Islam was fashioned by Muhammad from a platform provided by Judaism. Muslims recognise the Old Testament and acknowledge the legacy of its Prophets and the biblical struggles of Israel. The Arabs tell the story of Ishmael. The Old Testament hero, Abraham, had two wives, Hagar and Sarah. Each of his wives had borne Abraham a […]

Some twenty five hundred years ago, a Hebrew poet wrote a remarkable parable about suffering. You can find it in the Old Testament as the Book of Job. There is little in the narrative to suggest where to place Job in terms of our modern geography. (Mind you the Old Testament is notoriously unreliable about […]

You will have noticed over the years that I am a great fan of science and mathematics. When I am seeking an explanation for something that is where I would normally turn first. But I have recently been contemplating what can we really know and indeed how can we know it? Foremost in my mind […]

I wrote an essay recently on Generation Y and social technology. In it I quoted an article from Psychology Today whichgave this assessment of this coterie of the younger generation: “(The members of Generation Y) are arguably the most reviled generation in recent history and armies of consultants are hustling to decipher them. Called the […]

In August last year, in anticipation of a coalition victory in the soon-to-be-held election I was impertinent enough to pen a message to Tony Abbott.   ( A Message to Tony Abbott ) Now that he has been duly elected Prime Minister, and in the light of my previous advice, I feel compelled to provide some more […]

Often in my coaching practice, when people are amenable to going a little deeper into “what it means to be human” I introduce my client to the Phil Harker model of: Know yourself < > Accept Yourself < > Forget Yourself Just recently I went over it with an executive. I argued that it was […]

Most of us have pretty strong maternal and paternal feelings. We feel such empathy, not only for own progeny, but for children in general. We are appalled when we see violence done to children, whether physical or psychological. When we see children grossly violated over long periods of time and such activity tacitly approved of […]

My essay this week might easily be read in conjunction with last week’s In Praise of Doubt. Last week I was critical of the Absolutists and their need for certainty. In fact I implied that their lack of tolerance of ambiguity was an indication of a lack of psychological maturity. The thought came to me […]

Postmodernism has always seemed to me to be an over-reaction to absolutism, which its adherents see as pervading modern society. They deride “scientism”, mistakenly believing that science lays down laws that are not challengeable. As Sir Karl Popper showed us, nothing in science can ever be said to be definitively proved. Carl Sagan, the American […]

Well, what a frustrating week it’s been! To my great chagrin all the newspapers and the television content have been swamped with the royal visit. As a republican, it is embarrassing to watch the fawning press running after them and an adulatory public swarming to catch a glimpse of this irrelevant pair of freeloaders and […]