Darwinism
A debate about Darwin,
evolution, and anthroposophy.
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From: Robert Flannery
Subject: Darwinism
Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 16:38:24 -0400
Dan Dugan says:
And if anyone doubts that Steiner's ideas
on evolution come into Waldorf, see the popular teaching handbooks:
"The man and Animal
period in the Rudolf Steiner school, which is given at about
the age of ten, is one of the most difficult from the teacher's
point of view. In the first place, the teacher must subscribe
to, or be in sympathy with, the ideas on evolution propounded
by Dr. Steiner. (Otherwise, of course, he should not be in the
school). More than that, he must also understand them and this
understanding is notsomething that can be acquired the night
before the lessons are given, nor is it something that can be
superficially communicated. ... Contrary to the Darwinistic ideas
of man being the final product of animal evolution, Dr. Steiner
considers animals to be the by-products of human development.
Man has been involved from the beginning but not in a physical
form. Man existed spiritually and the animal forms represent
physically incarnated soul forces which the human being had to
dispense with in order to mature sufficiently to receive the
ego."
[Wilkinson, Man and Animal, p. 2]
Wilkinson's booklets represent an *extremely*
dogmatic view, and are becoming more and more controversial.
I've heard it said that some within AWSNA are discouraging their
use, but at the same time AWSNA has officially promoted them
in a mailing they sent out less than a year ago. They also seem
to be steady sellers in the anthropop bookstores.
For those who might take issue with some of
Roy Wilkinson's ideas about waldorf pedagogy, there is an interesting
new title just out by Lindisfarne Books:
"Thinking Beyond Darwin: The Idea of
Type as a Key to Vertebrate Evolution", by Ernst-Michael
Kranich, 1999.
I've only just started it, but would be happy
to provide chapter-by-chapter updates if anyone is interested.
Robert Flannery
New York
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From: Bruce
Subject: Re: Darwinism
Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 18:47:00 EDT
In einer eMail vom 12.04.99 22:56:54 (MEZ)
- Mitteleurop. Sommerzeit schreibt
Robert Flannery:
Wilkinson's booklets represent an *extremely* dogmatic view,
and are becoming more and more controversial. I've heard it said
that some within AWSNA are discouraging their use, but at the
same time AWSNA has officially promoted them in a mailing they
sent out less than a year ago. They also seem to be steady sellers
in the anthropop bookstores.
There are many who write books and publish
them themselves (well many is maybe an exagerration), and those
wanting to glean things from them can and do. As I know Roy it
is easier to see what he meant, but in some sense almost anything
tends to become dogmatic when it is written down. I like reading
Wilkinson to make me think! The best books and lectures, for
me at least, are those where one comes away with more "question"
than "answer".
Bruce
This post continues
in another thread: Roy
Wilkinson and the "How-To" Books
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From: Daniel Sabsay
Subject: Darwin and Church story according to Tarjei
Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 22:30:40 -0700
Tarjei Straume wrote
This reminds me of a story I heard from
an entirely different quarter: Charles Darwin kept working on
his theory of evolution throughout his long life, and when he
died, there were stacks of unpublished manuscripts at his residence.
These manuscripts involved reincarnation and spiritual evolution
very similar to theosophy and anthroposophy. But when the arrangements
were being made for Darwin's funeral, the clergy from the Church
of England, who had been informed about what kind of ideas the
old man might publish some day, conveniently stole the unpublished
manuscripts from the estate and destroyed them. If Darwinism
had been given a spiritual direction by Darwin himself, it would
have been too much of a threat to the church, which still excercised
considerable influence over the spiritual life of the population.
I haven't found a confirmation of this story, but whether it
is true or not, it illustrates the course of Darwin's thoughts
and the attitude of the church.
Well, now, doesn't it depend on which parts
of this story you believe? Did these purported manuscripts really
contain what you alledge? Maybe it just illustrates YOUR attitude.
Daniel Sabsay Macintosh Consultant
http://www.eb-skeptics.org
Ignorance is the Ultimate Renewable Resource
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From: Tarjei Straume
Subject: Re: Darwin and Church story according to Tarjei
Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 19:45:55 +0200
Daniel Sabsay wrote:
Well, now, doesn't it depend on which parts
of this story you believe? Did these purported manuscripts really
contain what you alledge? Maybe it just illustrates YOUR attitude.
What I have described is a possibility. I
do understand that for many atheists and materialistic science
freaks, Charles Darwin is a saint and a guru, and that my suggestion
is offensive, sacrilegious blasphemy. For this reason, I apologize
if my post about Darwin has hurt anybody's feelings.
Cheers
Tarjei Straume
Greetings from Uncle Taz
http://www.uncletaz.com/
Anarchosophy, anarchism, anthroposophy, occultism,
Christianity, poetry,
plays, library, articles, galleries, marijuana, criminality,
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skeletons, banners, links, links, links. Big section in Norwegian.
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