In my previous essays about teaching in an age of ideology, I had looked at two teachers – Eric Voegelin and Ellis Sandoz – who sought to clear the ideological rubble in the modern academia so students could study the true, the beautiful, and the good. In his accessible lectures about complicated philosophical topics, Eric Voegelin elicited an erotic restlessness in his students in order to prompt them in their own search for the true, the beautiful, and the good, while Ellis Sandoz asked his students to reflect upon their own experiences to see whether the subjects they were studying comported with their commonsensical understanding of reality. For both professors, teaching was not the mere recitation of facts and figures to be quickly remembered, recalled, and forgotten but rather it was the incarnation of thinking itself. To teach was to be the incarnation of what one sought, and what they sought was the true, the beautiful, and the good.
I was fortunate enough to study with Dr. Niemeyer in Mexico toward the end of his life, and I certainly recognize him in your article. He was exacting but also open, and he liked us all to adjourn after class to a local bar that was empty in the afternoons for beers and further discussion (although the bar owner eventually invited us never to return because in his estimation we didn't drink enough cerveza).
Once I asked him a question based on something I had read in Conversations with Eric Voegelin (which I had obtained via interlibrary loan and photocopied in its entirety) but he was more interested in the book itself--he had never seen it, and wanted a copy. I was hesitant because I had scribbled notes in the margins that I didn't necessarily want seen by a Voegelin scholar! But there was no choice, so I let him borrow it. When he gave it back, he was very agitated over a couple of notations I had written. I wish I could remember which ones they were; looking through it now, I don't see anything that seems as if it should have caused such a hubbub.
I can confirm the "Mr." and "Miss" formalism, which I really liked because my Greek teacher did the same thing. It was always funny to see people from class on campus and call out to them using Mr. or Miss and their last name because one had never heard their first names. Another thing I remember was that anytime Dr. Niemeyer said anything about the time it was always "2:14" or "7:26"--never "quarter after" or "half past," always exact. Also, he was in good condition for a man of advanced age, trudging up the hills in Guanajuato without huffing or pausing, which impressed me at the time because I was doing a little gasping myself (that I of course blamed on the altitude, ha). And although the class was conducted in English, he was kind enough to translate into Spanish anytime it seemed to him that a little extra help was needed.
Anyone who studies Voegelin wishes to have had the chance to study with him or even just meet him, but having studied with Niemeyer was for me the next best thing.
This is a beautiful piece of writing about a beautiful philosophy that defines the core of impactful teaching. By impactful I mean that which can redirect the spiritual path of one's life and how we walk the walk.
I consider myself to be an outstanding teacher and despite obviously lacking humility, my life has been filled to the brim with compassion and insights instigated by a never-ending curious mind. I believe that we are seeing in America, now more than ever is the failure of education in our schools and in our homes that has led away from curiosity and compassion. As a physician that loves to emphasize root thought processes (concepts), I would call what ails in many Americans a "vitamin" C deficiency. Instead of the "F" word we should think more about the "C" words (e.g., choices, cooperation, communication, compassion, charity, concentration of effort, collaboration, collegiality, creativity, and commitment), to name a few. The challenge (another C word) is how to bring C words into vogue and leave the F words in the dust.
Thank you for such an inspiring way to wake up on an early Saturday morn.
I was fortunate enough to study with Dr. Niemeyer in Mexico toward the end of his life, and I certainly recognize him in your article. He was exacting but also open, and he liked us all to adjourn after class to a local bar that was empty in the afternoons for beers and further discussion (although the bar owner eventually invited us never to return because in his estimation we didn't drink enough cerveza).
Once I asked him a question based on something I had read in Conversations with Eric Voegelin (which I had obtained via interlibrary loan and photocopied in its entirety) but he was more interested in the book itself--he had never seen it, and wanted a copy. I was hesitant because I had scribbled notes in the margins that I didn't necessarily want seen by a Voegelin scholar! But there was no choice, so I let him borrow it. When he gave it back, he was very agitated over a couple of notations I had written. I wish I could remember which ones they were; looking through it now, I don't see anything that seems as if it should have caused such a hubbub.
I can confirm the "Mr." and "Miss" formalism, which I really liked because my Greek teacher did the same thing. It was always funny to see people from class on campus and call out to them using Mr. or Miss and their last name because one had never heard their first names. Another thing I remember was that anytime Dr. Niemeyer said anything about the time it was always "2:14" or "7:26"--never "quarter after" or "half past," always exact. Also, he was in good condition for a man of advanced age, trudging up the hills in Guanajuato without huffing or pausing, which impressed me at the time because I was doing a little gasping myself (that I of course blamed on the altitude, ha). And although the class was conducted in English, he was kind enough to translate into Spanish anytime it seemed to him that a little extra help was needed.
Anyone who studies Voegelin wishes to have had the chance to study with him or even just meet him, but having studied with Niemeyer was for me the next best thing.
Apologies for the rambling!
This is a beautiful piece of writing about a beautiful philosophy that defines the core of impactful teaching. By impactful I mean that which can redirect the spiritual path of one's life and how we walk the walk.
I consider myself to be an outstanding teacher and despite obviously lacking humility, my life has been filled to the brim with compassion and insights instigated by a never-ending curious mind. I believe that we are seeing in America, now more than ever is the failure of education in our schools and in our homes that has led away from curiosity and compassion. As a physician that loves to emphasize root thought processes (concepts), I would call what ails in many Americans a "vitamin" C deficiency. Instead of the "F" word we should think more about the "C" words (e.g., choices, cooperation, communication, compassion, charity, concentration of effort, collaboration, collegiality, creativity, and commitment), to name a few. The challenge (another C word) is how to bring C words into vogue and leave the F words in the dust.
Thank you for such an inspiring way to wake up on an early Saturday morn.