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I think that the typically philosophical problem of the relationship between science and non-scientific forms of understanding the world (in particular, religion) has not lost its relevance today, especially given what is happening now in Russia and, for example, in the Middle East.
Moreover, this problem can be considered in very different aspects. On the one hand, we can talk about the relationship between science and religion in society (and judging by the questions on The Question, the problem is quite relevant). On the other hand, we can expand on this topic in a completely different way, for example, to look at the problem of medical experiments on people in Nazi Germany or the problem of punitive psychiatry in order to think about how and why science (under certain circumstances) can turn into a tool for maintaining totalitarian regimes.
In all these aspects, this problem is very interesting and relevant.
Today, the world is dominated by the philosophy of collective action, that is, expressing oneself through common action. Therefore, the main question that needs philosophical reflection today is the individual in the context of universal activity. What is the place of a person in the collective (in the broad, non-communist sense of the word) and what are the rules of behavior in this collective in conditions of joint actions? The simplest example (and the closest) is the Maidan or the surge of social activity that was observed in Russia in 2011-2012, when it suddenly became important for people to feel part of a whole, common movement. This is typical not only for Russia or the former Soviet Union, but also all over the world.
In one way or another, all the philosophical questions of an ordinary person (meaning not a scientist or philosopher) are reduced to the classic four questions that Immanuel Kant outlined:
1) What can I know?
2) What should I do?
3) What can I hope for?
4) What is a person?
According to Kant, the answers to these questions are: metaphysics, ethics, religion, and anthropology.
Naturally, much has changed since Kant's time. Therefore, one can argue about what can provide answers to these questions today.
“How much is pivchansky and roltukha worth today?” – with such people.
It is no longer common for a person to search for answers to questions that require time and concentration.
A person needs to work and, often, his work consists in the application of physical effort, not intellectual abilities. Therefore, we are now living in a kind of”technological stone age”.
The technology is there, but we are returning to the old tools.
Unfortunately, in the lives of today's people, there is almost no time left for solving philosophical questions.
The famous Martin Heidegger argued that the” philosophical question ” is essentially the same question that a thinking person asks relatively unanswered almost every day. In advance of contemporary thought, the German philosopher identified, in my opinion, the most fundamental problems of human existence. There were also questions about the structure of Being, its significance, and the relativity of man and his own life. It is hard to argue that there is something more important than life itself and existence. All other questions of a social or political nature are just “vanity of vanities”, which, as they are studied, largely alienates the individual from the perception of his own existence. So, answering the question, we can say that the “problem of life” has never lost its relevance, and in the heyday of the planetary era it became the most topical, but, unfortunately, not noticeable.
Because of his egocentrism, of course, only his position in society is important to a person, and everything else is important to him only to the extent that he voluntarily sets priorities of importance for himself personally. But a huge amount of advice, reasoning, imaginary truths pouring on a person from the Internet and TV greatly disorients people, leads to porridge in the head and loss of real goals and values. Hence the questions of this plan)))) in general, I would like to narrow down the essence of the question – what are these problems in general?
If we do without scientific terms, then the only problem in all ages is the awareness of oneself and one's place in this world. Attention to one's own personality and the desire to improve it is an evolutionary distinctive feature of a person. An animal doesn't care how noble, brave, gentle, or determined it is. The only thing that matters to the beast is how well it is adapted to the life that it really is. A person constantly asks himself the question: what else am I capable of? In search of an answer to this question, he changes the world, creates a new reality.
All other problems are special compared to this one. So, for example, at present, the destruction of social ties at all levels of society and the loss of true meaning and true survival goals have become important private problems. This is the threat to the future of humanity.