scholarly journals Grundtvig og fundamentalismen

2005 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-124
Author(s):  
Kim Arne Pedersen

Grundtvig og fundamentalismen[Grundtvig and fundamentalism]By Kim Arne PedersenThe chosen starting-point is Ole Vind’s perception of Gr as a Biblefundamentalist. Vind constructs a concept of fundamentalism along idea-historical lines and focuses on what he perceives to be Gr’s literal reading of, especially, the Old Testament; but he also emphasises that for Gr the Scriptures were directly inspired by God.Through the introduction of a theological-historical and secularhistorical definition of the concept of fundamentalism, Gr’s relationship to the Bible is examined with the aim of mounting a critique of Vind’s interpretation. Gr’s view of the Bible in the period 1810-11 to 1824-25 is characterised against the background of that struggle with himself which his conversion in 1810 entailed, and with the introduction of the theological-historical definition of fundamentalism.This finds its starting-point in fundamentalism as a concrete historical phenomenon in the USA at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. It is distinguished by the resolution of traditional Christianity into five dogmatic points, including the dogma of verbalinspiration (every word in the Holy Scriptures is divinely dictated), to which is added the individual Christian’s personal inner experience with its basis in conversion.With this as background, Gr may be called fundamentalist in the period 1810 to 1824-25, since Gr (1) has been through a more or less pietistic conversion, (2) rejects a historical-critical approach to the Bible, (3) holds firm to verbal-inspiration, (4) rejects a modem interpretation of Christianity, (5) holds firm to traditional Christianity against the rationalists and would certainly have been able to subscribe to the fundamentalists’ five points, (6) rejects a scientific explanation of the world, and (7) believes that a form of scientific alternative to the world-picture of the natural sciences can be worked out on a Biblical basis. However, the theological-historical definition of fundamentalism needs to be supplemented by a secular-historical determination of the concept. Here a link is made with Uffe Østergaard’s demonstration of the significance of the art of printing in the Reformation as a prerequisite of fundamentalism, in that verbal-inspiration is thus placed centre-stage. Østergaard’s point is that fundamentalism is not only a reaction against modernisation, but is itself a modem phenomenon, and here he focuses upon the fundamentalists’ insistence upon a direct access to Scripture independently of religious tradition’s mediating influence. Here Østergaard’s observations are supplemented by the viewpoint that the revivalist movements of the 18th and 19th centuries are the foundation of fundamentalism; and the German concept-historical school’s concept of modernity is introduced, supplemented by Habermas’s Kant-inspired determination of subjectivity as the core of modernity, and of secularisation as a consequence of the differentiation of spheres of validity it entails.Finally, it is proposed that fundamentalism in a secular-historical sense must be seen as a consequence of secularisation as an historical phenomenon, affected by industrialisation and the dominance of the natural sciences after 1850. Thus fundamentalists belong in the period after 1850 as the second phase of modernisation, and they seek to direct society back to an idealised golden age.The core of the theological-historical definition of fundamentalism is the conflict between traditional religion and a modem interpretation of it; the core of the secular-historical definition is the conflict between modernisation/secularisation and a religious reaction against this, which desires the whole of society or a state within the state free of secularisation.After Gr’s struggle with aspects of his understanding of Christianity in 1824-25 his view of the Bible becomes freer and he breaks explicitly with the dogma of verbal-inspiration. However, Gr’s location in time itself, and his complex attitude towards modernity is of more importance. (1) Gr can hardly be lumped together with that group of modem intellectuals, people with education, who are related to industrial and post-industrial society and who are going through a fundamentalist conversion. Grundtvig belongs in another age, in modernity’s first phase from 1750 to 1850 - and his concept of modernity can be extrapolated from analyses of his complex attitude towards Kant’s concept of autonomy. The facts that (2) between 1811 and 1824 he is an adherent of verbal-inspiration, and (3) in his battle with Enlightenment theology (and in that connection with the ecclesiastical authorities) he turns against the traditional theological teaching institutions, and (4) he wishes to reform theology, are not sufficient grounds for characterising him as a fundamentalist, for Gr (5) does not want, as do the fundamentalists, a return to an idealized golden age. In Gr’s notion of the sequence of national congregations, and the fact that the one succeeds to the other, lies hidden a historical mentality stamped with the idea that the different congregations embody different characteristics. To conceptualise change is modem, and in that sense Gr is stamped with modernity. (7) Ultimately, Gr does not seek to stifle the scientific attempt to clarify the Bible and the world independently of a literal reading of the Old Testament. This Vind overlooks, when he alleges that even after 1825 Gr can be called a fundamentalist.The decisive characteristic which divides Gr from fundamentalism is really not his break with Bible-Christianity in 1823, 1824 and 1825, nor his related rejection of verbal-inspiration, but rather the opening of his mind in relation to the naturalists, and therewith the theologicallyorientated foundation of this opening upon two central concepts: his educational idea - that is, the separation between church and school - and his idea of freedom. The educational concept and the concept of freedom are indissolubly bound together, and Gr’s thematising of freedom in respect of things scientific is tied up with his consciousness of modernity.

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. V. Schneider

The article summarizes the main approaches in the definition of business valuation the economic entity. In the process of business valuation, taking into account the risks of financial and economic activities necessary to obtain information on what stage the owner implements the business will receive income. The most difficult task is the impossibility of accurate prediction in determining the level of income and the determination of a discount rate capitalization of future incomes due to the instability of the economy, both in the country and around the world.


2020 ◽  
pp. 111-124
Author(s):  
Karl Kraus

This chapter investigates the extent to which the struggle against the anti-German Spirit is German in origin. Kraus's “Prayer to the Sun of Gibeon,” misinterpreted when it appeared in 1916, highlights the absurdity of a world of power politics in which the pan-German present uncannily converged with an Old Testament narrative fraught with atrocities. The reflection “On the Sinai Front” of 1917 pointed to the concurrence of two ethnicities. This was expressed by Schopenhauer's definition of a nation that “worships a God who promises it the lands of its neighbours.” During the World War, the Old Testament and modern German ideologies of being “chosen peoples” had already reached a point of convergence—of alignment before the event.


2019 ◽  
pp. 313-325
Author(s):  
Borislav Grozdic ◽  
Valerija Dabetic

In the aggressive dominance of critical rational thinking over the mythical worldview, myth as a historical and effective force does not lose its actuality and importance, because myths often hide deeper messages than what history can offer. In such a social context, the significance of the spiritual message of the Kosovo myth - the commitment to the Heavenly Kingdom, as a lasting common value of the Serbian people, returns as a theme. In spite of its omnipresence, the opinion prevails that the myth belongs to the past, and if it is not yet obsolete, it certainly should be. The authors advocate the idea that myth, as a comprehensive experience of the world, and therefore the Kosovo myth as well, is a factor of national integration, a part of collective identity, and a common value system. Analysing the secular and spiritual understanding of the Kosovo myth, the authors point out the importance of the vivid memory of the prince Lazar?s commitment to the Heavenly Kingdom. For Christians, this represents the value and goal above all others and it forms the core of the Serbian historical consciousness and spiritual community. The paper shows that the spiritual message of the Kosovo myth is not understood or it is misunderstood nowadays, since the commitment to Kosovo is perceived as a call and an obligation to die for it. The authors conclude that the Kosovo myth is not a call to die in the war, on the contrary, it is a struggle for external and internal freedom, as well as for the highest values that are implied by the definition of the Heavenly Kingdom ? peace, love, honour, justice, dignity, and others.


2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 98-110
Author(s):  
Gao Xuedong ◽  
Gu Kan

Abstract The traditional time series studies consider the time series as a whole while carrying on the trend detection; therefore not enough attention is paid to the stage characteristic. On the other hand, the piecewise linear fitting type methods for trend detection are lacking consideration of the possibility that the same node belongs to multiple trends. The above two methods are affected by the start position of the sequence. In this paper, the concept of overlapping trend is proposed, and the definition of milestone nodes is given on its base; these way not only the recognition of overlapping trend is realized, but also the negative influence of the starting point of sequence is effectively reduced. The experimental results show that the computational accuracy is not affected by the improved algorithm and the time cost is greatly reduced when dealing with the processing tasks on dynamic growing data sequence.


Author(s):  
M.B. Rarenko ◽  

The article considers the story by Henry James (1843 – 1916) «The Turn of the Screw» (1898 – first edition, 1908 – second edition) in connection with the emergence of a new type of narrator in the writer's late prose. The worldview and creative method of H. James are formed under the influence of the philosophy of pragmatism, which became widespread at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries thanks to the works of the writer's elder brother, the philosopher William James (1842 – 1910). The core of pragmatism is the pluralistic concept of William James based on the assumption that knowledge can be realized from very limited, incomplete, and inadequate «points of view» and this leads to the statement that the absolute truth is essentially unknowable. The epistemological statements of William James's theory is that the content of knowledge is entirely determined by the installation of consciousness, and the content of the truth in this case depends on the goals and experience of the human, i.e. the central starting point is the consciousness of the person. Henry James not only creates works of art, but also sets out in detail the principles of his work both on the pages of fiction works of small and large prose, putting them in the mouths of their characters – representatives of the world of art, and in the prefaces to his works of fiction, as well as in critical works.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 252-266
Author(s):  
Ahmet Koşar ◽  
Aytul Kasapoglu

More than 95 percent of those who lost their lives as a result of the spread of the Covid-19 virus to the world since the beginning of 2020 are over the age of 60 (WHO, 2020). The main purpose of this article is to reveal the vital difficulties of the 65-75 age group in Turkey, who were quarantined due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as a result of deprivation of their former normal lives and how they overcame them. The theoretical starting point of this study is the relational sociologist H. White and his “uncertainty” classification. In the study, Grounded Theory Methodology was chosen as one of the qualitative research approaches and open, axial and selective codings were made as a requirement of this. In this context, interviews were made with 12 individuals from the 65-75 age group and the data were presented in figures. As a result of open, axial and selective coding, the core concept of the study was determined as "solidarity". In accordance with the grounded theory, at the end of the study, the "solidarity process" was narrated using the "river" metaphor.


Author(s):  
Brent A. Strawn

This is an advance summary of a forthcoming article in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion. Please check back later for the full article. The God of the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible) is arguably one of the most fascinating deities in all religious literature: complex and multifaceted; prone to great acts of mercy and kindness, although not above brutal acts of punishment and wrath; consumed with care for the world and its inhabitants; capable of changing direction or mind; inexplicably in love with God’s people and deeply concerned with their ways in the world. This robust picture of the character of God in the Old Testament emerges in the aggregate: from viewing the library of books that is the Old Testament as a whole and trying to reckon with their literary complexity at a higher order of reflection. Inordinate attention to specific parts of the Old Testament—this verse, say, or that one, especially when divorced and isolated from all others—can produce a completely different (mis)perception such as that found in some ungenerous estimations that see the God of the Old Testament as petty or unjust, vindictive or bloodthirsty, misogynistic or genocidal. Such estimations are as old as the second-century arch-heretic Marcion but are also found in works of more recent vintage. Some—although certainly not all—of these negative descriptors can be applied to the God of the Old Testament in certain passages, but a portrait consisting solely of them will end up being little more than a caricature that will not hold up to close scrutiny because it systematically ignores every piece of contrary data found in the Bible. To be sure, accounting for what might be called “polarities” in God’s presentation (God’s love versus God’s wrath) is a challenging intellectual task, literarily as much as theologically. Not all readers are up to the job (witness Marcion). But this task must be engaged if one wishes to write a complete character description (not to mention analysis) of God from the biblical texts. Indeed, the complexity of any more fulsome portrait of God in the Old Testament—marked, for example, by tensions, a vast array of metaphors, and alternative presentations—should be one of the primary results of such an endeavor. The God of the Old Testament is, after all, first and foremost, according to the description above, complex and multifaceted. The complexity of God’s portrayal in the Old Testament is the direct result of the diversity of the Bible itself—a term that derives from a Greek plural, ta biblia, “the books.” Not only are the books of the Bible several and different at a synchronic level, but also they come from different periods and are themselves (that is, within each particular book) the result of long diachronic processes. This two-layered diversity that marks the Bible adds yet further difficulty to the task of describing God therein, even as it suggests that more than one approach can and must be (and has been) utilized in the attempt. In the final analysis, it seems safe to say that the complexity of God’s portrayal in the Old Testament has functioned not only to make this deity endlessly fascinating in the history of civilization but also to underscore—at some literary level, if nothing else—that the God of whom the texts speak is truly a divine character: not able to be captured, controlled, or managed by the human characters in the stories and not even by the sacred literature itself. Only a robust approach to the biblical literature that pays attention to both synchronic and diachronic aspects can hope to do justice to such a fascinating deity.


Author(s):  
Christopher Hays

The relationship between Egypt and ancient Israel and Judah was far more complex than is often recognized. Egypt figures prominently in their national myths of origin as a way station for the patriarchs and as the “house of slaves” and starting point of the Exodus. Although no Exodus event can be confirmed from extrabiblical sources, its significance in the Bible suggests an historical kernel. The diverse existing traditions about Egypt in the texts of the Pentateuch and other early biblical writings, combined and written down at a later date, seem to reflect different experiences on the part of the groups that coalesced into Israel By the time of the monarchy, there is more direct evidence for Egyptian influence on Israelite culture, particularly in administrative affairs. It is also clear that Egyptian religion was practiced in the Levant at this time and would have been known in Israel and Judah. By the time of the divided monarchy, the historical picture comes into better focus. Relations between Egypt, Israel, and Judah were quite variable. Although Egypt’s New Kingdom empire in the Levant had ended, the region continued to be a useful trading outlet, and the pharaohs were not above raiding to assert their power. However, there are numerous examples of fugitives from the Levant finding refuge from their enemies in Egypt. In the interest of maintaining a buffer zone against the northern empires that encroached, Egypt and Kush gave military aid to Israel and Judah at times, through both direct action and supplies. The prophets had not forgotten Egypt’s role as an oppressor and frequently condemned it, as well as the tendency of Israelite and Judahite rulers to seek its help. But at times the prophets also envisioned peace with Egypt. There are a number of specific Egyptian texts that supply mutually illuminating points of comparison with biblical texts, including wisdom instructions, prayers, hymns, creation accounts, and autobiographies. These are indications of the extensive, ongoing, cultural interactions between Egypt and the cultures that produced the Old Testament.


2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agostino Cera ◽  

Abstract: While putting forward the proposal of a “philosophy of technology in the nominative case,” grounded on the concept of Neoenvironmentality, this paper intends to argue that the best definition of our current age is not “Anthropocene.” Rather, it is “Technocene,” since technology represents here and now the real “subject of history” and of (a de-natured) nature, i.e. the (neo)environment where man has to live.This proposal culminates in a new definition of man’s humanity and of technology. Switching from natura hominis to conditio humana, the peculiarity of man can be defined on the basis of an anthropic perimeter, the core of which consists of man’s worldhood: man is that being that has a world (Welt), while animal has a mere environment (Umwelt). Both man’s worldhood and animal’s environmentality are derived from a pathic premise, namely the fundamental moods (Grundstimmungen) that refer them to their respective findingness (Befindlichkeit).From this anthropological premise, technology emerges as the oikos of contemporary humanity. Technology becomes the current form of the world – and so gives birth to a Technocene – insofar as it introduces in any human context its ratio operandi and so assimilates man to an animal condition, i.e. an environmental one. Technocene corresponds on the one side to the emergence of technology as (Neo)environment and on the other to the feralization of man. The spirit of Technocene turns out to be the complete redefinition of the anthropic perimeter.While providing a non-ideological characterization of the current age, this paper proposes the strategy of an ‘anthropological conservatism,’ that is to say a pathic desertion understood as a possible (pre)condition for the beginning of an authentic Anthropocene, i.e. the age of an-at-last-entirely-human-man.


Author(s):  
L Juliana Claassens

In light of the numerous instances in the Hebrew Bible in which the dignity of its characters are threatened, violated or potentially violated, this article seeks to identify a number of strategies that may be used to read the Bible for the dignity of all so overcoming the Old Testament’s troubling legacy. These strategies have been inspired by the work of Martha Nussbaum who, in one of her recent books, The New Religious Intolerance: Overcoming the Politics of Fear in an Anxious Age, names three principles that may help a society to become more compassionate in nature and to transcend, what she calls, a narcissistic notion of fear: (1) Political (and I would add religious) principles that express equal respect and dignity for all people (2) Rigorous critical thinking that criticizes inconsistencies that may lead to human rights violations (3) Developing an empathetic or participatory imagination, in which one is able to consider how the world looks from the point of view of a person of a different cultural or religious point of view.


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