Barack Obama's stunning victory is a transformative event in American politics and in the American image. Bringing it home, it might also be very good for Ethical Culture, and the Bergen Society should try to build on it. Here's why:
1. An Obama presidency will open space on the ground for the re-emgergence of progressive grass-roots activism to which Ethical Culture has been historically dedicated.
2. It has mobilized large new sectors of the American public, thus underscoring that the commitment to causes, issues and ideals larger than the self is necessary and fulfilling. This sense of commitment is a manistay of Ethical Culture's institution building.
3. It has restored an element of intelligence to public discourse. For a long time, American society starting in the Oval Office has nurtured a dangerous and foolish anti-intellectualism. No one said, "I'm for Obama because he is kind of guy I would like to have a beer with." Rather his campaign was thoughtful, high-minded, without being condescendingly high-brow or off-putting. Intelligent analysis and discourse was the name of the game. He appealed to Americans on this basis.
Ethical Culture is a thoughtful movement which values reflection on the self, society and the world. A new intellectual climate should be good for us.
Let's build on these possibilities forcefully and without defensiveness.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Why not be good for goodness sake?
The American Humanist Association is embarking on an advertising campaign on Washington DC Metrobuses. Here's an article about the campaign from the Washington Post:
By John Kelly
Wednesday, November 12, 2008; Page B03If you sometimes find yourself praying for a seat on a crowded Metrobus, some atheists have a message for you: Don't bother.
They would say that, wouldn't they? Prayer's not their thing. And starting Tuesday they'll be bringing their unique brand of holiday message to area commuters. Advertisements will begin popping up on Metrobuses in the District that read: "Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake."
At a news conference at the National Press Clubyesterday, members of the American Humanist Association -- one of the country's leading atheist and agnostic organizations -- explained what they're up to.
"Our message is that all of us can have moral values as a natural result of who we are as a species and who we have become as a civilization," said Fred Edwords, the association's director of communications. "Each one of us knows what it means, generally, to be ethical."
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Obama and the Generations
One of the things I will have to assimilate into my understanding of an Obama presidency is that he is not of my generation. He is the first person to be elected president who is younger than I am, and by quite a bit.
In fact, Obama is closer to the generation of my students and my children than he is to mine. He is not a baby boomer, and this makes a difference in how we respectively organize our political understanding of the world. Barack Obama is not a product of the New Left, nor did he participate in the Civil Rights Movement nor the anti-War Movement.
What this may boil down to is that he does not articulate his politics through much of an ideological lens, nor a strident lens of a moral rectitude or ethical categories. (I am struck at not only how few references to the Civil Rights Movement he made during his campaign, but how his discourse differs from the moral language of Martin Luther King, for example, whose prophetic oratory was riddled with references to justice, and the Manichean dichotomies of good and evil).
We hear little of this from Obama. He seems to be all pragmatism, and given his stated commitment to unify the American people, his pragmatism adheres well with his aspirations.
We have entered a new era. It may not be fully mine as the world turns on, but I remain hopeful.
In fact, Obama is closer to the generation of my students and my children than he is to mine. He is not a baby boomer, and this makes a difference in how we respectively organize our political understanding of the world. Barack Obama is not a product of the New Left, nor did he participate in the Civil Rights Movement nor the anti-War Movement.
What this may boil down to is that he does not articulate his politics through much of an ideological lens, nor a strident lens of a moral rectitude or ethical categories. (I am struck at not only how few references to the Civil Rights Movement he made during his campaign, but how his discourse differs from the moral language of Martin Luther King, for example, whose prophetic oratory was riddled with references to justice, and the Manichean dichotomies of good and evil).
We hear little of this from Obama. He seems to be all pragmatism, and given his stated commitment to unify the American people, his pragmatism adheres well with his aspirations.
We have entered a new era. It may not be fully mine as the world turns on, but I remain hopeful.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
OBAMA!
It is more than a political victory -- It's a world-historical moment. Out of the history of American racism, replete with slavery, lynching, apartheid and hatred for the black man, the emergence of Barack Obama as president, reflects shifts in the American landscape -- demographic, political ethical -- which are simply monumental and unimaginable just a short while ago.
Yes, America is changing - from a white-dominant society to an ethnically and racially pluralistic one. It is also changing in its political appreciation of racism. Both the Civil Rights movement of 40 years ago, and the "cultural left," with its doctrines of inclusion and tolerance, have made an Obama victory possible. Moreover, the younger the generations see color less, and humanity more; perhaps a real advance for the universalistic values inherent in humanism.
But Obama's was more than a political campaign; it was a movement. One of the extraordinary features of this almost flawless political campaign was the grassroots engagement of young people, and of constituencies in which political involvement had grown apathetic, cynical and bloodless. Building upon this foundation of activism will be one of Obama's greatest challenges.
There is also great moral power in the imagery of an Obama presidency. It speaks to an American audience with the promise of what is possible and the message that nothing is pre-ordained. And it speaks to an international audience about the resilience of American democracy, and the potency of such ideals as inclusion, equality and opportunity.
Though he will enter office with unprecedented challenges, which may submerge the productivity of his vision, for the moment the Obama triumph occupies a unique position in American history and the American experience.
It is time for us to feel good about ourselves.
Yes, America is changing - from a white-dominant society to an ethnically and racially pluralistic one. It is also changing in its political appreciation of racism. Both the Civil Rights movement of 40 years ago, and the "cultural left," with its doctrines of inclusion and tolerance, have made an Obama victory possible. Moreover, the younger the generations see color less, and humanity more; perhaps a real advance for the universalistic values inherent in humanism.
But Obama's was more than a political campaign; it was a movement. One of the extraordinary features of this almost flawless political campaign was the grassroots engagement of young people, and of constituencies in which political involvement had grown apathetic, cynical and bloodless. Building upon this foundation of activism will be one of Obama's greatest challenges.
There is also great moral power in the imagery of an Obama presidency. It speaks to an American audience with the promise of what is possible and the message that nothing is pre-ordained. And it speaks to an international audience about the resilience of American democracy, and the potency of such ideals as inclusion, equality and opportunity.
Though he will enter office with unprecedented challenges, which may submerge the productivity of his vision, for the moment the Obama triumph occupies a unique position in American history and the American experience.
It is time for us to feel good about ourselves.
Saturday, November 01, 2008
This I Believe: Evan Gross
Bergen Ethical Sunday school graduate and former YES national president Evan Gross spoke at a recent St. Louis Ethical Society Platform. Evan, son of Bergen President Ed Gross and past President Diana Gross, was one of three panelists who addressed the Society on the theme of "This I Believe".
The talk, which was deeply personal, was given on September 27, 2008. It can be heard here (search for "gross").
This I Believe is a popular NPR radio segment, and is based on Edward R. Murrow's 1950's radio program of the same name.
Jesus Sent Home from Paramus School
In what may be an historic first, Jesus' mother (whose first name, according to a Bergen Record article, is not Mary) was called to take him home early from school.
In an amusing twist of an early season Christmas, eighth-grader Alex Woinski dressed up for Halloween as Jesus. He was told by his Vice Principal, according to The Record, that "the costume was offensive to certain children" and he'd have to go home. (The Paramus Superintendent told the Record that Alex was not asked to go home, but rather to remove his fake beard and crown of thorns. He then chose to go home so he could take off the costume.)
In an interesting side note, a commentator on The Record's website who claims to be West Brook Middle School teacher Barry Marcello proclaims "This concern came from fellow Christians who thought this outfit (especially the thorns) were a bit over the top! ... I am a Christian. JESUS IS SACRED--not something to be poked fun at on Halloween. School administrators are afraid nowadays thanks to people like you who are ready to publicly 'crucify' them for any decisions they make." Take this fellow with a grain of salt, though. There is no teacher listed on the school's website with the name he claims. (Reader comments can be viewed at the bottom of the article.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
