It's late at night here in Quito and I just dropped by the LEAD at Episcopal Cafe. As an old ex philosophy student and teacher my heart was strangely warmed by the words of that most methodical of philosophers, Immanuel Kant, regarding the matter of making covenants. Read it HERE. If Kant can't how can we? The discovery of this little gem is attributed to Rev. Dr. Fred Quinn and Prof. Frank M. Turner. Fredrick Quinn has recently published a book "The Sum of All Heresies: The Image of Islam in Western Thought" (Oxford University Press, 2007.) It spells out the pervasive and continuous history of the ways in which Islam has been viewed in Western thought. It is a great read.That perception - that Islam and its adherents are primitive, violent, uncouth, under civilized, repressive and yet sexually exciting, and on and on - colors any possibility of addressing Islam in England or any other cohesive culture without already build-in prejudice and hatred.
I think it should perhaps be noted that, under Kant's standards, not only is your Covenant arguably precluded, but the Nicene Creed, and, indeed, any assertion of any "essential" of the Christian faith.
ReplyDeleteIn any argument it is of course comforting to have Kant on one's side. But, if I understand Anglicanism correctly, and its Episcopal version here in the U.S., I would suspect, under the standards Kant set out in his "Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason," that it shares with others his condemnation of "fetish-faiths," insofar as it shares the three "delusory faiths" of "faith in miracles," "faith in mysteries," and "faith in means of grace."
For myself, I hope we don't have to condition an assertion such as "God is love," to the condition, "unless, of course, in our future enlightenment we determinine otherwise."
--rick allen