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Jacques Ellul

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Jacques Ellul

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French sociologist, technology critic, and Christian anarchist

Person · Open Library

Born
6 January 1912
Died
19 May 1994
Works
103

Top works

  • Les classes sociales
  • À temps et à contretemps
  • The meaning of the city
  • Die theologische Begründung des Rechtes
  • ... Étude sur l'évolution et la nature juridique du mancipium ...

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Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Group

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Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
11
Total plays
91

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frenchphilosophersociologist

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Quotes

  • Faith lived in the incognito is one which is located outside the criticism coming from society, from politics, from history, for the very reason that it has itself the vocation to be a source of criticism. It is faith (lived in the incognito) which triggers the issues for the others, which causes everything seemingly established to be placed in doubt, which drives a wedge into the world of false assurances.
  • I describe a world with no exit, convinced that God accompanies man throughout his history.
  • There are different forms of anarchy and different currents in it. I must, first say very simply what anarchy I have in view. By anarchy I mean first an absolute rejection of violence. Hence I cannot accept either nihilists or anar­chists who choose violence as a means of action.
  • Anarchism can teach Christian thinkers to see the realities of our societies from a different standpoint than the dominant one of the state. What seems to be one of the disasters of our time is that we all appear to agree that the nation-state is the norm. … Whether the state be Marxist or capitalist, it makes no difference. The dominant ideology is that of sovereignty.
  • I can very well say without hesitation that all those who have political power, even if they use it well have acquired it by demonic mediation and even if they are not conscious of it, they are worshippers of diabolos.
  • The will of the world is always a will to death, a will to suicide. We must not accept this suicide, and we must so act that it cannot take place.

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Key facts

Born
6 January 1912, Bordeaux , France
Died
19 May 1994 (1994-05-19) (aged 82), Pessac , France
Alma mater
University of Bordeaux University of Paris
Era
20th-century philosophy
Region
Western philosophy
School
Christian anarchism Continental philosophy Non-conformists of the 1930s
Institutions
University of Bordeaux
Notable ideas
Technological society

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Image
Jacques Ellul, 1990 (cropped).jpg
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date of death
1994-05-19
date of birth
1912-01-06
Commons category
Jacques Ellul
Commons gallery
Jacques Ellul
name in native language
Jacques Ellul
birth name
Jacques César Émile Ellul
Sources (4)

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~40 min read

Article

Jacques Ellul (/ɛˈluːl/; French: [ɛlyl]; 6 January 1912 – 19 May 1994) was a French born philosopher, sociologist, lay theologian, resistance fighter and professor. Noted as a Christian anarchist, Ellul was a longtime professor of History and the Sociology of Institutions on the Faculty of Law and Economic Sciences at the University of Bordeaux. A prolific writer, he authored more than 60 books and more than 600 articles over his lifetime, many of which discussed propaganda, the impact of technology on society, and the interaction between religion and politics.

The dominant theme of Ellul's work proved to be the threat to human freedom and religion created by modern technology. He did not seek to eliminate modern technology or technique but sought to change our perception of modern technology and technique to that of a tool rather than regulator of the status quo. Among his most influential books are The Technological Society and Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes.

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