Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 12:29:07 EDT
Subject: Re: Ethics of Aesthetics?


Steve wrote:

>>It is not that religion is a 'hot button' in personal terms but rather that
the issue of religion and the spirit contains a range of what I take to be
invidious and dangerous grand-narratives that I deeply dislike. It wasn't 
until I read
'Peregrinations' that I understood why Lyotard did not incorporate the
dominant religious tendencies within his grand narratives argument. I
maintain incidentally that. all your arguments support my contention that the 
'religious grand narrative/meta narrative' is ended and the proliferation of 
religious and
spiritual narratives supports this.>>> 
 
        Invidious and dangerous but not gone.

        Why didn't Lyotard incorporate the dominant religious
        tendencies within his grand narratives argument?

        While the proliferation of religious and spiritual
        narratives may be a trend, I hardly see them displacing the 
Judeo/Christian
        narratives.

        How does a postmodernist account for the high percentage of
        people who still accept, if not practice, the theistic dogma.

        I continue to ask because I think the major contribution of
        postmodern theory is the identification of the withering away of the 
grand
        narratives but when it comes to the end of theistic religion where's 
the
        evidence? 

Steve Continues,

>>>I would not suggest that religion will not exist and will continue to do 
so,
I think however that it is as Nancy stated a 'weak knowledge' which needs
tobe understood and analyzed in its contemporary forms as >a continuation of
the indo-european and indo-iranian myths and legends... The key word is
'myth' - the underlying problem remains: 
the reactionary results of nearl yall religious practice - when taken
outside of the individual human realmand placed in the social field >itself.
This has become a greater problemsince mass industrialisation >and threatens
to become more so.>>>

        The key word from above is not 'Myth' it is 'continues'.

        Maybe this is an issue with me because I got caught using
        religion as one of the examples of the end of metanarratives and when
        challenged couldn't defend my position.

        Don