William Rowe, who functioned for a number of years as ICS's Senior Member in the History of Philosophy, once wondered aloud whether it was a mistake to think that the founders of the Reformational tradition in philosophy had the intention of setting up a distinct school of philosophy. He thought rather that the point was to promote a certain faithful posture toward scholarship, one that was sufficiently rooted in biblical wisdom, and also sufficiently self-aware and self-critical. Of course, the founders took their own proposals in philosophy seriously. Dooyeweerd took his own critical thinking about thinking by which he sought to uncover the religious roots of thought as the very heart and soul of his Christian philosophizing. Both he and his brother-in-law Vollenhoven took their modal scale or mantel of creaturely functions seriously. Abraham Kuyper's signature social-historical and political conception of sphere-sovereignty and the Reformational way of stretching the principle to do work in thinking about scholarly disciplines and their coherence was a serious notion. They were convinced that their signature notions were the best ideas to have emerged yet if one hoped to arrive at a systematic and theoretical understanding of the creation in relation to its sources of order and the Creator. So, the philosophical material was there for a school of philosophy to arise, to be sure. But that was not the point. For a school of Reformational philosophy could not make the business of Christian thinking any less risky. It could not guarantee the Christian integrity of the thought, not in their view.
You see, they understood that philosophy and indeed the academy is a traditioned activity. Like any such activity it necessarily weaves its past into the warp and woof of its present and takes that past with it into its future. As a result, the history of philosophy circumscribes and affects present and future possibilities. And here is the thing: philosophy emerged as a cultural practice in the non-Christian world of ancient Greece and Rome. Of course it also passed through about a millennium when it was developed by Christians, Jews and Muslims who worked to think philosophically as Christians, Jews and Muslims, and a modern period in which there have been concerted efforts to disentangle philosophy from the faiths and the authoritative sources of wisdom of religions, one and all. All of these chapters in the history of philosophy are written into philosophy's sinews. It is religiously plural all the way down. So the notion that one could philosophize in a manner that owes nothing to the ancient Greeks and Romans and the religious sense of the world that their thought encompassed, that owes nothing to the earnest theologians, monks, nuns, and mystics of the Middle Ages and their attempts to harness the wisdom of Greeks, Jews and Arabs for their Latin Catholic Christianity, that owes nothing to the variety of secular projects in the philosophy of our modern world—why such a notion is a non-starter, or at least it ought to have been. The point was not to start all over, for that is impossible. The point was to work with the religious plurality of philosophy in a way that maintained faith with the God of the Scriptures as that God is encountered within the community of faith through the ages. Central in this project was an orientation to philosophical thought, one's own as well as the thought of others, that is sensitive to the ways in which one's philosophical choices open up a faith-full accounting for the mystery of our creaturely existence and at the same time the ways that those same choices make such an accounting difficult. The point was less to avoid synthesis than to resist it. The past in all its religious plurality will enter into one's Christian thinking for good and for ill; that eventuality is an implication of how we creatures have been created to think. The point is to be aware of the complexity, of its ambiguous results and to be prepared to resist ambiguities whenever they make it hard to say what must be said in our bearing witness to the mystery of creaturely existence. That means cultivating a capacity for scholarly repentance in oneself, and generosity toward the struggles of others to bear witness in their turn. We Reformational types have often gotten this wrong. We have had a habit of being overly generous with ourselves and our notions, while quick to urge others to scholarly repentance for themselves on account of their notions. Habits can be changed. It only takes work. Anyway the point is this: our thought like the thought of any and all others will bear the marks of the past in ways that complicates our faithfulness. This is inevitable. What allows faith to triumph in spite of this inevitability is our capacity to persevere. We do not have to accept our actual syntheses as final, once-and-for-all, the best we or anyone else can do, world without end. There is always the possibility of conversion, of a life of perseverant effort to bear witness to the mystery of creaturely existence and of its Creator that is humble enough to take correction, generous enough to affirm the wisdom of others, bold enough to persevere for as long as our Lord requires. It is my prayer that the scholars of ICS practice their craft in just that spirit. I ask you to join me in that prayer throughout the coming month.
For the President,
Bob Sweetman
Monday, August 1: Today is our Civic Holiday in Canada. We pray that it will be an enjoyable time for rest and relaxation with loved ones.
Tuesday, August 2: The ICS community mourns the loss of Dr. Gerald Vandezande, who passed away on Saturday, July 16. The ICS community extends its thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathy to Gerald's family and friends.
Wednesday, August 3: Senior Member Doug Blomberg took on the duties of Academic Dean last month. We pray for stamina and wisdom for Doug in this role.
Thursday, August 4: We offer prayers of gratitude and give thanks to you, the many supporters who have presented ICS with gifts of prayer, money, and expressions of appreciation, particularly through these quieter summer months. We are constantly blessed with your interest and support.
Friday, August 5: Senior Members often spend much of the summer developing course curriculum and giving attention to research projects. We are extremely grateful for the work of our Senior Members and ask for God's blessing on them.
Monday, August 8: Planning has begun for the reception and dinner to celebrate our new Centre for Philosophy, Religion and Social Ethics. We pray for continued energy and enthusiasm for all those who are involved in this event.
Tuesday, August 9: Many members of the ICS community will be traveling in the summer months to spend time with family and friends. We continue to pray for safe and pleasant journeys.
Wednesday, August 10: We ask for blessings on Senior Member Lambert Zuidervaart as he continues his work as founding director of our Centre for Philosophy, Religion and Social Ethics.
Thursday, August 11: In June, Henry, brother of Senior Member Ron Kuipers, had a serious accident at work. He has required a lot of surgery, and the prognosis is good for a full recovery. Please continue to pray for a full recovery for Henry, and for strength for the rest of his family as they nurse him back to health.
Friday, August 12: We offer prayers of praise for Junior Members Michael DeMoor and Peter Lok, whose PhD defenses at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam last month were successful. Congratulations Michael and Peter!
Monday, August 15: We pray for safe travel and blessings on all who are attending the International Christian Philosophy Conference in Amsterdam this week. Pray for the Senior Members who are making presentations and representing ICS at the conference in Amsterdam. Pray for the Junior Members who are involved, that they may have positive experiences in their workshops.
Tuesday, August 16: Today we pray for those who are struggling with illnesses. We ask God for strength, patience and for good results from treatment.
Wednesday, August 17: Last month Senior Members Ron Kuipers and Nik Ansell began sabbaticals. We pray for wisdom and energy for them as they work.
Thursday, August 18: The summer months are often a time when Junior Members can give sustained attention to their Masters and PhD thesis projects. We pray for our Junior Members and ask for God's blessing and guidance on their research and writing.
Friday, August 19: Work continues to prepare the next edition of Perspective. We ask God's blessing and guidance for those involved.
Monday, August 22: We pray for rest and renewal for the Senior Members and Administrative Staff who are taking vacations this month.
Tuesday, August 23: Junior Member Allyson Carr's sister Kristin was in a car accident and has sustained head injuries that are impacting the rest of her health, and mean she cannot work in the near future, at least until they are resolved. We continue to pray for a full and speedy recovery for Kristin.
Wednesday, August 24: We offer prayers of thanks for the addition of nine new Junior Members to the ICS community this fall. Please continue to remember them in your prayers as they make the final preparations and transitions this summer in order to begin their program studies here next month.
Thursday, August 25: We ask God's help and guidance for all those who are doing advancement work for ICS. Please pray that support for the vision and mission of ICS continues to grow.
Friday, August 26: Planning continues for the Justice Conference which will be held next year. We pray for continued energy and enthusiasm for all those who are involved in this event.
Monday, August 29: For all the Senior Members who are busy with the final preparation for their fall classes, we pray for guidance and stamina.
Tuesday, August 30: We pray for safe travel for all new and returning Junior Members who are coming to study at ICS this fall.
Wednesday, August 31: We pray for guidance and energy for all those participating in the preparations for Registration and Orientation Week and the annual ICS community fall retreat next week.
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