User:Langdell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).

Contents

[edit] Welcome

It is a great privilege to be a contributor to Wikipedia, an important development in the evolution of human knowledge and an act of great faith on the part of its creators. In this critical time of rapid and sweeping change across the globe it is of enormous importance for the healthy development of future humanity that the quality of our understanding is superior to that of our ancestors and that the rigid adherence to sectarian beliefs (whether religious or scientific), which once divided humanity gives way to mutual respect and a willingness to accommodate ideas and beliefs at first glance foreign to those we so cherish. In overcoming fear and paranoia; scorn and contempt, we will find to our surprise, that the values of the other we once feared and looked down upon are at heart so very much like our own. Lest we fall prey to the relativistic subjectivism of our age, however, an ever vigilant commitment to objectivity, honesty and the unmasking of our own hypocrisy will be needed to see us through this most vulnerable epoch.

[edit] A New Approach to Human Knowledge

The culture hero of the European Renaissance was a human being who had acquired some expertise in several different disciplines. Not for its effectiveness in gaining the affections of women was this ideal venerated but because it was understood that the skills gained in disparate fields were mutually enhancing. As well as informing our modern liberal education system, this wisdom lies behind the concept of the cross-referenced encyclopedia. Nowhere is the interdependence of all things more clearly reflected. And our age above all others is being called to awaken from our ignorance of this fundamental property of our being-in-the-world. The inclusive ethic of Wikipedia's editorial policy is of such noble spirit that one cannot but be moved by the patience and faith that sustains it. One may be tempted by the demons of impatience and scepticism in this process and hand the responsibility for each article over to culturally designated 'experts' but so as ye sow in your inner attitude, so shall ye reap in the fruits of your labour. Viewed as an exercise in higher civilization, the quality of faith that we bring to this project will determine whether or not we move mountains.

[edit] What Do I Know?

When asked who was the wisest among the Greeks, the oracle at Delphi replied that it was Socrates. On being told this, Socrates was troubled and tried to understand what it could mean. The only explanation he could offer was that he knew and freely admitted that in fact he knew nothing. It was, however, this willingness to admit his own ignorance that revealed his wisdom for indeed without this admission how can we learn anything, for we are so full of the opinions and beliefs that we already hold. Suzuki Roshi famously taught, "In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities but in the expert's there are few".

In light or perhaps spite of all this, nonetheless, I do think of myself as having a special interest in the following areas in which I hope to contribute, God-willing, in forthcoming weeks. These areas are closely related:

Also, I have an abiding interest in the following:

[edit] Is This a Vanity Page or a Personal Essay?

An excellent question and one which I am considering at this very moment. This page originated at the suggestion of a fellow Wickepedian who had been monitoring my progress and who described my contributions so far as 'nice', a word derived, of course, from the Latin nescient meaning 'ignorant'. In the short term my user name will no longer be highlighted red thus disturbing the visual field of others.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../l/a/n/User%7ELangdell_f9fb.html"