Introducing Kepler College -- Not your Typical State-Approved DL School

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by BillDayson, Dec 1, 2005.

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  1. BillDayson

    BillDayson New Member

    Here's something that I happened to stumble on (it was the stars!) and it blew my socks off!

    Besides being the first Washington state-approved college that I've looked at, Kepler College looks to me like they may be offering the first academically serious degree programs in astrology offered anywhere in the world. Not only that, Kepler College seems to approach the subject in what I believe is precisely the right way. (Through the history of ideas and religious studies conceived broadly.)

    http://www.kepler.edu/index.html

    It's easy to laugh I guess, but if it's for real, this thing is not a joke. (And since they invite auditors to check out a few classes before committing to a degree program, there doesn't seem to be a lot of risk.)

    Their masters degree takes five semesters and includes a language requirement. They offer courses in Koine Greek, Latin and Sanskrit. Each of them emphasizes primary astrological writings. Here's the Greek course description:

    Ancient Greek 1, 2 and 3
    (LS-393-G, LS-394-G and LS-395-G) (3 credits each)
    This course is an introduction to the vocabulary and grammar of Koine Greek. It will emphasize astrological terminology and the philosophical etymology from which these terms are derived. Readings will be chosen from the primary source texts of Hellenistic astrological authors such as Claudius Ptolemy, Vettius Valens, Paulus Alexandrinus, and Hephaistos of Thebes.


    http://www.kepler.edu/Catalog2004-2006.htm

    Check out the first required course in their masters curriculum:

    Transmission of Astrology
    (GSC-501) (3 credits)
    This course examines the modes of transmission of astrological and other knowledge between ancient and medieval cultures, especially through trading routes. Students will examine philosophical overlaps between Vedic/Hindu philosophers and Hellenistic (especially Neo-Platonic), specific diffusion channels prior to the Alexandrian conquest, specific comparative ideas between Western and Indian philosophers and their astrological implications, and compare and contrast key components of Hellenistic astrology and their Vedic equivalents.


    There's more where that came from. Here's their truly amazing graduate course lineup (some are required and some are electives):

    TERM 1: Introduction, Religion & Religious Theories, Transmission, Greek Astrological Terminology

    Transmission of Astrology
    (GSC-501) (3 credits)

    Library Research Module
    (GSC-502) (2 credits)

    Philosophy of History
    (GSC-503) (2 credits)

    Definitions of Religion & Modern Theories of Religion as of Celestial Origin
    (GSE-506A)(2 credits)

    Eastern Religions
    (GSE-506B) (3 credits)

    Comparative Mythology
    GSE-506C (3 credits)

    Studies in the Transmission of Ideas between Cultures
    GSE-506Z (3 credits)

    TERM 2: The Ancient World, Religion & Religious Theories, History of Science, Comparative Astrological Terminology

    Astrology and its Place in the Ancient World
    (GSC-601) (3 credits)

    Qualitative Research Design
    (GSC-602) (3 credits)

    Religion in the Ancient World
    (GSE-606A (3 credits)

    History of Science and Mathematics in the Ancient World
    (GSE-606B) (3 credits)

    Indus Valley Civilization and Vedic Culture
    (GSE-606C) (3 credits)

    Hellenistic Astrologers
    (GSE-606D) (3 credits)

    The Vedas (Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva) and the Upanishads
    (GSE-606E) (3 credits)

    The Hermetic Tradition
    (GSE-606F) (3 credits)

    Cross-Cultural Studies in the Ancient World
    (GSE-606Z) 3 credits

    TERM 3: The Medieval World, Religion & Religious Theories, History of Science & Research Methods

    Astrology and its Place in the Medieval World
    (GSC-701) (3 credits)

    Quantitative Research Design
    (GSC-702) (4 credits)

    Religion in the Medieval World
    (GSE-706A) (3 credits)

    History of Science and Mathematics in the Medieval World
    (GSE-706B) (3 credits)

    Neoplatonism and its Impact on the Middle Ages
    (GSE-706C) (3 credits)

    Varahamihira– Brihat Jataka and Brihat Samhita
    (GSE-706D) (3 credits)

    Mantreswara –Phala Deepika and Kalyana Varma – Saravali
    (GSE-706E) (3 credits)

    Ficino through Campanella: Studies in Renaissance Astrology and Magic
    (GSE-706F) (3 credits)

    Cross-Cultural Studies in the History of Science and Religion
    (GSE-706Z) (3 credits)

    TERM 4: The Modern World, Religion & Religious
    Astrology and its Place in the Modern World
    (GSC-801) (3 credits)

    Critical Thinking, Phenomenology and the Insider/Outsider Debate
    (GSC-802) (3 credits)

    Religion in the Modern World
    (GSE-806A) (3 credits)

    History & Philosophy of Science
    (GSE-806B) (3 credits)

    Theosophy: Its Impact on 20th Century Consciousness Movements and Astrology
    (GSE-806C) (3 credits)

    Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism in Modern Practice
    (GSE-806D) (2 credits)

    The Four Elements: From Empedocles to Jung
    (GSE-806E) (3 credits)

    Neo-Vedic Astrology: The Impact of Western and Eastern Astrology
    (GSE-806F) (3 credits)

    Astrology and the New Age Movement: A History
    (GSE-806G) (3 credits)

    A History of Skepticism
    (GSE-806H) (3 credits)

    Cross-Cultural Studies in the Modern World
    (GSE-806Z) (3 credits)

    Term 5: Thesis Research – 12 credits
    Thesis Research and Preparation
    (GSC-901) (12 credits)


    I have to say that I'm impressed.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 1, 2005
  2. Guest

    Guest Guest

  3. jugador

    jugador New Member

    My friend, there is no such thing as an "academically serious prgram in astrology." Astrology is a pseudo-science, plain and simple. If you believe otherwise, I have some beautiful mountain property to sell you just outside of Miami.
     
  4. GME

    GME New Member

    <<My friend, there is no such thing as an "academically serious prgram in astrology." Astrology is a pseudo-science, plain and simple. If you believe otherwise, I have some beautiful mountain property to sell you just outside of Miami>>

    While I certainly agree with astrology as pseudo-science, imo, there's no doubt that it is alive and well in the United States as a belief system (for instance, apparently Nancy Reagan employed an astrologer during her husband's term) .

    In my brief look at this degree it seems to me that it's entirely focused on the history of this belief system and its impact on various cultures as opposed to how to draw up a star chart.

    So it does appear to be a serious program, although a wonderfully narrow one.

    -- GME
     
  5. GME

    GME New Member

    one follow up:

    This school appears to be non-accredited.
     
  6. BillDayson

    BillDayson New Member

    My opinion is essentially the same as GME's.

    Here's a somewhat modified repost of remarks that I made in a thread that had ridiculed the fact that somebody had earned a Ph.D. at the Sorbonne with a dissertation on astrology:

    The French have always taken an admirably open-minded approach to religious studies. An approach that I generally find more interesting than the rather Christian-theological-style approach one often sees in English speaking countries.

    For example, there is the famous Antoine Faivre, Professor at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Religious Studies Section, Sorbonne, Paris. He holds the Chair in "History of Esoteric and Mystical Currents". If you are interested in Rosicrucianism, Theosophy, Paracelsianism or German 'Naturphilosophie', he's the guy to talk to. He has published sort of an introduction to his approach in English in his 'Access to Western Esotericism', published by the State University of New York Press.

    Astrology has had an important place in religious thought since ancient Mesopotamia. In the Roman period, at the time of the rise of Christianity, people felt positively oppressed by relentless Fate, which many saw as linked to the stars. Some have suggested that part of the appeal of early Christianity to late antique pagans consisted in its apparent ability to deliver people from the tyranny of the stars.

    David Ulansey of the California Institute of Integral Studies has recently published an astrological interpretation of the Mithraic mysteries that has gathered some interest among religious studies scholars. He reads the central bull-killing imagery of Mithraism as astrological symbolism, drawn from the precession of the equinoxes, demonstrating Mithras' divine power to defy the stars themselves.

    http://www.well.com/user/davidu/mithras.html

    One could perhaps argue that the revival of astrology in high medieval Europe created an esoteric "science", patronized by kings, that had scholars, relatively independent of the theologically dominated scholastic university curriculum, applying mathematical calculation to precision observations of the sky. That has obvious implications for the genesis of the scientific revolution, and can perhaps be seen as an intellectual predecessor to people like Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo and ultimately Newton. Certainly Tycho Brahe made his observations in part for astrological purposes and Kepler practiced astrology. Arguing for and against scientific interest in astrology kept the Royal Society very busy in its early years.

    That wave of cultural interest in astrology wasn't without importance for the reformation either. While astrology didn't really motivate the reformers, it probably did motivate many people to listen to them. The 15'th and 16'th centuries were filled with worry that the last days would soon arrive. People searched the skies for signs and portents of God's intentions. There's a large literature from the time discussing comets and other astronomical phenomena in that apocalyptic light. It's not unrealistic to imagine that kind of anxiety was associated with a new determination to cleanse the church and Christian religiosity in a last ditch attempt to make it more pleasing to God.

    OK, my point here is that it is not ridiculous to do a Ph.D. in astrology. (I could imagine doing so myself.) Astrology is an aspect of religious and wider intellectual history that has pretty clearly never received the scholarly attention that it deserves.

    In itself, it is no more ridiculous to believe in astrology than to believe that some book is divinely inspired, inerrant, and forms the basis of all legitimate religious belief and practice. But the larger point is that even if you don't believe that astrology is true (I don't, personally), it still is a fact that countless people have believed it throughout history. And those people's belief in the power of the stars has been reflected in their literature, art and lives. That makes it important, both to them and to us, who are their heirs.

    And many millions of people still believe in astrology, making it a significant religious phenomenon even today. As unpopular as it might be both to Christian orthodoxy and to rationalist cultural scientism, it probably deserves more attention than it's getting from the history of ideas and from religious studies.
     
  7. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    Founder-President Carol Tebbs (who apparently lives in La Quinta, California) seems to be pretty much a mainstream astrologer. Her article "2004: A look ahead" in The International Astrologer applies astrological principles to look at what may come in the year ahead. Amazon lists her as the author of "Beyond Basics: Tools for the Consulting Astrologer." The umcampus in Washington consists of four rooms constituting 978 square feet.

    Ah, well. We who were born under the sign of Orion are just naturally skeptical.
     
  8. Guest

    Guest Guest

    And Hillary talked to Eleanor!
     
  9. Guest

    Guest Guest

    I think I just heard the Contreas vehicle crank for a trip to the state line to make sure no extension campus has been set up! :D
     
  10. Jack Tracey

    Jack Tracey New Member

    While I'm unprepared to endorse the "believing" aspect of astrology, I am totally prepared to endorse a rigorous program of study that has astrology as its focus. I also could endorse a program that studies the phenomenon of Phrenology or any other aspect of pseudoscience. These are, after all, aspects of our culture and as such are worth of examination.
    Jack
     
  11. jugador

    jugador New Member

    Well, we will have to agree to disagree. With so many other substantive fields to study, I consider ANY investigations into astrology (rigorous or otherwise) to be a complete waste of time, money, and effort. One exception would be a cursory investigation into how astrologers exploit the naive. Perhaps such a program could be coupled with a psychoanalysis of people who watch the Jerry Springer program, subscribe to the National Enquirer, and make UFO pilgramages to Roswell, New Mexico.
     
  12. GME

    GME New Member

    Looking more closely at the site, it does appear to be coming at the subject from a 'believer's' point of view.

    Still -on paper- it looks like legitimate inquiry. Of course, only the stars know how it would presented in actual practice.

    -- GME
     
  13. GME

    GME New Member

    IMO, all of these would be valuable areas of inquiry (I guess I should point out that my area is psychology). Particularly since more folk in the US state a belief in ghosts than in the accuracy of the mechanisms of evolution.

    The history of belief, the impact of belief and the -why- of belief, whether in star charts, aliens arriving via a comet, predictions of the end of the world in Revelations, or the Great Spaghetti god, are important areas of study.

    -- GME
     
  14. nosborne48

    nosborne48 Well-Known Member

    In defense of the fool

    Why would astrology be an illegitimate subject for serious scholarship when Christianity is universally regarded as aproper subject?

    Both are religions whose validity is strictly a matter of faith, right?
     
  15. Bill Huffman

    Bill Huffman Well-Known Member

    Astrology was the science of the ancient world. They had religon which was generally different. I believe that the serious academic study of astrology is just as valid as any branch of history.

    Is it a true science? I've been told that astrology is today very similar to the same astrology formulated long ago in mesopotamia. I don't see how it would likely be true if it hasn't changed much in thousands of years. Look how much science has changed in just dozens of years.
     
  16. miguelstefan

    miguelstefan New Member

    Maybe one can become advisor to the white house. It has happened before.:p

    Astrology is not a pseudo-science nor a science. It is a belief. Just like Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, et al. Maybe all seminaries are mills now since their teachings are based on beliefs not science.

    Exactly!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 4, 2005
  17. Guest

    Guest Guest

    Re: In defense of the fool

    Christianity has Jesus; astrology has Jeane Dixon. Who would you rather worship? :D
     
  18. GME

    GME New Member

    Psudo-science in that it contains routines and procedures that mimic empirical approaches.

    --GME
     
  19. GME

    GME New Member

    If one defines science as inquiry into how the world works, then most religion can be seen as science with a pre-modern point of view (or if Intelligent Design prevails as post-modern science).

    Modern science, of course, limits inquiry into materialistic explainations of how the world works (thank god).
     
  20. BillDayson

    BillDayson New Member

    I believe that Ms. Tebbs is Kepler's third (and acting) president. The founding president is presently teaching at San Jose State U.

    http://www2.sjsu.edu/faculty/hummer/Vita.html

    The second president was the former dean of students at California Institute of Integral Studies.

    http://www.ciis.edu/news/innereye/ie0403.pdf

    As for Ms. Tebbs believing in astrology, I expect that she does. A school like this is going to be very popular among astrology believers and practitioners. Clergymen and committed Christians often teach classes in church history too. That doesn't necessarily mean that those classes aren't valuable as history. I'm not convinced that we need to demand that all professors be skeptics and debunkers. I'm more interested in the approach that they take to their subject.

    How do you know that? I think that Kepler does admit that their facilities are modest. It's a tiny idealistic operation in the best state-approved tradition. They do apparently have the nucleus of a library consisting of 5,000 donated books. A University of Illinois student did a 'capstone project' organizing them. I don't know where the books physically are.

    http://www.inquiry.uiuc.edu/bin/update_unit.cgi?command=select&xmlfile=u11565.xml

    I believe that the Kepler short-residencies are conducted in rented space in the Seattle area and the faculty are scattered around.

    I am too. I don't think that I would recommend this thing to somebody who needs a university degree as a vocational credential. Of course, a Kepler degree is probably already pretty well known and perhaps even prestigious among astrologers. So it might work pretty well in that niche community. (I think that unaccredited schools do best as niche players.)

    But I think that it might be a while yet before a Kepler degree is recognized in conventional academia. The breakthroughs will probably be in the edgier programs like CIIS. (I wonder whether the CIIS 'Philosophy, Cosmology and Consciousness' Ph.D. program would recognize Kepler work.)

    Nevertheless, I think that Kepler might work for somebody who doesn't really need any more degrees for vocational purposes. Accreditation and transferrable academic credit wouldn't be as big a deal. What the school might best offer is the opportunity to study interesting stuff at a fairly advanced level with people who share the same interests.

    Given that Kepler invites prospective students to audit classes to determine if the are suitable, there's not a lot of risk. If they aren't suitable, then just walk away.

    Here's some other stuff I noticed while Googling. Kepler generated a lot of hits, but most of it was just astrologers and astrology buffs talking about the school. There were a few .edu hits though:

    Abstract of a talk on the 'de Decubitu', an ancient astrological medical guide, presented by Kepler and U. of Oregon presenters at a conference somewhere

    http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~mwilson/capn/abstracts2005.html

    Brown University course on astrology directs its students attention to Kepler

    http://www.brown.edu/Departments/History_Mathematics/HM0013/readings.html

    Some kind of presentation by Michigan State professor at a Kepler symposium

    http://www.msu.edu/~urban/kepler/symposium2001/

    Nicholas Campion of Bath Spa University College in England helped Kepler develop online teaching materials for the MA program and now is teaching classes for Kepler

    www.bathspa.ac.uk/about/profiles/profile.asp?user=academic/camn1

    And here's several undergraduate papers by Kepler students that illustrate what their classes are talking about and the kind of historical approach to the subject the school seems to be taking.

    http://www.kepler.edu/articles/student/index.html
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 4, 2005

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