An Entirely Fresh
Paradigm Grounded upon:
(1) An Ontology of
Neutral Monism
(2) A Novel Formalism of
Metamathematics
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The Purpose of these pages is to preview a forth-coming volume:
The New Monadology It came to be
written for two reasons, the one negative and the other positive.
● A sense of increasing
indignation -amounting to outrage- of what is being passed off
by the entrenched intelligentsia as a complete and sufficient
overview of the Larger Reality. The parched landscape of
their Secular Physicalism contemplates a Reality
destitute on the many fronts of ontology, metaphysics and
epistemology. It even displays a striking ellipsis on its
home territory -that of the Lex Naturalis.
● More positively, as a systematic working out
its replacement in terms of a long overdue "New Paradigm";
that which I am offering is grounded upon a novel ontology of
Neutral Monism.
You might say
that I was both driven by the stick and drawn by the
carrot. Here's a very
brief overview. All of the issues touched on will be explored in depth
within the website.
Mention above, of the need to confront all of the 'Great Questions' -particularly that
addressing
eschatology- makes it clear that we are 'into' matters of the sacred and its
relation to the secular. Even in the present day and age, this is almost
always miscast as the 'God question'. As customarily stated, this demands
that we make a choice between the case-hardened alternatives -as to the nature
of the larger Reality. Is it grounded upon a Divine person -holding sway
from eternity to eternity- or is it limited to the secular realm of cosmic
existence -as the currently ensconced scientific positivism demands? This is most unfortunate for the way in which it forecloses upon
most of the envelope of options -you might say that it 'jumps the gun'. As
they stand, I believe that both must be rejected -and surprisingly, upon grounds that are partly demonstrable.
A better point of departure would be a back away into more abstract queries -e.g.
over the ways in which Transcendence might be conceived, or just how the
distinction between holism and individualism is to be countenanced.
I believe that all we must necessarily start with, is an acceptance of an
eternal realm of Transcendence as the Source of cosmic existence, and that willy
nilly, personhood has a holistic as well as an individualistic aspect. This whole matter is explored in the
ontology
chapter.
My
thesis embodies these three principles.
O It must address and find answers
of some sort to all of the "Great
Questions' of Traditional Philosophy.
O That nothing short of a truly
New Paradigm is called for, that would not be in any sense
an extrapolation of the status quo, but must be a
completely fresh start honouring the traditions of System
Philosophy.
O Finally, that two essential
steps towards fulfilling its mission would be first -an
ontological shift towards a spiritual or neutral monism-
and second, a formal initiative aimed at bringing a 'Metamathematics'
into existence. This complement of its familiar
counterpart is needed to provide the scaffolding That nothing less than a shift
towards a Spiritual or Neutral Monism would satisfy
Inevitably, it is completely out of step with the political
rectitude of the present day. For a start, it is a
sacred as opposed to a secular world-view, though not in a
way involving theism in any of its accepted forms.
I take it for granted that it must be supportive of a
robust, authentic Apocalyptic Eschatology. It is
essential that theodicy dilemma be royally disposed of;
Reality in the large is to be justified.
Finally the human presence (and that of all intelligent
monads that shall ever come to be) must be of abiding and
fundamental significance -as opposed to any kind of
after-thought.
I
have enjoyed the generous hospitality of the National Library of Medicine, here
in Bethesda, Maryland for a very long period of time. I claim that I may
have closed it more times than anyone else in its history. Their courteous
-and latterly long-suffering- staff stand in the best traditions of the library profession; they seem
able to answer any question -whether or not it be any part of their official
NLM commitment.
I am pleased to acknowledge a
grant from the Nawierol Foundation; the
funds turned up just when they were needed
I must also acknowledge the continuing forbearance and support of my
long-suffering family. Many of the hours were of stolen time; they
rightfully belonged to them. Foremost here, of course, is my dear wife Margaret -who
has played a greater role in the development of my ideas than either of us quite
realized at the time. But first let's start with deeper matters.
Some wise man once remarked that we 'make each other'. The person
that each of us matures into is the end product of a Sturm und Drang in which
the darkness within every one of us is confronted, contended with, and hopefully
-within the long haul, transcended. That this drama is one of the
essential and very necessary themes in coming to terms with the Meaning of
Existence is something which was to take place -slowly- in the development of my
overview of the nature of the larger reality -and it did so with my quite
realizing at the time that this same theme was running within the quotidian
course of my married life. There is another wise saying that is equally
applicable -that '....the course of true love never ran smooth...' It is
something that must be earned. perhaps there are some marriages that are
'made in heaven' but one suspects that they may be superficial -opting for what
is easily attained while studiously avoiding any probing of deeper issues.
As often as not unknowingly, she has helped me to discover who I am, as we have
grown together into an egoism en deux.
But this is not quite the end of the matter. In discussions of how my
ideas should be approached by those interested in putting forth the necessary
effort, I have repeatedly urged that the main things to be confronted is the
scope and magnitude of the task that lies ahead -extending both qualitatively
and quantitatively anything that could be delivered through an extrapolation of
where we stand today. Any such notions form no part of the mindset of the
Mainstream intellectual. she
has no professional interest in such matters- Though having no training
(or for that matter, a native interest in the issues of philosophy, Largaret has
come to sense what it is that I'm trying to say, -as she proof reads my stuf.
For this -as for everything else, I am profoundly grateful
Be assured that this is a living site. Corrections will be
made, refinements added and links established to other domains of my
philosophical overview, and also to other websites addressing themselves to
similar issues. I also hope to enjoy the benefits of your own
observations reservations and comments, so I have included some 'feedback'
machinery with this end in view.
Number of visitors to this site:
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Created by Stephen Harrison, December 31
2002
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Site Completely Reorganized August 10th
2006 |
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Previous Revision December 31 2004 |
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Copyright
© by Stephen Harrison 2004.
All Rights reserved |
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