Round the Herne

 A ramble about how different philosophies conceptualise the root and nature of human worth. This was partly sparked off by researching the story of Prometheus stealing fire from Olympos and giving it to humanity to bring them out of their previous leaden state. This meander skirts around issues of what the basis of human worth is, how it relates to legal personhood, and whether there is a sense in which all people are of equal value, what that actually means, and to what extent such notions are universal. Avoided talking about Kant and Burke, but if this generates a discussion I might do a follow-up going more into their ideas.

 Bit of a meander into some of the issues linking the realm of artistic creativity (be that painting, music, sculpture, cinema or whatever else) to ethical issues. Partly this is in response to events over the last year or so where a few prominent creative types have fallen off their pedestals and quite a few former fans have sworn off reading/watching/consuming their output. Be interesting to hear how followers of this channel respond to ethical concerns about creativity.

 A discussion with a friend on social media prompted this philosophical musing about the vast popularity of murder as a form of entertainment - films, TV shows, novels (my own included) etc. Along the meandering way there is consideration of Christian theology (well, more soteriology really), the psychological craving for order in the face of chaos, Kantian ethics, and a few other asides.

 This reflection on the ethics of storytelling was prompted by a discussion on a radio broadcast that I took part in the other week. This considers some of the moral issues that might impact on the stories that people tell around the camp fire.

 This short ramble is just a few ideas around the topic of the genius loci - the spirit of place, as understood by the Ancient Romans. I had a guest spot last night on an American online radio talking about my books, including the murder mystery anthology (A Dangerous Place) one of whose themes is the power of the genius loci to shape and influence the people who live within its sphere. This recording picks up on some of those ideas and reflects further on the idea of how we interact with the entities that take up residence in a location where we also spend a great deal of time. If I can marshal my thoughts in a more coherent fashion in the near future, I shall do so - having been laid low with an infection, today is the first time I have felt able to say something even as meandering as this.

 A reflection on a variety of issues from a polytheist perspective - linking the notion of worship (from the Anglo-Saxon weorth-scip) to Max Weber's ideas on religious value systems, medical ethics and the boundaries of Beauchamp and Childress's philosophising around moral values in medicine.

  Lecture - Tuesday 17th May, 6pm in Lecture Theatre #1 at the Waterfront Building, Ipswich Modern forms of Paganism have undergone a revival in the last century, drawing on the polytheist and animist religions of the ancient world for their inspiration and world view (though often blended with ideas from a variety of other sources). Many, perhaps the majority, of modern pagans feel a reverence for the natural world and a wish to restore the damage done by increasing industrialisation and population growth. This talk examines some of the major influences on the development of Paganism, the relationship with the environmental movements, and how an animist worldview shapes an understanding of the Land, the living beings we share it with, the realm of spirits, and our respective duties towards them. Biography Robin Herne is the Route Leader for Sociology and Criminology at West Suffolk College, having previously been the Lead for Religious Studies and Ethics there. He regularly contri...

An odd ramble around ideas from the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes on social contracts and how this could relate to animist or polytheist ideas. Would a greater focus on mutuality provide a strong ethical basis within the smaller scale western polytheist traditions? Jane Jacobs economic models explored the idea of reciprocity (she uses the term trader) as a basis for a healthier way of interacting than the more Nietzschean approaches that have been in vogue for at least a few centuries now. I wonder to what extent this approach can be extended into spiritual and social/moral realms. This can also link in to ideas on agency within animism, but I'll leave that to some future occasion to explore.  The short version of all this waffle is for us to think of each of the living beings (human or otherwise) that we benefit from in some way, and then deciding on how to reciprocate so that we give benefit back to them in some manner. 

A few somewhat incoherent thoughts about some of the ethical issues that arise for traditional storytellers and the sorts of things that people might want to think about when choosing and performing stories. If I get some constructive feedback then that will help shape which topics to examine in any future podcasts about the philosophies and issues underpinning storytelling.

At last month's philosophy club we discussed some of the ideas of Cameroonian philosopher Achille Mbembe (pictured left),  particularly with respect to necropower and necropolitics. These are ideas which are, I think, worth reflecting on and which may also be of interest to some of my students on the Ethics degree (the sociology students may also get some mileage out of it for essays and assignments). I'm uploading it here, as well as on the student site, because I thought it might inspire ideas and discussions amongst the half dozen people who read this blog. This waffle reflects more on descriptions and implications of his ideas rather than recommendations of how to improve  the kinds of social problems he outlines. Mbembe's ideas are built upon earlier philosophising from the French thinker Michel Foucault (cunningly disguised as Uncle Fester, pictured right) who proposed ideas about biopower and biopolitics, the ways in which governments and those in authority se...

I don't know whether this podcast will be of the remotest interest to the people who attend to this blog (all three of you), but I created it as a supplemental guide for students on the Legal Ethics module for the Ethics degree at the University I teach in. It's a consideration of what the function of law is - part of the module explores functionalist issues in this regards, and I appreciate this podcast might be a bit disjointed for anyone who doesn't have that background context. However, the lightning quick gloss is that - in most legal systems both modern and ancient - the law is punitive. An act is outlawed by the legislature (Parliament in our case) and a punishment dreamed up for it to discourage people from engaging in the criminalised activity. That's not the only function of law, but most theorists would argue it is the central one. I've been following some of the arguments made by people around banning parents smacking their children (laws are already in...

Had a lovely trip to the Vajrasana Buddhist Retreat in Suffolk with the students today - stunning statues and a wonderfully tranquil courtyard garden. Wish we'd had time to stay longer. Helped to stop me stressing about a very elderly dog who was under anaesthetic for extensive dental work (he survived and is sleeping soundly as I type). Anyway, here's an end-of-term semi-conscious meander through ideas building around Nietzsche's concepts of the Master-Slave dialectic and developing beyond it to what I consider a more balanced polytheist/animist approach (with some inspirational help from economic theorist Jane Jacobs and American philosopher Lester Hunt). Oh, and for those of you missed the kitchen videos, we're back to baking!

This is a philosophical meander around issues of value and market worth within paganism, exploring some economic issues and speculating about what (if any) models of economics the various pagan religions could offer to the wider world. I'll probably add to this later, but I'm hoping to generate some constructive interaction with listeners as to how they address the issues raised in this podcast about the ethics of how pagan morality impacts on ways to earn a living - and upon how money should (or should not) play a role within the pagan religions themselves.

Jo suggested I record another in the "Druid Ramblings" series on the theme of satire, partly as she had seen the reaction of comedian Jonathan Pie to a court case involving an attempt at humour involving a pug (I don't think many people laughed, so a bit hit-and-miss as comedy goes). Anyway, cutting to the chase this is a ramble upon that subject to the usual standards of incoherence, flitting between Early Medieval Ireland and the 21st century pagansphere, whilst attempting to bake a Black Forest Gateau. At the end people arrived home early and I attempted to pause the recorder but ended up switching it off entirely (I am a tad shite when it comes to technology) and could not be bothered recording the whole thing all over again - so it just ends a bit suddenly. Pretend this is the last episode of The Sopranos. The way my body is going, I will end up looking like a Godfather soon anyway. Oh cake, why must you tempt me so?

It's been a long day (no thanks to bloody Abellio trains canceling their service this evening - makes a change from just running late as per) and six hours of semi-coherent lectures. So tonight's quasi-coherent waffle around differing pagan ethical codes may be the least intelligible of the lot. Don't know if I'll stretch to a fifth, as I'm not sure what kinds of things people want to know about (or if I've run out of things worth saying).

Part three of the Introducing Paganism spiel - I promise to leave your ears unassailed for a few days before foisting the fourth part on you. I am not wholly sure where this is going, beyond my indulging the sound of my own voice. If there are specific aspects of general paganism that people would like covered, do say. This section is addressing nature worship, the role of ancestor reverencing, and touches a tiny bit on ethics.

A couple of recordings to make potential students aware of the degrees which I lead at the University of Suffolk. If you know of any possible Religious Studies and/or Ethics students, do share the link - or get them to contact me via robin.herne@wsc.ac.uk ETHICS RELIGIOUS STUDIES

On Tuesday 16th May the Religious Studies & Ethics department have organised their annual conference, at which I will be one of the speakers (talking about Roman and Greek notions of sexuality). The theme for this year is Gender & Sexuality. It is a free event - contact me at robin.herne@wsc.ac.uk if you wish to attend. The programme of speakers is as follows: 10.00                Welcome and introduction to the day 10.15                Are there Only Two Sexes?; John Hadlow 11.00                Same Sex Marriage in Liberal Christianity; Reverend Matthew Smith 11.45                The Caring Sex?; Dr Will Thomas 12.30            ...