Let’s revive the Golden Rule – Video
Posted by: randallbutisingh on: October 4, 2009
- In: Philosophy| Psychology| Religion
- Comment!
Karen Armstrong is a provocative, original thinker on the role of religion in the modern world.
Why you should listen to her:
Religious thinker Karen Armstrong has written more than 20 books on faith and the major religions, studying what Islam, Judaism and Christianity have in common, and how our faiths shaped world history and drive current events.
A former nun, Armstrong has written two books about this experience: Through the Narrow Gate, about her seven years in the convent, and The Spiral Staircase, about her subsequent spiritual awakening, when she developed her iconoclastic take on the major monotheistic religions — and on the strains of fundamentalism common to all. She is a powerful voice for ecumenical understanding.
Armstrong’s 2008 TED Prize wish asks us to help her assemble the Charter for Compassion, a document around which religious leaders can work together for peace. In late fall 2008, the first draft of the document was written by the world, via a sharing website.
In February 2009 the words of the world were collected and given to the Council of Conscience, a gathering of religious leaders and thinkers, who are now crafting the final document. The Charter will be launched in November 2009.
“I say that religion isn’t about believing things. It’s ethical alchemy. It’s about behaving in a way that changes you, that gives you intimations of holiness and sacredness.”
Karen Armstrong on Powells.com
THIS IS THE VIDEO LINK:
http://www.ted.com/talks/karen_armstrong_let_s_revive_the_golden_rule.html
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Submitted by Cyril Bryan- Guest Contributor
2 Responses to "Let’s revive the Golden Rule – Video"
October 10, 2009 at 9:38 pm
Really interesting! Armstrong’s particular theory comes through in her introduction to A Case for God. In my view, she comes very close to reducing religion to ethics, which is something liberal Protestantism has been criticized for doing. Take, for example, “God is love.” I interpret this as teaching that love is the source or basis of existence. Even though our acts of love (and feelings!…which Armstrong also discounts relative to conduct) involve “God is love” being actualized, there is also the sense irrespective of one’s conduct that existence itself is love. I take the transcendent wisdom of the latter to be just as important as conduct in religious terms.
I’ve just posted a critique (http://deligentia.wordpress.com/2009/10/10/a-case-for-god/).
October 5, 2009 at 2:46 am
Karen Armstrong can write as many books as she wants, but unless she can address Hinduism she is lost in the world of philosophy and religion.
I have done my research and found out that Hinduism is the world’s third largest, and oldest recorded religion, and it is not about one or two books, it is a complete social network, philosophy and way of life, and a method of cultural organization in the division of labour force, and armed forces.
Fact: Buddhism was founded by Siddartha, a Hindu prince about 400 years BC . Because Hinduism was so well entrenched in the sub-continent, the Enlightened One moved over to China, thus causing a large number of Chinese to become Buddhists. Now, Ms. Armstrong has failed to address the world’s fourth largest religion – for her information, it is known as Buddhism.
Anyone writing on world religions and leaving out Hinduism and Buddhism needs to return to school.
Ms. Armstrong also needs to study the cultures of Mahendro Daro and Harappa.
In the original way, Hinduism is monotheistic, like Christianity. The Trinity in Hinduism is Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, with only one difference – with female consorts, like the Chinese Ying and Yang. The rest of Hinduism, with a million gods and goddesses
came about because of language, ethnic, social, tribal, and society’s structure of the class divisions, etc, etc.
Many Westerners spend 2, 4, 6, or 8 years in India and become experts on Hinduism. Some spend 3 to 6 years at Oxford University, become experts, and write best sellers without having ever been in India. And Indian scholars/philosophers, born and bred in India, do not claim the same honours.
I highly recommend to Ms. Armstrong to study the RAMAYANA, GITA, MAHABHARATA, before getting into esoterica, as for monetary reasons.
And while she is at it, she should read some small works called the VEDANTAS, mind you, not the VEDAS. The VEDAS will blow her mind.
PS: Prof. Max Mueller, a German, went to India in the late 19th century and stole secrets from the Vedas which he took to Germany. Thus the splitting of the atom, and two secret weapons that failed, i.e., V 2 rocket being one. And the dreaded swastika, an early Aryan emblem for the procreation and continuation of humankind. Mr. Hitler named his Master Race ARYANS after the early Hindus, more than six thousand years ago.
I was blessed to visit Kurukshetra and was amazed. I also visited the Vatican, and Pompey.
Patanjali Ramlall