Ideational Foundations of Transcultural Communication 3: Foundations of European Civilization

The subject seeks to analyze the nature of sources that lie at the birth of European civilization. At the same time it presents Greek philosophy, Christian thought and scientific-technological approach to reality as the three fundamental roots, that Europe stems from.

Topics: 1. The roots of Europe and its spiritual nature 2. Plato´s contribution to the search of European constitution 3. Speculative mentality of Greece as the basis of European culture 4. Greek rationality as the basis of science 5. Discovery of man and the care of his soul 6. Biblical anthropocentrism and the conception of man as the image of God 7. Christian conception of man – man as the child of God 8. Consequences of concept of man as person for the life of society 9. Structural relationship of the concept of man as person with the concept of God as person 10. New idea of science and the danger of scientism.

Reale, Giovanni. Radici culturali e spirituali dell’Europa. Milano 2003.
Patočka, Jan. Plato and Europe: cultural memory in the present. Stanford 2002.
Dawson, Christopher. The Making of Europe: An Introduction to the History of European Unity. London 1932.