Aesthetics and Survival
The title sounds a little
drastic, but I feel that unless humanity takes greater account of aesthetics in a global context, the possibility of
its survival in its present form here on earth seems debatable. In this context I am looking at Aesthetics in its
widest holistic sense, to place to the fore ideas not only of beauty, goodness and truth, but of imagination, social
cohesion and responsibility.
Survival - the choice, left or right hemisphere
existence. In determining this we need to look at the reason why humanity exists. In my mind there are
two basic choices. Either is it to acquire success through acquiring power, money and goods (i.e. operating within
the narrow materialistic confines of time spent on planet earth as the only parameter of existence), or is it to
acquire knowledge and information which will enhance the whole spectrum of human ability within the timeless context
of the universe - not only the intellect but dwelling on compassion, imagination, social awareness and artistic
ability? Science has expanded our total view of not only the creation of the universe and the forces which govern
its evolution, but also of planet earth, its self regulating systems and the place of humanity as but one of the
living species needing to respect the underlying principle of nature which favours no one when it comes to survival.
Yet we rarely use such knowledge to expand our individual horizons.
So, what are
the dangers of a materialist existence? Probably about 1% of the population govern
the thrust of human development and of this only 1% think of planet earth. Here, I feel, it is an
underlying problem of not only who rules, but also of the recent and remorseless movement in our brains towards a
left hemisphere approach to life. In this I encompass not only politics, but also religion, the educational
establishment, the leaders of industry - notably multinationals and advertising, and the media - television, radio
and newspapers. Collectively these are the modern shapers of society. The problem is that, so often, they are in the
hands of the few who have very personal or amoral attitudes to the development of society, promoting the sound bite
of populist politics based on imagined fears, the quick financial solution of credit, the latest techno must-have, a
fashion industry often dependent on sweat shops, or the glossy pseudo-scientific presentation with hidden
anti-religious agenda. Further, these controllers of our destiny are increasingly people driven by a need for power,
control, profit, people who are highly competitive, who see things in black and white, in the here and now and who
admit no opposition - i.e. those with psychopathic tendencies redolent of a singular left hemisphere domination.
(For a more detailed account of the rise of psychopathy go to the following page on my personal web site).
The danger to the Christian religion, embroiled in this materialistic approach. First
the local reality of expression. Here, theological research never filters down to the level of the pew.
There are, for example, few universities with biblical theology as part of a degree course which do not exercise
some mental discipline in the treatment of the Hebrew Bible, its composition and origins. Yet what greets us Sunday
by Sunday in church but unexplained readings termed "This is the word of the Lord". Too often the ordained
ministry is filled with those who have never studied critical theology because they are assured that all that is
needed is pastoral theology which they study at theological college, a rather anaemic presentation centred on
liturgy and social awareness, the practicalities of presenting modern Christianity rather than the inherent
discipline of negotiating the problems of belief arising from a critical examination of the sources.
Christianity for common consumption thinks only in materialistic left hemisphere terms of
planet earth and of obedience to set rules, and within this narrow spectrum only the fallen plight of
humanity based on a highly dubious interpretation of the story of creation and Adam. This has enabled them to adopt
a highly necessary high ground in terms of moral and social cohesion and responsibility but has done very little to
stimulate personal spirituality or development, one of the greatest extant needs of the present society.
Secondly, problems posed by asserting the global impact of the message, Jesus dying for the
sins of the whole world (not merely planet earth). Fine for a fifth century view of life when Jerusalem
was regarded as the centre of the know world and the only opposition was from the dying embers of belief in the
Roman/Greek pantheons of gods among the cultured, or from the (regarded as) weird practices in the countryside of
wiccan, druidic or other nature based religions of defeated ethnic groups. Islam was not yet in existence while
Buddhism and Hinduism, being far to the east, had little impact. Knowledge of the universe and the possibility of
life elsewhere was primitive to say the least. Consequently life centred only on this planet and, spiritually and
morally, on Jesus, a natural progression of ideas. How different the viewpoint is now. Indeed, when one considers
Science and exploring the spiritual dimension of life, it would seem that many favour the more open ended approach
of Buddhist discipline with which to associate and experiment. For many, Christianity in its popular expression
seems too set in its past ways and ideas, too dogmatic.
Knowledge of true
Christianity is out there, available to all, but it is kept from the general public or from gaining
ground for a variety of reasons. Loss of power and influence, fear of shaking the foundations, fear of change,
acceptance of the status quo into which they were born, desire to push their own agenda, inertia, lack of an open
and evolving quest for truth, or merely preservation of self interest of having climbed the greasy ladder to power
and success they comfort themselves with the thought that they are part of the (rather questionable) apostolic
succession handing down to followers that which they received.
The same is true for
many religions. The great religion of Islam, for example, has been hijacked in the public mind by
fundamentalists with their demands for Sharia law and terrorist fatwahs, while the noble religion of Jesus, Judaism,
has been appropriated to one of a land grab in modern Israel, no matter what the consequences, because that is what
many, especially in Israel, consider God gave to them 3,000 years ago.
In all these
cases we see the dominance of the left hemisphere in action, the failure to see the whole picture, to be
forward looking on a global scale, evolutionary and compassionate, and ultimately to use the aesthetic gifts of
creation to progress humanity onto a new level of existence. Unfortunately the left hemisphere is like an empty
vessel. It makes the most sound yet is empty within. It engenders too many self induced, non-negotiable
standards.
Science, unfortunately, has contributed much in terms of attitudes to
the malaise. It is a paradox. To experience the benefits of science we need experiments, results and
information. For these to be accurate requires verification and certainty to be reproduced time after time. Thanks,
however, to its popularisation and spread into all areas of human existence such a quest for unrelenting results has
now begun to infect every area of life, even health, aided in the media by many a programme proclaiming that the
material world is the only verifiable state of existence. Consequently we too look for a black and white reality to
govern our whole sense of well being. This is especially so at a time when the pace and complexity of life is on the
increase and we start to look for some form of certainty around which to solidify our being. At a time when we are
hit by global depression and all talk is of austerity, job loss and the growing gap between rich and poor, our minds
are being constantly encouraged to think of life in a narrow left hemisphere way, i.e. in terms of material comfort
and well being. This is the only way to happiness and fulfilment. Politics, consumerism and the media fare equally
badly, yet our lives are governed by such organisations. Together they force humanity to see their existence purely
in terms of money, objects, certainties and power, all expressions of the left hemisphere.
The problem is that these lobbies are powerful and persuasive. Compared with them the
Arts, religion, aesthetics in general are in retreat because they inevitably lack the clout which finance and big
business bring. Moreover they are too often hide bound by cultural baggage. At a time of austerity, or discussions
over how to handle riots, the Church of England, from letters in its flagship publication, the Church Times, is more
concerned with the problems of ordaining women bishops.
What do we need to
survive? Humanity is a curious entity. We look for some form of authority to lead us and are relatively
happy even when they go off the rails occasionally. But at times they go too far and then battle arises. We see this
in the present generation with the growing opposition to bankers and financiers. Real change tends to start with
local and popular uprisings, rather than with the leaders who, more often than not, are concerned with their own
survival. What, therefore, we need are catalysts for change, the spread of such information, and the use of all
means to spread the message so that it becomes and overwhelming movement. It is clear from recent events that we
cannot look to the Church (much too involved in hierarchical and compromising survival). It is up to us!!
.
