The whole tendency of modern life is towards scientific planning and organisation, central control, standardisation, and specialisation. If this tendency was left to work itself out to its extreme conclusion, one might expect to see the state transformed into an immense social machine, all the individual components of which are strictly limited to the performance of a definite and specialised function, where there could be no freedom because the machine could only work smoothly as long as every wheel and cog performed its task with unvarying regularity. Now the nearer modern society comes to the state of total organisation, the more difficult it is to find any place for spiritual freedom and personal responsibility. Education itself becomes an essential part of the machine, for the mind has to be as completely measured and controlled by the techniques of the scientific expert as the task which it is being trained to perform. .Christopher Henry Dawson
About This Quote
We live in a world where the needs of efficiency and social cohesion are paramount. To achieve these goals, we have to remove much of what makes us human. We must pay attention to the details so that the machine can function smoothly. Modern life, as it is now, is not particularly spiritual or personal.
We are all cogs in the machine. However, I believe that if we can face our limitations and accept this life as it is then we can regain some freedom.
Source: Religion And World History: A Selection From The Works Of Christopher Dawson
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