Many people are disturbed by the disorder in the world today, but we have very different ideas about the cause and an even sharper difference in our ideas about a remedy. As mentioned in my last post, the decline in our society did not begin with the Humanist Manifesto. That manifesto was merely one step … Continue reading A disinherited generation
René Descartes
The way to happiness
Image by dima_goroziya from Pixabay The Bible demonstrates again and again how futile it is for a person to think he is able to understand and decide by himself how to live a successful and happy life. But we keep trying. Four centuries ago, René Descartes, elevated this human propensity into a philosophical belief systemn which says that … Continue reading The way to happiness
Consequences of a false gospel
Several weeks ago I wrote about the effect on education of René Descartes’ belief in the ability of the human mind to discover all truth through the exercise of reason. That belief has worked its way into every aspect of Western civilization. It is found in our media, our social institutions, our ideas about business, … Continue reading Consequences of a false gospel
How did our education system get where it is today?
The best description I have read of the thinking behind our public education system is Les déshérités (The Disinherited) by Francois-Xavier Bellamy, published in France in 2014. Bellamy traces the root of modern educational thinking to the philosophies of René Descartes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. René Descartes (1596-1650) believed that all knowledge could be attained by … Continue reading How did our education system get where it is today?
Flatlander Faith 