Transcript Slide 1 - Confident Christians

Importance of
THE
Does
God
Logic
And
Reason
Do Reason and Religion Mix?
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Why do we need Logic and Reason in
Religion?
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Why do people believe what they believe?
Sociological
• Culture
• Friends
• Parents
• Society
Psychological
Religious
• Comfort
• Hope
• Identity/Meaning
• Peace of Mind
• Church
• Guru
• Holy Book
• Pastor
“People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof
but on the basis of what they find attractive” – Blaise Pascal
© Confident Christians – www.confidentchristians.org
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Sigmund Freud on why people believe religious ideas
• They were believed by our primal ancestors
• We possess proofs handed down from primeval times
• Forbidden to raise questions of their authentication
“They are illusions, fulfillments of the oldest, strongest, and most urgent wishes
of mankind. We call belief an illusion when a wish-fulfillment is a prominent factor
in its motivation, and in doing so we disregard its relation to reality, just as the
illusion itself sets no store by verification” - Sigmund Freud
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How do people know things?
• The Senses – seeing, feeling, etc.
• The Memory – remembering what you have accepted as
truth
• The Conscience (morality) – instinctive compass of
right/wrong
• The Logical Thought Process – reason and rational
thinking
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How does one form a belief?
• A belief begins by understanding that a particular idea is
plausible
• A plausibility structure – “favorable conditions” – form in
the mind so that a belief can be entertained
• Anything not viewed as plausible will be rejected
• Real belief must rest on content (not sincerity and
fervency of desire)
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Why should people believe what they believe?
Philosophical Approach – To ascertain facts or truth and the
causes of things.
Something is worth believing if it is…
• Rational
• Supported by evidence
• The best reason for explaining the gathered data
“True religion and true philosophy must arrive at the same principle”
- S. S. Smith
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
There is both good and bad philosophy
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and
deceptive philosophy, which depends oh human tradition
and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ
[who is the truth]”
- Paul, Colossians 2:8
“Good philosophy must exist, if for no other reason, because bad
philosophy needs to be answered ”
- C. S. Lewis
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How most approach knowledge in religion
Mind
Objective
Verifiable
Proof
Heart
Facts
Science
Opinion
Subjective
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Faith
Feeling
Religion
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How most should approach knowledge in religion
•Objective
•Verifiable
•Proof
•Facts
•Faith
“Facts have nothing to do with religion” – Immanuel Kant, Prussian Agnostic
© Confident Christians – www.confidentchristians.org
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How can “faith” be objective?
“Faith means not wanting to know what is true.” – Frederick Nietzsche, Atheist
Many people believe that faith is something you have in the absence of
truth and evidence. “Faith” does not mean believing in something that
just makes you feel good. The Greek word is “pistos”, which literally
means “trust” – something/one in whom confidence can be placed;
reliability; that which evokes trust; state of believing on the basis of the
reliability of the one trusted; pertaining to being worthy of belief or
trust; conviction of the truth; the character of one who can be relied on.
There is a difference between Faith That and Faith In.
© Confident Christians – www.confidentchristians.org
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Three tests for any belief system:
1. Logical Consistency: Are the claims being made consistent
with each other or are there clear contradictions?
2. Empirical Adequacy: Is there evidence to back up the assertions
being made by the belief system?
3. Experiential Relevance: Do the claims stack up with reality and are
they meaningful for my life?
“Christ wants a child’s heart, but a grown-up’s head” – C. S. Lewis
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
What is Logic?
Logic is the study of right reason or valid inferences and the attending
fallacies, formal and informal. It helps obtain correct conclusions about
a matter and avoid mistakes people often make in thinking.
“It is the function of the wise man to know order” - Aristotle
“Come let us reason together…” – Isaiah 1:18
“You shall love the Lord your God with all … your mind” – Matt. 22:37
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Logic is built upon four foundational laws:
1. Law of non-contradiction – something cannot be “A” and
“non-A” at the same time and in the same sense.
2. Law of the excluded middle – something is either “A” or
“non-A”.
3. Law of identity – “A” is really “A”.
4. Law of rational inference – e.g. All men are mortal,
John is a man, therefore John is mortal.
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Law of non-contradiction
Something cannot be “A” and “non-A” at the same time and in the
same sense.
“God exists!” – Christian
“God does not exist!” – Atheist
“You’re both right!” – Unitarian Universalist (Pluralism)
“If we believe by faith that God has spoken, since what God says is true, all that
contradicts the word of God can, and must, be at once excluded as false.”
– Etienne Gilson
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Law of non-contradiction
Surest way to get a person to admit they believe in the law of noncontradiction:
“Let him who disbelieves be beaten and burned until he admits that to
be beaten and burned is not the same thing as to not be beaten and
burned.”
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Law of excluded middle
Something is either “A” or “non-A”.
“Everything came to be from a personal eternality!” – Christian
“Everything came to be from an impersonal eternality” – Atheist
No third option
…notice how this underscores truth’s attributes of being ‘narrow’ and
‘excludes’
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Law of Identity
“A” is really “A”.
“Jesus Christ is God!” – Christian
“Jesus Christ is not God!” – Muslim
He is or He isn’t
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Law of Rational Inference
Deductive logic – reasoning from true premises to a correct conclusion.
Everything that has a beginning has a cause.
The universe had a beginning.
Therefore, the universe has a cause.
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Significance – context means everything
“Jesus is the Son of God” – Christian
“Jesus is the Son of God” – Jehovah’s Witness/Mormon
Law of Identity
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Faulty Dilemma
“Are you a person of science/facts or a person of religion/faith?”
Premises of deductive premise not true
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Category Mistake
“Who made God?”
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Faulty Analogy
“Believing in God is like believing in Santa Claus.”
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Consensus Gentium (majority opinion)
“The vast majority of scientists believe in evolution”
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
Recognizing Logical Fallacies
Appeal to the future
“One day the missing link between man and his ancestors will be found”
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How does logic/reason relate to true belief?
Is belief just a matter of …
• Thinking logically?
• Examining the evidence?
• Recognizing reality?
…unfortunately not.
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How does logic/reason relate to true belief?
Real belief involves more than just information transfer and the external
recognition of a truth. People act contrary to evidence all the time.
“For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the
truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins…” – Hebrews 10:26
…notice the logic used in the above statement?
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How does logic/reason relate to true belief?
Real belief involves the Will.
“If one were to prove this God of the Christians to us, we should be even
less able to believe in him.” – Nietzsche
“It is our preference that rules against Christianity, not arguments.” –
Nietzsche
© Confident Christians – www.confidentchristians.org
THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
How does logic/reason relate to true belief?
Real belief involves the Will.
“Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts?” – Jesus in
Mark 2:8
“O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have
spoken” – Jesus in Luke 24:25
“When we lack the will to see things as they really are, there is nothing so
mysterious as the obvious.” – Irving Kristol, Professor of Social Thought
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THE
Importance of
Logic
And
Reason
End Result of Agreeing that Logic/Reason and Religion Mix
• A true philosophical foundation is best for believing something
• The fact/value dichotomy must be recognized and torn down – truth
in religion is possible
• Adherence to First Principles is mandatory in life and religion
• Logical fallacies must be recognized and overcome
• Pluralism and Panentheism as belief systems are ruled out
• Real belief still involves more than an understanding of a logical
position
"So skilled is error at imitating truth, that the two are constantly being mistaken
for each another. It takes a sharp eye these days to know which brother is Cain
and which Abel." - A.W. Tozer
© Confident Christians – www.confidentchristians.org
Importance of
THE
Does
God
Logic
And
Reason
Reason and Real Religion Stand Together