...Absolute Truth can be defined as "the real state of facts and reality”, an accepted statement or proposition. Some suggest that there is no true reality, only perceptions and opinions, while others argue that there must be some absolute basis. With this being said, we can say that there are two diametrically-opposed beliefs related to absolute truth: There are no absolutes that define reality. Everything is relative, and thus there is no actual reality. There is ultimately no authority for deciding if an action is positive or negative; right or wrong. There are absolutes that define what is real and what is not. Thus, actions can be deemed right or wrong based upon how they measure up against these absolute standards. I’m a firm catholic believer and the catholic perspective on absolute truth should be determined by the one who is the ultimate authority, or maker, of all things. So for any of those who believe in God the absolute truth is derived from properly understanding who God is and what His "will" is for His creation. Propositions, in logic, are statements that can be labeled as either true or false. All of the examples you just heard and saw are complete statements that you can say are either true or false. Propositions are the objects of attitudes and the primary carriers of truth and falsity. This stipulation rules out certain candidates for propositions, including thoughts which are not sharable, and concrete events or facts, which cannot be false. Reference:...
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...What’s the difference between the epistemology of the critic realism and realism itself? Realism is an epistemological study which says that knowledge of a social phenomenon is supported like in what can be observed and recorded, also in the ‘hidden’ structures and mechanisms, which cause reactions that can be observed, collected and used to offer facts over these mechanisms. Critical realism gives priority to the identification of structures and mechanisms which bring inequality and injustice, while offering opportunities for social changes, through changing those mechanisms that are identified as the main cause of the problems. 3. Is there an absolute truth and can we know it? The concept of absolute truth is yet today to be debated among many different groups of people. Plato believed that absolute truth existed, but that truth on earth is...
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...environment, it is imperative that each hold firmly to their philosophical positions and do not let society influence them in a negative way. At the same time all teachers should be continually reflecting inwardly to make oneself accountable to their profession. Teachers have a great responsibility to see that every child in their care receive and education based on truth. This only can be achieved by understanding that absolute truth exists. There is a great debate in this country as to whether absolute truth exists. To make that statement that there is no absolute truth is completely illogical. There are indeed absolute realities and standards that define what is true and what is not. Therefore, actions can be deemed right or wrong by how each compares to those absolute standards. Educators have the ability to share the absolute truth to their students in many areas of study. Christian educators believe the Bible when it says that Jesus is “the way, and the truth, and the life” and that He is the ultimate manifestation of truth and the only way one can get to heaven (John 14:6). Another example of the existence of absolute truth is found in the human conscience, that feeling within them that tells them that things should be a certain way that some things are just wrong. In the Holy Bible, book of Romans 2:14-16, describes the role of human conscience. “Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though...
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...you that I do not believe in “words.” More than likely you are thinking, “Are you kidding me? That is foolish. You don’t believe in words? Come on! That is ridiculous!” Everyone believes that words exist. It would be foolish to pull out a dictionary and to try to prove to the person that makes such a claim that words exist. It is clear that He is, as we examined last month, suppressing a truth that is evident to all. He is a fool. He instead needs to be shown how foolish and contradictory such a claim is. It is self-refuting. You cannot claim that words do not exist without using them. This is what we must show this person to show them how ridiculous a statement this is. What do we say when someone says they do not believe in God? Do we respond in the same way? Not usually. Usually we respond by trying to give a list of evidences to the truth that God exists, when the Bible says that they already know that God exists. Instead, we should be responding with the same attitude that we would respond with if someone said they didn't believe in words. Just as the person who is suppressing the truth about the existence of words, so to is the one who claims that God does not exist. Remember what God says in Romans 1 (which we looked at last week)? Everyone is without excuse for rejecting the God they know exists. They are foolish for doing so. You cannot even make the argument that God does not exists unless God DOES exist, let alone prove it. This subject will be what we study today...
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...Shawn Andrews Summer 2014 Theology 313-D05 LUO Student #23805109 Analysis In the book Is Jesus the Only Savior?, author Ronald Nash does an excellent job in presenting his arguments in a comprehensive, thorough method. In the preface, he does well to address the important clarification of terms needed when discussing whether or not Jesus is the only savior. It is essential to understand these terms—exclusivism, pluralism, and inclusivism—when diving into the various beliefs and interpretations concerning Christ and His claim that, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” (John 14:6). While the intention of the book is to address such beliefs and interpretations, it is important to establish early in the text, as he does, what the different beliefs are and to define them in a very basic form. In the first chapter, Nash lays the foundation for the rest of his book—exclusivism. Similar to the importance of defining all three of the different general views in the preface, it is incredibly important for him to establish a baseline of good theology, initially, in order to effectively discuss and argue the views of pluralism and inclusivism. This is certainly one of the greatest strengths of the book as a whole. Nash lays out the main purpose of the book on page 25, stating, “The major question I will seek to answer in the rest of this book is whether pluralists or inclusivists have produced arguments strong enough to justify...
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...The Absolute (and all that) When dealing with the idea of The Absolute, an understanding of what exactly is meant by the word “absolute” would be helpful, for this, we will go to a long trusted source for information, the dictionary. According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, the word “absolute” is defined in a number of ways: free from imperfection; free or relatively free from mixture; being , governed by, or characteristic of a ruler or authority completely free from constitutional or other restraint; having no restriction, exception, or qualification; independent of arbitrary standards of measurement; and perfectly embodying the nature of a thing, just to name a few. (Merriam-Webster) So to look at The Absolute, we are dealing with, according to Merriam Webster, an idea of freedom, purity, something set apart and seen as perfect, I would add and take liberty and say, an example of excellence untainted by anything, but does what Merriam-Webster say still bode well with how many World Religions defined or see The Absolute regarding their specific religion, that is what we intend to find out, The Absolute and all that. When religions speak of The Absolute, we would expectedly assume The Absolute of which they speak of is that of an Absolute Truth, some sort of cosmic truth, a universal truth, something without blemish, an essence or standard that is eternal, something unable to be changed, set apart by uniqueness, an idea of which there is no allowance for...
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...people in life are the unhappy people. Ernest Hemingway, Sylvia Plath, Vincent Van Gough some of the most famous people have committed suicide. When searching for truth and purpose within life one is subjecting themselves to a life of unhappiness. With every decision in one’s life one chooses whether to remain ignorant to their surroundings or to become knowledgeable to the absolute truth within life. I believe that it is in each individual’s best interest to remain “ignorant and happy”, but as the curious humans’ we cannot resist a chance to discover the absolute truth and meaning to life in general and in our own life. Through examining Platos , “Allegory of the Cave, the Matrix and other examples, it will be proven why I believe that it is in one’s best interest to remain ignorant, but as humans we have a need to discover truth and purpose within life. Plato's “Allegory of the Cave” is a scenario where 6 prisoners are chained to the ground. They are forced to stare at a wall where everyday shadows or people objects and creatures are projected onto the wall by the Sun. The prisoners believe that the shadows are real life until one day a prisoner gets a chance to leave the cave and see that everything he once thought was true was in fact false. The one prisoner tries to tell the rest of the prisoners about the truth but all they hear is echoes. If the prisoner must return back to the cave after seeing the real world and realizing that everything he once believed in was false...
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...with life. Questions from article, What is a Worldview, and Why Is It Important To Me? 3. Has your answers to either of the first two questions changed after reading Article 1?My answers have not change from reading article I, because I do know understand my worldview. It has been influence through my own personal reading of scripture, that's the blueprint of my life, so I can see the meaning of the laws that make society. Referring to the meaning of the law means referring to its origins. Thats why this article did not change my answers. 4. Do you believe in absolute truth? Is there more than one way/religion to understanding absolute truth about God and the meaning of life? I do believe in absolute truth, because it's the only way to find meaning of life. I believe other beliefs could be the starting point of finding truth, but their paths does not mean they will find absolute...
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...2. Briefly summarize the problem of evil and suffering. Cite and reference Chapter 9 in the textbook. “Suffering can come in many forms, but, at some point, everyone will suffer deep pain or loss—it is an unavoidable fact of being human (Sharpe, 2014).” The main problem of evil and suffering is why would a good and just God allow so much evil and suffering in our world. If God loves us so much, why would he let bad things happen to good people? 3. Briefly summarize the Christian worldview’s response to the problem of evil and suffering. Cite and reference the lecture and/or Chapter 9 in the textbook. The Christian worldview’s response to the problem of evil and suffering is best explained through the example of Job. Like Job, suffering will come to a person regardless of their social or righteous status, but God cares about every single person’s suffering. Second, it is okay to ask God questions, but it is not okay for us to blame God for the evil or suffering we are going through, nor question his love. It should be sufficient for us to know that our God knows us, listens to us, loves us, and is with us. Lastly, the Christian worldview explains that although we are suffering and in pain right now, eventually everything will come together and we will be with God, free from any kind of suffering (Sharpe, 2014). 4. Imagine that a close friend has just suffered through a great personal loss (death of a loved one, natural disaster, disease...
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...Relativism: A term underlined by consequence. Abstract Relativism argues that there are no absolute truths. It suggests that the concept of right and wrong in any given human behavior can only be determined by applying its relevance to the culture of the given subject. Culture “A” may believe in and practice female circumcision while culture “B” may unequivocally oppose it. In both cultures, there is a fundamental difference in what they believe to be the truth about this ritual. One person might view it as custom, or a rite, or a sacred practice. Another may view it as a brutal and primitive method of control. It all depends on where you are standing, so with regard to personal, cultural, and ethical beliefs, the only absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths. However, this does not discredit the notion of universal moral requirements. Absolute truths do exist. They exist because there are consequences to every action, and no matter what context, perception, or point of view one possesses, the concept of action versus consequence is a universal constant. Genocide kills many people. That is not a belief. If you commit genocide, it is absolutely true that people will die. It is a consequence. If we all desired the consequences of genocide then we would all be gone. Fortunately, most of us do not wish to commit genocide, but for those who do, they feel that they have a good enough reason to do so because there is a desired consequence of that action...
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...characters. The basic conflict that sets forth thematic conflict of the distinction of facts and truth within the nature of the mind is of a Southern decaying family’s attempt to bring their mother home for burial. Faulkner narrates each character’s singular point of view to show the result of the multitude of subjective interpretations as each character deals with their emotions engendered by the events. The reader is unsure as to which imitated perspective is objective towards the truth. Faulkner’s narration of imitating events from a different stand point develops an arguing conflict of what is thought to be an established nature of mind. As I Lay Dying is a conflict of the conceptual idea of truth. It can be interpreted that the conflict of the narrative is a conflict of our beings – whether or not there is such a thing as unprejudiced truth. Within the beginning narratives, the characters reveal their corruptions that will obscure their interpretations: including adultery, pregnancy, abortion, hatred, and insanity. Using multiple views promotes the isolation each family member’s internal conflicts in relation to their response to their mother’s death, relationships, and own seemingly selfish concerns. The reader begins to see the instability of their isolation when the Faulkner establishes no character to provide objectivity. The extremities in the elusiveness of the truth can be followed through the issues associated with each character and how the novel’s multiple perspectives...
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...the “Philosophy of Christian Education” is a mind opener. A. Philosophy as “trying to answer the Big questions of life. Philosophy is complex and it is a big word for me and others, I suppose. The differing views of these well known philosophers have both affected human’s perspective and judgment of the truth and reality. On the positive side, their philosophies are educational and revealing; but on the negative point of view, they are sort of discouraging, confusing and divisive due to the fact that a number of their theories in answering the Big questions of life are quite inconclusive...
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...of God' Negative atheism: Absence of God: does not actively deny God. An example of this would by a baby who has not had time to make a conscious decision about the existence of God. We cannot assume anything, so we must assume he does not exist. Agnosticism: From the Latin 'without knowledge.' Like Negative atheism there is an absence of belief, however, unlike Negative atheism it does not deny the existence. Postmodernism One of the key ideas of a postmodernist view of religion, unlike traditional views, is that there is no objective knowledge or absolute representation of reality. It is culture or society that dictates our concepts and the way we categorise and see the world. Hence religion is seen as a cultural construct. Religious claims have no claim to absolute truth. They are merely relative and subjective. This reliance on a person’s perspective therefore means that there is no grand or meta‐ narrative. Truth can no longer be discovered through reason and experience. In contrast, amodernist grand narrative would be the idea of an...
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...“Worldview, Philosophy, Faith and Ethics” Reading ARTICLE 1: What Is a Worldview and Why Is It Important to Me? The first set of questions in part 1 asked you to evaluate the extent to which you seek to apply faith, values, and philosophy to your personal and business decisions. To really have a sound foundation for ethical decisions, we have to have an understanding of how our worldview influences the decisions we make and how we perceive reality. Too often, we barely understand what our worldview is all about and how it impacts decisions. As such, our decisions in life may or may not be informed by sound principles. This is true even for Christians, who may even have unbiblical ideas influencing their worldview. The non-Christian faces a different challenge: trying to make sense of life in a meaningful way without a Biblical, theistic starting point. All of this will be discussed in the series of article for this assignment. Defining Worldview • A worldview is the intellectual, emotional, and perhaps even spiritual framework by which we apprehend reality and assign meaning to life. • Everyone has a worldview; it may not be very developed, but nevertheless, everyone is approaching life based upon one. The Worldview “House” • To speak metaphorically, our worldview is the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual “home” in which we live all of our lives. It may change drastically, undergoing serious renovations or damage as we go through...
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...might go to any lengths to protect what they feel is right and to preserve these values. Values can be divided up into two subcategories absolute and relative. Absolute values deal with conventional ethics. In absolutism, everything is certain. Relativism, on the other hand, is more subjective. Relativism and absolutism are only two of the many ethical viewpoints studied by ethicists today. Pope Benedict XVI brought up many issues revolving around these two viewpoints during his time as Pope. He never strictly used the term "relativism" but he did "fault modern people for missing the transcendent meaning of love and instead caring for one another just because we feel like it". The ideas behind relativism may be misleading or confusing to some, but are essential to any worldview, including the pope's. Pope Benedict worries that a person's individual autonomy has been lifted and valued above moral absolutes. Most people understand that lying is wrong and considered unethical, but we also take a stand that lying in order to prevent harm or evil can be justified. Just because lying is accepted in that situation does not make it ok to lie, in the same way that self defense does not make it ok to do harm unto others in any other situation than when a person feels their life is being threatened. These are relativist views because there is no absolute. There...
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