Editors’ Note: All photo credits go to Dana Maxon
The beginning of May is associated with many things – flowers, a blooming sense of optimism (pun intended) now that summer is around the corner and a horrible bout of allergies. For high school students at Fieldston, however, something much less floral comes to mind – actually, I take that back, given the number of people sporting floral prints, who filled the Ethical Culture School auditorium, on the first Friday of May.
Every year, the entirety of the school gathers (Notable attendees: a giant portrait of Felix Adler; and Bob Montera, who despite being on sabbatical was intent on keeping his thirty-nine-year streak) to acknowledge our founder, Dr. Felix Adler, and the embarrassingly low percentage of people who actually know the lyrics to the middle school song. Annual highlights include the opening individual procession of around 150 seniors, which entails a good 15 minutes and very red hands from clapping for that long; emphasizing the -mus of Gaudeamus, which entails a lot of Latin (Fun Fact: jubilamus and Gaudeamus both translate to “rejoicing”) and lung health; or the passing of the torch to the new FSG presidents, which entails a lot of personalized gifts.
The true beauty of Founder’s Day, however, lies not only in its ability to unite the school in a heartwarming, nostalgic way but in how it reminds and encourages the community of the core axioms of our school and the duty that comes with being a student at Fieldston.
What is high school? For most people, a rather run-of-the-mill image comes to mind, something along the lines of an hours-long gathering of teenagers learning functions and Shakespeare and Newton’s laws and whatever happened in 1517 (A lot, I’m looking at you, Martin Luther). Our school strives to do this and more – not to make us automatons simply spewing academic facts, as Joe Chuman, Leader of the Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County, said in his opening speech, but thoughtful individuals who maintain the civil societies of the world far beyond our high school years. An educated mind is one that questions and engages with the environment around it, and by doing so can recognize the justices and injustices of its community. Joe Algrant, Head of School, said in his speech that freedom of thought is the “sacred right of the human individual.” It is this philosophy, this emphasis on critical thinking beyond the high school curriculum, that distinguishes our school and makes it so impressive, especially, as Algrant mentioned in his speech, to those visiting from the Kazakh Ministries of Education. That and our artificial athletic field turf.
And it’s all thanks to Felix Adler. Born in Germany in 1851, Adler immigrated to the United States at the age of six, attended Columbia and Heidelberg University and began and taught a new religious movement centered around ethics.
Inspired by Immanuel Kant, Adler believed that the concept of morality could be developed separately from theology. Many religions adhere to the fact that humans are social beings and therefore have certain obligations to their communities. For example, the Ten Commandments, especially the last five, are principles that guide an individual’s moral conduct. Adler’s philosophy differs in that it seeks to separate the worship of a deity(ies) from an individual’s virtuosity, which creates another moral framework that one can follow no matter their religious identity. This “ethical culture” is rooted in humanistic and social principles rather than divine command, offering an arguably subjective measure of morality, which is crucial in a diverse world. In the words of Albert Einstein, “Without ethical culture, there is no salvation for humanity.”
While Adler debated and taught these ideas of ethics, justice and morality to educated adults, what was truly revolutionary was his introduction of such complicated philosophies to elementary, even kindergarten-aged children of the working class. Education was not mandatory and child labor was common in the late 1800s, so the creation of any school solely for children who would otherwise be laborers, subdued to horrible conditions, would have been unheard of.
Adler’s “Workingman’s School” was even more scandalous, not only did he provide students with a basic education, but also encouraged them to study philosophical academia traditionally reserved for privileged adults.
The Ethical Culture School Song declares, “More than facts and figures will open up our minds” for a reason. Moreover, Adler emphasized the need for “deed before creed.”
His desire isn’t for a six-year-old to understand the ponderings of Confucius, Aristotle, Hume or Voltaire, but for them to actively pursue the right thing (the determination of which will be a product of education).
Chuman, the opening speaker, said, “What you do with your beliefs is more important than what brilliant philosophies lie in your head.”
Felix Adler redefined education to grant every individual, no matter their race, religion, social class et cetera, the power to challenge and make them see their inherent worth as a human being.
“There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly,” writes Henry David Thoreau in “Civil Disobedience,” which is a part of the 10th-grade curriculum at Fieldston.
Students of Fieldston will not be students of Fieldston forever. They will become adults living in much bigger societies and communities. Chuman said society is a “union of separate, diverse individuals for a common cause.” The country we live in is a relative democracy and is so because of the actions of the American people until now. The vitality of our, and any, democratic state is a reflection of each individual citizen upholding his role to foster and maintain it rather than any institution put in place by political authority.
As we walk out of the quad for the final time, we students at Fieldston will take the ability that has been ingrained in us from a young age – to civil disobedience, to civic engagement, to public discourse, service and civility.
Keith Wright, the guest speaker and ‘73 alumnus, is an example of this engagement. As a proud member of the Jaros Drugstore Strike over an increase in baseball card prices, as a ten-year-old, and the original lock-down of 1970, as a teenager, Wright was “affected by the political and social philosophy taught to [him] at this school” and “[put] into practice the philosophies and teachings of the institution.” He continued his social activism beyond Fieldston, into a long life of government service in New York State, advocating for legislation like a “Bill of Rights” for domestic workers and coming to Fieldston as an ombudsman for the 2019 lockdown at the school.
The annual celebration of Founder’s Day is a testament to the enduring impact of Adler’s legacy. To carry out his vision, we must be critical, thoughtful and contribute meaningfully to society. And most importantly, in times of division, we must strive for objectivity, considering the perspective of others in our social circles. True action, perhaps in the form of civil disobedience, arises not from rash, hostile, emotionally charged decisions made to ignite chaos and controversy, but from an educated mind truly seeking to better the world around it. If controversy results, then so be it, but it must never be the motive. If it was, then the disobedient act wouldn’t be so civil, would it?
Furthermore, it ironically would stem more from blind conformity than from calculated thought.
George Orwell’s Animal Farm is an example of this: “Squealer spoke so persuasively, and the three dogs who happened to be with him growled so threateningly, that they accepted his explanation without further questions.”
The silver-tongued pig’s speech may have been the catalyst of a revolution, but a revolution for what and whom? Certainly not the animals. Fueled by inflammatory words, they overthrew the humans but then found themselves in a worse predicament than before.
It is vital to understand that Adler and Thoreau supported civil disobedience in the presence of education and debate. Social upheaval and acts of disobedience must be a tool, arguably a vital one at that, for the betterment of society, not a weapon for its destruction. This is one crucial piece of the essence of Adler’s vision, and what we hopefully shall understand during our time at this school.
Be critical, be open and don’t let any Big Brothers boss you around or mislead you.
This is a fascinating account of a great historical story that continues to be important to this very day. The great moral contributions of Felix Adler are really brought to life in this very thoughtful and informative article.