Replying to LO8910 -- Kent Myers wrote:
> Perhaps dialogue is rare because the ground is never right. Trivial
> topics aren't worth talking about seriously, while serious topics can't be
> talked about openly. LO seems to hover between the two. Openness means
> living in a state of tension, and a lot of people find it uncomfortable.=20=
Openness to me means being able to open up your entire thought processes and =
contents to examination via dialogue. This can be an uncomfortable process =
!!!
My problem with religions today is that they seek to structure people's =
lives by a set of values, yet provide little guidance on how to implement =
these values in _today's_ society (or how these values affect you in day to =
day situations).
I believe the emphasis in most religions (or at least the ones I've tried) =
is in structuring your values. Whilst this may have been appropriate in the =
2nd and 3rd century (and maybe for children), religions have failed to =
recognise that societies have progressed (cultural learning ?), and that =
what most people require is not hearing the same set of values again and =
again, but rather, how those values apply today in the society that exists =
today (and better yet, how do we apply those values to make a better society =
tommorrow).
I think open of the biggest impediments to this happening is the fact that =
the clergy is isolated from the rest of society. How can you preach about =
how to apply values in society, if you don't actively participate in that =
society and experience and understand what it means to live in the society? =
(this is starting to sound like the "how do we learn" type threads !!).
I'm becoming increasingly convinced that all organisations, not just =
religions (and probably individuals too) are encountering this problem. You =
cannot be a learning organisation unless you are willing to open up and =
question all your values and "knowledge". The values that you end up =
agreeing to must then be interpreted in terms of the society in which you =
operate - closing your organisational culture from the rest of society has =
both advantages and disadvantages !!!
The problem here of course is how many of us are willing to _really_ bare =
our souls to reap the benefits of learning?
John O'Neill
DSTO C3 Research Centre, Australia
email: John.ONeill@dsto.defence.gov.au=
--"John O'Neill" <jao@cook.dsto.gov.au>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>