Jonathan Edwards and a reformational view of the purpose of education
In die Skriflig
| Field | Value | |
| Title | Jonathan Edwards and a reformational view of the purpose of education | |
| Creator | Potgieter, Esmari | |
| Description | The contemporary quest for spirituality (or spiritual ‘connection’) in formal education can be linked to the question what education is for. The present article is concerned with contributing to a reformational approach to the question of the purpose of education, with specific reference to spirituality. From a reformational perspective, spirituality should be understood within the framework of the relation between God and his creation. In this article I turn to the thought of Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758), a philosopher-theologian who was convinced that the world exists to communicate the glory of God. This conception of the relation between God and creation gave rise to three recurrent themes in Edwards’ philosophy which, I will argue, may be conducive to a reformational understanding of the purpose of education. These themes may provide us with ways of conceptualising various types of spiritual ‘connection’ in school education. The three philosophical themes are: knowledge as the true perception of relations; human beings as creation’s consciousness; and sound morality as arising from true perception. Provided that certain weak points (from a reformational philosophical point of view) are adjusted, these themes can be fruitfully applied to the question of the purpose of education. | |
| Publisher | AOSIS | |
| Date | 2016-11-29 | |
| Identifier | 10.4102/ids.v50i1.2123 | |
| Source | In die Skriflig/In Luce Verbi; Vol 50, No 1 (2016); 9 pages 2305-0853 1018-6441 | |
| Language | eng | |
| Relation |
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:
https://indieskriflig.org.za/index.php/skriflig/article/view/2123/4194
https://indieskriflig.org.za/index.php/skriflig/article/view/2123/4193
https://indieskriflig.org.za/index.php/skriflig/article/view/2123/4195
https://indieskriflig.org.za/index.php/skriflig/article/view/2123/4157
|
|
ADVERTISEMENT
