Logic: The Seedbed for Truth
| The last post I want to make regarding the existence of God deals with the origins of rationality. We have seen that one cannot explain where the existence of matter comes from...and the fact that humans have logic pushes the one who says there is no God to pause and think. This mere act of thinking is the indictment. That is, if the universe was formed out of chaos and humans are the result of successive evolutionary method (with no intelligence bringing any of this about), where did the ability to reason come from? Here is where the ground beneath those who deny the existence of God crumbles. There is no explanation (apart from the existence of God) that rationality and logic exists. Logic is a gift from God. We are able to reason because God is a rational being. He had design and purpose in the Creation. To deny this is like denying the ocean even as its waves are at your neck! If the world is happenstance and chaos and chance events, there can be no reason to arise out of it. |
posted by Matthew Wireman at 4:59 PM
Comments on "Logic: The Seedbed for Truth"
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Matthew Wireman said ... (Mon Jan 30, 09:25:00 PM) :
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Curious Servant said ... (Mon Jan 30, 10:03:00 PM) :
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R. Mansfield said ... (Mon Jan 30, 11:18:00 PM) :
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Matthew Wireman said ... (Tue Jan 31, 11:13:00 AM) :
post a commentheyirishman, 2 Cor 4.4-7
rich, went to your web site and enjoyed the posts i read...Had trouble posting on there, though. Not sure if my comment went up or not.
Interesting proposition.
You may be right.
I'm inclined to think that logic isn't all that great a thing. It flows from intellect and tends to be a construct of the mind, glorying in itself. Self praise is not a trait of our Lord's.
I see the mind as something beyond the physicality of or species. In fact, I suspect that our brains actual limit our mind.
I wrote a post about it a little while ago, though the fact that it escapes me which one dealt with this topic (tangently) seems to prove how frail our minds are. I think one day our minds will be free of the constraints of thinking through a brain that requires the laws of entropy to function.
I'm not sure if I've made any sense here. I am tired and I'm rambling. I'm probably way off base on several points. God bless.
Matt,
Book recommend: Come, Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking by Norman Geisler and Ronald Brooks.
There aren't a whole lot of books out there on logic from a Christian worldview, but this is a modern standard.
rick, thanks for the recommendation. I will check it out.
rick, thanks for fixing the issue.
curious servant, great thoughtful/thought-provoking comment. I really appreciate it.
I will say a couple of things regarding reason. It has been marred as a result of the Fall; however, it is able to be used to make connections between action-result and action-purpose. When we follow naked reason we are in for problems. We must be aware that we have loads of presuppositions we drag into debates and how we view the world. So, whenever we discuss reason we must not only be aware of our bias, but also test that bias against revelation and logic.
Also, I am a little uncomfortable with your distinction between the mind and the brain. I see the human body as one entity. Therefore, we as persons and personalities cannot (and should not) be separated from our physical bodies. The resurrection will be bodily and spiritual. The Gnostics separated the physical from the spiritual. I would be cautious of doing this. I think the West would do well to recover a Biblical (Old Testament informed) understanding of the entire human person. Do you see my caution? Am I understanding you rightly?