@elam
Many of my thoughts are unformulated and I am still making up my mind on some issues, so I am using you to bounce ideas off of, and I hope you do the same and share your ideas and concerns....
Exclusivity/Property---
My concern is with all the groups---Nations, ethnicity, families...as for family, the concern was sparked by your comment about homelessness. Does the "family" have the right to kick someone out into the street because they have a problem with the behavior---such as alcoholism, addiction etc. On the other hand, the safety and security of the other members of the family are also important considerations....and rights. There should be a better way for us (community and family) to handle troubled human beings without throwing them away? I also have misgivings about the nation-state and national borders...etc. There should be a better balance between our need for security and our obligation towards compassion and mercy...of 114 surah, 113 Surah of the Quran begin with the words "In the name of God the most compassionate, the most merciful". So, to be true to these values...one needs to think of a way of community building that cares for the needy while also providing for the support of the caregivers...since I am Muslim---I look at historical examples of (Muslim) community building, for ideas....but care for the needy is an important value for all religions and historical religions have practiced good community building in pre-modern times....so there can be a variety of ideas....
Proud Catholic/Multiculture---I agree that different religions have their own meta-narratives that give them a particular world-view. Such diversity makes our engagement with the world more interesting. But---it also makes groups different. Though humanity and its nature and needs are not all that different from one group to the other, the interpretations and implementations of our (common) values may take on variety....just as they vary from generation to generation also.....But if we are to be true to our "way"---we need to respect our own values so that we can respect those of others. The present multiculture system does not allow for this--we are all required to homogenize into a public monoculture....and in an age of globalization, if there is going to be only one dominant "culture" in the public space---whose is it going to be?...is a question that distresses everyone. So, perhaps Pluralism may be a better way than Secularism......?....Religious identities are already global (at least for the major world religions)...and so these would provide a better platform for identity-constructs and group-building with the added benefit of encouraging humanity towards its potential for excellence and balanced altruism...?.....
Many of my thoughts are unformulated and I am still making up my mind on some issues, so I am using you to bounce ideas off of, and I hope you do the same and share your ideas and concerns....
Exclusivity/Property---
My concern is with all the groups---Nations, ethnicity, families...as for family, the concern was sparked by your comment about homelessness. Does the "family" have the right to kick someone out into the street because they have a problem with the behavior---such as alcoholism, addiction etc. On the other hand, the safety and security of the other members of the family are also important considerations....and rights. There should be a better way for us (community and family) to handle troubled human beings without throwing them away? I also have misgivings about the nation-state and national borders...etc. There should be a better balance between our need for security and our obligation towards compassion and mercy...of 114 surah, 113 Surah of the Quran begin with the words "In the name of God the most compassionate, the most merciful". So, to be true to these values...one needs to think of a way of community building that cares for the needy while also providing for the support of the caregivers...since I am Muslim---I look at historical examples of (Muslim) community building, for ideas....but care for the needy is an important value for all religions and historical religions have practiced good community building in pre-modern times....so there can be a variety of ideas....
Proud Catholic/Multiculture---I agree that different religions have their own meta-narratives that give them a particular world-view. Such diversity makes our engagement with the world more interesting. But---it also makes groups different. Though humanity and its nature and needs are not all that different from one group to the other, the interpretations and implementations of our (common) values may take on variety....just as they vary from generation to generation also.....But if we are to be true to our "way"---we need to respect our own values so that we can respect those of others. The present multiculture system does not allow for this--we are all required to homogenize into a public monoculture....and in an age of globalization, if there is going to be only one dominant "culture" in the public space---whose is it going to be?...is a question that distresses everyone. So, perhaps Pluralism may be a better way than Secularism......?....Religious identities are already global (at least for the major world religions)...and so these would provide a better platform for identity-constructs and group-building with the added benefit of encouraging humanity towards its potential for excellence and balanced altruism...?.....
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