The Centre for Ethics Newsletter Volume 78 - Term 3, 2015 David Tacey David Tacey is Emeritus Professor of Literature at La Trobe University, Melbourne and Research Professor at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, Canberra. He is an interdisciplinary scholar and public intellectual who has written extensively on spirituality, mental health and religion. He has spoken at many religious education conferences and been interviewed numerous times on ABC radio. He has written 14 books, including Edge of the Sacred (2006), ReEnchantment: the New Australian Spirituality (2000) and The Spirituality Revolution (2003). His most recent publication is Beyond Literal Belief: Religion as Metaphor (2015). Tacey says this latest book is the one he has wanted to write all his adult life. A literal reading of scripture David Tacey grew up in a family where scripture was taken literally. The clergy with whom he was acquainted encouraged this literal reading and saw it as the ‘true faith’. They reinforced the idea that this was the only possible serious reading of scripture. Tacey applauds Richard Holloway, former Bishop of Edinburgh, who wrote in How to Read the Bible, ‘Unimaginative literalists have destroyed the reputation of the Bible by insisting on its factual truth rather than encouraging us to read it metaphorically’. Mesmerised by images Tacey has said he wants this book to cause discussion. In this, I do not think he will be disappointed. He sees Australia as a theological backwater, where the question of how we read the Bible has been ignored or denied. He acknowledges that some theologians in this country have hinted at metaphorical content but not been able to discuss it in plain language. He says too many theologians are trapped in literalism; too ready to put institutional loyalty ahead of the search for truth. They are mesmerised by images they insist are facts. The conceits of fundamentalism Tacey is well aware that some authors who dwell on the mythic content of religion are involved in what he calls a ‘demolition job’. He does not see himself as engaged in any such pursuit. Rather, he is trying to rescue spiritual truth from the religious conceits of fundamentalism. For Tacey, metaphors point to something true even though they are not a literal truth. He uses a number of biblical stories to illustrate this. One concerns the miracle of the loaves and fishes. He says it is most likely not an event that took place, but the connotation is that people went away from the preaching of Jesus feeling nourished by what they heard. He is fond of a quote from The Cloud of Unknowing, ‘Take care not to interpret physically what is intended spiritually’. Breaking open the myth Where might this approach take those who would follow the lead of David Tacey? He says the first task is to break open the myth. This breaking open is a necessary beginning. But what happens then? Tacey encourages the reader to be open to the myth’s interior meaning. Simply to break open the myth without engaging in the hard work of looking for its inner meaning is, according to Tacey, an act of vandalism. It discounts any sense that traditions matter and it has no educational value. He enlists the philosopher Karl Jaspers to back him up, ‘Only he or she has the right to demythologise who retains the truth contained in the symbolic expression.’ But what is this truth? What were the biblical writers trying to tell us? According to Tacey the writers of scripture were fully aware of the mythic mode. That was precisely the way in which they intended to probe the meaning of something holy. It could only be narrated in myth and symbol, as history was considered too flat and banal to express ultimate concerns. John Dominic Crossan David Tacey is well aware of the work of the modern scripture scholar John Dominic Crossan. Crossan writes, ‘My point is not that those ancient people told literal stories and we are now smart enough to take them symbolically, but that they told them symbolically and we are now dumb enough to take them literally. They knew what they were doing; we don’t.’ It’s feisty stuff on the part of Crossan and Tacey seems to enjoy the intellectual struggle that is going on as people argue about the very meaning of religion.
Transcript
The Centre for Ethics
NewsletterVolume 78 - Term 3, 2015
David TaceyDavid Tacey is Emeritus Professor of Literature at La Trobe University, Melbourne and Research Professor at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, Canberra. He is an interdisciplinary scholar and public intellectual who has written extensively on spirituality, mental health and religion. He has spoken at many religious education conferences and been interviewed numerous times on ABC radio. He has written 14 books, including Edge of the Sacred (2006), ReEnchantment: the New Australian Spirituality (2000) and The Spirituality Revolution (2003). His most recent publication is Beyond Literal Belief: Religion as Metaphor (2015). Tacey says this latest book is the one he has wanted to write all his adult life.
A literal reading of scriptureDavid Tacey grew up in a family where scripture was taken literally. The clergy with whom he was acquainted encouraged this literal reading and saw it as the ‘true faith’. They reinforced the idea that this was the only possible serious reading of scripture. Tacey applauds
Richard Holloway, former Bishop of Edinburgh, who wrote in How to Read the Bible, ‘Unimaginative literalists have destroyed the reputation of the Bible by insisting on its factual truth rather than encouraging us to read it metaphorically’.
Mesmerised by imagesTacey has said he wants this book to cause discussion. In this, I do not think he will be disappointed. He sees Australia as a theological backwater, where the question of how we read the Bible has been ignored or denied. He acknowledges that some theologians in this country have hinted at metaphorical content but not been able to discuss it in plain language. He says too many theologians are trapped in literalism; too ready to put institutional loyalty ahead of the search for truth. They are mesmerised by images they insist are facts.
The conceits of fundamentalismTacey is well aware that some authors who dwell on the mythic content of religion are involved in what he calls a ‘demolition job’. He does not see himself as engaged in any such pursuit. Rather, he is trying to rescue spiritual truth from the religious conceits of fundamentalism. For Tacey, metaphors point to something true even though they are not a literal truth. He uses a number of biblical stories to illustrate this. One concerns the miracle of the loaves and fishes. He says it is most likely not an event that took place, but the connotation is that people went away from the preaching of Jesus feeling nourished by what they heard. He is fond of a quote from The Cloud of Unknowing, ‘Take care not to interpret physically what is intended spiritually’.
Breaking open the mythWhere might this approach take those who would follow the lead of David Tacey? He says the first task is to break open the myth. This breaking open is a necessary beginning. But what happens then? Tacey encourages the reader to be open to the myth’s interior meaning. Simply to break open the myth without engaging in the hard work of looking for its inner meaning is, according to Tacey, an act of vandalism. It discounts any sense that traditions matter and it has no educational value. He enlists the philosopher Karl Jaspers to back him up, ‘Only he or she has the right to demythologise who retains the truth contained in the symbolic expression.’ But what is this truth? What were the biblical writers trying to tell us? According to Tacey the writers of scripture were fully aware of the mythic mode. That was precisely the way in which they intended to probe the meaning of something holy. It could only be narrated in myth and symbol, as history was considered too flat and banal to express ultimate concerns.
John Dominic CrossanDavid Tacey is well aware of the work of the modern scripture scholar John Dominic Crossan. Crossan writes, ‘My point is not that those ancient people told literal stories and we are now smart enough to take them symbolically, but that they told them symbolically and we are now dumb enough to take them literally. They knew what they were doing; we don’t.’ It’s feisty stuff on the part of Crossan and Tacey seems to enjoy the intellectual struggle that is going on as people argue about the very meaning of religion.
Father Andrew Hamilton SJUnsurprisingly, Tacey’s book has generated considerable controversy. In a review for Eureka Street, Jesuit theologian Andrew Hamilton says it is difficult for him as a Catholic priest to engage helpfully with Tacey’s argument. Hamilton writes, ‘I have long admired Tacey for the seriousness and effectiveness of his reflections on religious education. I also find illuminating his exploration of Christian stories and Christian symbols. But in taking issue with his central argument, I shall inevitably be seen to share the timidity, lack of intellectual rigour and self interest he finds in the churches.’
A complex discussionHamilton admits that he does indeed have an interest and would have much to lose if he were to read the scriptures the way Tacey does. These deprivations include, ‘The loss of a personal God to whom I can pray, of a Christ who is a living presence among his followers, and of a community in living continuity with Jesus’ disciples. But quite apart from self-interest, I am not persuaded by his argument. It rests on polarities that over-simplify a more complex world. I refuse the choice offered between a literal understanding, lumbered with all its associated crudities and historical barbarity, and a metaphorical understanding, endowed with a spiritual depth. I too abhor the crudities and embrace the spiritual depth, but I claim the freedom to move between with a range of interpretations as appropriate’.
Faith more than a metaphorDavid Tacey was bewildered by Andrew Hamilton’s review and responded by asserting that, ‘Of course faith is more than a metaphor,’ and that he had striven all his life to encourage faith and to believe in a personal God. Acknowledging this criticism, Andrew Hamilton wrote that his faith rests on the belief that a personal God
has entered our world in Jesus, who is the Son of God in a unique sense. Furthermore Jesus’ resurrection is an event of God in this world that affected Jesus as well as the faith of believers. Hamilton pointed out that his understanding of Tacey’s book was that the author argued for a faith in which these foundations would be interpreted in a less ‘realistic’ way. Such an interpretation would not support Hamilton’s own lived faith.
Public dialogueIt is not often we see any form of public dialogue about theology in Australia. However, Andrew Hamilton and David Tacey have engaged in just such an exercise. In a response to Tacey’s objections, Hamilton expressed dismay that part of his review led some to believe and say that in his judgment Tacey denied the existence of God, is an atheist and does not write as a Christian. Andrew Hamilton went on to write, ‘I totally repudiate that description of your book and your own beliefs. If we differ in the account we give of Christian faith, as we do, the difference is between two people who are both theists and Christians, and can be courteously discussed.’ He went on, ‘I want to acknowledge again the contribution you have made to faith in Australia by engaging with the currents in our culture, including an aggressive atheism, that lead so many young people to reject religion and a spiritual dimension in life. Your seminars and talks have helped many people to appreciate the deep meanings of the Christian message that would otherwise be hidden from them’.
‘Celebrity atheists’As Andrew Hamilton points out, Tacey not only challenges those who share his Christianity. He confronts Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens (dec), Sam Harris and those he calls ‘celebrity atheists’ accusing them of their own sort of literal-mindedness.
Not historical and therefore untrue?Tacey is less than delighted by anyone, Liberal Protestant or new atheist, who would dismiss the mythic element of Christianity as not historical and therefore untrue. As he sees it, this leads to a portrayal of Jesus as a secular figure for a secular age. He is advocating that people adopt a state of mind much like that required to understand poetry and here he points to John Keats who assists us as we keep ourselves open to mystery in all its richness.
Tracking the GodsOne of the best books I have read in recent years is James Hollis’ Tracking the Gods: The Place of Myth in Modern Life. Hollis makes the point that myth takes us into our deepest psychic reservoirs. Whatever our cultural and religious background, a greater intimacy with myth provides a way of seeking meaning, the absence of which is often behind the private and collective neuroses of our time. Hollis writes, ‘Today there is renewed interest in myth, in part because we feel that, as Blaise Pascal noted in the 17th century, ‘We wander in times which are not ours,’ or we share Hamlet’s sense that ‘The time is out of joint,’ or agree with Rilke that ‘We are not much at home in the world we have created’. David Tacey’s ruminations on the mythic life will be worth hearing and we may wish to read his book about the possibilities that are open to those exploring this same barely understood inner world of meaning.
Frank SheehanSchool ChaplainDirector of the Centre for Ethics
David Tacey will discuss his controversial book at an evening jointly sponsored by the Centre for Ethics and the Anglican parish of Claremont. The talk will take place in the parish hall at 7.30pm on Thursday 13 August. There is no charge for this event.
Multiple intelligencesIf you have more than one child of your own, you will be well aware of Multiple Intelligences. In these workshops and demonstrations Greg Mitchell discusses the concept of intelligence in a practical and purposeful way. He demonstrates the eight different intelligences uncovered by Howard Gardner by having participants experience the intelligences and deciphering their reactions. Greg shows teachers how to match their teaching and training to different students’ preferred intelligence, stretches them into new areas of learning and celebrates the new learning that comes with looking at intelligence differently.
Greg Mitchell will speak to students on Tuesday 4 August.
James FoleyJames is a writer, illustrator and cartoonist. Starting his career in primary school, drawing cartoons for the school newspaper, James won his first award in Year 7 in a statewide ‘make your own storybook’ competition. He later worked on a regular comic strip for his high school paper, editorial cartoons for a Curtin University paper and a full-page comic for The University of Notre Dame’s Quasimodo magazine.
James’ professional career began in 2003, when he drew his first covers for Western Australia’s weekly Quokka newspaper. He has worked as a freelancer,
James Foley will speak to students on Tuesday 4 August.
James says his favourite part of his job is presenting workshops for children. “I’m always amazed at the natural enthusiasm children bring to drawing, especially when they draw for themselves and don’t mind if the work is good enough”. James also works with older audiences, including educational organisations and corporate groups, and says it is fun to see people get back in touch with their creative child.
creating cartoons and illustrations for publications, promotions, events and corporations. Past clients have included Woodside, Caritas Australia and the State Child Development Centre. More recently, James has consulted and volunteered with community groups and non-government organisations, working with children at Disability in the Arts, Disadvantage in the Arts (WA), assisting Indigenous artists through the Wirlomin Noongar Language and Stories Project, and teaching students in country towns through the Rural Development Australia (Wheatbelt) ‘sharing stories’ comic project.
James is a writer and director, best known for the mini series The War That Changed Us and feature films Closed for Winter and In the Winter Dark. He was on the Executive Committee of the Western Australian branch of the Australian Directors Guild and a board member of Screen West and the Western Australian Screen Academy.
James Bogle
James Bogle will speak to students on Wednesday
12 August.
Professor Cynthia Shannon WeickertProfessor Cynthia Shannon Weickert dedicates her time to helping those suffering from schizophrenia. Professor Shannon Weickert obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and Psychology from Keuka College in New York and a PhD in Biomedical Science from Mount Sinai Medical School in New York City. She then spent the next 11 years in the Intramural Research program at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in Washington DC. In 2006 she became a Professor at the University of New South Wales and is currently leading a translational research program that uses insights from the molecular and cellular neurodevelopment of schizophrenia to design and test novel treatments for people with schizophrenia.
Professor Shannon Weickert’s work has a wide-ranging impact beyond psychiatry, including the examination of molecular mechanisms by which hormones and growth factors co-operate to control gene expression and experimental examination of how sex hormones impact social
development in adolescence. She has made pivotal contributions to the conceptualisation of schizophrenia as a neurodevelopmental disorder and is best known for her pioneering work on brain-derived neurotropic factors (BDNF) and oestrogen receptors.
Recently, Professor Shannon Weickert and her team identified an immune activation in the brains of people with schizophrenia suggesting anti-inflammatory agents may be of therapeutic benefit to those suffering with psychosis.
She has a total of 156 papers, often published in high-ranking journals such as Molecular Psychiatry, Archives of General Psychiatry and Biological Psychiatry. To see Professor Shannon Weickert’s TedxSydney talk, click here.
Professor Cynthia Shannon Weickert will speak to the community on
Wednesday 5 August.
We are always delighted to welcome back speakers whose talks have been so interesting and helpful. For more information on any of our speakers please contact Teresa Scott at [email protected]
David Tacey is Emeritus Professor of Humanities at La Trobe University, Melbourne and Research Professor at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture, Canberra. He is an interdisciplinary scholar and public intellectual who has written extensively on spirituality, religion, youth experience and mental health. He is the author of 14 books, including Edge of the Sacred, Re-Enchantment: The New Australian Spirituality and The Spirituality Revolution.
David grew up in central Australia alongside Aboriginal communities and has a life-long interest in indigenous issues. He has written on Aboriginal spirituality and on the suicide epidemic in Aboriginal cultures. He studied literature, art history and philosophy at Flinders University and completed a PhD in literature and psychoanalysis at Adelaide University. He undertook post-doctoral studies in the United States on a Harkness Fellowship.
“In an environment where a mindless biblical fundamentalism has been identified with Christianity and where, as a direct result, the culture has become both non-believing and thoroughly secular, David Tacey, a proponent of a modern understanding of Christianity does his work. Rejecting both the hysteria of the biblical literalists and the emptiness of modern secularism, this book dares to engage both a deeply held Christian faith and the thought forms of the 21st century. As a Christian I welcome his contribution to the debate of our generation”. Bishop John Spong’s endorsement of Beyond Literal Belief; Religion as Metaphor by David Tacey.
David Tacey
David Tacey will speak to the community on Thursday 13 August
at Christ Church Parish Hall.D A V I D T A C E Y
‘A brilliant attempt
to save religion from itself.’
— Professor John Dourley, Carleton University, Ottawa
Please contact Teresa Scott on 9442 1705 beforehand, in case there is a change to the program. A map of Christ Church Grammar School is available on our website www.ccgs.wa.edu.au/about-us/our-location/campus-map
The Centre For Ethics
CalendarDate Event and topic Speaker Time Location
Wednesday 29 July Embracing fatherhoodFacilitators: Frank Sheehan and Miles Protter
