“Perhaps this is an area where every generation starts from scratch. Although the crisis of the First World War inaugurated an especially strong period of disillusion with regard to the optimism of the previous age, the pattern has repeated itself in many ways in more recent times, e.g., the loss of faith in politics as a means of advancing human well-being. And perhaps this also has to do with basic elements in growing up.” WorldWayFirstsHumansWellsMeanWarAgeStrongLossGrowing UpGrowingGenerationsPeriodsElementsAreasOptimismRegardCrisisPatternsWell BeingWar Of The WorldsWorld War IScratchesAdvancingDisillusionFirst World WarLoss Of Faith Author:George Pattison
“But why should a religious person be interested in a work like Heidegger's that many regard as the epitome of nihilism? For a start, because Heidegger forces us in a way that few philosophers do to really think through the seriousness and all-encompassing nature of our mortality.” ThinkingWayShouldPersonsForceReligiousRegardPhilosopherMortalitySeriousnessNihilismEpitomeReligious PersonHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Of course, it's always difficult to disentangle fact from fiction in relation to, e.g., the singularity project. Many scientists I know are dismissive of transhumanist claims, BUT the last 100 years has surely taught us never to underestimate the pace and scope of scientific progress. However, even if much of this turns out to be science-fiction, it also reveals a way of thinking about human life that I find deeply troubling.” IfsThinkingKnowsWayYearsHumansFactsLastsTurnsCoursesDifficultFictionProgressTaughtProjectsScientistClaimsRelationScience FictionHuman LifePaceUnderestimateScopeWay Of ThinkingTaught UsSingularityScientific Progress Author:George Pattison
“I think he [Heidegger] sets the question up in a useful way and, despite appearances, he's not 'against' technology. He just wants us to have a questioning and thoughtful relation to it. This must be relevant to any approach.” ThinkingWayWantTechnologyApproachRelationAppearanceDespiteThoughtfulRelevantQuestioningWant UHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Now, as at the beginning of the 19th century, there is a certain discovery of Eckhart and related figures. There are questions as to how far our Eckhart accords with the real medieval teacher of that name, but there are certainly images in his work that help us work our way past several of the aporia with which we're confronted in our attempts to think about God.” ThinkingWayRealHelpingPastCertainNamesTeacherCenturyFiguresDiscoveryRelatedMedievalAccord19th Century Author:George Pattison
“Perhaps - and this goes for the Kyoto School too - one of these insights is that nothingness and unknowing don't have to be equated with a destructive nihilism but with the experience of unity and participation - whilst resisting the tendency of objectifying metaphysics to claim that we can in some way 'know' that this experienced unity is really the truth of how things are, i.e., reveals being itself.” KnowsWaySchoolClaimsUnityInsightTendenciesDestructiveNothingnessMetaphysicsParticipationNihilismResistingKyotoUnknowingObjectifying Author:George Pattison
“Every stroke a tennis player plays is different, yet we perceive them as playing in a distinctive and unique way. It's what Heidegger called a certain 'how' of existing. It's ultimately always singular, and the double task of (a) getting it in view and (b) communicating it to others will inevitably be marked more often by failure than success!” WayDifferentPlayCertainViewsPlayerUniqueTasksCommunicatePerceiveTennisStrokesDistinctiveTennis PlayerHeidegger Author:George Pattison
“Schleiermacher, however, starts by attempting to find what he takes to be a basic element of the human condition as such, namely, that we did not invent ourselves but find ourselves born into a life and a world that precedes us in manifold ways.” WorldWayHumansBornConditionsElementsHuman ConditionAttemptingManifold Author:George Pattison
