(Originally Written February 12, 2014 on scrap paper now lost)
Snow in Georgia, maybe two inches. Of course, everything is shut down. The power is out.
The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I
Chapter VIII - Anaxagoras
Anaxagoras introduced philosophy to Athens around 412 BC - 432 BC.
Anaxagoras taught that mind was the source of all motion.
Anaxagoras rejected the notions of necessity and chance. But he also did not believe in providence.
Anaxagoras was very much scientifically inclined and explained things as mechanically as often as he could.
Chapter IX - The Atomists
The Atomist movement was founded by Leucippus and Democritus. Leucippus is older and much less well known (legendary/mythical). Democritus was a contemporary of Socrates (5th century BC).
Atomists believed that everything was comprised of infinite atoms that were indivisible and in constant motion.
Atomists were strict determinists. Everything happened according to natural laws.
Atomists explained the universe in terms that do not need a final cause or purpose. There is no teleology.
"All causal explanations, therefore, must have an arbitrary beginning" (Russell, 67).
"There was no very sharp distinction, in ancient times, between empirical observation and logical argument" (Russell, 68)
The Atomists, like their contemporaries were concerned with Parmenides' denial of change and the obvious fact that change happens.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Xenophanes, Heraclitus, Parmenides & Proverbs
(Originally Written February 11, 2014 on scrap paper now lost)
History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I - Ancient Philosophy
Chapter 4 - Heraclitus
Xenophanes taught that gods were made up through anthropomorphic tendencies. He believed in only one God, but that God was not like man in either thought or form.
He also believed knowledge of God and gods to be impossible, "even if a man should chance to say something utterly right, still himself knows it not. There is nowhere anything but guessing (Russell, 40).
Xenophanes was a rationalist who disliked the mystical elements of Pythagorean thought.
Heraclitus lived around 511 BC in Ephesus. He was a mystic, believing the fundamental substance to be fire. He believed that everything was born by something else's death.
Heraclitus had a very negative view of mankind. He believed it was only force that compelled man to be good.
He believed war was not only a fact of life, but necessary to maintain existence. War brings death. Death brings life to the better things.
He was ascetic and proud of his asceticism.
The soul was made of fire and water. The better the soul, the more fire it had. The "dryer" the soul, the better it was.
He believed the world to be uncreated and eternal.
He believed that everything was in flux.
The constant flux produced strife. Strife produced conflict and that conflict proved to create the balance that exists in life. The flux had the effect of creating the cosmic justice that kept everything in its place and from one thing or one man from attaining too much power.
"The way of man has no wisdom, but that of God has. The wisest man is an ape to God, just as the most beautiful ape is ugly compared to man" (Russell, 44).
Heraclitus' metaphysical notion of the endless flux is the stated by Plato to be: nothing ever is, everything is becoming. Aristotle described it as 'nothing steadfastly is'.
The doctrine of perpetual flux is a horrifying thing to men who seek something permanent. Science and philosophy have been trying to escape Heraclitus for thousands of years.
Chapter V - Parmenides
Parmenides countered Heraclitus' notion that everything is always changing by stating nothing ever changes.
Parmenides lived around 450 BC in southern Italy.
Parmenides taught that both thought and language require objects outside of themselves. You can't think of an object if that object doesn't exist.
Parmenides believed that in order for words to have meaning they must be attached to an object. If that object existed in the past it maintains some existence, otherwise we could not use the word meaningfully.
Chapter VI - Empedocles
Empedocles lived around 440 BC in Sicily. He claimed to be a god.
Empedocles was an old combination of science, religion and philosophy. His science and religion were often times at odds with one another.
Empedocles discovered properties of air and centrifugal force by experiment. He had a scientific belief in an odd version of survival of the fittest type of evolutionary theory.
Empedocles believed not in one primordial substance, but four: earth, fire, wind and water. However, love and strife were on equal footing with the aforementioned substances. Love brought about the combination of the elements. Strife brought about the dissolution of the elements.
Love and strife fought one another. There were periods of time when one mastered the other. Chance and necessity brought about the changes in the universe, not some overarching purpose.
Chapter VII - Athens in relation to culture
The greatness of Athens began when they defeated the Persians at Marathon (490 BC) and defeated Xerxes (480 BC).
Athens grew rich and prosperous after this under the guidance of Pericles until about 430 BC.
During this time Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides flourished.
Proverbs 8
8:9 - "To the discerning all of them are right. They are faultless to those who have knowledge".
The wisdom of the Lord is known to the discerning. It is faultless to those who have knowledge. THen do the unbelieving have no knowledge, no discernment?
Help me to seek you that I may find your wisdom. Help me to seek you God.
Proverbs 9
9:10 - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding"
Proverbs 10
"The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteouss"
Lord, may you be my refuge. Put in me a desire to seek you always. Light my heart on fire so that it burns for you. Help me to turn from folly and wickedness. Keep my paths straight. Bless this request my God, my King.
History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I - Ancient Philosophy
Chapter 4 - Heraclitus
Xenophanes taught that gods were made up through anthropomorphic tendencies. He believed in only one God, but that God was not like man in either thought or form.
He also believed knowledge of God and gods to be impossible, "even if a man should chance to say something utterly right, still himself knows it not. There is nowhere anything but guessing (Russell, 40).
Xenophanes was a rationalist who disliked the mystical elements of Pythagorean thought.
Heraclitus lived around 511 BC in Ephesus. He was a mystic, believing the fundamental substance to be fire. He believed that everything was born by something else's death.
Heraclitus had a very negative view of mankind. He believed it was only force that compelled man to be good.
He believed war was not only a fact of life, but necessary to maintain existence. War brings death. Death brings life to the better things.
He was ascetic and proud of his asceticism.
The soul was made of fire and water. The better the soul, the more fire it had. The "dryer" the soul, the better it was.
He believed the world to be uncreated and eternal.
He believed that everything was in flux.
The constant flux produced strife. Strife produced conflict and that conflict proved to create the balance that exists in life. The flux had the effect of creating the cosmic justice that kept everything in its place and from one thing or one man from attaining too much power.
"The way of man has no wisdom, but that of God has. The wisest man is an ape to God, just as the most beautiful ape is ugly compared to man" (Russell, 44).
Heraclitus' metaphysical notion of the endless flux is the stated by Plato to be: nothing ever is, everything is becoming. Aristotle described it as 'nothing steadfastly is'.
The doctrine of perpetual flux is a horrifying thing to men who seek something permanent. Science and philosophy have been trying to escape Heraclitus for thousands of years.
Chapter V - Parmenides
Parmenides countered Heraclitus' notion that everything is always changing by stating nothing ever changes.
Parmenides lived around 450 BC in southern Italy.
Parmenides taught that both thought and language require objects outside of themselves. You can't think of an object if that object doesn't exist.
Parmenides believed that in order for words to have meaning they must be attached to an object. If that object existed in the past it maintains some existence, otherwise we could not use the word meaningfully.
Chapter VI - Empedocles
Empedocles lived around 440 BC in Sicily. He claimed to be a god.
Empedocles was an old combination of science, religion and philosophy. His science and religion were often times at odds with one another.
Empedocles discovered properties of air and centrifugal force by experiment. He had a scientific belief in an odd version of survival of the fittest type of evolutionary theory.
Empedocles believed not in one primordial substance, but four: earth, fire, wind and water. However, love and strife were on equal footing with the aforementioned substances. Love brought about the combination of the elements. Strife brought about the dissolution of the elements.
Love and strife fought one another. There were periods of time when one mastered the other. Chance and necessity brought about the changes in the universe, not some overarching purpose.
Chapter VII - Athens in relation to culture
The greatness of Athens began when they defeated the Persians at Marathon (490 BC) and defeated Xerxes (480 BC).
Athens grew rich and prosperous after this under the guidance of Pericles until about 430 BC.
During this time Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides flourished.
Proverbs 8
8:9 - "To the discerning all of them are right. They are faultless to those who have knowledge".
The wisdom of the Lord is known to the discerning. It is faultless to those who have knowledge. THen do the unbelieving have no knowledge, no discernment?
Help me to seek you that I may find your wisdom. Help me to seek you God.
Proverbs 9
9:10 - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding"
Proverbs 10
"The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteouss"
Lord, may you be my refuge. Put in me a desire to seek you always. Light my heart on fire so that it burns for you. Help me to turn from folly and wickedness. Keep my paths straight. Bless this request my God, my King.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
The Milesians & Pythagorus according to Russell
(Originally written February 6, 2014 on scrap paper)
The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I
Chapter II - The Milesian School
Thales, circa 585 BC, believed that water was the original substance out of which all other things were formed, magnets had a soul because they moved iron and that all things were full of gods.
Anaximander, born circa 610 BC, slightly younger than Thales, also believed that all things came from an original substance. Unlike Thales, who thought this was water, Anaximander taught that the original substance was an eternal, infinite substance.
Anaximander believed that this original substance was transformed into empirical substances (i.e. fire, water, etc.) and then transformed back again. Each of the empirically observable substances wished to enlarge itself at the expense of others, but a cosmic justice superseded the elements and kept them in check.
Justice - a profound Greek belief, taught that each thing had an eternally fixed proportion and that when things began to overstep their bounds a correction would take place. This justice bound both the natural and supernatural, man and god alike. However, this justice, though being supreme over man and god, was not a supreme god.
Anaximander taught a sort of evolutionary theory. "Man, like every other animal, was descended from fishes" (Russell, 27). Unlike Darwinian reasoning though, Anaximander used a rational argument to support his theory. The length of human infancy is too long for it to have been the original state; otherwise, man would have not survived.
Anaximenes, the third of the Milesians, held that the fundamental substance was air.
The soul is air. Fire is rarefied air. Water is condensed air. Very condensed air is earth.
The Milesian school was, though crude, very scientific in nature. There was limited religious nature in it.
Miletus was a cultural melting pot. Greek religion and thought mixed with successful commercial activity brought in by both Egyptian and Babylonian and fused with the thinking. This blending of culture provided the spark for philosophical thinking to begin.
Chapter III - Pythagorus
"Pythagorus was intellectually one of the most important men that ever lived, both when he was wise and when he was unwise" (Russell, 29).
Pythagorus combined mysticism and mathematics. He was a reformer of Orphic traditions, itself a reformed worship of Bacchus. In this way, Pythagorus took an already mystical transformation of Bacchic rites and made it even more intellectually bent.
Pythagorus put more stock in the otherworldly, relegated the physical world to the illusionary. He taught the transmigration of souls and taught that the soul was immortal.
The body is a tomb of the soul. However, suicide is not an option without permission of God.
There are three classes of men: those who buy and sell (the lowest), the participants, like those at the Olympics and the spectators who simply think on the doings of the participants. These are the philosophers and by doing this, they can achieve release from the wheel of birth.
In Pythagorean thought, because the contemplative life was the achievement of all that is worth achievement, mathematics took on a sort of ecstatic context. Discovery in mathematics was sort of an intoxicating experience - a oneness with god.
Pythagorus embodies two diverging views of religion. Personal religion is derived from ecstasy - union with God; theology is derived from mathematics. Theology is derived from mathematics as it takes the shape of geometry. Geometry (Euclidian) starts with axioms deemed to be self-evident and then derives theorems from deductive reasoning. Theology proceeds in a similar fashion. Pythagorus embodied both personal religion (mystical nature) and theology (a system based on deductive reasoning).
Russell seems to be doing a bit of this geometry when he states "But for him (Pythagorus), Christians would not have thought of Christ as the Word; but for him, theologians would not have sought a logical proof of God and immortality. But, in him all this is implicit. How it became explicit will appear" (Russell, 37). And now from the axiom that Pythagorus began the long tradition of mathematical theology (an axiom deemed self-evident by Russell we shall see the theorems...)
The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I
Chapter II - The Milesian School
Thales, circa 585 BC, believed that water was the original substance out of which all other things were formed, magnets had a soul because they moved iron and that all things were full of gods.
Anaximander, born circa 610 BC, slightly younger than Thales, also believed that all things came from an original substance. Unlike Thales, who thought this was water, Anaximander taught that the original substance was an eternal, infinite substance.
Anaximander believed that this original substance was transformed into empirical substances (i.e. fire, water, etc.) and then transformed back again. Each of the empirically observable substances wished to enlarge itself at the expense of others, but a cosmic justice superseded the elements and kept them in check.
Justice - a profound Greek belief, taught that each thing had an eternally fixed proportion and that when things began to overstep their bounds a correction would take place. This justice bound both the natural and supernatural, man and god alike. However, this justice, though being supreme over man and god, was not a supreme god.
Anaximander taught a sort of evolutionary theory. "Man, like every other animal, was descended from fishes" (Russell, 27). Unlike Darwinian reasoning though, Anaximander used a rational argument to support his theory. The length of human infancy is too long for it to have been the original state; otherwise, man would have not survived.
Anaximenes, the third of the Milesians, held that the fundamental substance was air.
The soul is air. Fire is rarefied air. Water is condensed air. Very condensed air is earth.
The Milesian school was, though crude, very scientific in nature. There was limited religious nature in it.
Miletus was a cultural melting pot. Greek religion and thought mixed with successful commercial activity brought in by both Egyptian and Babylonian and fused with the thinking. This blending of culture provided the spark for philosophical thinking to begin.
Chapter III - Pythagorus
"Pythagorus was intellectually one of the most important men that ever lived, both when he was wise and when he was unwise" (Russell, 29).
Pythagorus combined mysticism and mathematics. He was a reformer of Orphic traditions, itself a reformed worship of Bacchus. In this way, Pythagorus took an already mystical transformation of Bacchic rites and made it even more intellectually bent.
Pythagorus put more stock in the otherworldly, relegated the physical world to the illusionary. He taught the transmigration of souls and taught that the soul was immortal.
The body is a tomb of the soul. However, suicide is not an option without permission of God.
There are three classes of men: those who buy and sell (the lowest), the participants, like those at the Olympics and the spectators who simply think on the doings of the participants. These are the philosophers and by doing this, they can achieve release from the wheel of birth.
In Pythagorean thought, because the contemplative life was the achievement of all that is worth achievement, mathematics took on a sort of ecstatic context. Discovery in mathematics was sort of an intoxicating experience - a oneness with god.
Pythagorus embodies two diverging views of religion. Personal religion is derived from ecstasy - union with God; theology is derived from mathematics. Theology is derived from mathematics as it takes the shape of geometry. Geometry (Euclidian) starts with axioms deemed to be self-evident and then derives theorems from deductive reasoning. Theology proceeds in a similar fashion. Pythagorus embodied both personal religion (mystical nature) and theology (a system based on deductive reasoning).
Russell seems to be doing a bit of this geometry when he states "But for him (Pythagorus), Christians would not have thought of Christ as the Word; but for him, theologians would not have sought a logical proof of God and immortality. But, in him all this is implicit. How it became explicit will appear" (Russell, 37). And now from the axiom that Pythagorus began the long tradition of mathematical theology (an axiom deemed self-evident by Russell we shall see the theorems...)
Proverbs 4 & 5
(Originally written February 6, 2014 on scrap paper)
I must get better at this journaling thing. Lord, forgive me of my many sins. Cleanse me and accept me as your own. CLear my mind of the useless clutter and help me to stay focused on the important things in life. Grant me the passion to pursue my curiosities and keep me from wasting my life on mindless activities.
Proverbs 4
4:7 - "Wisdom is supreme, therefore, get wisdom. Though it will cost all you have, get understanding".
4:24 - "Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk from your lips".
4:23- "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."
Lord, let me make the necessary sacrifices to attain wisdom. Cleanse my thoughts so that perversities do not come out of my mouth. Above all else Lord, teach me to guard my heart.
Proverbs 5
Proverbs 5 is a tough chapter to read. Firstly, I understand all too well verses 4, 9 and 14. "But in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double edged sword" (5:4). I feel the scars of that sharpness from time to time. Fear grips me tight in these moments. I sometimes remember and understand the pain of giving my best strengths to others and years to one who is cruel (5:9). Thank you Lord that it was only a few years. But, I still feel ashamed, "I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly"(5:14). Take away any of the pain and shame that is still buried in me under the scars. Thankfully, I do not have to fear this chapter any longer.
I must get better at this journaling thing. Lord, forgive me of my many sins. Cleanse me and accept me as your own. CLear my mind of the useless clutter and help me to stay focused on the important things in life. Grant me the passion to pursue my curiosities and keep me from wasting my life on mindless activities.
Proverbs 4
4:7 - "Wisdom is supreme, therefore, get wisdom. Though it will cost all you have, get understanding".
4:24 - "Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk from your lips".
4:23- "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."
Lord, let me make the necessary sacrifices to attain wisdom. Cleanse my thoughts so that perversities do not come out of my mouth. Above all else Lord, teach me to guard my heart.
Proverbs 5
Proverbs 5 is a tough chapter to read. Firstly, I understand all too well verses 4, 9 and 14. "But in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double edged sword" (5:4). I feel the scars of that sharpness from time to time. Fear grips me tight in these moments. I sometimes remember and understand the pain of giving my best strengths to others and years to one who is cruel (5:9). Thank you Lord that it was only a few years. But, I still feel ashamed, "I have come to the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly"(5:14). Take away any of the pain and shame that is still buried in me under the scars. Thankfully, I do not have to fear this chapter any longer.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Proverbs 3 & Notes on Bacchus
(Originally written January 26, 2014 on scrap paper)
Proverbs 3
Let me learn 3:5 in less painful terms. Teach me to trust in you and not lean on my own understanding. Give me humility that I may find favor with you. Take me into your confidence and make me righteous. I pray you - "keep my foot from being snared" (Proverbs 3:26).
The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I - Ancient Philosophy
Chapter I - The Rise of Greek Civilization
Philosophy begins with Thales and his prediction of an eclipse in 585 B.C. "Philosophy and science - which were not originally separate- were therefore born together" (Russell, 3).
Fate - the belief that something beyond us, and even beyond the gods, controlled the destiny of all. It was something that played a large role in the development of Greek thought. "Fate exercised a great influence on all Greek thought, and perhaps was one of the sources from which science derived the belief in natural law" (Russell, 11).
The Greek word 'ate' is a strong, if not irresistible urge towards crime.
It is a wonder that at the 6th century B.C. amazing achievements in thought developed independently. Greek's Homeric poems solidified, philosophy, mathematics and science also were birthed out of Greece while Buddha, Confucius and Zoroaster began to make their marks in the east.
Understanding Dionysus or Bacchus is critical to understanding Greek thought. Bacchus was originally a fertility cult of Thrace. From there he became associated with beer and wine. This association made him all the more popular. The divine madness of wine became a Bacchic rite.
When the religion of Bacchus migrated to Greece it was met with opposition by the orthodoxy. There were many barbaric elements in it, but it proved to be popular with the women of Greece.
The Bacchic religion is a rejection of prudence through a longing for the savage, primitive nature of things.
The Bacchic religion, although savage in nature, was mystified and spiritualized by Orpheus. Orpheus turned these primitive rites into something spiritual, substituting physical intoxication with the mental intoxication through ascetic traditions.
The Orphics taught the transmigration of the souls. There was a belief in an afterlife for the soul, bliss or suffering for eternity based on one's actions in life.
Orphics believed man was partly of earth and partly of heaven. Through purification, ritual or physical (i.e. abstaining from certain food), the heavenly part would increase and the earthly part decrease.
Orpichs taught that one could become one with the Bacchus. The Orphics desired intoxication through enthusiasm (the god entering the man).
To the Orphic, life is pain and wearisome. It is an endless cycle of births with man stuck on earth when he shouldn't be. Through purification he achieves freedom. Purification through asceticism results in a union with God.
Proverbs 3
Let me learn 3:5 in less painful terms. Teach me to trust in you and not lean on my own understanding. Give me humility that I may find favor with you. Take me into your confidence and make me righteous. I pray you - "keep my foot from being snared" (Proverbs 3:26).
The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
Book I - Ancient Philosophy
Chapter I - The Rise of Greek Civilization
Philosophy begins with Thales and his prediction of an eclipse in 585 B.C. "Philosophy and science - which were not originally separate- were therefore born together" (Russell, 3).
Fate - the belief that something beyond us, and even beyond the gods, controlled the destiny of all. It was something that played a large role in the development of Greek thought. "Fate exercised a great influence on all Greek thought, and perhaps was one of the sources from which science derived the belief in natural law" (Russell, 11).
The Greek word 'ate' is a strong, if not irresistible urge towards crime.
It is a wonder that at the 6th century B.C. amazing achievements in thought developed independently. Greek's Homeric poems solidified, philosophy, mathematics and science also were birthed out of Greece while Buddha, Confucius and Zoroaster began to make their marks in the east.
Understanding Dionysus or Bacchus is critical to understanding Greek thought. Bacchus was originally a fertility cult of Thrace. From there he became associated with beer and wine. This association made him all the more popular. The divine madness of wine became a Bacchic rite.
When the religion of Bacchus migrated to Greece it was met with opposition by the orthodoxy. There were many barbaric elements in it, but it proved to be popular with the women of Greece.
The Bacchic religion is a rejection of prudence through a longing for the savage, primitive nature of things.
The Bacchic religion, although savage in nature, was mystified and spiritualized by Orpheus. Orpheus turned these primitive rites into something spiritual, substituting physical intoxication with the mental intoxication through ascetic traditions.
The Orphics taught the transmigration of the souls. There was a belief in an afterlife for the soul, bliss or suffering for eternity based on one's actions in life.
Orphics believed man was partly of earth and partly of heaven. Through purification, ritual or physical (i.e. abstaining from certain food), the heavenly part would increase and the earthly part decrease.
Orpichs taught that one could become one with the Bacchus. The Orphics desired intoxication through enthusiasm (the god entering the man).
To the Orphic, life is pain and wearisome. It is an endless cycle of births with man stuck on earth when he shouldn't be. Through purification he achieves freedom. Purification through asceticism results in a union with God.
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Prayer on Proverbs 2
(Originally Written January 25, 2014)
Proverbs 2
If you seek wisdom and understanding God will give it to you. If you seek knowledge and understanding like you seek silver or hidden treasure the Lord will grant it to you. If you seek "then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God" (Proverbs 2:5)
Help me to seek you as a hidden treasure. Make the path clear to me. Help me to learn discretion. Be that shield as you promised to be. Keep me from the path of the wicked, help me not slip into their devious ways. Help me to be moral and upright in my ways. Grant me this my Lord.
Proverbs 2
If you seek wisdom and understanding God will give it to you. If you seek knowledge and understanding like you seek silver or hidden treasure the Lord will grant it to you. If you seek "then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God" (Proverbs 2:5)
Help me to seek you as a hidden treasure. Make the path clear to me. Help me to learn discretion. Be that shield as you promised to be. Keep me from the path of the wicked, help me not slip into their devious ways. Help me to be moral and upright in my ways. Grant me this my Lord.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Proverbs 1 & Introduction to History of Western Philosophy
(Originally Written January 24, 2014 on scrap paper)
It seems that every time I find myself to be bored intellectually I try to take up some sort of journaling endeavor. I come back to this or that book that had at one point sparked an endeavor to delve into some short-lived intellectual pursuit. Perhaps today is the beginning of one such short-lived journey. Perhaps not. We shall se in a month whether or not I am purchasing another composition notebook or not.
But, in my most recent returns to intellectual pursuits for the sake of the pursuit, I have come to the table trying to come from the perspective of the tabula rasa. I say, whether on paper or in some unfinished and unread blog things such as "of course one that is 30 cannot fully push beyond one's self all the experience of the past three decades" or "I shall try to come to an idea as if I were in possession of a blank slate as my mind". Firstly, when I think on these statements I laugh at my pretentiousness. Second, I find myself admiring the thought of trying to come from a clean slate without preconceived notions and without a desire to judge an idea.
Isn't it what we as modern human beings need? Openness in intellectual discussions, a willingness to abandon early notions for better ones, and a passion to keep an open mind about everything are the hallmarks of modernity in today's accepting society. But, then after I think critically about this clean slate approach I find myself souring on the entire idea. Besides that, the hallmarks of modernity are illusionary at best. The openness is only open for those that agree with you, the abandonment of early notions for better more progressive ones comes only when it suits a politically expedient solution and today's accepting society is partisan.
Of course some knowledge is gained through experience. Of course as we grow older our experiences change and shape our minds. But, the notion of there ever a mind that truly exists as a blank slate is nonsensical on many fronts. From a purely biological standpoint we, though we know still so little, we comprehend enough genetic knowledge to confidently say the sense play a major role in much of who we are. I won't say much more on this matter because what little collective genetic knowledge there is out there, even less is in my head.
Outside of the biological issues with a tabula rasa that interest me little, there are deeper issues with a clean slate idea. While the man will learn much from experience, the notion that there is not a framework for understanding contained in every human from birth is unpalatable on a couple of levels. First, logical reasoning is not something that can be absolutely empirically derived. Experience will have the logical functions of the mind. Language is another thing that exists intuitively. Of course humans learn language, but a baby reacts and interacts with a mother's voice from even inside the womb. There exists some framework in the mind that is innate.
Of course, then there is the imago dei, the strongest argument against a tabula rasa. While there is argument over exactly what the image of God is in humanity, its existence denies any notion of a clean slate at birth. Also, the inherited sin nature of man excludes a clean slate. Of course this argument is transcendental and falls on deaf ears to an unbelieving reader. But, as one who has experience God in relationship it is impossible for me to see from a viewpoint that has not had that experience. The opposite is true as well. One who has not accepted and experienced God in however little and partial as I have cannot see from my vantage point.
And lastly, the approach that I have taken in the past to achieve what I initially believed to be a noble pursuit was actually little more than a spineless approach to intellectual curiosity. In our open society, those who judge something as true or something as false, something as good or something as evil are quickly becoming labeled as bigoted or as close-minded. But, a pursuit of any intellectual subject must have as its end a desire to gain an understanding of that pursuit's truth. So it is with a desire to understand and attain truth that I set out on this adventure, however short-lived it may turn to be. (As an aside, this short-lived adventure lasted an incredible 19 days).
Now that I have trekked back to an old familiar starting point to begin again anew, let's go over the focus. What I will do in this journal is chronicle my thoughts from three sources. For the grounding I will delve into the Scriptures. For my intellectual curiosity I will start again in Bertrand Russell's The History of Western Philosophy. To stay current I will push into various weekly installments of The Economist. Because of my lack of direction in the Scriptures, I will start in Proverbs because of their instructive nature. I want to learn and that is in fact the goal of Proverbs, to instruct.
Proverbs 1
1:7a "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge".
I do wonder now at 30, am I the young in need of knowledge and discretion? Surely, I am not the wise ready to listen and add to my learning. Guide me then my Lord and teach me discretion. Help me to acquire a disciplined and prudent life.
I am struck by a couple of things. First, as I am setting out to find knowledge I have stumbled upon the perfect passage. "The beginning of knowledge is the fear of the Lord. This is a hard pill for the non-believer, but a grounding for me. Help me to never rely on my own cleverness and to always begin my pursuit of knowledge with the fear of the Lord.
Second, God as personified as wisdom calls out to us. If we do not reject Him, he would pour out His heart and make his thoughts known (1:23). How much do we as Christians struggle with what is the will of God? We toss and turn and say, 'is this your will'? Yet, God says to listen to His rebuke and He will make His mind known to us. But that word rebuke is thought to swallow. As the non-believer finds it unpalatable to admit knowledge begins with the fear of the Lord, the Christian finds it just as unsatisfying to know that we must heed God's correction to know his mind. Break me of my pride so that I hear your rebuke, Lord.
I pray this because God as wisdom personified states that if we reject wisdom we will be turned over to our own sinful desires. God will not intercede on our behalf if we don't call on him. This is the real problem of Free Will, not the mere intellectual one. The part I find most terrifying is 1:32b "The complacency of fools will destroy them". Lord, hear my prayer: let me bend my will to your gentle rebuke and help me not to be complacent. Let me take safety in your wisdom.
A History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
I chose this book because I read it in the summer of 2005 when I was becoming interested in philosophy. It seemed a good starting point then and an appropriate one now. I enjoy the historical aspect of it and it should offer a good launching pad into specific areas of thought.
Introduction:
Philosophy is the product of two factors for Russell, an inherited religious and ethical conception and a sort of scientific investigatory process. "Philosophy is something intermediate between theology and science" (Russell, xiii). Russell states that all definite knowledge belongs to science, while dogma - that which surpasses definite knowledge belongs to theology. Between definite knowledge and dogma is philosophy, a no man's land open to attack from both sides. The studying of questions here in the middle is the business of philosophy.
Russell freely admits that science cannot provide all the answers to life. But he contends that theology has provided answers that are so definitive that they must be met with suspicion by the modern mind. He contends that uncertainty, though painful, must be a part of life if we are to live without "the support of comforting fairy tales" (Russell, xiv). He contends that philosophy is the key to teach one how live in the face of that uncertainty.
Russell seems to state that Christianity's rise was aided by some Stoic traditions. Is this true? He states that Christianity replaced the ideal of antiquity of man's allegiance to the state with man's allegiance to God.
"Dante achieved a synthesis, and gave the only balance exposition of the complete medieval world of ideas" (Russell, xviii). I must read the whole of Dante in the near future.
"The Catholic Church was derived from three sources. Its sacred history was Jewish, its theology was Greek, its government and cannon law...Roman. The Reformation rejected the Roman elements, softened the Greek elements and greatly strengthened the Judaic elements" (Russell, xx).
I do like what Russell says about the Reformation and it explains neatly the current state of Christianity. In the rejection of Catholicism and a central authority determining Truth, the fracturing of Protestantism led to a deepening subjectivism and leading to personal isolation. While the Reformation led to an opening up of a personal avenue between God and man by removing an unnecessary and human constructed constraint between God and man, it fractured a core tenant of Christian belief - the corporate nature of faith. This seems very sad to me.
It seems that every time I find myself to be bored intellectually I try to take up some sort of journaling endeavor. I come back to this or that book that had at one point sparked an endeavor to delve into some short-lived intellectual pursuit. Perhaps today is the beginning of one such short-lived journey. Perhaps not. We shall se in a month whether or not I am purchasing another composition notebook or not.
But, in my most recent returns to intellectual pursuits for the sake of the pursuit, I have come to the table trying to come from the perspective of the tabula rasa. I say, whether on paper or in some unfinished and unread blog things such as "of course one that is 30 cannot fully push beyond one's self all the experience of the past three decades" or "I shall try to come to an idea as if I were in possession of a blank slate as my mind". Firstly, when I think on these statements I laugh at my pretentiousness. Second, I find myself admiring the thought of trying to come from a clean slate without preconceived notions and without a desire to judge an idea.
Isn't it what we as modern human beings need? Openness in intellectual discussions, a willingness to abandon early notions for better ones, and a passion to keep an open mind about everything are the hallmarks of modernity in today's accepting society. But, then after I think critically about this clean slate approach I find myself souring on the entire idea. Besides that, the hallmarks of modernity are illusionary at best. The openness is only open for those that agree with you, the abandonment of early notions for better more progressive ones comes only when it suits a politically expedient solution and today's accepting society is partisan.
Of course some knowledge is gained through experience. Of course as we grow older our experiences change and shape our minds. But, the notion of there ever a mind that truly exists as a blank slate is nonsensical on many fronts. From a purely biological standpoint we, though we know still so little, we comprehend enough genetic knowledge to confidently say the sense play a major role in much of who we are. I won't say much more on this matter because what little collective genetic knowledge there is out there, even less is in my head.
Outside of the biological issues with a tabula rasa that interest me little, there are deeper issues with a clean slate idea. While the man will learn much from experience, the notion that there is not a framework for understanding contained in every human from birth is unpalatable on a couple of levels. First, logical reasoning is not something that can be absolutely empirically derived. Experience will have the logical functions of the mind. Language is another thing that exists intuitively. Of course humans learn language, but a baby reacts and interacts with a mother's voice from even inside the womb. There exists some framework in the mind that is innate.
Of course, then there is the imago dei, the strongest argument against a tabula rasa. While there is argument over exactly what the image of God is in humanity, its existence denies any notion of a clean slate at birth. Also, the inherited sin nature of man excludes a clean slate. Of course this argument is transcendental and falls on deaf ears to an unbelieving reader. But, as one who has experience God in relationship it is impossible for me to see from a viewpoint that has not had that experience. The opposite is true as well. One who has not accepted and experienced God in however little and partial as I have cannot see from my vantage point.
And lastly, the approach that I have taken in the past to achieve what I initially believed to be a noble pursuit was actually little more than a spineless approach to intellectual curiosity. In our open society, those who judge something as true or something as false, something as good or something as evil are quickly becoming labeled as bigoted or as close-minded. But, a pursuit of any intellectual subject must have as its end a desire to gain an understanding of that pursuit's truth. So it is with a desire to understand and attain truth that I set out on this adventure, however short-lived it may turn to be. (As an aside, this short-lived adventure lasted an incredible 19 days).
Now that I have trekked back to an old familiar starting point to begin again anew, let's go over the focus. What I will do in this journal is chronicle my thoughts from three sources. For the grounding I will delve into the Scriptures. For my intellectual curiosity I will start again in Bertrand Russell's The History of Western Philosophy. To stay current I will push into various weekly installments of The Economist. Because of my lack of direction in the Scriptures, I will start in Proverbs because of their instructive nature. I want to learn and that is in fact the goal of Proverbs, to instruct.
Proverbs 1
1:7a "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge".
I do wonder now at 30, am I the young in need of knowledge and discretion? Surely, I am not the wise ready to listen and add to my learning. Guide me then my Lord and teach me discretion. Help me to acquire a disciplined and prudent life.
I am struck by a couple of things. First, as I am setting out to find knowledge I have stumbled upon the perfect passage. "The beginning of knowledge is the fear of the Lord. This is a hard pill for the non-believer, but a grounding for me. Help me to never rely on my own cleverness and to always begin my pursuit of knowledge with the fear of the Lord.
Second, God as personified as wisdom calls out to us. If we do not reject Him, he would pour out His heart and make his thoughts known (1:23). How much do we as Christians struggle with what is the will of God? We toss and turn and say, 'is this your will'? Yet, God says to listen to His rebuke and He will make His mind known to us. But that word rebuke is thought to swallow. As the non-believer finds it unpalatable to admit knowledge begins with the fear of the Lord, the Christian finds it just as unsatisfying to know that we must heed God's correction to know his mind. Break me of my pride so that I hear your rebuke, Lord.
I pray this because God as wisdom personified states that if we reject wisdom we will be turned over to our own sinful desires. God will not intercede on our behalf if we don't call on him. This is the real problem of Free Will, not the mere intellectual one. The part I find most terrifying is 1:32b "The complacency of fools will destroy them". Lord, hear my prayer: let me bend my will to your gentle rebuke and help me not to be complacent. Let me take safety in your wisdom.
A History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell
I chose this book because I read it in the summer of 2005 when I was becoming interested in philosophy. It seemed a good starting point then and an appropriate one now. I enjoy the historical aspect of it and it should offer a good launching pad into specific areas of thought.
Introduction:
Philosophy is the product of two factors for Russell, an inherited religious and ethical conception and a sort of scientific investigatory process. "Philosophy is something intermediate between theology and science" (Russell, xiii). Russell states that all definite knowledge belongs to science, while dogma - that which surpasses definite knowledge belongs to theology. Between definite knowledge and dogma is philosophy, a no man's land open to attack from both sides. The studying of questions here in the middle is the business of philosophy.
Russell freely admits that science cannot provide all the answers to life. But he contends that theology has provided answers that are so definitive that they must be met with suspicion by the modern mind. He contends that uncertainty, though painful, must be a part of life if we are to live without "the support of comforting fairy tales" (Russell, xiv). He contends that philosophy is the key to teach one how live in the face of that uncertainty.
Russell seems to state that Christianity's rise was aided by some Stoic traditions. Is this true? He states that Christianity replaced the ideal of antiquity of man's allegiance to the state with man's allegiance to God.
"Dante achieved a synthesis, and gave the only balance exposition of the complete medieval world of ideas" (Russell, xviii). I must read the whole of Dante in the near future.
"The Catholic Church was derived from three sources. Its sacred history was Jewish, its theology was Greek, its government and cannon law...Roman. The Reformation rejected the Roman elements, softened the Greek elements and greatly strengthened the Judaic elements" (Russell, xx).
I do like what Russell says about the Reformation and it explains neatly the current state of Christianity. In the rejection of Catholicism and a central authority determining Truth, the fracturing of Protestantism led to a deepening subjectivism and leading to personal isolation. While the Reformation led to an opening up of a personal avenue between God and man by removing an unnecessary and human constructed constraint between God and man, it fractured a core tenant of Christian belief - the corporate nature of faith. This seems very sad to me.
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