Ask A Genius 464 – Spirituality as a Political Tool (1)
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen and Rick Rosner
Publication (Outlet/Website): Ask A Genius
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/12/05
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Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Conceptions of the world apart from factual knowledge. We take the scientific knowledge or a theology from the past, then they are applied to describe the real world in some way, either to derive meaning or functionality, or both
Another way that this has shifted is as a political tool. We have talked about how some spiritual conceptions of the world are used as political tools.
Rick Rosner: You’re talking about Evangelicals and politics.
Jacobsen: Not just them.
Rosner: Maybe, Saudi Rabia driving religious fervor up with anti-Western fervor in particular, and politicians using religious fervor for cynical purposes.
Jacobsen: Yes, I would extend this to Catholics and Evangelicals too, which are big hunks of the population.
Rosner: You’re from Canada. Is it there too?
Jacobsen: Take, for instance, Alberta or even Saskatchewan, there is controversy over the implementation of a single school system or a merger of the religious and secular public schools, to reduce costs.
Also, the Catholic kids are paying for the Catholic schools and the non-Catholics are paying for the Catholic schools, apart from the contentions of labeling kids “Catholic” rather than “kids with Catholic parents.”
The finance differential seems unfair to me. So, there is a proposal for a single educational system without any particular religious or other orientation.
Rosner: I am sure this pisses off a bunch of Catholics.
Jacobsen: 40% of the population are Catholics, so certainly.
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