Reasonable Faith: Recent Episodes
Gillian Brown
Is the idea of God only for the weak-minded, or are there rational, philosophical reasons that people believe in God? Join me, Gillian Brown, as I talk with experts about intelligent reasons to believe in God.
The idea of God; the generation if the idea of a beneficial God, and the fact that the idea of God itself exists.Anselm of Canterbury was a philosopher in the 11th century, he is most famous for his book the “Proslogion.” In it, he wrote an ontological argument that has several parts, It is worded like a prayer in the Proslogion, but I’ll summarize it in simpler words here. First, he states that God can be defined as a supreme being, to have that idea in the mind. All people think of God in this way because it is the definition. Because the idea of God exists, and a concept that is in reality, is greater than that only in the mind, in order for God to truly be the greatest, He must exist.To explore this topic I did some footwork, I spoke to friends, professors, and of course, my Dad. First, I spoke to Anna Elder, a friend from one of my classes. I asked her some silly questions about Santa Clause, but this was an example of the type of argument Khant did to attempt to combat Anselm's Ontological Argument. The last time I spoke to Dr. James T. Turner, a philosophy professor at Anderson University, he told me this argument was his favorite. Although pretty confusing to read, Dr. Turner made this easier to understand with great examplesFinally, I spoke to my dad, Dr. Ethan Brown, who introduced me to this argument. Although complicated, we worked together to solidify an understanding of this philosophy mind game.This argument has reaffirmed my belief in the necessity of a God. If this argument helped you too, let me know by leaving a 5-star review and share it with a friend you think needs to hear this podcast!
Things are constantly moving and changing; but why, what does it mean, and who is causing it.
Thomas Aquinas penned the five ways, “the first way” discusses that nothing can happen without a cause. Here is the full argument: 1. All bodies are either potentially in motion or actually in motion. 2. "But nothing can be reduced from potentiality to actuality, except by something in a state of actuality" 3. Nothing can be at once in both actuality and potentiality in the same respect. 4. Therefore nothing can be at once in both actuality and potentiality with respect to motion 5. Therefore nothing can move itself; it must be put into motion by something else. 6. If there were no "first mover, moved by no other" there would be no motion. 7. But there is motion. 8. Therefore there is a first mover, God
To explore this topic I did some footwork, I spoke to friends, professors, and of course, my Dad. First, I spoke to Zoe Rodgers, my RA, about what change is. I asked her to explain the concept, give me examples, and asked her opinion on different kinds of change. But the argument from change doesn't seem to only mean the casual definition. Dr. James T. Turner, a philosophy professor at Anderson University, spoke with me about this idea. He walked me through Aquinas’s argument and helped me understand what he meant by change and motion. Finally, I spoke to my dad, Dr. Ethan Brown, to make sure I completely understood this argument. He had recommended I look at this argument, and now I know why. This argument has reaffirmed my belief in the necessity of a God. If this argument helped you too, let me know by leaving a 5-star review and share it with a friend you think needs to hear this podcast!
Today in America, the fastest growing religious perspective in America today is something called The Nones. America hasn’t seen a sudden surge of women converting to Catholicism, taking vows of celibacy, and entering convents. Instead, America has seen a sudden surge of people who are walking away from religious faith altogether. According to Ryan Burge, a political scientist at Eastern Illinois University, and author of the new book, The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going, in the 1970s, the Nones were just 5% of the population. Now, they are about 30% of the American population. Surprisingly rapidly, Americans are leaving their faith in God and choosing to adopt instead an unbelieving posture. The Nones are people who have chosen not to affiliate with any religious group. While some “Nones” do believe in God and are merely hostile to organized religion, a great many of the Nones don’t believe in God at all. This is particularly true of the rising generations. While the Nones make up 30% of the population of America as a whole, in Generation Z that number looks more like 40%. This is happening to America and it’s happening very fast. So many people are walking away from the faith, and the current trajectory of America has us quickly becoming a nation made up of mostly post-Christian people. But are they right? Or, is it possible that my generation is missing something? Is it possible that the idea of God is still one worth thinking about? The question “is there a God?” Is a really big question. Perhaps the most important question in all of human philosophy is because the implications of the answers are so very big. If there is a God, then all kinds of life priorities become clear, and others become insignificant. If God doesn’t exist, then the same things happen, but the priorities are entirely different. Apologetics is about making a case for a certain thing to be true. For instance, one of the most famous historical apologies is the Apology of Socrates. In that speech, Socrates is on trial for his life - he either makes the case that he’s not a villain or he dies. Socrates is not apologetic in the sense that he’s sorry at all. He is making an apology in the sense that he shouldn’t need to be sorry - he’s innocent of the crimes of which he’s accused. Socrates makes a case for his innocence and that’s called an apology. Christian apologetics is similar to that. We aren’t making an apology in the sense that we say we are sorry. We are making an apology in the sense that we are offering evidence for the truth and reality of our faith. Philosophical arguments are given in response to the idea that belief in God is wholly and entirely irrational. If a person doesn’t believe in God, then that person isn’t going to be persuaded by a Biblical argument, obviously. Why should they believe in a divinely inspired document if they don’t believe in divinity? A philosophical argument responds to the attack that belief in God is irrational and says, not necessarily. There are good reasons to believe in God. And that's what this podcast is all about.