History of Religous Thought

Following the death of 17-year-old Leelah Alcorn, a transgender teen who committed suicide after forced “conversion therapy,” President Barack Obama called for a nationwide ban on psychotherapy aimed at changing sexual orientation or gender identity. The administration argued that because conversion therapy causes substantial psychological harm to minors, it is neither medically nor ethically appropriate. We fully agree with the President and believe that this is a step in the right direction. Of course, in addition to being unsafe as well as ethically unsound, current conversion therapy approaches aren’t actually effective at doing what they claim to do – changing sexual orientation. But we also worry that this may be a short-term legislative solution to what is really a conceptual problem. The question we ought to be asking is “what will happen if and when scientists do end up developing safe and effective technologies that can alter sexual orientation?”

The Yemen, is the birth place and hub for a number of monotheistic religious convictions . In its North West region, just 243 kilometers away from San'aa, the official capital of the Republic of Yemen , lies a spiritual center, a holy metropolis known as Saa'da  .
It is to Zaidi Islam as Qum is to Shia Islam and Mecca is to Sunni Islam. It is where the scholars dwell, to read, learn and teach their disciples to carry on the doctrine and preserve the faith throughout history.
It is here that the Houthi phenomenon first appeared.
This study focuses on the very beginnings of Houthism as a phenomenon, it's source and affiliations. It is but the first part of a series of papers that will delve into the movement as it expands over time.

"שמונת הטקסטים של יצחק בנימיני, אשר אוגדו תחת הכותרת מה רוצה הגבר?, הנם טקסטים בעלי עוצמה אפוקליפטית מחזורית, המתהווה בקשיות וברכוּת, כמין פאלוס המבקש להתפצל ולהתפצל, אך גם תובע את אונו אל מול חדוות אי-הנסבלות של הקיום הגברי, נשי, ישראלי, פלשתינאי, יהודי-נוצרי.
אופי התנהלותו של מחזור הטקסטים מוביל את הקוראים אל כאוס דידקטי-חזוני, שאינו מאפשר לאיש להיוותר מחוץ להצגה, מחוץ לפיפ-שואו או מחוץ לתפילה. בעודו משתמש בשאלתו הנודעת של פרויד "מה רוצה האישה?", מפנה בנימיני את השאלה חזרה לסובייקט הגברי ומתריס ברפלקסיביות: "מה רוצה הגבר?".
סוף כל סוף מעז גבר להפנות זרבוביתו פנימה, תוך סלטות משולשות ומהופכות לצדדים, ולהביט דרך פריסקופ איבר הזִכרות העצמי גם על עצמו. אלא שלא ניתן למצוא כאן מניפסט רציונליסטי-מהוגן ונוח לקריאה המצהיר כי שחרור האישה כרוך ואף מותנה בשחרורו של הגבר ובמודעותו לדיכויו.
תחת זאת מערים עלינו הטקסט של בנימיני קונפליקטים בלתי פתירים המשתלבים אלה באלה ומתפתלים – כמין רכבת הרים טקסטואלית – בין כפירה לכינון תפילה, בין פסיכואנליזה לתיאולוגיה, בין מונותיאיזם לאימהות פאגנית גדולה. מעבר לכך שספר זה עשוי להיקרא גם כמסע שוטטות אינטלקטואלי סוחף בין הוגים שונים שהיו במרוצת השנים להורים רוחניים – פאולוס, פרויד, לאקאן, איריגארי, קריסטבה – בנימיני בונה כאן נדבך של טיעון ממשי וחסר תקנה, שבו מצוי הגבר-פרולטריון (כניסוחו) בתוך מעגל דיכוי אין-סופי, בתוך הקטסטרופה האנושית שבה הנשים נאנסות או מועדות-אינוס-תמיד, והגברים מאבדים עצמם לדעת, קורסים תחת עול הדרישה הפאלית המצויה בתרבות בת זמננו – עכשיו, כך נדמה, יותר מתמיד. לספר מצורפת אחרית דבר פרי עטה של עדי שורק. "

From amazon.com:
""Whoever needs an act of faith to elucidate an event that can be explained by reason is a fool, and unworthy of reasonable thought." This line, spoken by the notorious 18th-century libertine Giacomo Casanova, illustrates a deeply entrenched perception of religion, as prevalent today as it was hundreds of years ago. It is the sentiment behind the narrative that Catholic beliefs were incompatible with the Enlightenment ideals. Catholics, many claim, are superstitious and traditional, opposed to democracy and gender equality, and hostile to science. It may come as a surprise, then, to learn that Casanova himself was a Catholic. In The Catholic Enlightenment, Ulrich Lehner points to such figures as representatives of a long-overlooked thread of a reform-minded Catholicism, which engaged Enlightenment ideals with as much fervor and intellectual gravity as anyone. Their story opens new pathways for understanding how faith and modernity can interact in our own time.

Lehner begins two hundred years before the Enlightenment, when the Protestant Reformation destroyed the hegemony Catholicism had enjoyed for centuries. During this time the Catholic Church instituted several reforms, such as better education for pastors, more liberal ideas about the roles of women, and an emphasis on human freedom as a critical feature of theology. These actions formed the foundation of the Enlightenment's belief in individual freedom. While giants like Spinoza, Locke, and Voltaire became some of the most influential voices of the time, Catholic Enlighteners were right alongside them. They denounced fanaticism, superstition, and prejudice as irreconcilable with the Enlightenment agenda.

In 1789, the French Revolution dealt a devastating blow to their cause, disillusioning many Catholics against the idea of modernization. Popes accumulated ever more power and the Catholic Enlightenment was snuffed out. It was not until the Second Vatican Council in 1962 that questions of Catholicism's compatibility with modernity would be broached again.

Ulrich Lehner tells, for the first time, the forgotten story of these reform-minded Catholics. As Pope Francis pushes the boundaries of Catholicism even further, and Catholics once again grapple with these questions, this book will prove to be required reading."

This review article explores a new indispensable reference work on the reception of
Augustine. It offers an overview of its content, structure, and methodology, as well as
a critical assessment of its overall contribution to the study of Augustine. Goethe once
remarked that, in the world, there are just a few voices, yet so many echoes. Augustine
is definitely among the ‘few voices’, which have provoked all manner of friendly and
unfriendly echoes. It is particularly important to realize that, apart from explicit
citations and references in western literature, Augustine has also profoundly shaped
medieval and modern culture through the subtle dissemination of his ideas into various
spheres of life. This reference work not only provides a description of the current state
of the reception of Augustine, but also adds the new results of the diligent work of the
contributing researchers and identifies several topics that still need to be investigated.

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The soul, duly prepared by exhortation to the study of true philosophy, finds herself in gradually advancing to the greater from the less. It should be noted that the one-paragraph reference to Olympiodorus herein (p. 9), while perfectly congruous with the exposition, is strictly impossible as he was in fact much posterior in historical time to Iamblichus. This editorial interpolation was mistakenly left in the final draft years before it was subsequently uploaded, an error for which the editor apologizes. No reader has ever noticed or objected to this mistake, and so we are not going to correct it now. Undoubtedly, neither Iamblichus nor Olympiodorus would object in spirit, for they were not mere philologists, and both of them are quoted correctly herein. They are in fact spiritual brothers and work together in this presentation for the true benefit of souls. It is like the friendly table talk between Callimachus (d. 240 B.C.) and Heraclitus portrayed in a beautiful and philosophically accurate woodcut published in 'The Dial' just before it ceased publication about a century ago--it could never have happened but it should have and (at least in the mind of Callimachus) did indeed occur, or so the artist surmised.

This paper sets out an ambitious critique of contemporary political scientists, political historians and others concerned with the history of democracy. It argues that overwhelmingly the history of democracy relies on an overtly Eurocentric narrative that emphasizes the keystone moments of Western civilization. According to this narrative, democracy has a clear trajectory that can be traced from ancient experiments with participatory government in Greece and to a lesser extent in Rome, through the development of the British parliament, the American Declaration of Independence and the French Revolution, and then finally onto the triumphant march of the liberal model of democracy across the globe over the last 200 years, particularly under Western tutelage. Histories of democracy that focus exclusively on these events not only privilege Europe and its successful colonies, but also miss the broader human story of the struggle for and achievement of democracy.

This presents us with a distinct challenge. For those whose heritage does not include a direct link to Greek assemblies, the American Congress or the French Revolution, the 'standard history of democracy' provides a distant and exclusive narrative, which limits one's ability to embrace democracy. This paper concludes by noting that, as democracy spreads out across the world today, political scientists not only need to break down the intellectual orthodoxy that democracy has exclusively Western roots, but also to embrace a more global view of democracy as a political practise that has been present at various times and in sometimes unfamiliar ways in the complex histories and rich cultural traditions of most of the people of the earth.

Entrevista realizada com o autor Carlos Ziller Camenietzki no dia 08 de Setembro de 2015 sobre o livro de sua autoria lançado pela Editora Multifoco em 2014: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7CbDC5T9l4

/// O Paraíso Proibido analisa a incidência sobre a censura ao Paraíso Brasileiro de Simão de Vasconcelos de problemas e tensões entre a Monarquia Bragança e o Vaticano acerca da Igreja Portuguesa. É estudo que busca identificar o sentido da censura no quadro das tensões políticas que Portugal viveu após a recuperação de sua independência diante da Monarquia Católica.

Öz Malakanlar, Çarlık Rusya'da ortaya çıkan muhalif Rus köylü hareketidir. Kiliseye ve onun yaptırımlarına başkaldıran bu topluluk kendi inanç sistemlerini oluşturmuşlardır. Bu nedenle Malakanlar, Çarlık Rusya tarafından Kafkasya gibi işgal edilmiş bölgelere sürgün edilmişlerdir. 1877-1878 Osmanlı Rus savaşı (93 Harbi) ile Kars'ın Çarlık Rusya tarafından işgal edilmesiyle, Kafkaslara sürgün edilmiş Malakanlar'ın bir kısmı Anadolu'ya göç etmiştir. Malakanlar, Anadolu'da kurdukları köylerde Müslüman topluluklar ile yaşamışlardır. 1960'lı yıllara kadar süren bu birliktelik Malakanlar'ın bu toprakları terk etmesi ile son bulmuştur. Bu çalışma kapsamında Malakanlar'ın Anadolu'ya göçü ve sonrasında Müslüman halkla ilişkileri bilgi ve belgeler ışığında araştırılmıştır. Malakanlar'ın Anadolu'dan ayrılışları incelenmiş ve sonucunda geride bıraktıkları izleri ortaya çıkarılmıştır. Abstract Malakans are the Russian opposition villagers' movement emerged in Tsarist Russia. This community which revolted against Church and its sanctions formed their own belief systems. Therefore, Malakans were exiled to the regions by Tsarist Russia like Kars. During 1877-1878 Ottoman Russia War (93 War) when Kars was occupied by Tsarist Russia, some of the Malakans who were exiled to Caucasus emigrated to Anatolia. They lived in the villages that they had established together with Muslim communities. This togetherness which lasted until 1960s ended when Malakans abandoned this land. In the scope of this study, Malakans' emigration to Anatolia and then their relationships with Muslim society investigated in the light of information and documents. Malakans' abandoning the Anatolia was examined and as a result, their traces were revealed.

The Siberian Northeast shows striking parallels between the cosmologies of hunters and reindeer
herders. What may this tell us about the transformation from hunting to pastoralism? This article
argues for a structural identity between hunting and sacrifice, and for the domestication of the
reindeer as the result of hunters’ efforts to use sacrifice to control the accidental variables of the
hunt. Hunters can practise their ethos of ‘trust’ with prey only through highly controlled ritual
enactments. We describe two: the famous bear festival of the Amur Gulf region and the consecrated
reindeer of the Eveny. Both express the same overall logic by which sacrifice functions as an ideal
hunt. The animal is involved in a relation not of domination but of trust, while also undergoing a
process of taming. We therefore suggest that the reindeer’s domestication may be based not only
on ecological or economic adaptations, but also on cosmology.

This article aims to examine the role played by the σάνδαλα in the Homeric Hymn to Hermes and to show that it is thanks to their enormous footprints and the «epiphanic» manner in which Hermes manipulates them that the god is able to affirm the divine nature he holds de facto and to claim that his divine status is validated de jure.

Cet article se propose d'analyser le rôle que jouent les σάνδαλα dans l'Hymne homérique à Hermès et de montrer que c'est grâce à leurs empreintes immenses et à la manière dont Hermès les manipule sur le mode «épiphanique» que le dieu réussit à affirmer la nature divine qu'il détient de facto et à revendiquer que son statut divin soit validé de jure.

The main aim of this book is to explore the active role that many prehistoric monuments, including rock art sites, played in social life during the 1st millennium BC and the 1st millennium AD on the basis on a wide thematic, chronological and geographic coverage. Although this book adopts a broad and inclusive theoretical approach,from a methodological point of view it draws inspiration from the biographical approach to the study of material culture (e.g. Kopytoff 1986; Gosden and Marshall 1999; Hoskins 2006). This approach has already been applied for some time by Anglo-American archaeologists,proving to be a useful framework within which to consider the active role of monuments and landscapes in social life (Chippindale 1987; Feld and Basso 1996, Bender 1998; Bradley and Williams 1998; Knapp and Ashmore 1999; Bradley 2000; Holtorf 2000–8; Bradley 2002; Gillings and Pollard 2004; Jones 2007; Rainbird 2008, Rubertone 2008; Parker 2009; Reneset al. 2013). It has, however, been far less widely explored by archaeologists belonging to other academic traditions in the broader context of European and Mediterranean prehistory. Therefore, a key contribution of this book is that authors from different academic traditions take a fresh look at this approach through different case studies and a range of different theoretical standpoints, enriching our view of the variety of archaeologies that are currently being made in different regions of Europe. In terms of chronological and geographic coverage, then, this volume transcends traditional period and place constraints. Case studies include later prehistoricand Roman periods, and follow the trajectories of monuments into the Medieval and even Modern periods of history, from Scandinavia to Tunisia, and from the British Isles to the Balkans. The chronology of each of these broad time periods varies, of course,from region to region and some do not even exist in some areas:this is the case of Ireland, which was beyond the frontiers of the Roman Empireand for which no ‘Roman period’ as such is formally defined.

En analysant les traces laissées sur le sol par le voleur de ses vaches, Apollon glisse une allusion à un Centaure en tant qu'auteur du vol, n'invoquant cependant cette hypothèse que pour la rejeter aussitôt. En dépit du caractère incongru de ce faux syllogisme et par-delà ses effets comiques, cette allusion laisse dévoiler des significations « théologiques » qui s'accordent avec les enjeux théogoniques de l'Hymne homérique à Hermès.

While analyzing the traces left on the ground by the thief of his cows, Apollo mentions allusively a Centaur as the author of the theft, although he formulates this hypothesis only to reject it immediately. Despite the incongruity of this false syllogism and beyond its comic effects, the allusion reveals "theological" significations corresponding to the theogonic issues of the Homeric Hymn to Hermes.

Le but de cet article n’est pas de formuler une exégèse complète de l’univers végétal de l'Hymne homérique à Hermès, univers éminemment complexe, mais en grande partie inexploré. Je me propose de relire les différentes étapes de l'expédition nocturne d'Hermès à la lumière de la mythologie des plantes qui jalonnent son parcours et de montrer qu'elles ont, sans exception, des liens avec la mort et l'au-delà, indiquant par là la nature du paysage que le dieu traverse et la nature catabasique de son voyage.

The purpose of this article is not to constitute a comprehensive exegesis of the vegetal universe of the Homeric Hymn to Hermes, a highly complex, but largely unexplored world. I propose to read the various stages of Hermes' nocturnal expedition in the light of the mythology of the plants marking his route and to show that they have, without exception, links to death and the Underworld. Thus, the plants indicate the liminal nature of the landscape crossed by Hermes and the catabatic nature of his journey.

Ulysse subit autant d’épreuves qu’il effectue d’étapes à travers la mer, c’est là le principe inhérent à son « odyssée ». Son parcours est interrompu par des tempêtes suivies de naufrages – les moyens les plus conventionnels – ou par d’autres dysfonctionnements, météorologiques ou cosmologiques, tel l’embrouillage des points cardinaux dans l’île de Circé que nous tentons d’appréhender dans cet article, en prenant appui sur l’île de Circé elle-même, savamment structurée du point de vue spatial. En bonne logique narrative homérique, l’agencement des éléments spatiaux obéit aux exigences du récit et, inversement, toute incohérence dans le registre spatio-temporel trouve son explication dans l’enchaînement dramatique. À bien y regarder, l’épisode préliminaire de la chasse du cerf (Od. X 159-171), est trop détaillé pour qu’il ne joue un rôle moteur significatif dans l’économie du récit. C’est cette «digression narrative» qui fait donc l’objet d’une relecture attentive tant du point de vue des structures spatiales qui la sous-tendent que de celui des valeurs temporelles qui en découlent. On retrouve par là le motif de « l’heure de midi », point spatio-temporel dans le circuit solaire où levant et couchant, est et ouest, se confondent et s’assimilent pour un instant l’un à l’autre. On retrouverait par là, dans les poèmes homériques, quelques récurrences qui témoignent de l’existence d’un symbolisme in nuce associé à midi, même si cette heure redoutable n’atteint pas le statut de « l’heure religieuse par excellence » (selon l’expression de Roger Caillois) qui se développe dans la tradition post-homérique.

CAMENIETZKI, C. Z.. Baroque Science betweem the Old and the New World: father Kircher and his Colleague Valentin Stansel (1621-1705. In: Paula Findlen. (Org.). Findlen, Paula, Editor. Athanasius Kircher: The Last Man Who Knew Everything. New York: Routledge, 2004. ISBN: 0-415-94016-8. New York: Routledge, 2004, v. , p. 311-328.

It is practically impossible for the contemporary historian interested in the affairs of modern science not to be slightly troubled when opening one of the large scientific folios of Father Kircher for the first time. The work is difficult to fit into the traditional academic schema and hard to understand. Traditionally historians have not seen Kircher's works as belonging to the domain of science, and a number of modern scholars have argued that the Jesuit " is not in the proper sense a scientist. " 1 Nevertheless, we should recognize that in his own time many natural philosophers from all sides closely followed Father Kircher's publications and considered them serious works that allowed, or at least facilitated, knowledge of the world. Thus, a first question for the contemporary historian is presented: what was, or could be, " a scientist in the proper sense " in the seventeenth century? My intention in this essay is not only to answer this question, but to keep in mind the fact that, as we have known for some time now, what was to become " science " in the following centuries was not yet defined. In fact, several different scientific projects competed for the attention of the learned in the mid–seventeenth century. Often the " scientist " of this period incorporated elements from various sources into his work, shaping his theses, propositions, and metaphysics from diverse ingredients. Today, we know all too well that the work of most of the men of science of this period was closer to a heterogeneous assemblage of research programs and methodological procedures than a coherent and unified march toward knowledge of the world. Kircher embodied this heterogeneity, perhaps better than any other natural philosopher of his time, because he choose to address such a wide range of subjects and read en-cyclopedically on each and every one. To characterize some important elements of Kircher's scientific project, I have chosen to examine his intellectual relationship with a mathematician

Como en el tomo l de Palabras Globalizadas -2008-2011-, la temática de este segundo libro – Palabras Globalizadas -2012-214-, es variada y heterogénea, aunque el texto evidencie énfasis en “asuntos religiosos y culturales” y su relación con “la sexualidad y el conocimiento”. Y, como es natural, sobre “Lo económico”. Pero todo ello siguiendo el propósito con que fue escrito el tomo l: mostrar "lo capturado en mi propia mente durante su paso fugaz por ella”. En este segundo volumen continua el testimonio de cómo gestiona mi mente significados y significantes en mi lengua natal, y también como se ha ido transformando gracias a un “juego de deconstrucción de la lógica” con que mejor se  expresan ideas, conceptos e invocaciones con que “Mi Mente” supone que “construye su saber propio” en medio del “Mundo de Hoy”. Lo cual, obviamente, constituye “el primer error sobre el que erijo todas Mis Verdades” y me inspiran a creer que tengo “Pensamiento Propio”.

Should we view Plato only as a philosopher, or may we also approach him as a religious figure: a prophet, sage, priest, or shaman, who is in some sense divinely inspired, and whom a superintending Providence supplied for the benefit of humanity? Historically, the view of Plato as a religious figure has been common, but in recent centuries it has been dismissed by a prevailing narrow rationalism in academic and scholarly circles. Perhaps it is time to re-open the question. We review arguments supporting the proposition that Plato is a figure with religious significance. The aim is not to settle the question here, but to pave the way for continued discussion.

Warszawskie Studia Teologiczne XXXIII/1/2020, 28-45

Cusanus’ learned ignorance is a complex notion that is explained as a form of introduction into Christian wisdom. The different meanings of how God exceeds our  conceptual  reach  and  remains  ineffable  despite  all  metaphorical  approaches  are laid out in three steps: the first is devoted to God (conicidencia oppositorum), the second to the Universe (complicatio/explicatio) and the third to the God-man, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is represented here as an intermediary, as measure and mediator between God and creation, the finite and the infinite. Along these lines I highlight three main aspects of docta ignoratia as especially relevant for contem-porary thinking.These aspects will be used to evaluate the extent to which Cusanus’ power-ful proposal to reinterpret Christian reality can help us respond to Pope John Paul II’s exhortation in Fides et ratio to understand and to exercise Christian reflection as philosophari in Maria.

Keywords: Cusanus, philosophari in Maria, fundamental attitude, learned ignorance, Christian philosophy

A combined search of documents in the secret archives of the Vatican and of hitherto  unexplored Dutch archives sheds new light on the genesis of Nostra aetate, the declaration of Vatican II, mainly on Judaism. Two Dutch Catholics exercised a decisive influence upon the making of this declaration: monsignors Johannes Willebrands and Anton Ramselaar. In 1958 and 1960 Ramselaar organized a meeting with international pioneers in Jewish-Christian relations at the Dutch city of Apeldoorn. Research into Dutch and Vatican archives proves the decisive influence of these meetings upon Nostra aetate. In addition, original documents demonstrate that, for the pioneers, the State of Israel was not just a political affair but also the recognition of the Jewish right to survive as a people. Later attempts to marginalize this aspect of the Apeldoorn memorandum coincided with the exclusion of the issues of the State of Israel and World War II as too political. Without Willebrands’s ingenious strategic powers that took over Ramselaar’s network of pioneers, while sticking to traditional theological insights, the declaration would probably never have been promulgated. However, without Ramselaar’s courage, Nostra aetate would not even have been considered a necessity.

Cusanus’ learned ignorance is a complex notion that is explained as a form of introduction into Christian wisdom. The different meanings of how God exceeds our conceptual reach and remains ineffable despite all metaphorical approaches are laid out in three steps: the first is devoted to God (conicidencia oppositorum), the second to the Universe (complicatio/explicatio) and the third to the God-man, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is represented here as an intermediary, as measure and mediator between God and creation, the finite and the infinite. Along these lines I highlight three main aspects of docta ignoratia as especially relevant for contemporary thinking. These aspects will be used to evaluate the extent to which Cusanus’ powerful proposal to reinterpret Christian reality can help us respond to Pope John Paul II’s exhortation in Fides et ratio to understand and to exercise Christian reflection as philosophari in Maria.