[FRA:] Telos loves the Pope

[matthew piscioneri]

Ralph,
 
first, thanks for all the relevant links...they are very useful.
 
I am unsure whether you want/expect any dialogue on the materials you have posted (Telos, CT and religion) but aspects of Berman's writing and your strongly negative responses intersect with themes I have been trying to develop recently in posts and about which I certainly do invite discussion.
 
Weber understood the "function" of religious teaching to mainly be about providing ways of addressing the inequalities the masses have historically encountered in the distribution of material goods. Indeed, offering some degree of succour/comfort..to wit...religion is the opiate of the people. Was it Feuerbach...philosophy is the extension of religion (by other means?) and more recently the charge that CT was the moralizing of an isolated order of priests (and nuns). In short, discussion of the crossover/intersection of critical philosophy and religious thinking has been a relevant part of the critical theory tradition. Another thing to keep in mind is that there seems to be a tradition of otherwise secular (critical) philosophers when they hit 70 going a bit gooey on religion: Horkheimer, Habermas, Derrida to name a few. 
 
It's not a simple issue (the religion/CT nexus) but I think it prompts consideration of the defining nature and function of CT. One of the things I "like" about religious method is that it doesn't shy away from openly addressing some of the "bigger" questions that both traditions circle. Religious thinking isn't circumscribed by contemporary critical theory's postmetaphysical modesty and I think CT should unshackle itself a little and this is partly what I have been driving at in recent posts. By re-examining the ideological qualities of CT, by asking again of CT's intentions, anticipated audience, empirical conditions of possibility, functional identity etc it's possible -- however briefly -- to return to basics...and some of these "basics" are not unlike the basics of religious thinking.
 
Interestingly, CT plays a dual role in seeking to further processes of social enlightenment AND, by addressing crisis dynamics, maintaining social order and helping to ensure both the material and cultural reproduction of social systems. It's a role religion has played in the past.
 
But, it’s the posing of the "bigger" questions that I find potentially most productive in any newer nexus between CT and religion although I would strongly expect the responses to differ. For example, and again indicating why I am dismissive of contemporary CT's idealist leanings, a willingness of CT to revisit questions of ontology is in order. It seems silly to me to try and convince a lot of people that “nature” is a construct of historical or socio-cultural discourse. It’s interesting that the predominant mainstream critical social discourse of present is to do with the environment. It’s also interesting that underlying this discourse is a religious framework:
 
a now forsaken Garden of Eden, the Fall from Grace, humankind turning away from Yahweh in pursuit of false, material idols, the possibility of either salvation through abnegation or damnation via apocalypse and ALWAYS the same old “mea culpa, mea culpa”. 
 
Anyway, I digress. I think it is possible for CT, in terms of its mission statement, to (re)pose sensibly – as religion does without blinking – questions such as: “Why is the world the way it is?” “What are the limits of emancipatory change?” etc. I disagree with the orthodox Catholic and orthodox Islamic version of answers, but at least the questions are on the table for disputation.
 
As a physicalist, I think the answers are in the electrons, protons & neutrons etc, or the way matter (energy) happens to organize itself in this universe. It’s got very little to do with freewill or fallen angels :-). 
mattP
> Date: Sat, 5 Jan 2008 13:49:18 -0500> To: theory-frankfurt-school at srcf.ucam.org> From: rdumain at autodidactproject.org> Subject: [FRA:] Telos loves the Pope> > Debate beyond Secular Reason> Part 1> by Adrian Pabst> http://www.telospress.com/main/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=170> > part 2:> > http://www.telospress.com/main/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=171> > According to Pabst, Pope Benedict has the solution to the twin evils > of secularism and fundamentalism. Is there no limit to where Telos > will go to abase itself? > > > _______________________________________________> theory-frankfurt-school mailing list> theory-frankfurt-school at srcf.ucam.org> http://www.srcf.ucam.org/mailman/listinfo/theory-frankfurt-school
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