Blaise Pascal
“If we submit everything to reason, our religion will have no mysterious and supernatural element. If we offend the principles of reason, our religion will be absurd and ridiculous.” — Blaise Pascal, Pensées. More…
A Skeptic’s Wager 9
Category Archives: Full Contact Philosophy
Richard vs Richard: The Dawkins–Rorty Debate Reply
Imagine a debate between Richard Dawkins and Richard Rorty. What would it be like?
Richard Rorty, American Pragmatist
Unfortunately, we will never know for sure, since our friend Rorty went on to receive his eternal reward in the spring of 2008 — he did not believe in that eternal reward, but we should hope that he attained it anyway.
Rorty’s pragmatism, in brief, is a sort of thoroughgoing practical relativism. The core tenet of pragmatism is often described as “Whatever works.” More…
iKant and the Deontology of Lying and Genocide 11
Yesterday would have been Immanuel Kant’s 288th birthday.
Philosophical Humor
Today we will honor him with a brief reflection on his Duty Ethics (Deontology). More…
Saint Anselm of Canterbury: Man of Faith Seeking Understanding Reply
April 21, Feast of Saint Anselm of Canterbury
St Anselm of Canterbury
I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this also I believe, –that unless I believed, I should not understand. More…
Doubting Dawkins: Can You Prove That God Exists? 6
Must we see in order to believe?
The reason most people believe in God is simple: Faith. More…
Human Dignity: The Origin and End of Man 1
By Gonzolo Herrera
Kids have no problem when we ask them about their origin. They will simply answer I come from mom and dad. Biologically, we know that we are product of dad’s sperm and mom’s egg. We have very similar DNA to that of our parents; we even look alike and most of the times have similar psychology. After analyzing types of activities that are specifically human — abstract understanding, the ability to reason, the power to choose freely, we come to realize that man has a spiritual soul. A problem arises: More…
A Tribute to the Angelic Doctor 7
St. Thomas Aquinas, O.P. (1225-1274)
I woke up this morning, realizing that today is the feast of St Thomas Aquinas, inspired to write a brief panegyric to the great saint and place this blog under his patronage.
Aquinas is best known for his More…
Clear Signs of Fuzzy Science Reply
I love reading books on philosophy and pop culture. So when not one but two books entitled Inception and Philosophy came out within a week of each other, I had to get them both.
Nietzsche and Neuroscience Reply
Thereupon, in the year 2006 or 2026, some new Nietzsche will step forward to announce: “The self is dead”—except that being prone to the poetic, like Nietzsche I, he will probably say… “The soul, that last refuge of values, is dead, because educated people no longer believe it exists.”
In Thomas Wolfe’s I Am Charlotte Simmons, More…
Minimalist Mistakes: Contradict Yourself While Explaining the Obvious in Four Simple Steps Reply
If you are ever aware of anything, you are aware of the fact that you are conscious.
The truly amazing thing about consciousness — immediate awareness of one’s self and one’s own mental states — is that it occurs naturally and effortlessly. More…
Biltrix 