Comments on: Faith and Rationality

By: Livingston Dell

Livingston Dell — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 21:06:58 +0000

I always found the “rational basis standard” to be hilarious because it assumes that reason is rational. Yet how do we come to that conclusion? Through reason of course. Yet that’s assuming what you’re trying to prove as true.

One cannot use reason to prove that reason is true, which is why some degree of presupposition (we would call it faith ) is necessary even to believe in the most reasonable things.

By: Nikolai Volk

Nikolai Volk — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:01:46 +0000

I think there’s a danger in separating rationality from faith. I don’t think those are things operating in separate camps. In fact, we don’t get things like that until the modern period, which is where, unfortunately, a lot of bad philosophy began to emerge. Saint Bonaventure once said that if he didn’t have faith, he couldn’t know. I think that’s true.

There’s also a lot of great work done by the so-called Reformed Epistemologists (notably Alvin Plantinga, Nick Wolterstorff, and William Alston) on this subject, as they turned the spurious conception of rationality espoused by many Enlightement-drenched thinkers on its head.

By: John Guidry

John Guidry — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 05:13:51 +0000

There is an important tension in the coexistence of belief in Christ and rationality. There is something irrational about the salvation of man coming through the crucifixion of God. Paul makes a very clear (and rational) argument in 1st Corinthians 1 that Christ crucified is foolishness to the Greek who seeks truth/wisdom through rational thought.

Furthermore, Paul writes that God purposefully contradicted rational thought in redemption through Christ so that only by a work of God can a person accept it by faith. The cross is not rational. But once faith in Christ is given by grace to the believer, rational thought can be built upon it. This is why Paul can make rational appeals and arguments to the believer on various topics throughout his letters.

Still the cross, which is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to everyone else, necessitates that people view Christians as irrational. Are we willing to own it like Paul did?

By: Truth Unites... and Divides

Truth Unites... and Divides — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:56:31 +0000

“For those of us who are devotees of both history and literature, we recognize, with a shudder, this line of thinking starts with the ad hominem retort, “Oh yeah? Well, you’re crazy!” and ends by populating gulags (mental illness being a primary grounds for imprisonment by dictators) with candidates for sanity retraining (i.e., one’s conformity with the dictator’s views).”

Gotta go beyond the initial shudder to actively, and prayerfully, preventing secular liberal fascism. (And oftentimes the aiders-and-abetters within theological liberalism too).

“No, we are not perfect, but we also are not irrational, and the chronological snobbery and ignorance necessary to make such a claim [Christians and Christianity is irrational] is utterly breathtaking.”

Ummm, I haven’t found this claim to be breathtaking at all. Stupid maybe, but not breathtaking in its stupidity.