Don't Fight Plato

I wish people could join together based on shared values without regard to belief.  But this wish is contrary to Plato, so it will never happen in Western culture.   Plato said that there is one TRUTH which is absolute and universal.  Plato placed this TRUTH at the center of philosophy and relegated everything else, including values, as secondary.  At Plato's time, this was revolutionary.  The Athenians didn't place truth first.  Instead, their highest value was arete and they considered truth to be relative.  I agree with the Athenians, not Plato.  But there is no point to fight this battle in public.  Plato won, the Athenians lost, and now the average Westerner is incapable of even thinking from a perspective other than Plato's.

This has a very practical implication.  You cannot get anyone in Western culture to do anything unless they BELIEVE.  Without belief, there is nothing in the Western mind.  The importance of BELIEF in each religion is directly proportional to influence of Plato on that religion.  Christianity is the religion most influenced by Plato since it was developed by Paul in Greek areas, so Christianity is the religion most concerned with belief.  Islam is second, having been developed when Christianity was widespread.  So Islam was influenced by Christianity and made TRUTH very important, though not quite as much as Christianity does.  Judaism initially was entirely based on action.  In the Hebrew Bible, you won't find a single commandment to believe in God, only instructions on how to behave.  But since then, Israel was occupied by Alexander and was Hellenized, and this influence changed Judaism and elevated the importance of belief.  Judaism is still the least Plato-influenced Western religion because its core book was written before Hellenic influence.

The idea of the CoAlpha Brotherhood and the "broad approach" that I discussed in the private forum are an attempt to fight Plato.  As such, they are doomed to failure.  A narrow approach is needed that includes beliefs.  This may be palatable to fewer men, but at least those men will BELIEVE, so they may be motivated to action.