Transcript Chapter One: Deciding What to Believe

Chapter 6
Medieval Philosophy
What is a covenant and how it is important to
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam? What sorts of
philosophy do we find in the teachings of
Abraham and Jesus? What is the difference
between the a priori and a posteriori arguments
for God’s existence? What is the Ontological
Argument? What are Aquinas’ Five Arguments
for God’s existence? How did Islamic thinkers
contribute to the development of philosophy in
Medieval times? How did religion and
philosophy overlap in the Medieval world?
Medieval Philosophy
Striking Deals with God
Would you enter into a covenant with a
deity?
How could you enforce such a covenant?
A Solution?
Would you make a
covenant with a
reasonable God?
Why?
Would this be safer or
less safe that an
unenforceable contract
with another person?
Why?
JESUS THE SAVIOR!
How is Jesus’ way to
happiness similar to that
of the Hellenistic
philosophers before
him?
How did he encourage
critical thinking?
Rescue?
What do you think Jesus saved people
from?
Could his teachings have this effect today?
Muhammad
If God started to talk through you, would you
think you were mad?
How could you be reassured that you were
not?
Paradox?
Is the literal word of God ever not to be
taken literally?
Is this a paradox?
Why, or why not?
St. Augustine
Philosopher—or not?
Opposed to each other?
Religion
Is faith opposed to reason?
Philosophy
Is reason opposed to faith?
Can a person be both religious and a
philosopher?
Explain your view.
Can religion and philosophy be opposed?
A firm foundation from which to
begin?
Do you think that you can know anything
without believing in something first,
perhaps even without sufficient evidence,
as a starting part for your quest for Truth?
The Question of Evil
If God is all powerful, all knowing, and all
good, then why does he allow bad things
to happen?
Could the earthquake in Haiti really have
happened if this God exists?
Is evil a type of parasite?
Or does its existence show that everything in
God’s creation is good?
Are these views compatible?
HOW?
Why did he bother?
Why do you think God created the world?
Surely it was not to satisfy any desire that he
had, for surely His perfection would mean
that he would have no desires?
Islamic Contributions
Have you, like Al-Kindi, ever made a
mistake that opened up a new and
unexpected line of inquiry?
Questions
What started the universe; what was its first
cause?
Is there really evil in the world?
Is philosophy the enemy of religion?
Does God Exist?
Do you seek to understand arguments for
God’s existence so that you will believe in
God, or do you believe in God as a
condition of understanding these
arguments?
What is the difference here?
The Ontological Argument
Can you conceive of
anything greater than
God?
If not, how could this
be used to show that
God necessarily
exists?
Can the most perfect Being exist
only in the imagination?
Could there be a perfect island?
MUST there be a perfect island?
St. Thomas Aquinas
God?
Do you think that monkeys can understand
string theory?
If not, why not?
But if monkeys cannot understand string
theory because of their cognitive
limitations, how can we hope to
understand a Being that must necessarily
exist, that knows everything, past, present,
and future, created everything, and is
perfectly good?
How could we start to try to understand
God?
Would it be useful to try to relate him to
things that we can understand?
Look at the movements that occur around
you; the clouds, the wind, and so on. What
causes these?
What caused you to exist?
What could the ultimate explanation of these
things be?
Science vs. Religion
Does science offer better explanations of
reality than religion?
Do you have any evidence of the Big
Bang—or do you have to take it on faith?
What caused it?
Could science and religion ultimately
amount to the same thing?
Do you think that science or philosophy can
prove anything?
If so—WHAT?
Wondrous Distress
If you could take a pill that would give you all
of the knowledge that you would otherwise
gain from a four-year university education,
would you forgo university and take the
pill?
Or is there some benefit to gaining
knowledge through studying?
Are there any limits to reason and
speculation?
If so, does this mean that there are some
things that cannot be known?
Or are the limits the limits of reality
itself?