约阿希姆的普遍历史观念

Joachim's Idea for Universal History

在普遍历史观念主导下看待和书写历史,是西方史学的一个重要传统,这一观念大致经历了政治的、宗教的和理性的三种样态。在西方普遍历史观念从宗教演变为理性样态的过程中,12世纪意大利基督教思想家约阿希姆扮演着重要角色。他在人类世俗历史的框架中,构建出一种类似于基督教上帝拯救历程理论的普遍历史观念。这种观念虽仍带有浓重的宗教色彩,但其侧重从尘世生活和人的能动性角度,理解整个人世历史的演进。这使其历史理论具有明显的世俗化特质,可被视为西方现代以理性为主线的普遍历史观念的原初形态,构成西方历史哲学发展过程中的关键一环。

Observing and writing history under the dominance of the idea for universal history,is an important tradition of Western historiography.This idea has gone through three phases,namely,political,religious and rational forms.In the process of idea for universal history evolving from a religious form to a rational form in the West,the 12^(th)century Italian Christian thinker Joachim of Fiore played an important role.Joachim constructed an idea for universal history which was similar to Christianity's salvation within secular historical framework.Although this idea still carries a strong theological overtone,it focuses on the evolution of the whole human history from the perspective of secular society and human action.Joachim's historical theory has a strong secular quality,which can be regarded as the original form of the modern Western idea for universal history based on reason,and it constitutes a crucial link in the development of Western philosophy of history.