Super Perfundo...

Super perfundo on the early eve of your day!

The Oak Cliff Experience

When I first moved to Dallas back in October of 1997 I was warned not to wander south of I-30 and the Trinity River. I was told that Oak Cliff was to be avoided if you valued your life. The story was that Oak Cliff, once a separate town from Dallas, had been a beautiful enclave for the upper middle class back in the day. But beginning in the late 1960's it had become a drug infested ghetto. The story had a ring of tragedy about it since everyone admitted that to this day Oak Cliff by far possesses the prettiest topography in the city. Too bad you can't go down there without risking your life.

What a load of crap that was.

First of all, what defines Oak Cliff has long been in dispute. Most white north Dallasites pretty much describe everything south of I-30 stretching to I-20 as belonging to Oak Cliff. But most of what is described as Oak Cliff (including South Oak Cliff High School) actually lies outside the boundaries of the original OC. And most people who warn you about the Cliff haven't ever been there except for a quick trip to the Dallas Zoo or Methodist Hospital. The amount of ignorance regarding Oak Cliff is staggering.

Well, I finally met some people who live in Oak Cliff. As part of an SMU class project back in May I attended a community gathering of activists and organizers in the beautiful Kessler Theater on Davis Street. Besides trips to the aforementioned zoo and Methodist Hospital it was my first visit to Oak Cliff. As soon as I exited Sylvan and crossed underneath the I-30 overpass I was amazed at the beauty of the drive. Rolling hills, live oaks and beautiful classic homes greeted me.

I was inspired by the community gathering. These people are fighting to make their community a vibrant and colorful place. One described Oak Cliff as playing the same role to Dallas as Brooklyn plays to Manhattan. It's full of artists, entrepreneurs and activists. Sure there are sketchy areas that you might want to avoid at 2 am. But things are getting better and the citizens of Oak Cliff are fighting hard to make their neighborhood a better place. They were quite passionate and I left inspired and encouraged about local grassroot movements.

So to celebrate our anniversary my wife and I headed south of town. We stayed at the newly renovated Belmont Hotel which is quickly becoming the hippest boutique hotel in Dallas. The Belmont was built decades ago on a hill overlooking Dallas. It was rescued and completely renovated a few years ago. It is a true destination hotel in Big D. It has retained the flavor of a 1950's art deco motor court while upgrading every room to near upscale status. The pool has stunning views of the Dallas skyline. The Belmont has become one of the anchors in the restoration of Oak Cliff.

We visited the Bishop Arts District a couple of times. We ate at Tillman's Roadhouse for dinner and had pie at Norma's Cafe. We ate lunch the next day at Bolsa. We shopped at the specialty stores which all seemed much more authentic and supportive of local artists and business than the West Village or Stonebriar Mall. We had a wonderful time and we will return. We even got to drive by (embarassingly for the first time) the school where my Mom teaches kindergarten (the Tyler Street Christian Academy) right around the corner from the Bishop Arts District.

Yet, when I told people about our sojourn into Oak Cliff many of the same ignorant prejudices came to the surface. Some people had been down there and shared our appreciation of the area. In a city that likes to tear down and build everything new it was nice to find an authentic neighborhood where history and uniqueness is celebrated. So get on down there. Cross the bridge and visit The Cliff.

Photo: me at the Belmont

The FoCo Wolfpack

One of the things I like best about traveling to Fort Collins is reuniting with the crew...or the Wolfpack. We come from all over. In this photo is (starting top row and going right to left, then bottom row right to left): James (McLovin') from L.A., Chas from Saipan, Jerry from Stillwater, OK, Wes from Keller, TX, Curtis from Chicago, Eric from Detroit, me from Forney and Corey from Hurst, TX. Ernie from Denver was out somewhere and didn't make the pic.

There are other guys we hang with but this is the crew that hangs out the most and commandeers the same corner table at the cafeteria every evening. Good group of guys who understand all the World History jokes.

67 in FoCo

Nice to beat the Texas heat by flying off to Fort Collins, Colorado to grade AP World History exams.

Speaking of Heat...did you see the Mavs amazing comeback? Amazing! Watched the game at the legendary FoCo establishment Woody's which you can see here is closing. This is a very popular and historic joint, yet they're closing it to build apartments. Ridiculous.

Supposed to get down to the fifties tonight. Mid-70's for a high tomorrow.

Things going well so far. The whole crew is accounted for and ready to roll. Started grading essays today. Got the dreaded Document Based Question (DBQ) this year. But it's not so bad. Assigned the legendarily ghetto Corbett Dorm. But its not too bad, actually has new carpet. It was my turn after lodging in the Taj Mahal of Summit Dorm for two of the past three years.

Last year we're grading in Ft. C. Next year we're heading to Salt Lake City. Since we're not going to be in a dorm situation we'll have to share hotel rooms with a roomate. Got mine lined up.

Okay...beat the Heat!

Keep Austin Weird

Last week I spent a couple of days in Austin, Texas. Love Austin.

That might surprise some people because I'm a big Sooner fan.

I even love hanging out on the campus of the University of Texas. I can seperate athletics from academics. I can hate the Longhorns on the field but dig what goes on in the lecture hall.

I like Austin because it's weird. Yes, I know that's an old slogan down there, "Keep Austin Weird." But it really is weird. Weird in both bad ways and good ways. I like how people are not afraid to be who they want to be.

Who wants to eat the same bowl of cheerios every day? Throw in some Apple Jacks or Cinnamon Toast Crunch! Variety is the spice of life.

Ate at The Shady Grove, The Green Mesquite and The Oasis. All great eateries. I think the fam and I will have to make a quick trip down there this summer.

Arcade Fire in Dallas

Last Saturday's Arcade Fire was transcendent (am I overusing that word?). Lead singer Win Butler started the set by saying "We're gonna give you all we got. We just ask you to meet us halfway." Then the eight-piece band whirled and bashed and soared, running to different instruments between songs. In evidence were concertinas, accordians, hurdy gurdys, double basses, pipe organs, megaphones, two full time violinists plus the usual guitars, keys and drums. Butler ended the show with an exhortation to "take care of each other." Unbelievable musicianship and showmanship. It is truly inspiring to see such creativity in action. Much better than the usual hum drum pop garbage.

Arcade Fire Setlist Dallas 2011:

Ready To Start
Keep The Car Running
Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
Haiti
Rococo
Sprawl I (Flatland)
Intervention
Suburbs
Month of May
Rebellion (Lies)
No Cars Go
Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
We Used To Wait
Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)

Encore

Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
Wake Up

Arcade Fire vs. Weezer

Weezer and Arcade Fire are in Dallas on the same night. Choices choices choices.

So an insightful student asked me how could I possibly choose Arcade Fire over Weezer? After all, I am a Weezermanic.

Nice question.

The Dallas Observer even made a handy venn diagram to help people choose which show they should go to.

First (or firstly?), I’ve seen Weezer in concert twice. I’ve never seen Arcade Fire live.

Second, the last two Weezer albums (Hurley and Death to False Metal) have not been among my favorites in their discography. They’re fine, better than most bands. They’re just not quite as good as past releases. So I wasn’t bent on seeing them perform songs from these last two records.

Third, Arcade Fire is phenomenal. Their music is magisterial. Their three albums are transcendent. I don’t say that about a lot of bands. When I saw they were coming to Dallas I snapped up tickets as fast as I could.

And finally, Weezer is performing at Edgefest. They were the only band performing at Edgefest that I cared about. I’m not a huge fan of music festivals unless there’s going to be a lot of acts worth seeing. A lot of the bands on the undercard are sure to draw some real freak shows to Pizza Hut Park.

So Arcade Fire it is and I’m stoked about it. I’ll let you know how it goes

recent events

Tonight Jackson and I just got back from his first major league baseball game. My beloved Royals were in town to face Jackson's beloved Texas Rangers. The stadium was sold out. 45,700 people. I've never been to a sold out Rangers game. But it's five dollar Friday parking and free fireworks after the game. $10 special for the cheap seats. Beautiful weather and the Rangers are the AL champs. Makes for a sell out. JDW had a great time. Pics are on the flickr site.

Recent Events (written last Thurs):

Last Friday the spring broke on my garage door trapping both our vehicles and only modes of transportation to work inside. Kim caught a ride while Jackson and I elected to stay home and wait for the garage door repairman to come and replace the spring. However, they weren't able to make it until 4:00 pm so JDW and I were trapped at home all day. But we made the video below and had sword fights in the living room. I ponied up $40 extra for an additional spring so now our garage door is equipped with the ultra delux dual spring system. Smooth, brother.

God has His own fan page on Facebook. A lot of my friends (including Kimberly) have clicked the "like" button on it. I haven't yet because I'm not sure that God is actually administrating the page.

Stupid Real Madrid! Fascists!

Stupid Portland Timbers!

Oh yeah, one more thing about the expansion Timbers. They have a guy named Joey the Lumberjack who after each Portland goal saws off a piece of an old growth tree with a chain saw. He then holds up the disc of wood like a trophy and then passes it into the stands. So yeah! What a way to celebrate! Destroy the Earth! I read an interesting suggestion on how they could spruce (no pun intended although it's quite awesome on second thought...spruce heh heh) up their goal celebration. Cut down an old growth tree with endangered owls living in it. Then burn the tree and use the fire to grill the owl meat to sell in the concession area of JB/WELD stadium or whatever they call that dump. And FC Dallas should be ashamed of themselves for allowing Joey to cut that tree three times last week! You not only lost the game you got a tree killed!

Two tornadoes in Forney in a week! What is this? Oklahoma? Kansas? I moved south to avoid these funnels of death after living all my life in Tornado Alley. They are following me. I blame climate change. And Sarah Palin. I like to blame Sarah Palin for everything. It's a fun game. Sirens didn't go off either time! Two dispatchers fired for negligence. At least on the second tornado they got the reverse 911 call out to our phones.

What is Rory Stewart doing today?

What is Dave Eggers doing today?

What am I doing today? Nothing. Writing a stupid blog. I've used the word stupid a lot in this blog. Jackson would not be happy with me. Plus it infers that I'm in a foul mood. But I'm not. I'm happy today. Early release day.

Found a new band: Tennis. Album: Cape Dory. Good stuff. Check out their stuff on youtube for free. Has nothing to do with tennis as a sport.

Tomorrow is Friday! Which means I will be playing the Rebecca Black video "Friday" on the big screen in my classroom during passing periods...just because it really annoys my students. Although the more they listen to the song the more they see the genius inherent in it's awful-ness. I see that this video has over 100 million hits. It is quite possibly the worst song and video ever produced. But strangely, like a trainwreck, it's hard to look away. BTW, someone produced a fake Bob Dylan cover of the song. Fake Bob Dylan can make anything sound deep. Plus the comments on the video are genius. Apparently people actually believed that the vid was legit and talked about how they first heard it back in 1984 and stuff.

Which reminds me of Dred Zeppelin, a band back from my high school days that covered all Zeppelin songs using Elvis impersonators. Genius! You should hear "Rock and Roll" and "Heartbreaker" covered by Elvis in a reggae tinge. Love it!

Bye

Monster Jam 2011

Talking without yelling

Interesting day today. Went to SMU for a free public lecture by Brian McLaren. TIME magazine ranks McClaren as one of the fifty most influential evangelicals in America. He's often considered one of the founding voices of the emergent movement. Many, especially fundamentalists, find his orthodoxy a bit too generous (playing off the title of one his books "A Generous Orthodoxy"). They describe him as an open theist, heretic and denier of Biblical literalism.

I found him very generous with his time. I couldn't have him sign his book because I have it on Kindle. He spoke for an hour and a half and took 30 minutes of questions. I found him compassionate and concerned about our society. Whatever one might say about his theology I do not find him disingenuous. And I believe his message is important for the church.

Later this evening I was washing dishes when I got a call from my state representative Lance Gooden. I was shocked. He wanted to talk about an email I had sent him. I had (respectfully) disagreed with his voting for HB 1 which calls for massive cuts in education. He explained his position in great length and indicated that the cuts in a final bill would not be as drastic since new sources of revenue are expected. I'm amazed a state rep took the time to call and elucidate on his position. Our conversation was a nice example of democratic civil discourse. I'm afraid others who have emailed him have not been so polite and respectful.

Personally I do believe there is waste in our educational system. Quite a bit of it in fact. Standardized testing costs billions. We have too many administrators and curriculum specialists. We do need to trim the fat. Unfortunately what gets trimmed are essential things like arts and the humanities. These should be as valued as athletics or core studies.

Also, I pointed out that I wouldn't mind a tax increase if I really felt we were truly broke. But America and Texas is not broke. Corporations and the wealthiest of the wealthy are reaping record profits, yes even in the economic downturn. I told Gooden that we need to shut down tax loopholes and eliminate many corporate tax breaks and make the wealthy actually pay their fair share of taxes. It was a good conversation.

Last night, Kimberly and I went to the FC Dallas soccer match against the hated Colorado Rapids. Those thugs stole the MLS championship from us last year. Last night FCD beat them down 3-0. Perfect weather in a beautful stadium. Pizza Hut Park is great. We ate across the street at Lochrane's Irish Pub. Sorry Dallasers, but Frisco is a much better site than the old Cotton Bowl.

Peasant Revolt Theory Analysis for SMU

Okay...something more to bore you all. At least this one is a summary and analysis of a controversial theory. Made an A on it. Included a pic of Jackson and Adia to amuse you a bit if you don't like the paper. This is a rough draft...

David C. White

Dr. Anthony Mansueto - SMU

Silk Roads and Silicon Superhighways

March 28, 2011

Analysis Paper Two The Origins of Israel: Judges Chapter Five

For centuries the origins of the nation of Israel were rarely in dispute. The Old Testament was read and studied from a literal viewpoint. According to the accounts of the Pentateuch the Israelites were descended from Abraham who migrated to Palestine from his homeland of Ur in Mesopotamia. A few generations later the descendants of Abraham, called Israelites after the Hebrew patriarch Israel, were forced, due to famine, to relocate to Egypt. The Israelites, or Hebrews, were given sanctuary in Egypt due to the fortuitous relationship one of their Hebrew brethren had with the Egyptian Pharaoh. According to the Book of Genesis the Hebrews prospered in the Egyptian delta region of Goshen for centuries.

Eventually the dynasty that sheltered the Hebrews was replaced by a new dynasty that was hostile to the Hebrews living in Goshen. Just exactly which dynasty this was in Egyptian history has long been the subject of debate. Everyone from the invading Hyksos, the Middle Kingdom Dynasties, the New Kingdom Dynasties and every pharaoh in between have been identified as possible suspects as the dynasty that turned against the Hebrews and forced them into slavery. According to the ancient Hebrew book of Exodus the people of Israel would remain in bondage for four-hundred years until led to freedom by a Hebrew leader named Moses.

The Hebrew people exit Egypt in miraculous fashion and then wander the Sinai Peninsula for forty years before moving into the Trans-Jordan region of Palestine. Led by Moses’ successor, a military commander named Joshua and related in the ancient Hebrew text of the same name, the Hebrews invade Palestine then referred to as Canaan. Canaan is successfully conquered and divided up between the twelve tribes of Israel. This was the standard understanding of the origins of Israel which was virtually unquestioned for centuries.

But archeologists, anthropologists and historians of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries began to have doubts about the credibility of this origin narrative. First, there is little or no physical evidence that supports most facets of the Biblical account of the Israelite exodus. There is also no evidence of a large scale Israelite habitation within Egypt. There is scant evidence of a mass migration of 600,000 people out of Egypt by the Israelites and subsequent wanderings in the Sinai wilderness. The evidence of a mass Hebrew conquest of Canaan is often contradictory even within the written Hebrew accounts themselves.

One of the prominent theories, postulated by social historian G.E. Mendenhall, about the origins of the nation of Israel is known as the Peasant Revolt Thesis. Through his comparative studies of Canaanite society and pre-monarchial Israel, Mendenhall began to reject the literal narrative of the conquest theory of Canaan by the Hebrews. Mendenhall became convinced that Israel was not created by a mass invasion and conquest. He did not completely rule out elements of the Exodus story as being accurate. He theorized that a small remnant of Israelite slaves did indeed escape Israel and played a central role in the formalizing and adoption of the worship of YHWH, the monotheistic God of Judaism. The worship of an egalitarian God would serve as an attractive and unifying force for Israelite and Canaanite peasants. However, Mendenhall believed the numbers of the Hebrews escaping Egypt to be greatly exaggerated by the Exodus accounts and that they did not invade Canaan but participated in a political struggle already in process.

Much of Mendenhall’s Peasant Revolt Theory comes from his analysis of the first several chapters of the Hebrew Book of Judges. The “Song of Deborah,” found in Judges Chapter five, particularly provides insight to understanding pre-monarchial Israelite/Canaanite society. The Song of Deborah is an account of a successful Israelite military victory over the oppressive Canaanites elites. Many scholars believe The Song of Deborah to be one of the oldest texts and one of the earliest examples of Hebrew poetry in the Bible, dating back to the 12 century BCE. There are several themes that emerge in The Song of Deborah that lead toward a theory supporting a peasant revolt rather than an outside conquest.

Verse Six of the Song of Deborah indicates the land of Israel was an unsafe place to travel most likely due to banditry. Centralized authority seems to have been on the wane as the regular trade routes and highways could not be effectively policed. We are entering the story as the elites are losing their grip on power. The heavily populated valley regions are besieged by Israelite bandits coming down from the hills and attacking points of economic interest. Verse Thirteen describes the Israelite people descending from the hills into the valleys of Canaan. Mendenhall speculates that the Israelites were peasants who originally escaped into the hills to avoid the heavy tributary burdens placed on them by the valley elites. Now these Israelite peasants are coming back down in to the valley in full-scale revolt.

Verse Fourteen describes the role each of the tribes played in the battle against Sisera. However, not all the tribes seemed willing to take part in the conflict. The tribe of Reuben seemed to waffle regarding their involvement. Gilead, Dan and Asher decide against active participation and stayed in their home territories. It’s clear in the Judges account that the Israelite tribes had a great deal of political autonomy and independence. This contradicts the idea that the Israelite people were a cohesive and unified invading force.

The type of warfare described in Judges seems based on independent militia groups using guerrilla style tactics. Several leaders are named including women. Most cotemporary ancient accounts of war focus on one leader. Secondary leaders are not typically credited for their role in military victory. Disparate areas are targeted which do not seem to point to a coordinated strategy of conquest. This runs counter to the idea of a unified military command led by a unified hierarchy of generals. Plundering and banditry of camel caravans and villages are mentioned which also seems to preclude an organized conquest of cities by a heavily armed and trained military force.

There are some problems with the Peasant Revolt Theory. First, historians and scholars must resist the urge to view ancient societies through the prism of modern social theory. We cannot reliably place our conception of revolution and social stratification onto the societies of pre-modern peoples. Modern value systems, ideas of morality and ethics do not translate elegantly to the systemic structures of the Bronze Age.

Finally, although the Song of Deborah does provide valuable insight into pre-monarchial Israel it must be viewed within the context of the Hebrew poetical tradition. One cannot argue that the Exodus account is an exaggeration without Judges receiving the same critique of possible exaggeration. Hebrew poetry often was used to describe the relationship of people with their creator. It is very unlikely the Hebrew poets meant to discuss political, economic or social theory in their works of poetry. Deborah’s Song is a work of art and worship first and foremost and not necessarily an historical account.

Foreground Music

Transcendent albums that must be listened to in whole and not as mere background music. (in no particular order)

A Love Supreme - John Coltrane

Kid A - Radiohead

Kind of Blue - Miles Davis

Neon Bible - Arcade Fire

Amnesiac - Radiohead

Teatro - Willie Nelson

The Suburbs - Arcade Fire

Majesty of the Blues - Wynton Marsalis

Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots - The Flaming Lips

Mystery White Boy - Jeff Buckley

Funeral - Arcade Fire

Une Annee Sans Lumiere

Group - Arcade Fire

Album - Funeral

Track - #3. Une Annee Sans Lumiere

Exact Moment - 2:16 through 2:38

22 seconds of mind-blowing brilliance that seriously, seriously brings tears due to sheer aural beauty.

Seriously now. Stop the freakin' car and close your eyes because it is worthy of your full and complete attention. ("You couldn't handle my full attention" - Dwight Shrute - The Office). At home light a candle and lay on the floor and imagine galaxies of stars exploding and the light particles showering your soul with ethereal warmth.

P.S.. I just scored tix to the Arcade Fire show in Dallas this April.

Don't call me mean! I'm above average!

We always think political rhetoric gets worse as the years go by. Huckabee last week had to back track when he hinted that Obama had grown up in Kenya. But THIS article humorously takes a look at the bi-partisan acrimony that has existed sense the beginning of the American Republic. Some interesting blurbs...

Chester Arthur was accused of being born in Canada therefore being ineligible to run. (sound familiar?)
Andrew Jackson accused John Quincy Adams of being a pimp for the Russian Tsar.
Adams supporters accused Jackson of being a murderer, a polygamist and son of a prostitute.
Martin Van Buren accused William Harrison of being being a drunk.
Thomas Jefferson alluded to John Adams being a secret monarchist.
Alexander Hamilton accused James Monroe of being an adulterer.
Aaron Burr murdered Hamilton in a duel.
Grover Cleveland was accused of fathering an illegitimate child with a prostitute.
LBJ said Goldwater would nuke the world.
JFK was taking orders from the Pope.

And there's more. Nice to know that we've always been viscious in our political debates and that it's not a new thing.

Don't Let the Door...

I know this may sound like sour grapes but I really hope the Royals show Zack Greinke he made a big mistake bailing on them by becoming a winning club. I know Royals fans are focusing on 2012. Everyone says 2011 could be a rough one for the young Royals. No one disputes they have the best young talent in baseball. But I don't want to wait until 2012 (because the Mayans say the world will end in 2012?), I want the Royals to start winning now. And I hope the Brewers suffer in mediocrity while the Royals win the weak Central. Sour grapes? Yeah. But I don't feel too sorry for a multi-millionare who admitted he "checked out' at times last season. I wish I could check out as a teacher and get paid millions for it.

The Car Dunk

Just in case you missed it here's a supercool slow mo vid of former Sooner Blake Griffin and his amazing dunk over a car that won him the All-Star Slam Dunk contest. Watch for the ball being thrown from inside the car through the sunroof then slammed home by Griffin. Amazing!

Bye Ronaldo

Ronaldo retired this past week. The real Ronaldo. The Ronaldo who currently holds the record for most World Cup goals, the Ronaldo who starred for PSV Eindhoven, FC Barcelona, Inter Milan, A.C. Milan, Corinthians and unfortunately the evil Real Madrid.

I hold a special tie in my memories with Ronaldo. I was living in Barcelona the one and only year he played for the blaugrana. It was a flukey thing that I happened to be in Catalunya during the 1996-1997 futbol season to see the greatest individual season in history. Ronaldo was only 19 years old and destroyed all the competition in Spain. La Liga was the perfect stage for his type of skills and Barca the perfect team.

But his greedy agents orchestrated a transfer and Ronaldo, crying when the manipulation finally came to light, was gone to Italy. He blew out his knee three times. He was still a great player but never quite the player he was that one extra-ordinary year in Camp Nou.

I was extremely fortunate to see him play in person. I saw him score a hat trick against the reigning League champions Atletico Madrid. Barca came back from a 0-3 deficit to shockingly win 5-4. I never been in a more electric atmosphere. 90,000 fans experiencing true collective effervescence.

Goodbye Ronaldo. You were one of the greatest. Every time I remember you I remember my own special year in Catalunya.

Video: This video is one of the most stunning goals of all time versus Compostela. They played this on the news over and over and over again for a week after it happened.

Kindle Creep Out.

I love my Kindle. However there's one feature that creeps me out.

When you turn the Kindle off a screensaver pops on the display. There are twenty-three of these screensavers and you see a different version each time you turn off the Kindle. I like most of them. But there's one that creeps me out...the Emily Dickinson screensaver. This particular image (seen above) makes her look like a psychotic zombie. Many times I'll turn the Kindle back on and then off again simply to move along to another less menacing picture.

Analysis of Emile Durkheim for SMU

And now, something to bore you all...

David C. White
Dr. Anthony Mansueto
Silk Roads and Silicon Superhighways
February 14, 2010

Analysis Paper One
Elementary Forms of Religious Life by Emile Durkheim

Emile Durkheim began his work during a particularly tumultuous time in French history although it might be difficult to find a time in French history that was not particularly tumultuous. However, the 1870’s, when Durkheim was writing, saw extraordinary change sweep over French society. The French had just suffered a humiliating defeat in the Franco-Prussian War at the hands of the rapidly coalescing German Second Reich. The working classes of Paris had revolted against the newly instituted Third Republic and briefly attempted the creation of a radically socialist government known as the Paris Commune. This experiment in radical socialism was short-lived before the Third Republic successfully stamped out the revolt.

Durkheim was a supporter of the Third Republic, the first truly secular democracy in France. As a French Jew he knew the difficult relationship French society had had with religion and with religious minorities in particular. The sixteenth century had seen the nation torn asunder by the French Wars of Religion. The minority Protestant Huguenots, after achieving control of the French throne had established the precedent of religious tolerance with the Edict of Nantes. The French Revolution of 1789 and the cult of reason that followed attempted to decisively secularize French society even going so far as renaming the Cathedral of Notre Dame the Temple of Reason and persecuting the Catholic Church. The pendulum swung the other way when Napoleon Bonaparte restored the Catholic faith for both political expediency and social cohesion.

Durkheim himself witnessed the anti-Semitic frenzy that surrounded the Dreyfus Affair in the 1890’s when a prominent Jewish military officer was falsely accused of betraying military secrets to Germany. Durkheim, a committed secularist and supporter of the Third Republic had seen firsthand the troubled relationship France had had with organized religion and with religious minorities. It was in this context that Durkheim began to study the problem of how to define a moral philosophy in a secular society.

Moral philosophies throughout human history had most often originated from cultural religious traditions. Durkheim, in his 1911 work Elementary Forms of Religious Life, began a thorough study of religion in order to answer a couple of perplexing questions. One, what was the cause of the growing suicide rate in France? Secondly, in a truly secular society how does one attain transcendental meaning? And finally, why does cultural effervescence happen when and the way it does?

Durkheim began his study by researching the traditions of some of the oldest religious traditions on Earth, especially the totemic rituals of Australia’s native aborigines. It was Durkheim’s contention that the fundamental truths about the nature of totemic religion would be consistent with the fundamental truths of all religions. Durkheim found that aboriginal religion was totemic in nature meaning that the belief construct was a collective representation of society. Totemic religion is highly liturgical and ritualistic. These rituals sought to recreate a phenomenon Durkheim termed cultural effervescence. Cultural effervescence are moments in history when society seems to act as a unified whole toward one goal in one accord yet in a way that is spontaneous and often non-hierarchical in structure.

In attempting to discover why cultural effervescence happened when and where it does many sociologists had attempted a rational approach to the question. Durkheim believed this approach to studying religion and cultural effervescence was flawed. His argument was that religion could not be analyzed scientifically because religion itself is not about thought or conceptions of knowledge. Religion is an organic structure of action and in his words something “to aid us to live.” Durkheim, despite being a committed secularist, presupposed a transcendental aspect to religion that could not be explained through logical analysis. Durkheim held that in attempting to study the basics of any religion one must give great attention to the metaphysical properties of ideas.

Durkheim paid great respect to the legitimacy of cultural effervescence. His thesis rested on the principle that “the unanimous sentiment of the believers of all times cannot be purely illusory.” The tie between religion and society was a reciprocal. Society must always be in action and to be in action society must act in common and religion was the conduit, in Durkheim’s view, that allowed society to work in common to gain consciousness of itself. He believed that all areas of human thought, including scientific thought originated in religion. Durkheim even went as far as to say that all the great social institutions of society originated in religious institutions. In Durkheim’s words “the idea of society is the soul of religion.”

Despite being a rational sociologist Durkheim left plenty of room for mysticism in his analysis of religion’s role in society. He called this “mystic mechanics.” Durkheim warned social theorists not to discount transcendentalism and mysticism in the study of religion. In his view there were some aspects of religion that could never be explained away with logical syllogisms and rational diagrams.

Durkheim also believed it was helpful to study religion because society is made in religion’s image. These reflections were holistic. Both positive and negative characteristics of religion were reflected in society. Religion clarifies and systemizes the goals and dreams of society at large. Religion presents an avenue for men to come into contact with the sacred which Durkheim defined as “something added to and above the real.” Without contact with the sacred men’s lives become meaningless leading to nihilism, self-annihilation and ultimately self-destruction in the form of suicide. With the death of the individual comes the death of the society because Durkheim says all societies need an ideal that helps form its idea of itself.

Religion, in Durkheim’s view, is therefore essential to the survival of society. It is not something to be swept away into the dust bin of history or mythology. Religion is the origin of collective effervescence and allows societies to act in common. It allows men to act. Durkheim was certainly aware of the destructive forces of religion in society. But he believed that the state could harness the positive benefits of religion to bring meaning to civilization and serve as a support for progress.

Whimsy or Self-delusion?

Some random thoughts...

Occam's Razor is too complicated.

Patriarch Nikon of Moscow thought the Old Belief movement sucked because it was led by Avvakum.

Gov. Rick Perry is a sleaze and liar. Says Texas is leading the way, once ran Al Gore's campaign in Texas, switched sides, now says he's a Tea Partier but accepts Obama's stimulus money. Get's re-elected (second longest term only to Hosni Mubarak) then it turns out there's a $25 billion budget shortfall in Texas. Yes that said billion. Now school districts have frozen hiring even though more kids are entering the system. Meanwhile Gov. Goodhair lives in multi-million penthouse while the Gov's mansion gets renovated and takes trips to the Bahamas. Punk.

In 2011 I have only worked one five-day week since coming back from Christmas Break. Due to wind and snow and ice and flex days. I dig it the most. Good for my morale.

Student tried a jedi mind trick on me (said, "Mr. White, these aren't the droids you're looking for."). It didn't work because I'm a Jedi Master and know all the tricks.

Got an A on my first analysis paper last week for my SMU Master's course even though the Prof said hardly anyone gets an A on the first draft. I was superstoked although the 25 page monster that looms at the end of the semester still keeps me up at night. The paper was a...never mind I'll make a boring post out of it. Oops...another unproper use of an ellipses.

JDW announced two goals for the KHS Lady Soccer team the other night. They allowed him on the field for warmups and allowed him to practice shooting goals with the G/K.

Yes, I played one Lady Gaga song at halftime but that's only to appeal to my base. I quickly followed that up with The Ramones. So are we good? Besides if Dr. Rieghard likes Gaga than who am I to judge?

I am webmastering the new church website. dallascentralchurch.org. check it out.

Bye.

photo: JDW giving me the beat down in the snow.