Richard Kearney, Post-secular Continental Philosophy and Education

Abstract

This paper presents and discusses the philosophical writings of contemporary Irish philosopher Richard Kearney. The thesis is that Kearney's work has useful implications for educators. Kearney is well known as a Continental philosopher in the hermeneutical tradition. He is a leading thinker in what has been labeled the in Continental philosophy. (1) Kearney's work is not, however, a common topic for scholarship among American educational philosophers. It may be that Kearney's work is relatively recent but I also suspect that the religious themes of Kearney's writings may repel many American philosophers. In addition, he is not a philosopher of education nor is education a focus in his work. Kearney's work is postmodern in orientation and tradition (if there is such a thing) and Romantic in style. In regards to education, I suggest that the value of Kearney's work is ethical, aesthetic, and teleological. That is, Kearney's work is about living life and he writes and speaks of ethical living for a transformed world. In this sense, there are many similarities (and differences) in Kearney's writing and the American pragmatic tradition but this is not the topic of this discussion. This paper examines the hermeneutical philosophy of Richard Kearney with a focus on ethics, social justice, and the meaning of the other. I argue that Kearney's ethical philosophy, while in context, nonetheless provides an appropriate, unique, and valuable perspective for thinking about education. This overview of Kearney's work and discussion of its relevance for education begins with an introduction and brief biography of Kearney. This is followed with a rationale for including post-secular conversations in what is traditionally the secular arena of public education. In support of my thesis, the paper examines some of Kearney's views on social justice and is meaning for education, particularly some of his writings on the other. This part of the paper begins with a postmodern critique of the current Leadership for Social Justice movement in America. (2) The remainder of the paper is a focused examination of Kearney's deconstruction of the other in The God Who May Be: A Hermeneutics of Religion (3) as an example of relevance of his work. Born in 1954, Kearney is a relatively young man; yet, he has achieved a remarkable combination of accomplishments in philosophy, the arts, and public life. (4) Kearney received his MA in 1976 from McGill University in Montreal where he studied with the Canadian communitarian philosopher Charles Margrave Taylor. Later, he studied under Paul Ricoeur and received a Ph.D. from the University of Paris X: Nanterre in 1980. Kearney's writings on otherness build on the ethical philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas with whom Kearney engaged in frequent conversations and correspondence. (5) Much of Keaney's work is also influenced by Jacques Derrida and contemporary Derridian scholar John Caputo. (6) The post-secular turn in Continental philosophy is unexpected but perhaps, nonetheless inevitable. Post-secularism follows and expands on the work of perceived and celebrated atheists such as Nietzsche, Heidegger, Foucault, and Derrida. (7) Regardless, much of the writings Heidegger and Derrida at the end of their lives focused on spiritual themes. (8) In addition, as John Manoussakis describes (9), Continental philosophy has always maintained a perspective. Nonetheless, the development of a vigorous school of postmodern post-secular philosophy at the beginning of the 21st century is a remarkable turn of events. Today, Continental philosophy has unapologetically embraced religious texts as legitimate and worthy arenas of philosophical discourse within the postmodern philosophical tradition. Of interest to me, however, is that much of this work is relevant to education. Considering the work of Kearney, I wonder if educational philosophers who usually distance themselves from anything theological may be missing one of the main currents of contemporary philosophy with profound ethical and teleological possibilities for educational dialogue and change. …