Ishmael: Concept of Understanding Divine Knowledge –

The book Ishmael starkly contrasts two different ideas of knowledge in culture. The two concepts of knowledge can be seen today, one in technological society and the other in primal culture. The main difference between the two cultures is the limit a society sees in their ability to have/obtain knowledge and wisdom.
The technological culture, claims the author Nathaniel Quinn, thinks they have all the knowledge that is possibly available, secular and divine. The technological society believes they are the rulers of the world. The technological society claims to have the right to rule the world because they have all the knowledge and therefore were destined to rule the world. The technological culture has a sense of arrogance in that they feel they know better than the god(s) how to rule. In claiming this they claim to be wiser and more knowledgeable than the god(s).
The primal culture, as asserted by Nathaniel Quinn, admit that they in fact do not have all the knowledge and wisdom of the secular type, much less the divine. In admitting this they refrain from acting as world rulers and dominators. They readily allow the god(s) to rule the world as the god(s) see fit. They believe that the god(s) have knowledge and wisdom beyond the humans and are therefore better suited to know how to rule the world.
This idea of the limits of knowledge and wisdom was very interesting to think about. It gave a new twist to how each culture tends to view the problem of god(s) and evil in the world if god(s) are omniscient, omnipresent, and all powerful, as many people believe. I also thought it explained very well the pursuit of knowledge in technological culture and the not so enthusiastic search of knowledge in primal culture. This search for knowledge can also be drawn back to the idea of literacy and how literacy allows for the readily easy search of knowledge, through printed recollection.