Albert Einsteln as Seen by Artists

Abstract

To commemorate the 80th birthday on 9 December 1980 of Dr Joseph Needham – a Member of our Editorial Board – we are here publishing a somewhat condensed progress report of what has been rightly called ‘the greatest single act of historical synthesis and intercultural communication ever attempted by one man’. After describing its contents, Dr Needham gives a preliminary outline of his methodology, how he has quarried Chinese literature and iconography, how he has immersed himself in China's living tradition to interpret correctly her past and how he has mastered the often century-old technical terminology of Chinese science – only thus could he build his oecumenical university. He concludes here with the hope that this vast study, so felicitously begun, will continue ‘as limitless as is all history’.     

Without Faith,Tsar, and Fatherland

This book excerpt explores the impact of the February revolution on periodical publishing in wartime Russia. It briefly considers the publishing activities of various political parties, but the main focus is publications by and for the active-duty army. The new freedom of the press allowed for dozens of new publications produced by soldiers themselves. Numerous other entities, including the civil authorities and public and private organizations, also published papers intended for the army, often with a pro-war message. But worsening problems with transport and supplies made it difficult to satisfy soldiers’ deep desire for news.     

Faith,Pluralism, and Public Engagement

Abstract

This essay is Miroslav Volf’s reply to the respondents to his book A Public Faith (2011). In the process of engaging his his respondents, the author articulates the main thesis and thrust of the book as well as the motivation behind writing it.     

真理、信念与历史研究——兼说人类历史发展规律

1．什么是真理真理这个概念在《大英百科全书》中没有相应的条目。《微软大百科辞海》中有四种定义：相符即真理,有用即真理,普遍一致即真理和削减的真理论。这里的任何一种定义都不能令人信服,它们仅仅给出了一些似是而非的答案,导致许多人从根本上否认真理的存在。我国的《辞海》和《中国大百科全书·哲学卷》都对真理的概念作出了明确的解释。《辞海》称：真理是对客观事物及其规律的正确反映,同“谬误”相对。《中国大百科全书·哲学卷》称：真理是与谬误对立的认识论范畴,指认识主体对存在于意识之外、并且不以意识为转移的客观实在的规律性的正确反映。这两种定义的突出特点是,把真理确定为认识主体对客观事物的规律和规律性的正确反映,指明了真理在认识领域中所处的地位。     

Liberal Government,Civil Society and Faith Communities

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between faith communities and the liberal system of government which operates in contemporary Britain. The problem addressed is as follows: liberal democracy relies upon the assumption of the validity of certain general truths: human rights, social justice, individual autonomy, and so on. In our postmodern society, however, social fragmentation has eroded the validity of such assumptions, leaving no universal or neutral benchmark through which to judge competing truth-claims. In particular, different faith traditions posit potentially incommensurable claims about what constitutes a good society. This article assesses the suggestion that in our pluralistic and differentiated society, more and more social decisions should be left to the market or to private rather than collective judgment and responsibility. It suggests various possibilities for reconceptualizing liberalism: for instance, as a modus vivendi providing a framework within which different moral outlooks can ‘live and let live’, but suggests that liberalism can have a positive moral content of its own, and need not be merely a coping mechanism for dealing with diversity.     

胡杨 传说中的信仰

<正>胡杨,沙漠,荒原,孤烟,落日,黄羊。沧海桑田,当曾经的古海成为如今的西部荒原,苍凉成为主色调。尽管这是个传说——"生而一千年不死,死后一千年不倒,倒了一千年不朽"——但却让很多人坚信不疑。在一片茫茫中,能坚守住信仰的,才能成为英雄。1生活的神奇,在于多彩。蓝天白云、红叶褐干,远离霓虹和尘嚣,去荒原朝圣,不再膜拜铜臭,向荒原的守护者们深深鞠躬,心里的污浊一扫而空。2这胡杨,像极了中国的农民,在贫瘠中自得其乐,在匮乏中默默耕耘。如果你不接近他们,他们总是不起眼的,但靠近之后,你会惊叹他们的伟大!伊甸园的欢乐是无人能拒的。每个人有每个人的伊甸园,他们甘愿于此。