I also had the privilege of attending some Great Books courses at my high school and always regretted not applying to St. John's for undergraduate. I would like to attend some discussions organized by The Great Books Council of San Francisco (https://www.greatbooksncal.org/), though it's difficult to find time.
Yeah, exactly. Or hackerspaces. Or OSS. Or presenting at DEFCON. (And, yes, these folks will include this project in their tenure/promotion cases and therefore indirectly benefit professionally even if they don't charge just like in the cases above.)
My only real "criticism" of this model is that the people doing this work shouldn't shy away from asking for "tithes"... humanities professors are criminally under-paid and plenty of folks would pay to attend these sorts of seminars (in the same way that most people tithe at church).
That's also tithing (and is completely normal for regular church goers... bible says 10% to the church and a lot of folks follow that prescription)
Some countries still have "established" churches, which historically received direct government support from tax money (this is not always the case today... while the Church of England is still the "established" church in England, it no longer receives direct taxpayer support). Others may have a group of recognized churches that can receive taxpayer support (Germany is that way, I believe... you declare your religious affiliation, and if it is on the government-approved list, the government tax authorities will collect the tax and remit it to the church).
Most churches did give sermons on the subject, but there was never a direct consequence for ignoring that teaching.
This sounds very suspect to me. Do you have any sources for this assertion?
I've never heard of a church requiring any form of support, tithe etc to be a member or at all. I've been attending church and have been a member of several for 20+ years.
OTOH, a nearby Unitarian / mega-style church made signing a form with your annual salary and a pledge to tithe a minimum percentage a formal requirement for membership. I heard they were active in enforcing it, but never bothered joining.
I.e. see https://www.uua.org/finance/fundraising/generosity/185418.sh...
Note under the "collection plate" header that they suggest you give in a way that has your name on it so it can count toward your pledge- they definitely track individual tithes.
http://ascensionfairview.org/contribute/parish-membership/ (Orthodox) $450/year
https://www.templeshalom.org/dues (Jewish) $3,950/year (based on 2 adult household)
https://www.buddhistchurch.org/membership (Buddhist) $44/month
https://beulahbaptist.org/flc/membership/ (Baptist) $30/month
As I said, few churches (or others houses of worship) will charge you a fee for attending services (other than the plate coming around), but if you want a say in church governance you usually have to pony up, either with formal dues or a less-formal expectation that you will provide significant financial support.
I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, mind you.
Have you actually been involved in church governance in the churches you've attended?
> Do you have any sources for this assertion?
Don't be that person. Take or leave the anecdote, but don't make an asinine request of evidence for something clearly anecdotal.
It feels like a lot of the comments boil down to “well my education was different so I can’t take this seriously.”
I've been very loosely involved in Interintellect[0], which itches a similar scratch and looks spiritually very similar to the Catherine Project, with perhaps less of a focus on great books and a wider, more modern gamut.
For anyone considering Catherine Project, Interintellect, or St. John's College, I heartily recommend them. Diligently reading through deep written work, then discussing it with other people genuinely interested and invested in the work and the dialogue is a wonderful experience and one that's hugely shaped me.
I think if we look at the title and ignore the content of the article itself, it explains why the reaction was so strong.
A title that contains the word "liberal" and mentions experimenting with education is not going to bring out the most level-headed readers.
(If so: Color me jealous.)
https://www.sjc.edu/academic-programs/undergraduate/great-bo...
I attended St John's College - which is probably as close as a "real" school can get to the Catherine Project - and loved every minute. Grades were not given, and there were no professors or lectures.
Seeing criticism about the business model and lack of tests, worry about educational fads, etc, is missing the point, in my opinion.
Consider the possibility that a group of adults may want to engage in rich and historically important works of thought, but have no interest in the trappings of educational institutions, with their tuition, grades, etc. Like a bible study, but without the bible. If you feel threatened by this, ask yourself why.