A journal may be defined as a demonstration of the reach of words, the length and breadth that the words generate. The Silliman Journal has steered by this definition, as all well-directed journals do, particularly those which are organs of academic institutions. Moreover, the Silliman Journal, through the years and up to its 50th anniversary, has always carried a third component to the reach of its word disseminations, thus: length, breadth, and significance—for the articles it has published along the durable length of its readership service and the breadth of disciplines it has covered are likewise marked by ideas and information that are significant and fundamental in the enrichment of human life and of the world we inhabit.
More to the point, with the judicious balance of the various disciplines represented by its published articles, there has been no particularly favored discipline dominating its pages; the inordinate concentration on articles pertaining to any one body of knowledge could misrepresent the character and objective of the institution from which it emanates. For instance, such misrepresentations happen when a journal’s articles are preponderantly focused on technology, or business, or cultural concerns, a partiality resulting in the lack-luster treatment of the other subject fields.
In this connection, one of the best accomplishments of the Silliman Journal in its fifty years is the way it has allowed the readers the opportunity to regard all branches of knowledge as a homogeneous body rather than as mutually divisive points of view. A familiar example of the divisiveness is the popular perception regarding technology and science on the one hand, and religion on the other; or the belief that various arts are impractical and diversionary compared to economics and business, which are largely considered as the important points of operation in society. Clearly, a unification of sensibility and understanding is crucial in ingesting the materials offered by the various disciplines in their published works.
To my mind, the Silliman Journal, by its consistent academic tone and approach in the presentation of its materials, has given its share toward the nurture of broad and impartial reader-attitudes on issues, ideas, events, and even on matters that could turn polemical, like birth control, and the interdisciplinary curriculum, among other issues that have been covered by Silliman Journal in its time.
The Silliman Journal now looks forward to the next fifty years for its vision and challenge, when the reach of its word disseminations continues to sustain its length and breadth and significance.
Edith L. Tiempo, Ph.D.
Professor emeritus
National Artist for Literature |
