Peter Abspoel

(Haarlem, NL, 1962) is an anthropologist and philosopher. His book Zingeving in het Westen: Traditie, strijdersethos en christendom (Finding Meaning in the West: Tradition, Warrior Ethos and Christianity) was published in 2016, his reworked thesis from the previous year. In it, as a practicing Catholic, he stands up for traditions because he believes them to be a significant aspect of our humanity. Thirty years ago, while Abspoel was researching the music of the Dogon in Mali, he wondered where the gulf between traditional society and our Western attitudes came from. A large portion of his book is dedicated to the history of Western mistrust towards tradition that, he says, can be traced back to the Germanic warriors who lived only to fight. Even now, that warrior ethos is dominant. Christianity, which preached humility, fit perfectly into the agenda of the warriors, and a combination of the two was beneficial for colonialism and other Western displays of power.