Divine Bivalve I confess: I am an oyster fanatic. So are most people who eat oysters. I just read Oysters: A Celebration in the Raw (2016) by Jeremy Sewall and Marion Lear Swaybill, which lovingly surveys the world of oysters. The oyster is praised, revered, celebrated, worshipped and adored—by farmers and consumers alike. It always […]
A Historical House I live in a historically designated house. Recently, I decided to look more closely into the history. It has changed my attitude to where I live. The house was built in 1923 of locally sourced coral rock, mined from the Venetian pool. It lies half a mile outside what is now Coral […]
American Philosophical Association I first attended the APA in 1977 and have attended it many times since, in various capacities. I found it quite enjoyable. I would go to papers, look at new books, hang out with old friends. I thought it was a good thing. But I haven’t been in twenty years, and it […]
A New Seven Deadly Sins I reject the old list of deadly sins, but what do I put in its place? The following: cowardice, conformity, credulity, malicious envy, stupidity, irrationality, ideology. These are mainly designed to fit contemporary academics, particularly American philosophers.
Semantics of Sin We all know about the so-called seven deadly sins: envy, gluttony, greed, lust, pride, sloth, and wrath. These are curious words; we do well to delve into their meaning. What is the correct semantic theory of sin words? We can contrast these words with other words in the moral vocabulary: murder, theft, […]
Absurd Cults One of the more hilarious aspects of my situation has received virtually no attention. The university actually accused me of trying to start a cult. Yes, you read that right—I am (or was) an aspiring cult leader! True, this is not against university rules, so I couldn’t be formally charged with it; but […]
Bald Eagles and Religion Religion is typically composed of beliefs, emotions, and practices. These are logically detachable. In particular, existential beliefs in respect of supernatural entities are not necessary to the existence of religious emotions and practices. In fact, they can undermine such emotions and practices if they are wildly implausible or rebarbative. If people […]
Anger and Lust Anger is closely related to hatred. The OED gives us “strong feeling of annoyance, displeasure, or hostility” for “anger”. For “hate” we have “intense dislike; strong aversion”. Hatred typically begins in anger at a perceived wrong; anger becomes hatred. It isn’t exactly the same as anger: there can be hatred without anger […]
Darwinian Theology Suppose we marry zoolatry with modern evolutionary science: what kind of offspring do we get? Are the two compatible or do we get only sterility? I think they are perfectly compatible and that we deliver an attractive baby; indeed, something with considerable power—scientifically and spiritually. We get a Darwinian religion, a science of […]
Beastly Religion I was watching a documentary about insects last night (Bugs that Rule the World). I was interested to discover that bugs are big in Japan, particularly butterflies, fireflies, and stag beetles (kids have them as pets). Butterflies are prized for their beauty, elegance, and otherworldliness. The attitude is vaguely religious (actually not so […]