in the fulfilled eternity of the Creator in transcendence.

Not only Homo sapiens but also other extinct human species have buried their dead since at least 448,000 years ago. So the hope of survival after biological death is something that is very fundamental to human beings.

Humanity is destined to be united with Jesus Christ. Therefore, the whole mankind is called to become more and more united to Jesus Christ.

Presumably, in some way, all evolution will be completed with the Creator in transcendence.

From the very beginning, creation was given more and more freedom. Through

the making of the “new heaven” and the “new earth”, the whole creation will participate in the highest degree of freedom possible: the freedom of the children of God. • From the primitive first living cell, an abundance of the most diverse living beings has evolved. In a comparable way, humanity has differentiated into a plethora of different cultures. This entire abundance will find its unification and fulfilment in transcendence with the Creator of the universe, without its diversity being erased.

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Martina Demuro, Lee J. Arnold, Arantza Aranburu, Nohemi Sala, and Juan-Luis Arsuaga, “New Bracketing Luminescence Ages Constrain the Sima de los Huesos Hominin Fossils (Atapuerca, Spain) to MIS 12,” Journal of Human Evolution 131 (2019): 76–95.

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Laura T. Buck and Chris B. Stringer, “Homo, Diversification of,” in The Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Biology, vol. 2 (Oxford: Academic press, 2016), 230.

Jürgen Richter, “Bewusste geometrische Gestaltung bei Homo heidelbergensis?

Arbeitsschrittanalyse an einem Faustkeil aus Bad Salzuflen (Ostwestfalen-Lippe),” Archäologisches Korrespondenzblatt 43 (2013): 1–17.

Ignacio Martínez, M. Rosa, R. Quam, P. Jarabo, C. Lorenzo, A. Bonmatí, et al., “Communicative Capacities in Middle Pleistocene Humans from the Sierra de

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Frederick L. Coolidge and Thomas Wynn, The Rise of Homo sapiens: The Evolution of Modern Thinking (Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2009), 170–174.

Manzi, “Before the Emergence”.

Balter, “Did Neandertals Truly”.

Paul B. Pettitt, “The Neanderthal Dead: Exploring Mortuary Variability in Middle Palaeolithic Eurasia,” Before Farming 2002/1, no. 4 (2002), https://doi.org/10.3828/ bfarm.2002.1.4.

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Dafne Koutamanis, “The Place of the Neanderthal Dead: Multiple Burial Sites and Mortuary Space in the Middle Palaeolithic of Eurasia” (Thesis, Leiden University, Faculty of Archaeology, 2012).

João Zilhão, “Lower and Middle Palaeolithic Mortuary Behaviours and the Origins of Ritual Burial,” in Death Rituals, Social Order and the Archaeology of Immortality in the Ancient World: ‘Death Shall Have No Dominion’, ed.

Colin Renfrew, Michael J. Boyd, and Iain Morley (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015), 27–44.

Antoine Balzeau, Alain Turq, Sahra Talamo, Camille Daujeard, Guillaume Guérin, Frido Welker, et al., “Pluridisciplinary Evidence for Burial for the La Ferrassie 8 Neandertal Child,” Scientific Reports 10, no. 21230 (2020): 1–10, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598020-77611-z.

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Rainer Grün, Chris Stringer, Frank McDermott, Roger Nathan, Naomi Porat, Steve Robertson, et al., “U-series and ESR Analyses of Bones and Teeth Relating to the Human Burials from Skhul,” Journal of Human Evolution 49 (2005): 316–334.

Margaret Boone Rappaport and Christopher Corbally, “Evolution of Religious Capacity in the Genus Homo,” Zygon Journal of Religion and Science 53 (2018): 170.

Fred C. Adams and Gregory Laughlin, “A Dying Universe: the long-term Fate and Evolution of Astrophysical Objects,” Reviews of Modern Physics 69, no. 2 (1997): 337–372.

Claudio R. Bollini, “El desafío de la Entropía a la Teología,” Teología 101 (2010): 69–90 (Buenos Aires: Facultad de Teología de la UCA).

Moisés Bravo Gaete and Sergio Armstrong Cox, “Fin del universo y esperanza cristiana,” Veritas 42 (2019): 188-191.

Renata Kallosh, Jan Kratochvil, Andrei Linde, Eric V. Linder, and Marina Shmakova, “Observational Bounds on Cosmic Doomsday,” Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics 2003, no. 10 (2003): 015.

Yun Wang, Jan Michael Kratochvil, Andrei Linde, and Marina Shmakova, “Current Observational Constraints on Cosmic Doomsday,” Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics 2004, no. 12 (2004): 006.

Robert R. Caldwell, Marc Kamionkowski, and Nevin N. Weinberg, “Phantom Energy: Dark Energy with w <-1 Causes a Cosmic Doomsday,” Physical Review Letters 91 (2003): 071301.

Marco Bernardoni, “Far-future universe: a mutual challenge between Physical Cosmology and Christian Eschatology,” Disputatio Philosophica 13, no. 1 (2011): 126–127.

Bollini, “El desafío de la Entropía,” 89.

Claudio R. Bollini, “La teología ante la física moderna: cuestiones fundamentales para un diálogo posible. 2ª Parte: La teología de la creación ante la cosmología científica,”

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Mario Anthony Russo, “The Holy Spirit and the Story of New Creation: How Pneumatology Makes Sense of Cosmology and Eschatology,” Theology and Science 18, no. 3 (2020): 515.

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Charles H. Townes, “Basic Puzzles in Science and Religion,” in God’s Action in Nature’s World, Essays in Honour of Robert John Russell, ed. Ted Peters and Nathan Hallanger (Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2006), 130.

George F. R. Ellis, “Necessity, Purpose, and Chance,” in God’s Providence and Randomness in Nature: Scientific and Theological Perspectives, ed. Robert John Russell and Joshua M. Moritz (West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press, 2019), 21–68.

Ted Peters, “Contingency and Freedom in Brains and Selves,” in God’s Providence and Randomness in Nature: Scientific and Theological Perspectives, ed. Robert John Russell and Joshua M. Moritz (West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press, 2019), 278–80.

May, “Earth history and Evolution”, 34.

Asle Eikrem and Atle Ottesen Søvik, “Evolutionary theodicies – an attempt to overcome some impasses,” Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie 60, no. 3 (2018): 428– 434.

Rik Peels, “Does Evolution Conflict with God’s Character?,” Modern Theology 34, no.

4 (2018): 559–560.

Robert John Russell, Time in Eternity: Pannenberg, Physics, and Eschatology in Creative Mutual Interaction (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2012).

“Catechism of the Catholic Church,” last modified November 04, 2003, https://www.

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vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM, section 359–367.

[95] Cosmin-Tudor Ciocan, “The Value of the Soul in the Religious Views: An Overview targeting the Salvation of an Individual,” Dialogo 6, no.

2 (2020): 233–244, https://doi.org/10.18638/ dialogo.2020.6.2.21.

[96] Lucio Florio, “‘En biología nada tiene sentido sino a la luz de la evolución’. Incorporación teológica de este principio biológico,” Teología 116 (2015): 27, (Buenos Aires: Facultad de Teología de la UCA).

[97] Celia Deane-Drummond, Christ and Evolution: Wonder and Wisdom (Minneapolis, Minn.: Fortress Press, 2009), 246.

[98] May, “Earth history and Evolution”, 34–35.

(See here for detailled literature references).

[99] Freeman and Herron, Evolutionary analysis, 752–759.

[100] Pedro Soares, Farida Alshamali, Joana B. Pereira, Verónica Fernandes, Nuno M. Silva, Carla Afonso, et al., “The Expansion of mtDNA Haplogroup L3 within and out of Africa,” Molecular Biology and Evolution 29, no. 3 (2012): 915–927.

[101] Qiaomei Fu, Alissa Mittnik, Philip L. F. Johnson, Kirsten Bos, Martina Lari, Ruth Bollongino, et al., “A Revised Timescale for Human Evolution Based on Ancient Mitochondrial Genomes,” Current Biology 23 (2013): 553–559.

[102] Luca Pagani, Stephan Schiffels, Deepti Gurdasani, Petr Danecek, Aylwyn Scally, Yuan Chen, et al., “Tracing the Route of Modern Humans out of Africa by Using 225 Human Genome Sequences from Ethiopians and Egyptians,” The American Journal of Human Genetics 96, no. 6 (2015): 986–991.

[103] Anna-Sapfo Malaspinas, Michael C. Westaway, Craig Muller, Vitor C. Sousa, Oscar Lao, Isabel Alves, et al., “A Genomic History of Aboriginal Australia,” Nature 538 (2016): 207–214.

[104] Ludovica Molinaro and Luca Pagani, “Human Evolutionary History of Eastern Africa,” Current Opinion in Genetics & Development 53 (2018): 134–135.

[105] Shaohua Fan, Derek E. Kelly, Marcia H. Beltrame, Matthew E. B. Hansen, Swapan

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Mallick, Alessia Ranciaro, et al., “African evolutionary history inferred from whole genome sequence data of 44 indigenous African populations,” Genome Biology 20, no. 82 (2019): 4, https://doi.org/10.1186/ s13059-019-1679-2.

[106] Juan Martínez Sáez, ed., «Id y haced discípulos»: Seguimiento, Fraternidad, Misión (Burgos: Monte Carmelo, 2014), 36– 41.

[107] Juan F. Martínez Sáez, “La consagración cristiana: bautismal y específica,” Seminarios sobre los ministerios en la Iglesia 61, no. 213 (2015): 31–32.

[108] May, “Earth history and Evolution”, 35.

[109] Andreas May, “Comment concerning religion on the Researchgate project ‘Has human evolution a purpose?’ of Bogdan Góralski,” last modified March 26, 2017, https://doi. org/10.13140/RG.2.2.15933.67048.

[110] Pope Francis, “Encyclical letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis on care for our common home,” last modified May 24, 2015, https://www.vatican.va/content/ francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papafrancesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si. html.

Biography Andreas MAY, born in Dortmund/ Germany in 1962, studied geology and palaeontology at the universities of Bochum and Münster in Germany.

He obtained his Doctor in Natural Sciences in 1991 with a thesis on Devonian corals and other reef-building organisms. From 2002 to 2005 he was Professor for Earth sciences, environmental sciences, evolutionary biology and palaeontology at the Saint Louis University - Madrid campus. He wrote

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or contributed to more than 90 publications on palaeontology and/or geology. Now he is married, has four children and is working as a Senior Database Developer in Germany.

Since 2017 he is writing a book on Christianity, evolution and related topics in German language as well as in Spanish language. Information about this project is posted in https://www.researchgate. net/project/Christianity-and-Evolution (in English), https://www.facebook.com/may. devonian (in Spanish) and https://www. facebook.com/DAM-Wissenschaft-undGlaube-106731404884228 (in German).

southern Spain),” Geologica Belgica 15, no.

4 (2012): 226–235.

Selected publications Andreas May, “Paleoecology of Upper Eifelian and Lower Givetian Coral Limestones in the Northwestern Sauerland (Devonian, Rhenish Massif),” Facies 26 (1992): 103–116.

Andreas May, “Microfacies controls on weathering of carbonate building stones: Devonian (northern Sauerland, Germany),” Facies 30 (1994): 193–208.

Andreas May, “Relationship among sea-level fluctuation, biogeography, and bioevents of the Devonian: an attempt to approach a powerful, but simple model for complex longrange control of biotic crises,” Geolines 3 (1996): 38–49.

Andreas May, “Verwitterungsbeständigkeit und Verwitterung von Naturbausteinen aus Kalkstein,” Geologie und Paläontologie in Westfalen 48 (1997): 3–185.

Andreas May, “Milliarden Jahre Evolution – Geschenk und Auftrag,” in Mit Sorge – in Hoffnung. Zu Impulsen aus der Enzyklika Laudato Si’ für eine Spiritualität im ökologischen Zeitalter, ed. Thomas Dienberg and Stephan Winter (Regensburg: Verlag Friedrich Pustet, 2020), 175–184.

Andreas May, “Fossils explained 79: Rugose corals,” Geology Today 37, no. 1 (2021): 31– 38.

Andreas May and Sergio Rodríguez, “Pragian (Lower Devonian) stromatoporoids and rugose corals from Zújar (Sierra Morena,

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Dialogo by RCDST is licensed under

Open Access JOURNAL o n t h e D i a l ogu e b etween S c i en c e a n d TMultidisciplinary he o l o g y Available online at www.dialogo-conf.com/dialogo-journal/

o n t he D i a l o g u e b e t we e n Sc i e n c e a nd The o l o g y

Abel M Bibliowicz

Independent Researcher, U.S.A. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6714-3925 article info

Keywords: Earth history; intelligent life; palaeontology; Fermi paradox; astrophysics; Christianity; Christology; eschatology; human evolution;

abstract

The Christian canonical and authoritative texts are the result of complex and layered trajectories and should be understood to reflect - for the most part, debates within the Jesus movement—not struggles with external religious communities. Unexplored implications of the diversity of early belief in Jesus emerge out of deconstructing these debates. Contrary to traditional views and despite a complexity and a variety of contexts, Judaism, Gnosticism, and Paganism were not participants in this struggle.

They were the subjects of a debate, (mostly) among Gentile believers, about what belief in Jesus should be. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Abel M Bibliowicz. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Bibliowicz, Abel M. ”Unexplored implications of the diversity of early belief in Jesus.”

DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 252-257. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.22

I.

Introduction

The future of Judeo-Christian relations and the future of the Christian selfperception depend on which metanarrative on the Christian origins and on Jewish-Christian relations will be eventually embraced, taught, and internalized by scholars, institutions, and believers. Each of the relevant meta-narratives or models; the traditional thesis, the competition thesis of Simon, and the thesis advocated in this monograph, have implications of great

importance and scope.

Jewish-Christian relations emerge out of a complex trajectory that originates in JewishGentile relations within the Jesus movement.

The Jewish-Christian saga originates in later misperceptions about a conflict among followers of Jesus with varying degrees of Jewish, Pagan, and Gnostic affinities, affiliations, and inclinations.

Jewish-Christian relations did not emerge out of a first-century conflict between ‘Judaism’ and ‘Christianity.’ The main thrust behind the “parting of the ways” is

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Unexplored implications of the diversity of early belief in Jesus

Article history: Received 17 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 November Accepted 16 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.22

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best characterized as a controversy about Judaism within the Jesus movement (not as a conflict with Judaism).

II.

Treatise

The texts that were eventually canonized were written during the embryonic stages of belief in Jesus, a period of tensions between believers with pro- and antiJewish inclinations and affiliations. This tragic coincidence embedded a footprint of anti-Jewish sentiment in the canonical lore of the victorious faction and in the hearts and minds of believers. The fact that the crisis in the Jesus movement lasted at least four centuries, and that the Judeo-Gentile dimension is only one dimension of this crucible is obscured since most of the texts reflecting the anti-Pagan, and anti-Gnostic biases of the Pauline faction were authored after the canonical era and are not included in the New Testament – creating an artificial focus on the Judeo-Gentile dimension of the crisis.

It is noteworthy, that throughout this survey, we will rely almost exclusively on texts preserved by the Christian tradition.

This is due to the fact that, despite great efforts by many scholars, the search for the Jewish side of these debates has yielded dismal results. Moreover, scholars have noted an enormous disproportion in intensity and quantity—to the point of rendering insignificant, the few segments that have been identified as possible Jewish responses.[1] The absence of a commensurate Jewish response, if Judaism understood itself to be the intended adversary, is difficult to explain. However, if the original crisis was within the Jesus movement, as suggested here, we should not expect a significant Jewish response (at the time, debates within the Jesus movement would be unknown, inconsequential, and irrelevant to those outside the Jesus camp).

Furthermore, the literature of the losing

side is seldom preserved.

Our survey of the canonical texts will start with Paul who is, without doubt, the foremost theologian and leading figure of the New Testament. The Pauline letters that are accepted as authentic by most scholars (Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon) are the earliest integral New Testament documents available to us. Paul introduced to the Roman world monotheism, the concept of scripture as the basis for religion, and history as evolving towards a divinely ordained end (teleology). [2] He also pioneered the rich and fruitful universe of personal belief.

Paul was the first theologian to acquaint Western minds with the emotional and intellectual universe that moderns call ‘individual consciousness and belief.’ Paul’s emphasis on belief was revolutionary.

The notion that what each individual believed was the arena where the drama of salvation unfolded must have been exhilarating in a society where individual freedom, regardless of class, was very limited. Paul’s proclamation of a universal faith, and the insight that individual belief not only mattered but was ‘the’ essence of human existence (and the only measure for salvation) must have been an empowering message. Access to all through a simple declaration of faith made Paul’s strand of belief in Jesus popular among Pagans spiritual seekers. The excitement that this encounter caused among spiritual seekers in the Roman world is palpable in the extant texts.

However, soon after the first successes of Paul’s mission to the Gentiles, tensions arose as Gentile converts to Paul’s form of belief in Jesus encountered Jesus’s disciples and first followers in the public arena.

Some, maybe most, of Jesus’s disciples and first followers seem to have conditioned fellowship on Torah observance, and may

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have considered Gentile forms of belief in Jesus insufficient and lacking – setting the stage for a confrontation. Indeed, the canonical tradition seems to shadow the embryonic stages of the clash that ensued; a Gentile challenge to the authority and to the legitimacy of Jesus’s disciples and first followers as the exclusive guardians and interpreters of Jesus’s legacy, and the rejection of their core beliefs and traditions.

[3] According to Paul, the standing of Gentiles before God was to be based solely on their faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection. The doctrine of justification by faith alone (not through Torah observance) was originally elaborated by Paul with the specific and limited purpose of defending the rights of Gentile converts to be full and rightful heirs of the promises of God to Israel. Paul defended jealously his position against any compromise that required circumcision or observance of the Torah (Law) from Gentiles.

However, Paul’s immediate successors, and maybe some of his contemporaries, used his epistles to discredit Jesus’ Jewish followers (who for the most part seem to have demanded that Gentile followers of Jesus obey the Torah). Subsequently, in an effort to legitimize their rejection of the Torah and to challenge the leadership of the movement, Pauline believers developed a polemical arsenal whose original aim was to discredit the Jewish followers of Jesus and their demands on Gentile converts.

During the last decades of the first century we encounter Gentile believers whose contention vis- à -vis the descendants of Jesus’s disciples and first followers (‘they,’ ‘the Jews’) seems to have been as follows: Don’t let anyone cast any doubt on your legitimacy as followers of Jesus. They claim to be the rightful guardians of Jesus legacy, but they are not. They exalt Jesus but misunderstand the true meaning of

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his ministry. They never understood. We are the rightful heirs of Jesus’s legacy.

Their ancestors, the disciples and Jesus’ first followers, betrayed and abandoned him in his moment of need. Jesus’s death and resurrection void any value that their traditions might have had. To them, he is a human. To us he is the divine savior. They claim to follow his path, but it is we who seek martyrdom for his sake.

They claim to be righteous, but according to their scriptures and their prophets they are sinful and irredeemable. Their scriptures tell us that the Jews forfeited the covenant and God’s favor. They are no longer God’s chosen. We believe in Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s promises to all. They claim that our belief is inadequate and lacking, and that we must keep all their traditions, but Jesus’ actions signal that The Law is no longer necessary. Jesus came to bring salvation to all, not only to the Jews. Their Torah and their customs no longer have any value.

The response of the descendants of Jesus’s disciples and first followers and their Gentile sympathizers seems to have been: To be rightful followers of Jesus you need to embrace his ministry and his faith.

Jesus, his disciples and his early followers were Jews. To be a true follower of Jesus you must live like him, and worship like him.

You follow Paul who was not a disciple and did not know Jesus. The Jerusalem leaders did not embrace Paul’s views. We do not accept Paul’s claims that Jesus revealed to him what he did not reveal to his disciples.

Pauline communities experiencing anxiety and doubt caused by this crisis, needed reassurance and guidance. They needed a legitimating foundational discourse, a dissonance-reducing narrative.

In the New Testament, we can identify attempts by Pauline leaders to reassure the Gentile rank and file that they were rightful

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followers of Jesus despite their rejection of the beliefs and religious traditions espoused

by Jesus and by those chosen by him to be the custodians of his legacy.

Facing an uphill, vitriolic, and rancorous struggle for legitimacy against Jewish opponents within the Jesus movement, and standing on a still-evolving theology and a chaotic constituency - Pauline leaders and intellectuals seem to have gravitated toward a strategy built on the belittling of the disciples and on the denigration of their beliefs and traditions. They also opted for the subversion and the appropriation of elements, themes, and motifs quarried from their adversaries’ traditions and texts.

Pauline leaders and intellectuals crafted their narratives from within this context of estrangement and vitriol vis-à-vis the Jewish followers of Jesus, a reality that shaped and deeply influenced their accounts of the birth of belief in Jesus.

Ironically. the lore of the Jewish founders of the Jesus movement turned out to be a trove of anti-establishment polemical arrows that Gentile believers could use to denigrate the Jewish establishment of the movement.

In the anti-Jewish-establishment traditions of the Jewish followers of Jesus and other Judean sectarians, Pauline leaders found a ‘ready to deploy’ arsenal that could be used to demote the Jewish establishment of the Jesus movement. By interpreting the Hebrew Scriptures and the Jewish traditions of prophetic exhortation and selfcriticism out of their historical context, and by appropriating the founders’ identity (The New Israel, The People of God) and their anti-Jewish-establishment lore - Pauline leaders and intellectuals eventually crafted a strategy that was, in the long run, successful in de-Judaizing belief in Jesus.

Significantly, despite the eventual hegemonic status of the Paulines, that followed the fourth century council of Nicaea, the epic battle about Gentile

attitudes toward Judaism, Paganism and Gnosticism did not subside altogether, and did re-surface under various guises during the next centuries. The tensions between believers with Jewish, Pagan, and Gnostic affiliations and inclinations were never fully harmonized and remained latent at the core of the tradition. The footprints that these tensions left in the lore were never extricated either. Consequently, future Gentile believers in Jesus were to internalize deeply ambivalent attitudes toward Judaism, Paganism, and Gnosticism.

Over time, the context of the gentileJewish crisis within the Jesus movement was lost and the original purpose of this rhetoric (to discredit adversaries demanding the observance of the Torah) gradually lost its relevance. However, the rhetorical and theological edifice that Paulines developed against the faith, traditions, and beliefs espoused by Jesus and against the character of the original leaders of the movement, was canonized and became a core element of Christian theology, self-perception, and narrative. Gradually, the Church found itself debasing Judaism as a means to discredit gentile sympathizers of the Jewish followers of Jesus, and to eradicate Judaizing tendencies among the folk. Given this trajectory and the Pauline rejection of Jesus’ beliefs, the Church found it necessary and beneficial to obscure the Jewish origins of Christianity and its implications - which remained veiled from the rank and file, until the twentieth century. [4] Until the twentieth century, the polemical bent of the lore of early Gentile believers in Jesus was understood, by most scholars and believers, to be the consequence of the Jewish rejection of Jesus, their responsibility for Jesus’ death, and the Jewish loss of God’s favor. By and large, Judaism was seen as a legalistic and morally inferior tradition that had forfeited its place as YHWH’s chosen. However, during the second half

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of the twentieth century, aided by the fortuitous findings at Qumran and Nag Hammadi, new paradigms emerged as New Testament scholarship yielded new insights and perspectives.

Conclusion At the dawn of the twenty-first century, mainstream scholarship and most believers have turned away from traditional views on Jews and Judaism. The view that a proselytizing struggle between turn of the era Judaism and early Christianity may have been the main generator of anti-Jewish attitudes among early Gentile believers in Jesus seems to be espoused by many (the competitive thesis). Scholars that embrace this model often describe anti-Judaism as the consequence of excessive militancy by the more aggressive and vigorous proselytizer; the result of hyper-competitiveness gone awry.

A variant of this competitive thesis, or model, sees the attraction of some turn-of-the-era Gentiles to Judaism as the main generator of anti-Jewish sentiment among early Gentile believers. Under this construct, attraction to Judaism infuriated Gentile leaders and intellectuals and fueled the polemical fervor that is embryonic in the canonical lore and permeates the authoritative texts thereafter.

We now know that prior to the fourth century, there were believers that advocated differing views about what belief in Jesus was, or should be. The re-discovery of the diversity of the early Jesus movement requires the retroactive legitimating of all interpretations of Jesus’ ministry. Therefore, we need internalize the fact that all these believers understood themselves to be the only ‘true’ Christians and viewed their adversaries’ beliefs as heretical, misguided, or inadequate. The implications of this early diversity and of the re-placement of the

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origins of the Jewish-Christian saga within the Jesus movement, are the main themes of this monograph.

Finally, it is important to reemphasize that this monograph focuses on one of the three polemic fronts that impacted and shaped the Pauline narrative and self-perception; the Jewish-Gentile crisis within the Jesus movement. The debates and the polemic with believers with Pagan and Gnostic affiliations and inclinations are addressed only as they impact the main protagonists of this monograph; the Jewish followers of Jesus and the gentile followers of Paul.

Furthermore, whereas the Jewish-Gentile crisis originates in processes that took place during the second half of the first century, and therefore impacted the content of the canonical texts – the tensions between believers with Pagan and Gnostic affiliations and inclinations, and between different gentile interpretations of Jesus’ ministry originate in processes that took place from the early second century forward, and therefore had little impact on the content of the New Testament. These circumstances clarify why the Jewish-Gentile crisis within the Jesus movement is over-emphasized, and over-represented, in the tradition.

Professor of Christian Ethics, Director, Center for Theology and Public Life, Mercer University. President, American Academy of Religion. Author of Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context.

Clark M. Williamson, Professor, Christian Theological Seminary, Indiana, Author of Way of Blessing, Way of Life: A Christian Theology References [1]

[2]

[3]

Endorsements by Peter C. Phan, Professor, Chair of Catholic Social Thought, Georgetown University, President of the Catholic Theological Society of America: “I am in fundamental agreement with Bibliowicz’s thesis (that the New Testament reflects debates between Jewish and Gentile followers of Jesus - not between Christians and Jews), and with the implications which he has drawn for Christian theology... May this book find a wide readership among people devoted to the cause of the healing of memories between Jews and Christians.”

David P. Gushee, Distinguished University

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[4]

For a recent survey, Peter Schäfer. The Jewish Jesus: How Judaism and Christianity Shaped Each Other (2012); J. Lighthouse, AntiJudaism in Early Christianity. Wilson Stephen G. (ed.). Anti-Judaism in Early Christianity.

Vol. 2. “Separation and Polemic.Studies in Christianity and Judaism” (2000) 106; On the absence of anti-Christian polemic in the foundational texts of Rabbinic Judaism, see Eugene Fisher and L. Klenicki (eds.). Root and Branches: Biblical Judaism, Rabbinical Judaism and Early Christianity (1987).

Telos (Greek)—end, result. History evolves in a purposeful (telic), rather than chaotic, manner.

Recently: Tomson Peter. Jewish Christianity, A State of Affairs: Affinities and Differences with Respect to Matthew, James, and the Didache in Matthew, James, and Didache : three related documents in their Jewish and Christian setting (2008), 92-122; Hengel Martin. Between Jesus and Paul: Studies in the Earliest History of Christianity Translated (2013); Zetterholm Magnus. “Paul within Judaism: The State of the Questions,” in Nanos Mark D. and Zetterholm Magnus (eds.). Paul within Judaism: Restoring the First-Century Context to the Apostle (2015) 37-42, although his casting is Gentiles vis-à-vis Jews and not (as I suggest) Pauline believers in Jesus vis-àvis the Jewish followers of Jesus.

Amy-Jill Levine. The Misunderstood Jew: The Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus (2006).

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Assessing the Substantive Interpretation of Imago Dei Juuso Loikkanen, Ph.D.

School of Theology, University of Eastern Finland Joensuu, Finland https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5739-6729

article info

abstract

Traditionally, in Christian theology, human beings have been regarded to be images of God (imago Dei). Often, the divine image has been understood to be located in a supernatural soul separate from the body. In this paper, I examine the credibility of this so-called substantive view of Imago Dei in the light of contemporary science.

Keywords: human nature; human beings; human person; imago Dei; image of God; soul; theological anthropology;

© 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Juuso Loikkanen. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Bibliowicz, Abel M. ”Human Beings as Imago Dei and Homo Sapiens. Assessing the Substantive Interpretation of Imago Dei.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 258-265. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.23

I.

Introduction

In Christian theology, human persons are regarded as spiritual creatures who are capable of high-level rational thought, self-reflection, morality, and engaging in a personal relationship with God. These capacities are argued to exist because humans possess a supernatural soul which makes us images of God, imago Dei. According to traditional Christian teaching, the status of humans as imago Dei distinguishes us distinctly from all other creatures [1].

However, stressing the uniqueness of humans, combined with the strong tradition

of body-soul dualism in Christian theology, has led to being somewhat negligent of the biological aspect of human nature and ignoring the common evolutionary past we share with other animals.

On the other hand, purely naturalistic theories of human nature often deny human uniqueness and disregard the moral and spiritual dimensions of human personhood.

Humans are seen as nothing but biological machines determined by our genes and our evolutionary history [2]. According to reductive physicalism, all mental phenomena are non-autonomous and can be explained in physical or biological terms

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Human Beings as Imago Dei and Homo Sapiens

Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 November Accepted 16 November 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.23

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[3]. From this perspective, the concept of “soul”, for example, serves only as a linguistic expression describing the mental aspects of the human person but “soul” does not actually exist as a separate entity.

Consequently, imago Dei becomes a useless concept: if there is no soul, there is no need to entertain the idea that it would express the image of God. In this article, I aim to explore the possibility of reconciling the traditional Christian teaching of imago Dei (the so-called substantive approach) with the findings of contemporary science.1 In order to provide a theologically robust but at the same time scientifically informed understanding of the human person, exploring both sides of the two-faceted nature of humans as creatures conditioned by their evolutionary history on one hand, but as spiritual beings transcending their natural conditions on the other hand, is of crucial importance. Although the topic has recently become increasingly popular in theological anthropology, so far, no generally accepted theory combining both dimensions of human nature without compromising their essential features has been presented.

Human uniqueness and the II. substantive understanding of imago Dei In Christianity, humans are taken to be created in the image and likeness of God, imago Dei. This is based on the creation story depicted in Genesis 1: “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” [4] There are various interpretations of what being “an 1 This is an introductory paper setting up a framework for a new research project starting in October 2021 with some preliminary speculations. More thorough results are expected in 2022.

image of God” actually might mean (we will return to this later in this paper), but it is clear that it has to do with humankind’s special status as spiritual beings that are somehow special and connected to God. Traditionally, a vast majority of Christian theologians and philosophers have held that humans alone portray the image of God and are unique among all other creatures as beings who are able to reach for the transcendent and build a personal relationship with God. Paul K. Jewett explains the rationale for this sort of thinking as follows: “[T]he reason why the concept of the divine image has become so prominent in Christian anthropology is obvious: it confers on the human subject the highest possible distinction, leaving the world of animals far behind. Here is the language used of no other creature. […] Our mammalian ancestry, whatever it may be, is therefore a matter essentially indifferent so far as a Christian understanding of humankind is concerned. In other words, Christian anthropology is done from above, not from below.” [5] Throughout the centuries, the mainstream of Christian philosophers has associated the imago Dei with the human soul, starting from Augustine [6]. Often, imago Dei has been identified with a single property of the soul, such as rationality or self-reflection. Recently, J. P. Moreland, has defended a richer theory of the existence of a substantial soul which connects humans (and no other beings than humans) with God. Moreland identifies imago Dei with the human soul which possesses a set of properties distinctive of only humans: “consciousness, free will, rationality, the self, intrinsic value and equal rights/ dignity, the reality and the nature of human meaning and flourishing”, for example [7–8]. Admittedly, it seems to be extremely difficult—if not completely impossible—to define the exact properties that make the human soul an imago Dei. A definite list of such properties would very likely to be more or less subjective and incomplete. In

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any case, the dualist idea of human beings as consisting of a material body and an immaterial soul has been the mainstream understanding in Christian churches for the last two millennia. Humans are thought to be body-soul composites whose eternal essence, imago Dei, lies in their souls.

The so-called substantive view described above has lately become a target of criticism.

It has been accused of being incompatible with the theories of natural sciences which have shown that Earth is not the center of the universe and human beings as homo sapiens have not been created separately but have developed from earlier life forms.

Similarly, in contemporary philosophy of religion, the dualistic understanding of human nature has been challenged and the embodied nature of human beings emphasized [9]. The substantive view of imago Dei has been seen as problematic also because it is said to be associated with misogynistic connotations (the medieval idea of men being more rational creatures than women and thus more perfect images of God) [10]. Moreover, some philosophers and theologians claim that the dualistic understanding of the human person is unbiblical and heavily influenced

by Platonism: scripture does not associate imago Dei with the human soul or the human self [11–12].

III.

Contemporary theories of imago Dei

In contemporary literature, it has been customary to discern between three ways of understanding the status of human beings as imago Dei. In addition to the traditional substantive interpretation, functional and relational interpretations have recently gained popularity. According to the functional view, humans portray the image of God by acting as God’s representatives in the world. Imago Dei cannot be found in a property or a set of properties located in the human soul, but in our call to rule over the creation. In the words of Wentzel

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Van Huyssteen (who here refers to the work of Gerhard von Rad), the functional interpretation holds that “God set the human in the world as the sign of God’s sovereign authority in order for the human to uphold and enforce God’s claims as lord. […] In the same way that earthly monarchs set up images of themselves in their kingdom as signs of their sovereign authority, so too in the Genesis texts, and Israel, thought of the human as the representative of God.” [13] The third way of understanding the role of humans as imago Dei is the socalled relational view, according to which the ability of humans to build a spiritual relationship with God is what makes us unique. The image of God is not located in some static properties of the human soul, such as rationality (as in the substantive interpretation), or in the status of humans as stewards of God’s creation (as in the functional interpretation), but in the fact that our fundamental nature is relational— as is that of God, manifested in the internal relations within the Trinity. As a reflection of this perfect example of relationality, human beings are thought to become images of God when we realize ourselves in the presence of God and in interaction with other Christians: “imago Dei is not just the capacity for relationship, but the relationship itself: first our relationship with God, and then our relationship with each other” [14].

Does the functional interpretation or the relational interpretation manage to escape the criticism directed against the substantive interpretation, then? In this paper, I am particularly interested in whether they can accommodate the requirement that imago Dei should not be understood to be an abstract entity located merely in the immaterial soul and better take into account the fact that humans are embodied beings. Considering that, accordingly to our best current knowledge, humans are developed in a complex web of co-evolution between the body and the mind and in interaction with other human

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beings in the social networks we are a part of, could the functional approach or the relational approach help us to construct a tenable theory of imago Dei? IV.

The challenges of the substantive interpretation

Before analyzing the question of how to best understand the status of humans as the image of God in the light of our evolutionary history, I will comment on the other two lines of criticism of the substantive interpretation mentioned above, namely, the misogynism related to emphasizing a certain view of rationality, and the blurring of the original biblical of imago Dei by later philosophical influences.

First, as to the claim that the substantive view has historically been connected with the idea that men are superior to women in terms of the rational capacities of their mind or their soul, it seems that this has actually been the case. Many influential thinkers have held that men are able to reflect the image of God more perfectly than women: “at least implicitly (and often explicitly), the image of God was more closely connected to males, for they allegedly were better rules by reason, while females were tied to their embodiedness” [15]. The roots of this kind of thinking can be traced to Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians [16]. Influenced by the general misogynist tendencies of the culture of the early Christian writers and further developed by famously Augustine, the view was adopted, in one form or another, by Aquinas, Luther, and Calvin, among others [17].

Indeed, the World Council of Churches has admitted that “[t]he doctrine of God’s image (imago Dei) has by tradition been a source of oppression and discrimination against women” [18]. However, today, it is clear that there is no reason to support this sort of understanding of different mental abilities between men and women anymore. We no more need to think that women would be inferior to me or that they

could not possess similar rational capacities as men. Consequently, there is no need to abandon the theory that imago Dei would be found in human rationality (or some other property of the soul, such as free will or self-reflection) only because fully-fledged rationality has previously been associated only with men. Therefore, in my view, the historical misogynist burden does not pose an insurmountable challenge to the substantive interpretation.

Second, regarding the claim that imago Dei should not be associated with the human soul because the scripture does support this, if this is true, the possible consequences to the substantive approach would be more serious. If the creation stories in Genesis offer no grounds for identifying the divine image with the soul, the substantive view might become difficult to defend. Joel B. Green has argued that Genesis “knows nothing of a human soul” and “therefore, the attempt to identify the divine image with the human soul is alien to the creation accounts of Genesis 1–2” [19]. According to Green, among others, the Bible does not provide a basis for thinking that human beings would be composed of separate parts such as the soul and the body, contrary to what has traditionally been thought in Christian theology. The concept of body–soul dualism was not intended by the biblical writers but is a later development influenced by Greek philosophy, most importantly by Platonism [20–21].

The traditional idea that God would have endowed the first human beings (and all human beings after that) with a supernatural soul separate from the body is based on the following text in Genesis: “Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” [22]. Green explains that the Hebrew term for “being”, nefesh, has often been misunderstood and mistranslated. The original text does not speak about “soul”— at least not in the sense that it is understood in contemporary discussion, but about the

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entire human person: “nefesh […] does not refer to a part of the human being, nor to human’s possession of a metaphysically separate entity distinguishable from the human body such as ‘soul’ or ‘spirit’. Indeed, this text offers no basis at all for imagining that the human being is comprised of parts, or that some part of the human being is ‘spiritual’ as opposed to ‘earthly’ (or material)” [23].

Moreover, nefesh, which is used almost 800 times in the Hebrew scriptures, is also used for nonhuman animals as living beings.

More precisely, the full original term nefesh hayyah translates as “living creatures” and “living beings” and is used to refer to all living things created by God. Therefore, the creation story in Genesis does not separate humans from other living beings but actually unites us with them. Both humans and other animals have been created from the dust of the earth and have been given a similar gift of life. However, although there might not be a qualitative different between humans and other animals in terms of having completely different capacities, there is a quantitative one: God has chosen humans to manifest the divine image more fully than other creatures [24]. This kind of view offers a fruitful insight for understanding human as a part of the animal kingdom on one hand, but as the image of God on the other hand. It does, however, seriously challenge the substantive interpretation of imago Dei. The evolutionary origins of homo V. sapiens and the emergence of imago Dei Before the evolutionary theory introduced by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace [25–26], both laymen, theologians, and scientists agreed that humans were the crown of creation and were separately created by God and given an immortal soul. For this reason, humans were thought to be qualitatively different from animals. Since then, biology has shown that the first human beings were developed as a result of an evolutionary process

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from our hominid ancestors and were not miraculously brought about by God. If we accept the contemporary scientific understanding of the development of humans as a biological organism and at the same time want to hold on to the traditional doctrine of imago Dei, we might have to find a way to interpret the concept of the divine image in a way that not only humans are regarded as imago Dei, but also other animals, to a certain extent. Pope Francis, in his encyclical letter Laudato si’, writes that “each creature reflects something of God” [27].

The evolutionary history of humans can be described roughly as follows: hominids are thought to have existed for several millions of years, the first signs of the homo sapiens (anatomically modern humans) to have emerged around 300000 years ago, and our current subspecies, homo sapiens sapiens (modern humans), to have been developed around 150000 years ago. The estimates are probable to change, of course, as science makes new discoveries. What is important to note is that the evolution of humans has been a very long and gradual process and there are no clear boundaries between modern humans and other hominids [28].

How, then, should we explain the uniqueness of (modern) humans if we appear not to be unique at all but just one link in a long chain of hominids? How should we understand imago Dei if we are not separately created as the image of God? Moreover, as Justin Barrett and Tyler Greenway have pointed out, “[i]f homo sapiens are descended from other species that were not imago Dei through a series of tiny, incremental steps, then it is reasonable to suppose that modern human population overlaps importantly with earlier species on any number of dimensions that one may want to identify with the imago Dei” [29]. Where do we draw the line between creatures that are imago Dei and those who are not?

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For the purposes of this paper, at least, taking seriously the topics discussed above (the unbiblical nature of body– soul dualism and the scientific account of human evolution), I assume that God has not miraculously intervened with the development of human cognition or provided humans with supernatural souls separate from the body. Instead, I assume that mental and spiritual properties associated with the concept of “soul” have been developed during the evolutionary processes as a result of the interplay between biological and environmental factors. This is not an unfounded assumption, if we take the contemporary philosophy of mind into account. Recently, the trend has been towards non-reductive physicalism, where the mind is treated as an emergent property of the brain, connected with neural activity but still somehow separate from it. Many philosophers hold that both mental-tophysical and physical-to-mental causal interactions are real. Still, the actual mode of causations remains a mystery [30–31].

Similarly, in theological anthropology, where the mind–body problem is extended to the (mind–)soul–body problem, nonreductive theistic physicalism has become an increasingly popular view. It is argued the human soul is not an unembodied entity separate of the body but deeply connected with brain processes. Yet, the soul is irreducible to the brain, possessing emergent ”spiritual” or “mental” properties unexplainable in terms of physics or biology.

The development of a human person is based on a complex web of co-evolution between the brain, the mind, and the soul, as well as their interaction with the social networks the person is a part of [32–33].

Unlike dualism, non-reductive physicalism links human persons firmly to our physical and cultural environment. Therefore, this kind of approach could potentially offer a fertile starting point for building a modern theory of imago Dei, a theory compatible with contemporary science.

Conclusion Darwin once wrote that although human possess a “godlike intellect”, we still bear in our bodies “the indelible stamp of [our] lowly origin” [34]. In other words (although this is not necessarily what Darwin intended to say), human beings are images of God and animals at the same time. In my view, it is not an easy task to combine these two sides of human nature. Still, it is theologically important—both for Christian theology and for Christian churches of today facing the challenges of the secularizing society—to aim at finding a balanced mediating position between the extremes of reductive physicalism and idealistic dualism. In this paper, I have entertained the possibility that mental and cognitive properties associated traditionally with the human soul and described often as imago Dei could have been developed as a result of evolutionary processes, similar to other capacities of human beings. Having reached the necessary level of sophistication, these properties could then have enabled humans to recognize the existence and the nature of God. One of my key concerns has been to whether the so-called substantive interpretation of imago Dei can escape the criticism directed towards it and whether it can be reconciled with the theories of contemporary science. It seems that there are some challenges, mainly with regards to the (possibly) unbiblical understanding of associating imago Dei with the human soul, the tradition of body–soul dualism, and the qualitative uniqueness of humans. However, non-reductional theistic physicalism, which holds that emergent mental properties are real and not reducible to physical brain states, looks like a promising approach for developing a theory of humans as creatures reaching beyond their natural constraints and becoming images of God. Somehow (by the will of God, a Christian might presume), during the evolutionary history of humankind, we have developed God-like

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cognitive properties that makes it possible for us to reflect the image of God and to engage in a relationship with Him. These cognitive properties can be referred to as “soul”.

Regarding other popular interpretations of imago Dei, the functional one and the relational one, the substantive is not necessarily inferior to them. In fact, in a way, the different interpretations seem to express different sides of the same story.

Namely, the human soul can only engage in representational activities if it has the suitable cognitive capacities for it, and the soul can only build relations to other beings if it possesses the cognitive powers for establishing this kind of relationships. In all, the traditional substantive understanding might have to be modified, but not necessarily altogether abandoned.

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Darwin, Charles, On the Origin of Species

by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (London: John Murray, 1859), The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online, edited by John van Wyhe (2012), http://darwin-online.org.uk/ content/ t?itemID=F373&viewtype=text&pageseq=1.

[27]

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Wallace, Alfred Russel, “On the Tendency of Varieties to Depart Indefinitely from the Original Type”, Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society: Zoology 3(9), 20 August 1858, 53–62, transcription by Charles H. Smith (2015), http://people.wku.edu/charles. smith/essays/ Wallace_On_the_Tendency_ of_Varieties.htm.

Francis, 2015. Encyclical letter Laudato si’ of the Holy Father Francis: On Care for Our Common Home (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2015), https://www. vatican.va/content/francesco/en/ encyclicals/ documents/papa-francesco_20150524_ enciclica-laudato-si.html.

Wood, Bernard, Human Evolution: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005), .

Barrett, Justin and Tyler Greenway, “Imago Dei and Animal Domestication: CognitiveEvolutionary Perspectives on Human Uniqueness and the Imago Dei”, Human Origins and the Image of God: Essays in Honor of J. Wentzel van Huyssteen, edited

by Christopher Lilley and Daniel J. Pedersen (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2017), 65.

Davidson, Donald. ”Thinking Causes”, Mental Causation, edited by John Heil, John & Alfred R. Mele, (Oxford: Clarendon, 1993), 3–17.

Murphy, Nancey, 2018. ”For Nonreductive Physicalism” — The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism, edited by Jonathan J. Loose, Angus J. L. Menuge and J. P. Moreland, J. P. (Hoboken, NJ: Wiley), 316–327.

Corcoran, Kevin, Rethinking Human Nature: A Christian Materialist Alternative to the Soul (Ada, MI: Baker Academic, 2006).

Murphy, Nancey, Bodies and Souls, Or Spirited Bodies? (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006).

Darwin, Charles, The Descent of Man (Amherst, NY: Prometheus, 1988 [1871]), 643.

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Introduction

Preaching on the Biblical Perspective on the Forgiveness of Sin Ilie Soritau, Ph.D.

Theology Department Emanuel University of Oradea Oradea, Romania

article info Article history: Received 10 October 2021 Received in revised form 15 October Accepted 16 October 2021 Available online 30 November 2021 doi: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.24

Keywords: forgiveness; sin; community; believers; biblical perspective; the law of God;

abstract

A large number of casualties in our day and our eroded testimony to the world around us, allows for a lot of grieving but also calls for the reassessment of our understanding of sin, forgiveness and the context of restoration: the community of the forgiven. True, there is around us a growing concern for the problem of sin. However, it is more a facesaving concern vis-a-vis the secularized world and the Church. Unfortunately, it is less a concern compared to God and His righteous standards.

How do we define sin? How are we to understand the forgiveness of sin? How do we recognize it, how do we administer it? These are some valid questions that need to be addressed. The purpose behind the present research is not to sift the Bible through our experience to accommodate our generation’s understanding of sin but the other way around: to sift experience through the Bible, expose misunderstanding and thus proceed toward restoration through a way of understanding godliness. The intend is not to fill an ontological gap, but rather address the current situation from a biblical and pastoral perspective, into a situation in which theologians and churches together have lost the ability to talk meaningfully about topics such as sin and the internal workings of the human soul and thus have rendered as irrelevant the meaning of Forgiveness that the Gospel brings. The concern in the following pages is to understand the concept of sin and the experiential dynamics of sin and that of Forgiveness and its personal and corporate experience. Even though a better understanding of Forgiveness may not rid our lives of sins nor make us the best forgivers in the world, it will alert us to what is happening around us and offer insight that can become opportunities. © 2014 RCDST. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021 Ilie Soritau. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Citation: Soritau, Ilie. ”Preaching on the Biblical Perspective on the Forgiveness of Sin.” DIALOGO, ISSN: 2393-1744, vol.8, issue 1 (November 2021): pp. 266-271. DOI: 10.51917/dialogo.2021.8.1.24

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We live in a time when the evils of our world have been consigned to social forces beyond the scope of our personal reach, so social ethics have replaced personal ethics and morals. Still, inside we feel that something has gone wrong, and each of us is at least dimly aware of our personal responsibility.[6] Unfortunately, when the feeling of spiritual discomfort refuses to go away after local mistreatment with Universalism has been applied, the stubborn patient is deferred to the professional psyche-restorer, not to the ones called to administer Forgiveness.

There’s no cultural tradition or religious persuasion unable to recognize the destructive power of Sin or that wouldn’t be outraged at its prevalence in our world. What distinguishes the Christian apprehension of the reality of sin lies elsewhere. Christians claim that there does exist a gracious God who forgives sin and promises resurrection to everlasting life. [5,72] *** Sin is the transgression of the law of God. The Greek word “parabasis” means “overstepping, transgression.” [4,1013] Also, sin is the failure to conform to the standard of God – and the word used is “hamartia.” [5,310] Another biblical word for this means “miss the mark” or “every departure from the way of righteousness.”

This involves both sins of commission as well as omission. Failure to do what is right is also sin (Romans 14:23). Sin is a principle within man. It is not only an act but also a principle that dwells in man. Hebrews 3:13 refers to it “as the power that deceives men and leads them to destruction.”[6] Sin is also rebellion against God. The Greek word “anomia” (“lawlessness”) can be described as a “frame of mind.” [4,1013] Sin is the cause, evil the effect. When we think of evil, we most often think of human malevolence,

accompanying deceit and destruction. For the most part, sin and evil overlap; hence the term can be used almost interchangeably.

As early as Tertullian, the Church tried to understand the concept and the dynamics of sin and evil. The wise theologian of antiquity, Augustine, suggested that sin and its accompanying evil “is always a perversion or destruction of a previous good; it has no nature or being of its own.” [1,72] All sin is against God, and because God is infinite and eternal, our sin has infinite and eternal consequences. That was the position held

by Anselm of Canterbury, who first drew attention to the magnitude of our sin as having to be measured not in itself but by the size of the offense. Later on, Thomas Aquinas arranged sins into three categories: against oneself, against one’s neighbour, and God. He maintained that “there is a sense in which we can say all sins are against God.” [1,72] Martin Buber refers to the problem of sin in a more specific way. He narrows it down to say that: “The lie is the specific evil that the human race has introduced into nature.” [3,6] Inherent in sin is the denial of truth. This inclusion of deceit, of the lie, makes sin unclear and unexplainable, and the endeavour to uncover the mystery of how sin works is made so difficult because, wherever we dig, lies rush in to fill the hole. Sin remains inexplicable because it is inherently irrational, and all sinful activity proves to be at the bottom of both selfdestructive and world-destructive behaviour or attitudes. Any reason we give to justify our sin is rootless.

The essence of all sin is the failure to trust God. Sin is our unwillingness to acknowledge our creatureliness and dependence upon the God of Grace. [7,137] We pursue sin in the illusory effort to establish our own lives on an independent and secure basis. Reinhold Niebuhr’s insight is worth pondering upon: “At the heart of sin there is that

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vain imagination by which man hides the unconditioned, contingent and dependent character of his existence and seeks to give it the appearance of unconditioned reality.”

[7,138] In short, sin is the failure to live up to Jesus’ commandments to love God and your neighbour. Whether we speak of the “forgiveness of sin” or the “forgiveness of sins,” we must maintain the biblical emphasis that sin is personal. Its breach is a destructive and devastating interruption of a personal relationship with God. The solution is the restoration of that personal fellowship.

There are two major interpretations of the “forgiveness of sins”: first, Forgiveness removes the barrier of sin and thus prepares the way for reconciliation; second, Forgiveness is the same as reconciliation.

We would agree with E.B. Redlich, who states that ‘forgiveness is full restoration to fellowship.” [9,104] Just as sin is personal, Forgiveness is very personal. The early Hebrews understood their existence more in terms of the corporate life of the family, tribe or nation, then in terms of individual life. It was not until the time of Jeremiah and Ezekiel that the individual, with his responsibility for sin, began to stand out in contrast to corporate responsibility.

The sacrificial system, described in all its magnificence in Leviticus, approached God in the Old Testament. In their offering to God, the Jews confessed their sin and sought God’s Forgiveness. When bringing such offerings, the worshippers were to “be accepted by God,” and their genuine repentance was to be manifest in their subsequent dealings with their neighbours and without grudge or vengeance. [6] In the sacrificial context, Forgiveness became the remover of the barrier of sin and the restoration of the people to divine favour.

There are four main verbs in the Old Testament that mean “to forgive,” according to Zodhiates. [15] The first verb

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used is “salah.” (to send away), such as in Numbers 30:5,8,12, where “to forgive is to nullify the vow or remove the consequence which would otherwise be imposed. We come across the same usage frequently dealing with removing the consequences of sin in Psalm 103:3, Jeremiah 31:31-34 & 36:3, Daniel 9: 19, 1 Kings 8:46, Amos 7:2, Leviticus 4,5,6,19, Numbers 15:25-28. The second verb used is “nasa” (to lift up a burden). Here, Forgiveness lifts the burden of guilt brought about by sin: Genesis 50:17, Exodus 10:17 & 32:32, and many other passages teach this idea of Forgiveness, but none is so meaningful as Psalm 32. When David acknowledged his sin to the Lord, the Lord lifted it away from him and restored his former joy. The third verb used is “kaphar” (to cover). Sin is such that it leaves a stain that will not disappear, and man cannot remove it. Numbers 32:33 says, “Be sure your sin will find you out.”

There’s nothing man can do. Only God can cover sin so that it no longer appears.

Jeremiah and Jonas were both hoping and asking God to low the pagans’ ugly deeds to be exposed so that that judgment may come upon them (Jeremiah 18: 3). The last verb used is “machah” (to blot out). Sin leaves its mark as an indelible record and obvious consequence, or the mark of guilt on the conscience, and it demands judgment.

When God forgives, he just blots it out.

Psalm 51:1-9 & 109: 14, Isaiah 43:25 & 44:22, and Nehemiah 4:5 indicate that God’s power to blot out may be compared with his power to create.[6] Sin is the barrier between God and man, that which estranges. Forgiveness does away with that estrangement, lifts it up, covers and blots it out.

The Old Testament insights on Forgiveness reappear in the New Testament, but there are two strikingly new ideas. The first is the ability of Jesus to forgive sin in his own Name and the ability of his followers to proclaim forgiveness “in the Name of Jesus,” this implies that Jesus’ life and death

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provided some new foundation for the “forgiveness of sins.” Jesus’ teachings on the subject were radically new: He insisted that man could not have God’s Forgiveness without forgiving others. It is Jesus that made Forgiveness a complete act of grace.

The New Testament words that explain the concept of Forgiveness are “aphiemi” (to send away) and “charizomai” (to be gracious to). [16] Here, the basis or example for Christian forgiving is that “God in Christ forgave us.” Christian forgiving is so essential that the Church may accurately be described as “the community of forgiveness.”

Still, a crucial insight into forgiveness in the New Testament- forgiving as part of church discipline - grows out of the troubled church of Corinth. The passage in II Corinthians 2:7f encourages: (l) the practice of church discipline for an erring member, (2) quick Forgiveness of the offender lest he be overcome by sorrow, and (3) forgiveness of the offender so as to redeem the congregation. It is quite obvious that even after punishment, Forgiveness is the only solution - it is reconciliation.

In the New Testament, the “forgiveness of sins” is one of the most important ways by which reconciliation is defined, so much so that practicing Forgiveness in the Christian community is the very essence of its life. [14,115] Whether we speak of the cost of Forgiveness in terms of ransom, price, judgment, pain, suffering, or even penalty, the meaning is the same, and in no instance does God “inflict” it. Christ suffered for us, and we suffer in the process of forgiving, for indeed Forgiveness is costly, but no amount of inflicted suffering can produce Forgiveness. Theories based on a necessity for inflicted suffering miss the point of Atonement. The suffering necessary for Forgiveness was the passion of Christ.

That alone is the basis of Forgiveness and restoration.

Why has there always been this tendency

to pay the high cost of Forgiveness in penance, penitential acts, almsgiving, etc., but no willingness to pay it in confession?

True, few things hurt more than the complete surrender of sinful pride and the acceptance of free Forgiveness. Even though the joy of reconciliation follows them, repentance and confession are painful experiences.

But, how do we repent, how do we confess, how can we expect to have the community forgive and restore us? It all starts with a fresh realization of God, a new awareness of God. In God’s presence, we sense the depth of our creatureliness. This awareness of God does more than make us aware of our sin; His presence forces us to acknowledge our sinfulness and repent of it.

Secondly, in God’s presence, our sense of wonder is immediately followed by the sudden consciousness of our moral uncleanness, our sin, our reaction being the one recorded in Isaiah 6:5 “Woe is me I For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips…”. It is no more “our sin,” “their sin” - it is my consciousness, my sin.

The consciousness of sin is my awareness of genuine guilt for my sin; it is the healthy response: emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. In II Corinthians 7:10, Paul distinguishes between two kinds of sorrow for sin. One is a “godly grief,” which leads to repentance. The other is “worldly grief,” which brings about death. The practice of morbid introspection alone will never lead to repentance and Forgiveness, but it also poses a very dangerous emotional risk. The genuine consciousness of my sin is an honest and healthy response: I acknowledge my guilt, put the blame in the right place, and move on to repentance and confession.

Repentance is the turning to God motivated by the awareness of God and the expectation of Forgiveness. Repentance stresses an inward change, involving a changed attitude towards God, self, sin, and

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other men, the kind of change that prepares us for accepting God’s Forgiveness.

Confession (the first person singular “I have sinned”) is the acknowledgment of the consciousness of my sin to the person against whom I have sinned. [11,409] Sin is against God; confession of sin is to God (Psalm). Sins are against God and other men; confession of sins is made to God or to the specific men or women against sins were committed. [2,73] Confession is to be made to the offended party; there is no demand for public confession of private sins. We should confess our sins to those sinned against: whether God or men. Two observations here need special attention, given the; praxiological emphasis of this paper. What is the significance of placing the sinner’s hands on the head of the animal to be sacrificed in Leviticus? It was an object lesson representing the transfer of guilt and the corresponding assurance that sin has been dealt with on God’s terms. That is what the Word of God wants us to do when it urges us: “Confess your sins to one another.” [6] It is not to our embarrassment but to our healing that confession is required. And still, we do not dare expose ourselves to the church and thus be vulnerable. So, in order to cover ourselves, we quote acres of verses from the Psalms and Proverbs - of course, not the right ones! We realize our guilt binds us; we admit that we are sinking into despair, we withdraw from the ministry but just won’t let go. When sin is not taken seriously, and churches neglect to renew their supply of Forgiveness, then both sinner and community are taken by surprise when the unthinkable happens. If one has sinned against his church family, then confession is to be made to the church family. There is no way around it, and if we do not take ourselves seriously, why complain when others treat us accordingly? Where is the respect the Church had when excommunication was for twenty years? The Christians were punished by being banished to the last row of pews

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when they were repenting. Of course, other actions were taken against them, all communicating that they took both sin and repentance seriously.

Of the three “C”s suggested by E.B. Redlich as defining repentance “Conversion”, “Confession” and “Compensation” we should mention the missing element in today’s samples of repentance. [9,104] We have to underline that repentance has to go all the way into restitution, for though Forgiveness of sin endows the individual with a new “lease” on life, the experience is of such a nature that it immediately involves him in a community of sons, where what could be compensated for, should be.

Forgiveness is an act of God, which may or may not be followed immediately by a sense of relief. The Apostle John clearly recognizes that the verdict of the individual conscience is not final: our heart may condemn, and yet God, “who is greater than our heart and knoweth all things,” may acquit or justify.

[13,177] He who claims and confesses the supernatural nature of the church must claim and live it wholly even in the act of Forgiveness and rehabilitation. Forgiveness removes the curse and changes the “world” into Creation and “collectively” into Community, dictating a new and radical style of life. [12] This is the kind of community God wants us to be a part of, one that would be recommended by a new and pervasive kind of gratitude, where there will be continuing repentance, a daily renewal, in which the drama of confession and forgiveness of sin, sorrow, and joy, is the climate of life.

The community lives in the realism of daily sin on the one hand and the consistency of God’s mercy on the other. There is one means of grace and only one that never fails and this is Embodiment. This is Incarnation

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in the life of that which God has not only blessed us with but also entrusted us with: forgiveness and the preaching of it through the Community of the forgiven (II Corinthians 5:19).[6] REFERENCES [1] Aquinas, Thomas. Summa-Theologica.

[2] Ashcraft, Morris. The Forgiveness of Sin. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1972.

[3] Buber, Martin. Good and Evil. New York, NY McMillan Press. 1952 [4] Elwell, Walker. Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

1984.

[5] Enns, Paul. The Moody Handbook of Theology.

Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1989.

[6] New International Version Bible [7] Niebur- Reinhold. The Nature and Destinv of Man. New York. NY: Scribner’s Press, Vole IL 1941 [8] Otto, Rudolf. The Idea of the Holy. New York: Oxford University Press, 1958.

[9] Redlich E.B. The Forgiveness of Sin. Edinburgh: T&T Clark 1937.

[10] Rogness, Alvin N. Forgiveness and Confession. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House: 1970 [11] Saucy, Robert L. Sinners Who Are Forgiven or Saints Who Sin. Bibliotecha Sacra, October, 1995 [12] Sussee- Herman. Sinners and Forgiveness of Sins. Christianity Today, March 3, 1967.

[13] Swete, Henry Barclay. The Forgiveness of Sins. London: McMillan Press, 1916.

[14] Wilson. Frank. Sin and Forgiveness: The Ultimate Liberation. Journal of the Interdenominational Theological Center. Vol. 9.

[15] Zodhiatese Spiros. The Complete Word Study Old Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG International, 1990.

[16] Zodhiatese Spiros. The Complete Word Study New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG International. 198.

Biography Dr. Ilie Soritau was born in Arad County, Romania, in September 1968. He has a M.Div. in theology with biblical languages from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina (1999), and a Ph.D. in theology from Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj, Romania (2012). He was an adjunct professor of homiletics for six years at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, Texas (2006-2012).

Also, he has taught from 1999 to the present day at Emanuel University of Oradea. He currently serves as Vice President and Chief Librarian of Emanuel University in Oradea, Romania. He has coauthored multiple articles with Dr. Ioan Pop on “Transdisciplinary Perspective Through the Synergistic Communication on Faith in the Seven Letters of Revelation” as well as “The Mankind between Bethel and Ai, a Synergistic Contextual Communication Model on Faith.” He has co-authored a book with Dr. Ciprian Simuț: “Reformarea mântuirii, Volumul 1, Repere soteriologice în teologia reformatorilor din Anglia și Europa continental în secolele XVI și XVII” (Oradea, Romania: Editura Universității Emanuel din Oradea).

Dr. Soritau is a member of The Evangelical Theological Society and the Homiletical Society. He serves on the Council of the Romanian Baptist Union and a co-founder of the Family Advisory Council at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Ft. Worth, Texas.

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