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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2017 10:03:01 GMT -5
It has been a long time, Alistair, Jason and Uncle Henry! What are you all up to today?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2017 10:13:40 GMT -5
Uncle Henry's imminent arrival in Britain has unsurprisingly caused a flurry of diplomatic activity. Will he want to see Her Majesty the Queen, for example? What about the Prime Minister, Theresa May? Will he want to visit Ireland, for example, to make peace with the Republic of Ireland? How does he propose to get there?
What are the implications for Stormont? How about Scotland, Alistair? Is Nicola Sturgeon available for talks with Uncle Henry? How about Leanne Wood? What if Uncle Henry proposes a new constitutional settlement for the United Kingdom? Does not Westminster want a say, Jason?
As for the European question, what does Brexit really mean for Uncle Henry? What about the single currency, the single market and the European parliament? Is he going to run for President, and can anyone stop him being elected as President of the European Commission, the European Council and the European parliament?
What is Uncle Henry up to tonight? Is he flying to London? If so, what does he intend to do once he gets here, Slightly Optimistic? Audit government spending? Enter Brexit negotiations in Brussels, Jason?
Go to Buckingham Palace on official business? As a Tasmanian, Uncle Henry is a loyal subject of the Crown and the British Commonwealth! Do you share his loyalty? Or are you more European by nature, Alistair?
After taking in an exhibition at the British Museum, why not dine with Uncle Henry, Alistair and Jason, under the magnificent roof of the Great Court! The Great Court Restaurant is a refined dining experience with a casual feel, where the open kitchen shows a glimpse of the chefs at work. We serve fresh seasonal mains, afternoon tea and exclusive exhibition-inspired menus. Dinner is served on Friday evenings to coincide with the late opening of the Museum.
Opening times
Lunch Afternoon tea* Dinner* - Fridays only
11.30–15.00 15.00–17.30 17.30–20.30
Or would you prefer living with the very gods themselves? Beliefs in spiritual beings and worlds beyond nature are characteristic of all human societies. By looking at how people believe through everyday objects of faith, this exhibition provides a perspective on what makes believing a vital part of human behaviour.
Seeing how people believe, rather than considering what they believe, suggests that humans might be naturally inclined to believe in transcendent worlds and beings. Stories, objects, images, prayers, meditation and rituals can provide ways for people to cope with anxieties about the world, and help form strong social bonds. This in turn helps to make our lives well-ordered and understandable.
The exhibition includes objects of belief from societies around the world and through time. It begins with a remarkable 40,000-year-old mammoth ivory sculpture known as the Lion Man. Depicting a lion’s upper body on the lower half of a man, it is the oldest known image of a being that does not exist in nature. It is the earliest evidence we have of beliefs and practices, and shows humans’ unique ability to communicate what’s in our minds through objects.
Different areas of the show will look at key themes of belief. The significance of light, water, fire and energy is revealed, linked to the idea that religious experience is governed by our senses. Objects reflect how people connect to worlds beyond nature through the natural environment or in specially built spaces. Other objects show the power of prayer, the importance of festivals and pilgrimage, and the marking of key life experiences – birth, coming of age, marriage and death. The long history of conflict and coexistence between different religions and beliefs is also explored. Together, the objects in the exhibition offer a fresh perspective on practices of belief and how they are hugely important for societies, as well as individual believers.
This exhibition is part of the fourth collaborative project between the British Museum, the BBC and Penguin Books. It builds on a Radio 4 series of 30 daily programmes over six weeks presented by former Director of the British Museum Neil MacGregor.
British Museum - Exhibitions - Living with gods
From 23 October, Radio 4 and the British Museum embark on the fourth major project coming out of their public service partnership. Exploring the role and expression of shared beliefs in lives and communities through time and around the world, Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum, returns to Radio 4 to present this landmark 30-part series. The British Museum also presents a major exhibition on this theme, opening on 2 November 2017.
Throughout the radio series Neil draws upon objects and curatorial insights from the British Museum and beyond, with a focus on two or three objects in each programme. As with his last Radio 4 series, the multi-award winning Germany: Memories Of A Nation, Neil also travels to key locations - from the winter solstice in the ancient passage tomb at Newgrange in County Meath, Ireland, to the waters of the Ganges in India; from Jerusalem to a cave in southern Germany.
Across the series, the focus moves from daily and weekly practices, festivals, pilgrimages and sacrifices, to power struggles and political battles between beliefs, and between faiths and states.
Marking the end of the Radio 4 series, and following on from the success of River of Music, BBC Radio 3 will be broadcasting Sacred River: six hours of continuous classical music inspired by the major world faiths, from 9am to 3pm on Sunday 26 November. BBC World Service will broadcast the Radio 4 series weekly from Saturday 4 November. An accompanying book for the partnership will also be published by Allen Lane in Spring 2018.
Neil MacGregor says: “Questions of faith have, in recent decades, moved to the centre of the global political stage - an unexpected return to a centuries-old pattern. But what are the connections between structures of belief, and the structures of society?
"In this series, using objects from the British Museum, and talking to experts from many disciplines, we try to explore some of these questions, looking at communities from deep history to the present day, in Europe and around the world.”
Gwyneth Williams, Controller of BBC Radio 4, says: “The rational and analytical, enlightenment-understood nature of humanity informs much of modern society. But, of course, as the brilliant Neil MacGregor shows in this wide-ranging and important series, we are so much more than that. Over the last decade, around the world, religious and spiritual awareness has grown and begun to pose a different understanding of what it means to be human. Neil, in this series, shows the depth, complexity and beauty of that rich heritage.
As he describes it: "Homo sapiens is also 'homo religiosus'. I am proud to broadcast this series at this time, supported by our valued partner, the British Museum and its inspiring Director, Hartwig Fischer.”
Neil MacGregor and his BBC Radio 4 programmes are renowned for their unique way of telling stories through objects. This is the fourth collaboration between the British Museum and Radio 4, following on from Germany: Memories Of A Nation (2015), Shakespeare’s Restless World (2012) and A History Of The World In 100 Objects (2010) - all of which were produced by the Documentaries Unit in BBC Radio Production.
Throughout the series, Neil MacGregor draws on the expertise of curators at the British Museum, and talks to leading academics, writers and thinkers, including Mary Beard, Afifi al-Akiti, Marina Warner, Rowan Williams, Mona Siddiqui, Eamon Duffy, Sunil Khilnani, Julia Neuberger, Grayson Perry, Devdutt Pattanaik, Karen Armstrong, J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, Diana Eck, Linda Woodhead, A C Grayling, Amartya Sen, Diarmaid MacCulloch.
Living With The Gods will TX from 23 October 2017 over six weeks at 9.45am with a repeat at 7.45pm.
The programmes will be available to download via the BBC iPlayer Radio app, and a podcast of the series will start from 23 October. The Radio 4 website will feature six specially commissioned animations, each telling the story of a key object in the radio series. The animations are voiced by Neil MacGregor and illustrated by Scott Coello.
Overview of each week
Week one
The series begins with the emergence of society, starting with the Lion Man, a small ivory figure thought to be about 40,000 years old. Subsequent programmes this week focus on fire, including the role of fire in a Parsi temple in Gujarat, India; water, from Salisbury Cathedral to the Ganges; light, including a visit to Newgrange passage tomb in Ireland at the winter solstice; and seasonal renewal, where the objects include a corn figure of Osiris, from ancient Egypt.
Week two
The second week examines how religious practices acknowledge the transition through life. Programmes focus on the end of life, including Peruvian mummy bundles; the protection of the mother and infant in childbirth and in the early years; rituals around becoming an adult member of society; everyday activities in maintaining a faith, with objects including a 16th century ivory qibla, made for finding the direction of Mecca; and the role of weekly gatherings, including the importance of singing together as a congregation.
Week three
This week investigates ceremony, pilgrimage, rituals and sacrifice, including the creation of sacred spaces; the idea of pilgrimage including discussion of pilgrim souvenirs from locations visited by Chaucer’s Wife Of Bath; the importance of offerings and sacrifices; and the role and development of festivals.
Week four
Neil MacGregor considers the creation and the use of images, and the problems these activities can present. Programmes examine the idea of the presiding image; the making of images; the role of narrative images; the power of images; the role of iconoclasm; and the faiths which focus on the word rather than the image.
Week five
These programmes examine societies with many gods, or a pantheon of deities; the question of monotheism; the religions which travel beyond regional, national and continental boundaries; and questions of co-existence.
Week six
The final week examines religion’s place in society with a focus on the idea of the divine right of monarchs or rulers, the phenomenon of political leaders with a religious role, and tensions between national and religious identities.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2017 14:13:10 GMT -5
It has been a long time, Alistair, Jason and Uncle Henry! What are you all up to today? Not much, it seems! Whatever happened to the legendary kleines c? He emailed me to say that he needed help in The Third! Perhaps it is now time for The Fourth, Uncle Henry? German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) is considered the most influential thinker of the Enlightenment era and one of the greatest Western philosophers of all times. His works, especially those on epistemology (theory of knowledge), aesthetics and ethics had a profound influence on later philosophers, including contemporary ones. Besides establishing himself as one of the foremost Western philosophers, Kant also made an important contribution to science and is considered one of the most important figures in the development of modern science despite the fact that he was most interested in philosophy of science and knowledge that science produces. His main contribution to the rise modern science was its liberation from theology. Early Life Immanuel Kant was born to Johann Georg Cant and his wife Anna Regina Cant as fourth of nine children. His (paternal) grandfather was from Scotland where the surname Cant is still relatively common in the north. Immanuel decided to change his surname from Cant into Kant in order for it to meet the German spelling and pronunciation practices. Kant grew up under the influence of Pietism, a Protestant sect that was very popular in north Germany during the early 18th century. At the age of 8, he enrolled into a Latin Pietist school with an aim to study theology when older. However, he soon developed interest in Latin and the classics. At the age of 16, he entered the University of Königsberg and mainly dedicated himself to study of mathematics but he also began to develop interest in philosophy. In 1746, he was forced to leave the university due to his father’s death. For nearly a decade, he worked as a private tutor for three influential families in order to help his younger siblings. Later life and Death In 1755, Kant returned to the University of Königsberg to continue his education. Within the same year, he received a doctorate from philosophy. He spent the next 15 years working as a lecturer and made a living from fees that were paid by the students attending his classes. But he also devoted a lot of his time to writing on various topics although his greatest masterpiece – the Critique of Pure Reason was published only in 1781. A decade earlier, he finally became a professor at the University of Königsberg and taught metaphysics and logic until 1797. During the last years of his life, he became embittered due to loss of memory which severely affected his ability to work but he continued to write nearly until the very end of his life. He died in 1804, aged 80. Personal Life Kant was only 5 feet tall, thin and of fragile health. Nevertheless, he reached at the time extremely old age which he attributed to his strict daily routine. He got up at 5 o’clock every day and spent the next hour drinking tea, smoking his pipe and meditating. From 6 to 7 o’clock, he prepared for lectures he gave at home until 9 o’clock. He then worked in his study room until 1 o’clock and spent the next three hours dining, usually with his friends. After his only meal, he took a one hour walk and spent the afternoon and evening for reading and writing. The renowned German philosopher was completely dedicated to his work and never married. Work and Philosophy Kant’s philosophy is often described as the golden middle between rationalism and empiricism. He didn’t accept either of both views but he gave credit to both. While rationalists argue that knowledge is a product of reason, empiricists claim that all knowledge comes from experience. Kant rejected yet adopted both, arguing that experience is purely subjective if not first processed by pure reason. Using reason while excluding experience would according to Kant produce theoretical illusion. German philosopher published his first work – Thoughts on the True Estimation of Living Forces in 1747. Explaining the nature of space, Kant rejected post-Leibniz rationalists, arguing that metaphysic methods can prove the existence of essential force. Afterwards, Kant mainly focused on philosophical issues although he continued to write on science and similarly as Leibnizian also criticised Newton’s views. First notable Kant’s philosophical works were published only in the 1760s: The False Subtlety of of the Four Syllogistic Figures (1762) Attempt to Introduce the Concept of Negative Magnitudes into Philosophy (1763) The Only Possible Argument in Support of a Demonstration of the Existence of God (1763) Observations on the Feeling of the Beautiful and Sublime (1764) Inquiry Concerning the Distinctness of the Principles of Natural Theology and Morality, also known “the Prize Essay” (1764) After taking the office of a professor at the University of Königsberg, Kant wrote inaugural dissertation – On the Form and Principles of the Sensible and Intelligible Work (1770), after which he didn’t publish anything for more than one decade. But his next work, Critique of Pure Reason (1781) was followed by nearly a decade of original and influential works which turned the philosophical thought in a whole new direction. Kant’s most influential mature works include: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals (1785) Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science (1786) Critique of Practical Reason (1788) Critique of Judgement (1790) After the so-called critical period (named after his three Critiques, published between 1781 and 1790), Kant’s health began to deteriorate rapidly but he continued to write. The most important works of the post-critical period include Religion within the Limits of Reason Alone (1793) and Metaphysics of Morals (1797).
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 0:10:04 GMT -5
Hello! My name is Charlie, Champagne Charlie! I shall be entertaining today! Why not all join me at home?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 0:13:43 GMT -5
What I suggest is that you get on a train to Valence. I shall meet you at the station this afternoon, Uncle Henry! We could all have lunch together! Let's catch up on old times! Anne-Sophie Pic
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 0:19:24 GMT -5
The British seem to me to be making something of a mess of Brexit negotiations, dryslwyn44! I don't understand why they are trying to get a deal, Uncle Henry, when a deal is well nigh impossible to achieve. A more sensible approach would be The Third approach: relax, and have lunch with Charlie and Anne-Sophie in Valence! They could even teach you a thing or two!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 3:38:59 GMT -5
The only successful integration of Europe was the conversion of Europe to Christianity, which took over a thousand years during the Middle East, and left Islam confined to the Balkans and Andalucia! It could be argued that the concepts of Christendom and Europe are interchangeable! As for the future, churches lie empty and people have lost their faith. O ye of little faith! So long as the roots are not severed, all is well and all will be well across the Continent of Europe!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 3:47:07 GMT -5
The growth of Christendom decisively affected the character of European society and culture and thereby, the civilisation of the whole world. This explains why the coming of Christianity to Europe is worth examining further, Alistair, and in far greater detail! Do you go to church, Uncle Henry? How about you, Jason? Are you religious, and if so, in what sense?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 3:54:29 GMT -5
I am anti-religious, Uncle Henry! The gods do fight against themselves, Alistair, stupidly and in vain! We would be wise to avoid their wrath, Jason, as we may have created them in the first place! Things tend to change, much more, and much more quickly, than we appreciate! At the same time, things tend to change much less, and far more slowly, than we are aware of. Innovation and inertia tend to be exemplified in any specific historical situation. So for good or ill, we shall always find what happens next somewhat surprising!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 6:38:36 GMT -5
So why not try living with gods, rather than simply cohabiting their churches, mosques and temples, dryswlyn44?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 6:58:37 GMT -5
Well, the reasons are complex, but I suspect that the gods, if that is what they be, are cohabiting with us. Perhaps we ought to ask them to leave, in no uncertain terms, before they disappear again!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 7:59:32 GMT -5
Whosoever findeth him his life loses it; whosoever loseth him his life for my sake findeth it! So what are you going to do, Uncle Henry? Lose yourself again?
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