Science and Religion

MEDIA AND RELIGION

The title caused in me a sense of wonder, amazement and so did confuse me a little bit. Anthony Toffler in his book ‘Three Waves’ speaks of three shifts that human life has taken from the beginning: The first wave according to him is Agricultural wave, the second is Industrial Wave and the third is Digital Wave. The post-modern human being is in the digital wave. It is all the science and the miracles of science. He/she is in the digital wave, amidst the science, living in the world with the human being. And so there arises a need for human being to know briefly about the universe, human being, religion and science as they are fundamental and basis for human life. They shape and fashion the human being as religious in religion with the media.

Universe, Human Being, Religion and Science

            The universe, that we live in and have our being, is believed to have originated 14 billion years ago. There are different view points as regards to the origin of the universe. The Bible says in the book of Genesis, “The universe was created by God and everything with in it and He found everything Good.” The modern science affirms and proves that “First there was an atom and from it came the whole universe or in other words combination of different Atoms made the universe to originate.” However I don’t claim my self to any theory but my point is that there is universe now and human being is in the universe.

            The human being is from the beginning of the universe or came in between is still a hot debate. However the history of human being is recorded from 6, 00,000 years ago. There are different stand-points regards to the creation of human being. The holy Bible says, “Man created by God with the mud and breathed into the nostrils the life, and after a while taking a rib from the man he created woman.”  On the other hand science says “Man has evolved from monkey to the present status.” Here also I neither claim to Bible nor to Science, because the fact is, that he/she exists both influenced by God and Science.  

            Religion is a strong binding force that unites human being to God and it was there from the beginning of universe. We know the Religion proper and have history from 2,500 years ago and the eminent figures were Gautama Buddha, Mahavira and Jesus Christ. Not claiming to anything I affirm, that Religion has its roots in the heart of man for his ever-evolving and ever-emerging desire to connect him self to God and thus becomes the founder of Religion.

The science, the cause of drastic change is of just 500 years ago. But in the modern world it has become the power, the change of the modern world. It changes everything. In the modern world everything is in the preview of science. Science the most powerful monster in the modern world, whose strength is incredible benefits to the humanity and at the same time it is also dangerous to humanity and destroys universe if not properly handled.

In the post-modern and scientific and technological world, the so- called science is becoming God of the world. The world every minute is no more the world of one minute ago. At Every minute there is a new discovery, new invention, and a new creation wiping out completely the old and giving birth to the new. And the media has a dominant share in the complete change of the world. As a consequence the faith of the religious and also widely the faith of the modern human being is being tested and challenged constantly. One of the miracles that dominates and influences the very being of human in the world is Media.

Religious Life and Media

           

            Really speaking there is no connection between religious life and media neither in history nor in the growth of human being. They are independent of each other. One can stand strong without the support of the other. This is the past. The present scenario is that it is media that dominates. All gaze towards the media and not towards the religious life. In other words, in the present day, religious life has become stagnant and where as media has become a dynamic reality evolving and that evolves everything. It is both active and passive

            Religion gives birth to religious life. Religious life is almost from the beginning of the first century with the St Anthony of the Desert (in Christianity). It can be defined as unwillingness to live in the pleasures of the world and being fed up with the world. Anthony chose to live away from the world to be one with God. Religious Life is actually to live in a secluded place and a way of being with God to become God. The whole life is a commitment to God in and through the service rendered to people of God. This revolution had primarily flooded whole of Europe and then to the whole world. This is the past. The present is that God is digitalized and mediated through the media by religious to the people where in the beginning their life was media that communicated God.

            Media is a really a marvel and a miracle of Science. Media can be defined as “any means used to communicate to the people through paper, television, internet and mobile and etc… The modern means of media like mobile and internet (30years old), television (70 years old), and computer (60 years old) are just recent inventions that rule the world. Strictly speaking it has history of 150 years old and not more than that. The modern human being is in the net of media that shows him/her life process and not the way of life. 

Conclusion

            The Modern religious should make media, not God but Good use of it to proclaim God, not a slave to it but a master over it, it is a help in the mission and not a hinder in the mission, not a necessity but a want, do not become a victim but a victor over the media, not get influenced but influence people through it, to come near God. The media constructs or destroys the self. The religious should construct God through media and make Him known through all the earth for this is the cause that should force, drive and motivate the religious. 

Language- A Lovely Medium

LANGUAGE IS THE MEDIUM OF COMMUNICATION TO RELATE AND TO UNDERSTAND THE OTHER (WORLD, GOD AND HUMAN BEING) FOR AN AUTHENTIC LIFE

According to the philosophy of Existentialism, Human Being is thrown into the world. As a being who is thrown into the world, humans need to act. They act primarily towards searching for an identity through authentic life. Authentic life for human beings is a conscious and continuous that springs from relationship with and understanding of the other. In this pilgrimage towards authenticity, language becomes a pathway that determines our experience and influences the way we live and relate and understand a reality.

Language distinguishes human beings as human beings. It is more true to say that language makes them than we make the language. This way, as Heidegger says, language is the very essence and nature of human beings. In possessing language as fundamental dimension and direction of their existence, human beings primarily describe, and capture every reality within their capacity, through thought, imagination, interpretation, and conceptualization toward the solution of the problems they meet with in their lives. Human being is in a world where authentic life would be difficult without language. Language by its very nature designed for communication. It shapes human thinking, colouring human knowledge and thus operates the world.

Authentic Relationship and understanding require dialogical openness in which beings are opened to the other to facilitate the process of communication. Every relationship with reality presupposes knowledge of that reality. Every understanding of reality presupposes an interpretation. Knowledge-Interpretation and Interpretation-Knowledge are in language as they have their foundation in the language.

In the present existential scenario of rapid change and evolution, humans find it difficult to live an authentic life. This human quandary is accentuated by the ambiguity of human communication, which can be distorting and violent and on the one hand, therapeutic and transformative, on the other. Our human task as beings of language, in journey towards authenticity, is to relate and understand the other.

Language is a symbol that helps human being to conceptualize thought through articulated speech, sign and touch that promote the process of communication between the sender and the receiver. Inevitably this leads to I-It relationship and when strong to I-Thou relationship. It further leads to I-It understanding with/of every reality and when sturdy to I-Thou understanding for an authentic life with the Other.

Personal Educational Philosophy

PERSONAL EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY

                Personal Educational Philosophy is really something Greek[1] to me till before the course on Philosophy of Education. At once it wonder struck me and made me to philosophize, reflect and wonder as to what is my educational philosophy? After my own reflection and the guidelines of the professor, the educational philosophy that I arrived at is this:

                I arrived at my educational philosophy not as inheritance but as the gift of my own heart and mind through reflection inside me and outside me.  The nature of human being is according to me is fragile and so always needs care, support, instruction and guidance. I very much believe this comes from education.[2]  Education is needed to make human being a person, a person of integrity with prudence to choose between right and wrong. In the process human being recognizes in him a person. It becomes pointless and meaningless when an educated person is not sensitive to the needs of the people. It becomes a hidden treasure when it is not shared.

                There is nothing called what counts as successful teaching. There are no successful teachers. Only fruitful teachers whose intention to give and instill in the values of life in the learner at no cost by their exemplary and simple life not only in the academic premises but everywhere all the time gives fruitfulness in the life of educator. This requires a healthy relationship between an educator and a learner. Educator sees to that the learner is taught with care and love and in turn the learner must accept teachings with the same care and love of the educator. It is not superior and inferior relationship but a relationship that exists between a mother and a son. The student should see in the educator a loving mother whose love makes the learner to do everything out of love and joy.

                The curriculum according to me must not only be subject oriented which is bare minimum but also must be bringing the learner in a holistic perspective the perspective that not only makes the learner live in the world but helps to cope up with the world. In other words, it is educating the learner to life. The learning happens in the learner through communication. It is only through language[3] that knowledge is passed from one to another. The only method that I use in imparting knowledge is the method of emptying.[4]

                In the process of teaching and learning both the educator and learner are beneficiaries. It is not one way but mutual. As for my experience goes this is very natural.[5] The wall between teacher and student collapses when there is realization that educator is both a teacher and a student and that a learner is both a student and teacher.

                This is in gist my educational philosophy in which I believe strongly because it is the fruit of my own reflection and philosophizing. It may not be perfect but a perfect from my own point of view.

---

                [1] Greek would mean not thought about it.

                [2] Education as for me is getting degree (secondary) plus commonsense (primary). It is not only the property of the schools but also of family, street, shop and every place of that human being dwells.

                [3] For me language is both oral and verbal.

                [4] The method of emptying means giving out everything without keeping inside me.

                [5] Last year I was teaching in a school where I experienced that even the students can teach me in their own and limited way irrespective of their age and class.