ERIC Number: EJ1429301
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 4
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0895-4852
EISSN: EISSN-1936-4709
Piety, Impiety, and the Business of the University
Gene Fendt
Academic Questions, v37 n2 p24-27 2024
Despite the fact that universities grew out of religious institutions in the Middle Ages and the first colleges in America were founded as religiously oriented institutions, it seems out of bounds these days to raise a question about the relation of the university and piety. In an ordinary undergraduate course in Philosophy of Religion the first book one might read is Plato's "Euthyphro." Socrates meets Euthyphro in front of the court because Socrates is being brought up on charges of impiety and corrupting the youth by his impiety. Euthyphro is surprised and offended: He thinks Meletus, Socrates's accuser, is "attacking the heart of the city" by indicting Socrates, who has a divine sign which warns him from saying or doing the wrong thing. According to the author, today we find numerous Euthyphros, people who think their judgment is as good as God's judgement, and perhaps like Euthyphro will quote "what God did" to show you. One of their problems is that, like the Greeks, we live in a polytheistic society. Unlike Euthyphro, who believed there were many gods other than Zeus, most people in the university and society only pick one whose ways define piety. However, the author states, we all live and study among people who have different gods. According to the author, a university's job is to institute the character of Socrates into the world of Meletuses, Euthyphros, and Non-Meletuses.
Descriptors: Undergraduate Study, Philosophy, Universities, Role of Education, College Role, Religious Factors, Ethics, Moral Values
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A