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To: betty boop
Thank you so very much for your fascinating essay-post!

The striking prophetic developments in Jerusalem were fairly contemporaneous with the noetic outburst in Athens. If we can say that the classical Greeks discovered the foundations of modern science, then I think we can equivalently say that the ancient Jews discovered the foundations of the historical method. The history of Western civilization tells us that both disciplines have been needful, even indispensable, to account for where we are now. Both science and history being "evolutionary developments." Or so it seems to me.

Very interesting meditation! I had long considered the cut of reason (Greek) and revelation (Jew) - as Justin Martyr described, but I hadn't considered the roots of the historical method.
165 posted on 03/03/2006 10:06:56 PM PST by Alamo-Girl
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To: Alamo-Girl; .30Carbine; marron; hosepipe
I hadn't considered the roots of the historical method.

Hi A-G! Actually I'm not pleased with the "historical method" terminology in the above. I was struggling to express the idea that the Jews were the first in all humanity to conceive of history as a significant dimension of life in all ages. And they were able to construct histories because they stood in direct relation to the One God of the Torah: His Eternity provided the context in which the unfolding of the human record in historical time could proceed. (The ancient Greeks were the next cultural group to pick up on the writing of history.)

But of course, the writing of history is not the only legacy we have from Israel, let alone the most important one. The main thing is the spiritual revelation to the People of Israel by their God, and their subsequent ability to enter into direct spiritual communication and relationship with Him. After this, God is "personalized," not some mere abstraction. And the Logos is the manifestation of His Will, as the Word of the Beginning ("Let there be Light!") and (for Christians) the Son of God.

St. Justin Martyr integrated the spiritual insights of the Jews and the metaphysics of classical Athens. From this we may recognize that revelation and reason are the foundations of Christian theology. We know this from St. Justin, and from St. Augustine as well. And so i think reason and revelation are not antithetical; they are complementary.

Anyhoot, I regard Israel as the esteemed "elder brother" who is in my prayers.

Thank you so much for writing, dear sister!

174 posted on 03/04/2006 9:30:37 AM PST by betty boop (Scientific wealth tends to accumulate according to the law of compound interest. -- Lord Kelvin)
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