Rodney L. Taylor, Ph.D.

The drinking of two beverages -- sweet Kool-Aid and bitter hemlock, has portrayed suicide in Western culture, but with profound differences in the meaning of the act. In their utilization, far beyond the particular historical circumstances surrounding either Kool-Aid or hemlock, they have assumed roles larger than life. Becoming profound...

Civility and contemporary society -- have they not simply become antithetical to each other?

Most of the time "civility" appears to be nothing but an old fashioned and out-of-fashion reminiscence of a by-gone era.

What has taken the place of civility in contemporary society may well represent "freedom...

Wendell Berry, one of the original proponents of the principle of sustainability and a major social critic of 20th and now 21st century American society, has made surprisingly repeated references to Confucius and Confucian writings in his works. I say "surprisingly" because Berry, at first glance, might not seem like...

I enjoy reading David Brooks, the op-ed columnist at the New York Times. I don't always agree with him, however I find his arguments cogent if not at times compelling, articulating views I like to take seriously and ponder.

Brooks' How to Fight the Man is a fascinating piece about...

The irony is delightful, maybe even a bit whimsical -- "bowling alone" with Confucius. The point, however, is poignant -- an insight into contemporary American society we might all stop and consider for a moment!

When the sociologist Robert Putnam first published his now well-known work Bowling Alone in 2000,...

It's that time of year again when we find ourselves making those infamous resolutions for the New Year. While some may be of the most banal sort -- to lose weight, to drink less coffee, to take that dream vacation. Most, we might hope, suggest a focus upon the betterment...

As we come into the holiday season, regardless of one's background or perspective, thoughts have a way of turning to the ideals we all seek, ideals that would make us all better people and the world a better place, ideals of generosity and love.

Sure, there are the Grinch...

In a nation where the term "family values" has virtually become a bell weather gage for one's political affinities, the value of such values seems incapable of support without the implication of conservative or right wing political leanings.

But do family values have to have a political position? Can't...

Campaign 2012 is well underway with Republicans jockeying for place in the sweepstakes of the nomination process.

Certainly a memorable moment in the Republican debates occurred when Governor Perry was asked about the number of executions carried out in the state of Texas, a number far...

Ah, the beginning of fall and with the change of seasons, the yearly ritual of the return to school.

The first sentence of the first passage of the Confucian Analects reads, "Is it not a joy to learn with a constant effort and application?" (Analects I:1): a statement that...

Whatever one's political persuasion, one thing is very obvious today -- the government in this country seems not to be working well, and that might be the kindest thing that can be said!

And what would Confucius say?

Actually, Confucius has a good deal...

The English philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) describes the outlook of the mature intellectual -- from his point of view, an atheist, staring into the void -- as "heroic fatalism." The void, so described, is not the Buddhist Void (sunyata), but the void created by the intellectual knowledge humanity has acquired...

It is summer vacation time and for most of us that means that we take a break from the normal routine. Oh, we may still be working long hours and wish that we could "get away," but there is oft times a relaxation in the day-to-day pace of life, with...

The central Confucian virtue of jen, most often rendered as "goodness," defines the proper relation of one person to another, a relationship always articulated for Confucianism in ethical terms. Its core foundational meaning is best understood in terms of the Confucian virtue of shu, reciprocity, defined by Confucius as: "Do...

A number of years ago I was working with a very prominent Japanese Confucian scholar, Okada Takehiko. He was both a scholar of Confucianism and a Confucian himself. I was translating one of his works from Japanese but also conducting interviews with him to better understand what a contemporary Confucian...

One of the questions central to the study of Confucius and Confucianism for decades of scholarship has been the nature of Confucian teachings. Simply put, is Confucianism political theory or a religious tradition? Any text on Asian political systems will talk at length of the centrality of Confucian teachings to...

Confucius was born in the 6th Century B.C.E. in the small state of Lu, located in the present Shantung peninsula. He lived during the Chou Dynasty at a point when the central authority of the dynasty was being challenged by the growth of increasingly powerful states attempting to challenge the...