Technology is part of all life forms. This does not mean that all technology is beneficial for life. Technological evolution in the human sphere holds promises to attain the status of singularity. This identifies the so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution. What is at stake includes the emergence of intelligent and conscious super computers and robots, conscious materialism, the possibility of human immortality and the emergence of the trans-human. In the ambit of a new artificial environment in which humans will live, the (...) question of being must be addressed again. How will all of this affect the question of being human and new conceptions of ‘self’? To what extent will the possibility of techno-religion replace traditional religions with its promise of eradicating poverty, illness and death? This article focuses on these and related issues to identify possibilities of a new artificially envisaged lifestyle. (shrink)

The Homo naledi discovery introduced questions that had not been previously posed regarding fossil finds. This is because, apart from their fascinating physiology, they seemingly deliberately disposed of their dead in a ritualised way. Although this theory may still be disproved in future, the present article provisionally accepts it. This evokes religious questions because it suggests the possibility of causal thinking, wilful and cooperative behaviour, and the possibility that this behaviour entails traces of proto-religious ideas. This poses the challenge to (...) develop a hominin hermeneutics that endeavours to reconstruct the possible motivation behind this action. The relatively larger brain with its enlarged Broca's area suggests the possibility of a sophisticated communication system and an enhanced way of dealing with emotion. We know that almost all life forms have some form of awareness and that more sophisticated degrees of consciousness may be present in the higher primates. Various 'clues' are investigated to try and understand the H. naledi phenomenon: lessons from chimpanzee studies, the implications of tool making for hominin development, the possibility of a proto-language and the role symbol formation may have played. The H. naledi case also indicates on a theological level that religion is natural. Some attention is given to this thesis. Biological and environmental factors come into play to illuminate biological factors like emotion and higher cognition without which religion would not be possible. Sophisticated cognition is coloured by affect and this makes some form of reflection on the fate of loved ones who have died a strong possibility. (shrink)

Bernard Stiegler depicts technics as the human's tertiary memory retention generating a pharmakon with both curative and malignant potential. He additionally rues the posthuman epoch's depletion of a 'time of the question': revealed in the prevalent inaptitude for wisdom -scilicet long-term acuity. We offer Christian liturgy as an abeyant psychotechnique arcing the current pharmakon to cure through soliciting a 'time of the question'. Rejuvenating Christian liturgy as a psychotechnique can bolster a broader societal 'time of the question'. Firstly, we describe (...) technic's du jour mise on scène. Secondly, we constrain Christian liturgies as complex systems incorporating malleability, temporality, and instability. Thirdly, we imagine Christian liturgy as empty tradition allowing amateur repetition of ancient art enticing a 'time of the question'. (shrink)

Karl Jaspers’ Axial Age concept is used to depict the way humans interact with their environment. The first Axial Age (800-200 BC) can be typified among others as the age in which humans started to objectify nature. Nature was dispossessed of spirits, gods and vital forces that humans previously feared and used as explanation for the origin of things. Secularised and objectified nature became a source of wealth for humans to use and abuse as they like. This has peaked in (...) the post-industrial era which also introduced the Second Axial Age in which we presently live. The Second Axial Age can be typified by a new approach to nature mediated among others by insights from the side of the natural sciences, especially developments in cosmology, our understanding of the quantum world and new insights into the nature of consciousness. Another development in the Second Axial Age is the emergence of the nonhuman turn, new materialism, panpsychism, the notion of the post-human and theological concepts like the ‘entangled God’. These developments are discussed with reference to leading thinkers. The nonhuman turn is welcomed as it introduces respect for nature which may contribute to the survival of our planet. (shrink)

The thesis of this article is that the self is a construct or illusion and simultaneously real. The notion of self is constitutive in metaphysics and operates subconsciously and indirectly in all human activities. The metaphysical self constitutes its own reality. The article is critical of developments in cognitive science and neuroscience where neurocentrism reduces self to brain processes. The tenet is that the self is more than its biological make-up and the measurement of brain processes. The metaphysical as well (...) as illusory aspects of self are discussed. Some important aspects of self that are visited include the construction of the self, its bodylines, contextuality, intentionality and unity. The nature of human intuition as grounded in our evolutionary make-up is proposed as a basis for the unity of the self. The role of the self in religion is briefly dealt with, focusing on the link between the notion of self and the concept of God. (shrink)

In this contribution, an overview of the distinct ways in which the interplay between knowledge, values, and beliefs took shape in the South African context since 1948 is offered. This is framed against the background of the paleontological significance of South Africa and an appreciation of indigenous knowledge systems, but also of the ideological distortion of knowledge and education during the apartheid era through the legacy of neo-Calvinism. The overview includes references to discourse on human rationality, on the use of (...) social sciences in theological reflection, on the teaching of evolution in public schools, on science and religion, and on religion and ecology. The essay concludes with a survey of some of the major voices regarding the interface between religion and science in South Africa. (shrink)

Expanding our description of liturgy as an organisation of technics structuring desire, we describe the accompanying myth as a technic of knowing. Drawing on transdisciplinary theology, developed from the work of Wentzel van Huyssteen, Paul Cilliers and Alfonso Montuori, we engage the cross-disciplinary construction of scientific myth by Big Historians. We argue that myth, as a transversal technic of knowing, is abundant in many spheres of our lives and bridges what Bernard Stiegler calls the persistent minimal gap between humanity and (...) technics. Can Big Historians offer such a bridge and what does it mean when scientists use technicities developed by religious practitioners? (shrink)

Van der Merwe, P.J. - Brown, S. 1994. The nearest in affection: Towards a Christian understanding of Islam. (Bladsy 254-255)Van der Merwe, P.J. - Newbigin, L. 1991. The gospel in a pluralist society. (Bladsy 255-256)Van der Merwe, P.J. - Van der Merwe, D.C.S. 'n Watermodel vir die kosmologie of God se twee boeke met spesiale verwysing na Gen 1:1-19 en die moderne kosmologie. (Bladsy 256-258)Van der Merwe, P.J. - Kritzinger, J.J. Saayman, W. On being witnesses. (Bladsy 258-259)Dreyer, T.F.J. - Pieterse, (...) Hennie. Praktiese Teologie as kommunikatiewe handelingsteorie. (Bladsy 260-261)Boshoff, F.J. - Burger, C.W., Müller, B.A. Smit D.J. Riglyne vir prediking oor die Pastorale en Algemene Briewe (Woord teen die lig 11/6). (Bladsy 261-262)Du Toit, B.A. - Van Aarde, Andries. Kultuurhistoriese agtergrond van die Nuwe Testament: Die eerste-eeuse Mediterreense sosiale konteks. (Bladsy 263-264)Van der Merwe, Paul - Van der Westhuizen, H.G. Herder van Angola. (Bladsy 264-268)Beukes J.A. - Burger, C.W., Müller, B.A. Smit D.J. Riglyne vir prediking oor regverdiging en reg: Woord teen die lig 111/3. (Bladsy 260-270)Engelbrecht Johannes J. - Joubert, Stephan. Matteus vandag. (Bladsy 270-272)Botes H.J. - Celliers, Johan. God vir ons. (Bladsy 272-274)Pretorius, S.P. - Papp, Kálmán. Die Nederduitsch Hervormde Gemeente Krugersdorp 1891 - 1991. (Bladsy 274-275). (shrink)

This article introduces some of the key philosophical contributions of W. E. B. Du Bois. Du Bois studied with Santayana and William James (among others), but chose social science, social theory, journalism, and activism over academic philosophy. Despite this detour, the philosophic depth of his work has won the attention of scholars in fields such as history, English, post‐colonial theory, African‐American Studies, American philosophy, and Africana philosophy, and it has belatedly begun to attract the interest of philosophers more generally. This (...) brief overview will explore the philosophical dimensions of some of Du Bois’s best‐known positions – his claims about the ‘color line’ and the Talented Tenth, his argument with Booker T. Washington, and his account of double‐consciousness. These positions open onto a rich constellation of views in social ontology, epistemology, political theory, existential phenomenology, and more besides. (shrink)

This essay contrasts Nietzsche’s remarks on elite education with W.E.B. Du Bois’ demand for democratized education. The essay takes their remarks as springboards for a twenty-first century philosophy of education rather than an historical account of their philosophies. Both thinkers cultivated Kant and Hegel’s dream that the spirit of freedom guided by reason would unite all the world’s peoples. Both held that education was key to realizing the dream. Their judgments about qualifying for education separated them. Nietzsche insisted that only (...) the elite should receive the fullest measure of education. Du Bois believed that in the future virtually every human being would receive a university-level education. The essay’s principal point is to show how contemporary technology can make Du Bois’ dream a reality. An African philosopher’s working model demonstrates a path to universal university education. (shrink)

Résumé — Alexandre d’Aphrodise a été étudié plus intensément en Europe continentale que dans le monde anglophone. Cet article s’interroge sur les raisons culturelles d’un tel fait. L’une des raisons de l’étude de la philosophie antique en général dans le monde anglophone est la volonté de montrer qu’elle est reliée, et peut rendre service, à des débats philosophiques contemporains. Un cas emblématique nous est fourni par le débat concernant le libre arbitre et le déterminisme. Susanne Bobzien a défendu la thèse (...) qu’alors que les termes du débat contemporain peuvent être décelés au IIe siècle après J.-C., et en particulier dans le traité d’Alexandre Sur le destin, il serait anachronique de les faire remonter à la période hellénistique. La partie finale du présent article se penche sur la façon dont elle rend compte de l’approche post-hellénistique de la question, vue comme le développement, à partir d’un certain nombre de textes aristotéliciens, d’une nouvelle doctrine de la contingence, reflétée dans une série de textes généralement décrits comme médioplatoniciens. On se demande, finalement, quelle relation il faut supposer entre ce développement et les changements, dans la forme et dans le fond, du déterminisme stoïcien.L’accident du déterminisme— Alexander of Aphrodisias has been studied more intensively in continental Europe than in the English-speaking world. This paper examines the cultural reasons for this. One factor in the study of ancient philosophy generally in the English-speaking world is the pressure to show that it relates to, and can be of service in, contemporary philosophical debates. One such case is the debate concerning free-will and determinism. Susanne Bobzien has argued that while the terms of the contemporary debate can be recognised in the second century AD, and in particular in Alexander’s treatise On Fate, it is anachronistic to read them back into the Hellenistic period. The latter part of the present paper examines her account of the origin of the new approach to the question in the development from a number of Aristotelian texts of a new account of contingency, reflected in a range of texts commonly described as Middle Platonist, and asks what relation we should suppose between this development and changes in the formulation and conception of Stoic determinism. (shrink)

Was W. E. B. Du Bois a pragmatist? Does it matter? This essay argues that reading Du Bois as a pragmatist highlights aspects of his work and life that might otherwise go unnoticed, while also highlighting aspects of pragmatism that often go unappreciated. In addition, this double revelation may help restore to us some important resources for dealing with current social problems.

Paul C. Taylor provides an accessible guide to a well-travelled but still-mysterious area of the contemporary social landscape. The result is the first philosophical introduction to the field of race theory and to a non-biological and situational notion of race. Provides the first philosophical introduction to the field of race theory. Outlines the main features and implications of race-thinking; asks questions such as: What is race-thinking? Don’t we know better than to talk about race now? Are there any races? What (...) is it like to have a racial identity? Engages with the ideas of such important figures as Linda Alcoff, K. Anthony Appiah, W.E.B. Du Bois, Howard Winant, and Naomi Zack. Explores the enduring significance of race in relation to culture, personal relationships and social justice. (shrink)

Il s’agit de revenir maintenant sur la portée historico-politique de l’Analytique du sentiment esthétique sublime. L’enjeu n’est pas exclusivement exégétique, mais vise notamment à évaluer ce qu’il en est du « progrès vers le mieux » dans le temps présent. L’essence de l’affect esthétique sublime réside dans un retournement : la défaillance des formes sensibles de présentation, par leur défaut même, présente, négativement, une Idée de la raison (l’infini, la liberté), dont le sentiment est universellement partageable en principe. S’y révèle (...) ainsi « notre destination supra-sensible » : témoigner de l’inconditionné, cultiver la « susceptibilité » aux Idées. Et cela à l’occasion des séquences historico-politiques tout aussi bien, y compris les conjonctures les plus « désolantes ». La désolation elle-même, si elle relève de cette esthétique de la présentation négative de l’Idée, peut faire « signe d’histoire », c’est-à-dire : être un indice probant que les humains dans leur histoire progressent dans la capacité au mieux. Tel fut le cas de l’affect d’ enthousiasme qui gagna les peuples européens lors de la Révolution en 1789. Mais il peut en aller de même pour le chagrin, voire pour le désespoir (en tout cas le « désespoir révolté », die entrüstete Verzweiflung ). 2. Il reste que le retournement de la défaillance des formes en sentiment sublime ne va pas sans quelques difficultés intrinsèques, liées à sa différence d’avec le beau : cette défaillance annonce un certain retrait de l’Idée de sens communis (gage, pourtant, de l’universalité sans concept à laquelle prétend le sentiment esthétique) ; et sa conversion en affection sublime exige la médiation d’une culture rendant les esprits plus sensibles aux Idées. Ne faut-il pas en conclure que, avec ce retrait du sens communautaire et le déclin de la culture (à l’ère de l’industrie culturelle multi-médiatique), il ne peut pas y avoir d’affection sublime, partageable publiquement et faisant « signe d’histoire », attestant qu’il y a progrès? 3. Ce manque de signe esthétique, affectif, éclairerait comment une crise de l’histoire et du politique est-elle possible. Cette crise, n’est-elle pas ce qui s’installe désormais comme le trait constitutif fondamental de notre sort à présent? En proie aux menaces de catastrophe globale qui pèsent aujourd’hui sur la planète et sur l’humanité, ce qui nous reste encore de « résistance » n’est-il pas dû davantage à l’angoisse de la survie, plutôt que tiré par le sens d’une Idée incommensurable qui, témoignant de notre destination supra-sensible, attesterait toujours que nous sommes en progrès vers le mieux? (shrink)