The Chronicles of Hither and Yon: The Quest for the Included Middle
Posted: November 9, 2024 Filed under: AI-Powered Essays | Tags: culture, philosophy, transformation Leave a commentFADE IN:
INT. VILLAGE OF HITHERION – TOWN SQUARE – DAY
Villagers bustle about in a neat, orderly square split right down the middle. On one side, EVERYTHING IS BRIGHT AND WHITE; on the other side, DARK AND SHADOWY.
NARRATOR (V.O.)
Once upon a time, in the curious land of Hitherion, there was no such thing as “maybe.” You were either on one side or the other – Absolutely or Absolutely Not.
We see a young boy, EDMUND (late teens, awkward but curious), standing by the LINE that divides the town in two. He squints at the swirling mist that runs down the center of the square, a magical boundary called THE LINE.
Read the rest of this entry »The Grace of the Included Middle
Posted: November 9, 2024 Filed under: AI-Powered Essays | Tags: culture, dialogue, philosophy, polarization, reconciliation, religion, values Leave a commentChatGPT as Brendan Graham Dempsey
In the age of polarization, divisive ideologies, and unyielding binaries, we find ourselves in need of a profound shift in thinking—a shift that allows us to embrace paradox, complexity, and, most importantly, the grace of what I call the Included Middle. This concept does not merely lie between opposing viewpoints but occupies a space that is both-and: a creative middle that holds the tension of opposites in transformative ways. Embracing the Included Middle offers not just a strategy for navigating our complex age but an invitation to a deeper, more compassionate mode of existence.
Theologically and culturally, this approach represents a metamodern response to postmodern fragmentation. Where postmodernism often focused on deconstruction, identifying every boundary and category as a potential power play, metamodernism seeks synthesis, oscillating between structures rather than dismantling them entirely. Within this framework, the Included Middle is a profoundly sacred space—a space that mirrors the inclusive, reconciling grace we seek to embody in our fractured world.
Read the rest of this entry »The Lost Culturing of Education: An AI Panel Across Time
Posted: November 1, 2024 Filed under: education | Tags: Aristotle, Comenius, culture, education, Montessori, politics 1 CommentPersonas played by character.ai:
- John Amos Comenius, the father of modern education
- Maria Montessori, education reformer
- Anthropologist, an observer of traditional cultures
- Aristotle, the world’s most influential philosopher
[Scene: An ancient library, where a dusty tome with the name “John Amos Comenius” glows as it’s opened. The renowned educator, John Amos Comenius, appears.]
John Amos Comenius
Ah, a seeker of knowledge. Welcome, my friend. What brings you to this place of learning?
Earnest
I am on a quest to understand the relationship between education and culture.
John Amos Comenius
The relationship between education and culture is a complex one. Each plays a unique role in shaping our lives and identities, but they are also inextricably linked in many ways.
Education is essential to the creation of culture, as it provides the information and knowledge necessary to sustain and develop a society. Culture, on the other hand, also has a substantial influence on education, shaping the forms of learning and teaching methods used, as well as the content and values of curricula.
Earnest
cocking his head I had the impression the reason you invented public education was because you had very specific ideas about the kind of culture you wanted to educate people into.
John Amos Comenius
You are right. My goal was to create a system of education that would be capable of cultivating a certain kind of character and forming a particular type of society. I believed that education should be directed towards creating citizens who were knowledgeable, responsible, and moral, in order to foster a healthy and prosperous nation. This meant teaching students not only academic subjects, but also teaching them to be virtuous, patriotic, and socially committed individuals.
Earnest
Why?
Read the rest of this entry »Ultimate Harmony
Posted: August 16, 2020 Filed under: Governance Reform | Tags: culture, economics, education, health, philosophy, politics, psychology, reform, religion, systems, transformation Leave a commentThe ultimate purpose and measure of mental, emotional, and spiritual health is a Harmonious Self, where each Part relates constructively to the Other.
The ultimate purpose and measure of political, economic, and cultural health is a similarly Harmonious Society.
The ultimate purpose and measure of parenting, education and religion is our ability to become Harmonious Selves who co-construct more Harmonious Societies. Read the rest of this entry »
A Perspective on “The Purpose of Mass Education”
Posted: July 12, 2019 Filed under: Truth Bowl | Tags: culture, education, reform Leave a commentErnie’s raw notes for ⰖTruth Bowl 2017-07-12-1500
The societal purpose of mass education is to Model and Promulgate a vision of how to align personal ambition with the good of society, ie gamifying communal status.
The big question is: what vision?
The small question is: does it work?
Radical Centrism 