"Is faith in the omnicompetence of reason reasonable?"

Submitted by Lactantius Jr. (European Union), Dec 13, 2007 at 11:48

Dr Whaley writes. "Those who take faith seriously ultimately appeal to force in propagating their faith. Since faith rejects, denies or ignores facts, there is no way but force in dealing with those who disagree with the tenets of their faith whether it be the nature of their creation of god or the rules demanded of the followers of their particular faith. Persuasion requires facts and logic integrated to make a case."

Not so Dr Whaley. Followers of Jesus Christ, "the Prince of Peace," do not "ultimately appeal to force in propagating their faith." They follow Jesus' entirely peaceful and non-violent teaching and example, and if they do "appeal to force in propagating their faith," they do so in defiance of Jesus' teaching and example, not in conformity with it.

Christian faith is not a no-brainer, it is very much evidence-based, it does not reject, deny or ignore facts, followers of Jesus Christ are commanded by Him to "ask, seek and knock on doors," and commanded by the New Testament to "be always ready to answer anyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope you have, and to do so with gentleness and respect."

Your numerous postings on Dr Pipes' site demonstrate your deeply-held faith commitment to reason, but is your faith in the omnicompetence of reason reasonable? What do you use to affirm your reliance on reason? Do you use reason to rely on reason? Is it reasonable to use reason to establish the reliability of reason?

As a deeply committed follower of Jesus Christ, I share with you a concern for human beings and their welfare, and if we are both concerned for other human beings, we will want to do our best for them, and so, I want to discuss morality with you, and ask how do you define what is right, and where you get that definition from? Do you think the world is getting better or worse, and why is it getting better or worse? How are people to behave morally? Where does the motive, the driving force come from?

Ultimately, my aim is to show that Christianity is true humanism, because only in Christ alone, are human beings truly human.

With kind regards and best wishes

Lactantius Jr.

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