“Managing diversity” is the formula used by the Canadian philosopher and permanent fellow of the IWM, Charles Taylor, to describe a desirable form of secularism. It encompasses an accepting stance towards the diversity of religions. The IWM’s program during the second quarter of 2009 was largely devoted to this theme and heavily influenced by the lengthy stay of Charles Taylor in Vienna. The conference “Modes of Secularism” was held under his direction. You can read about it on page 4 and also in the guest contribution by Tariq Modood. During the course of these discussions it became clear that religion would play an increasingly significant role in the 21st century, not only in the sense of a return to spirituality but also as a tangible political element in the formation of a multi-ethnic society.
We are all broadly familiar with the changes that have occurred in the world since the fall of the Iron Curtain but what about what hasn’t eventuated? This question was posed somewhat differently at the conference “The ‘Brave New World’ After Communism” – namely, what were the expectations of the time and how haven’t they been fulfilled. The conference brought together viewpoints from both the former East Germany and other Eastern European countries in the search for an alternate history. The article by Yaroslav Hrytsak on page 11 of the newsletter shows, by way of example, the paradoxical situation of Ukraine during this time and how the country survived through a unique mixture of uncertainty, fear and hope.
The iwm held a number of other important events alongside those devoted to the two principle themes “Secularism” and “1989,” with special guests Cees Nooteboom, Ian Buruma and Bob Silvers. Bernhard Waldenfels opened one conference with a moving lecture about “creeping violence” and spelled out the everyday forms that it can take. Debra Bergoffen has written a detailed piece relating to this conference on page 13. It concerns the legal proscription of rapes committed during wartime and how this appears to reinterpret, at least in part, the intrinsic sexual logic of such acts. Other long essays in this edition of the newsletter include a political analysis of Pakistan by Faijsal Devji and a philosophical piece by Susanne Lettow which places new approaches to biology at the forefront of science. Hopefully all these articles offer some stimulating and, in the best sense of the word, diverse reading.
Download the IWMpost 101 as a PDF
Contents
Müssen Revolutionen scheitern? Zum Tod von Ralf Dahrendorf
Managing Diversity: A Conference on Secularism
Debates, Lectures and Events
Post Soviet Ukraine, Spirituality in Asia, Narratives of Secularism – Monthly Lectures
Tod und Religion, Roter Regen – Literary Events
Der muslimische Schleier in der Kunst, Klimawandel und Demokratie – Lecture Series
Cosmopolitanism, Kunst und Politik, Editorial Dilemmas, Configurations of Biological Knowledge – Further Events
The Future of Food – Conference in Boston
Conference on 1989
The “Brave New World” after Communism
The Blessing of Ignorance / by Yaroslav Hrytsak
Conference on violence
Rape as a Weapon of War / by Debra Bergoffen
From the Fellows
Die Rückkehr der Biologie / von Susanne Lettow
Politics of the Borderland / by Faisal Devji
Fellows and Guests
Travels and Talks, Varia
Publications
Guest Contribution
Respect for Religion / by Tariq Modood
Poems
Der Schatten des Schlüssels / von Ferenc Szijj
Upcoming Events
