Philosophy and the Christian religion.

[stumpjumper]

Has anyone ever read the book Philosophy and The Christian Religion?

Even if you haven't read the book, how does philosophy affect your view of Christianity and faith?

Is it something that we can borrow from here and there while realizing that no philosophical system is complete?

Or do we have to follow a concrete philosophy first and align our Christian beliefs with that system?

Thoughts...

 

[BreadAlone]

I believe that faith should be the cornerstone of all philosophy you develop. Faith is the aspect of your being which comes from the Spirit, while your knowledge and developed philosophies are products of your previously tainted mind.

 

[dayhiker]

I have no problem with philosophy as long as one starts with Christ. Most of the great philosophers like Augustine included pagan philosophers ideas in their writings.

I see philosophy as a way to think about ideas that the Bible doesn't address. Just as we use science today to understand our natural world. These ideas can help us understand quite a fwe things. So they are good mental exersizes and cane give us reasons to praise God, just as we marval at God's creation as we learn more about it. But neither of these things are necessary for our salvation and understand of who it is we worship.

dayhiker

 

[IamRedeemed]

Very well said.
I couldn't agree with you more.

I believe that faith should be the cornerstone of all philosophy you develop. Faith is the aspect of your being which comes from the Spirit, while your knowledge and developed philosophies are products of your previously tainted mind.

 

[..::AL::..]

Well, to be fair, it could easily be argued that Plato\\\'s theories are centric to the Christian religion. Philosophy and religion dont always have to come hand in hand though. On the other hand, Theories such as idealism (particularly Berkeleys version) make God the cornerstone of those beliefs.

 

[Tissue]

Personally, I find it difficult to separate philosophy from one's personal Christian beliefs; it seems to me that they are actually one and the same.

As for which one comes first, I have no clue.

 

[Armistead]

I have no problem with philosophy as long as one starts with Christ. Most of the great philosophers like Augustine included pagan philosophers ideas in their writings.

I see philosophy as a way to think about ideas that the Bible doesn't address. Just as we use science today to understand our natural world. These ideas can help us understand quite a fwe things. So they are good mental exersizes and cane give us reasons to praise God, just as we marval at God's creation as we learn more about it. But neither of these things are necessary for our salvation and understand of who it is we worship.

dayhiker

Totally agree. I think we each use our own philosophy and life experiences to develop our system of faith. That's why we have so many opinions and beliefs, each declaring themselves right. The fact is our philosophy is what makes us feel right more than anything else.

 

[phoenixgw]

The literal translation of philosophy from the Greek is "love of wisdom." Who could be opposed to that? When I signed up for a philosophy course, I figured we would relax and toss around a few ideas, explore the cosmos, and walk away having opened a few more doors to wisdom. That is not the nature of Western Philosophy. It is a combative series of arguments that may or may not be resolved.

The first topic was "the existence of God," beginning with Descartes, Anselm, and other "Christian Philosophers." It was a holy war that left people fuming with anger at the end of each class. You learn about syllogisms and dialectic inquiry; the former being a logical argument and the latter a vicious attempt to knock it down.

The prof challenged anyone to find fault in his favourite philosophers' arguments-- I accepted the challenge and dissected Gauthier's ethical philosophy that did not allow for love. The prof. was vindictive and attacked me for exposing the flaw for the remainder of the term.

Western philosophy is the foundation of "Christian" religion, "holy wars," the Spanish Inquisition, the Reformation, denominationalism, church splits, strife within the organized churches and the sniping that goes on at CF.

Thanks, but no thanks. I'll take divine revelation and spirituality over Western philosophy and "Christian" religion any day of the week.

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Rom. 12:1,2 NLT)

 

[stumpjumper]

That is not the nature of Western Philosophy. It is a combative series of arguments that may or may not be resolved.

In many ways, I agree.

I think we can enhance our faith and pov with philosophical statements and arguments but they should be shaped by our faith not vice versa...

 

[Iefan]

Philosophy is absolutely vital to Christianity, Protestants and Evangelists are forgetting that, in favour of faith. Faith is good and it's clearly meant to be a necessary part, but inability to question your faith leads to all kinds of trouble. Inability to think (which is what philosophy is) builds stone walls around you.

Western philosophy is the foundation of "Christian" religion, "holy wars," the Spanish Inquisition, the Reformation, denominationalism, church splits, strife within the organized churches and the sniping that goes on at CF.

Well that's one of the goofier things I've ever heard (although, I see where you made the connection), but it's not argument or philosophy, those are simply thought provocation, what results from them is more dependent on how pigheaded you are. Saying Jesus is the only way, and then your Muslim friend saying Mohammad is the way, or Allah, will result in a falling out. Inability to recognize alternate paths. Most posts on CF reek of that, "I'm better than you are because meh meh meh."

 

[Helvetius]

To me philosophy and faith are like oil and water. Philosophy is something that is based on logic, while faith is simply faith. That isn't to say that they can't co-exist, but there is definitely a sharp distinction between the two.


--
your friendly neighborhood atheist.