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Dear Abrar,
First
of all let me wish you “bon voyage” and safe
journey. I certainly hope my response to you
reaches you before you leave.
I
don’t see how any principle is “unjudgeable”
unless we deliberately choose not to judge it,
which is often the case with religious people.
Certain first principles are treated as
sacrosanct by religious people, hence they are
regarded as beyond intellectual scrutiny but
such an approach has more to do with a certain
mindset rather than these principles being
inherently “unjudgeable”.
In my
humble opinion, criticism levelled at organized
religion is all rationally based and therefore
quite justified. That religion tends to be
doctrinaire and intolerant is all empirically
substantiated, so I for one do not see any knee
jerk reactions or emotive strains in such
discourse.
As
for your methodology of treating first
principles as “unjudgeable” while rationally
testing implications of these first principles,
I can safely assert that in essence there isn’t
much difference between the two. Principles are
often tested through an examination of their
implications and many of these first principles
crumble in the face of HONEST intellectual
processes because they are not rationally based
in the first place. It seems to me you are
willing to allow some criticism of these
principles, while stopping short of rejecting
them altogether.
You
ask whether any ISM is based on rational first
principles. I can at least think of two.
Secularism sees as its core value, respect for
all human beings. It is a rationally formulated
first principle that acknowledges equality of
all human beings as a desirable goal. Take
Humanism as another example. Again, it
recognizes the dignity and equality of all human
beings as a good thing based on rational
processes. It is a first principle on which the
edifice of Humanism is built. And it is very
judgeable as a moral philosophy.
I do
hope I can meet you when you return in October
and we can continue this discussion in person.
Moreover, I need you to be one of my
interviewees for my dissertation on the
madrassahs of Pakistan so I will most certainly
be getting in touch with you soon.
Regards and
best wishes for a safe journey,
Farzana
http://www.farzanahassan.com
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