Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Discuss philosophical questions regarding theism (and atheism), and discuss religion as it relates to philosophy. This includes any philosophical discussions that happen to be about god, gods, or a 'higher power' or the belief of them. This also generally includes philosophical topics about organized or ritualistic mysticism or about organized, common or ritualistic beliefs in the existence of supernatural phenomenon.
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Thomyum2
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Thomyum2 »

gad-fly wrote: June 18th, 2021, 11:27 pm
Thomyum2 wrote: June 18th, 2021, 1:30 pm
What I think James is saying is that truth (or factuality) is a judgment we make based on more strict criteria than that which we would use to form an opinion or belief. One of those criteria is that it be able to hold true for everyone - if and when it doesn't, it no longer qualifies. In other words, truth could be thought of as the highest quality of belief.
Truth is what you see and experience; what has happened, and what is happening. Truth is above and beyond your judgment and criterion, no matter how qualified you may be. Truth establishes itself by its very existence.

The highest quality of belief is conviction.

Truth is true, full stop.
Truth is true? I'd say you've almost mastered the art of the tautology. :)

Consider though that there are other senses to the word 'true' beyond just 'factual' - true can also mean loyal or trustworthy (a 'true' friend), or properly aligned (as in carpentry) or consistent with, honest, ideal, etc. I think it just serves to demonstrate that there really is an element of value and quality to the word, just as James was suggesting.
“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”
— Epictetus
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Pattern-chaser »

Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Many things in life are self evident.
I find that people often use "self-evident" like scientists use "axiom". These are things that people just assume are true, and the complete lack of proof or evidence prompts them to bluster, and say things like "self-evident". Do you have an example of something that you consider to be self-evident?


Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Evidence is when you are unsure of something. The obsession with evidence in intellectual circles is a sure sign of uncertainty of mind, AKA fear of the unknown, paranoia, lack of confidence.
Interesting. So how do you confirm that your theories or ideas are useful? Perhaps just declare them to be "self-evident"?
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Asif
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

Pattern-chaser wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:16 pm
Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Many things in life are self evident.
I find that people often use "self-evident" like scientists use "axiom". These are things that people just assume are true, and the complete lack of proof or evidence prompts them to bluster, and say things like "self-evident". Do you have an example of something that you consider to be self-evident?


Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Evidence is when you are unsure of something. The obsession with evidence in intellectual circles is a sure sign of uncertainty of mind, AKA fear of the unknown, paranoia, lack of confidence.
Interesting. So how do you confirm that your theories or ideas are useful? Perhaps just declare them to be "self-evident"?
By self evident I mean things that are obvious,like the fact I'm typing now. My existence,other people,matter,etc,etc. In other words the things which philosophers debate about and pontificate about but which are in reality totally obvious.
As for some matters which are not known,such as is morrisons open past 11 o clock,you may have an educated guess then investigate till its self evident.

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

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Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Many things in life are self evident.
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:16 pm I find that people often use "self-evident" like scientists use "axiom". These are things that people just assume are true, and the complete lack of proof or evidence prompts them to bluster, and say things like "self-evident". Do you have an example of something that you consider to be self-evident?
Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm By self evident I mean things that are obvious, like the fact I'm typing now.
In a philosophy forum I used to frequent, one of our number couldn't type, and used a speech-recognition computer to dictate his posts. From my computer terminal, I couldn't tell the difference. It was the same as if he had typed his replies. If I had assumed he was typing, as you ask me to accept that you are typing now, I would've been wrong. His typing was not "self-evident".


Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm My existence, other people, matter, etc, etc. In other words, the things which philosophers debate about and pontificate about but which are in reality totally obvious.
Your existence is self-evident only to you. The existence of other people is the same, but worse. Even the existence of matter is not self-evident; we have only the apparent evidence of our senses to confirm it, and we know how inaccurate our senses (combined with our perception: our 'processing' of sensory data to make sense of it) can be, don't we?


Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm As for some matters which are not known, such as is morrisons open past 11 o clock, you may have an educated guess then investigate till its self evident.
In this case, it is your investigation that confirms your theory (that Morrisons is open) is correct or not. The investigation was only necessary because Morrisons being open was NOT self-evident, n'est ce pas?

Something that is self-evident somehow carries with it proof of its own correctness, no?
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Asif
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 7:52 am
Asif wrote: June 18th, 2021, 3:18 pm Many things in life are self evident.
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:16 pm I find that people often use "self-evident" like scientists use "axiom". These are things that people just assume are true, and the complete lack of proof or evidence prompts them to bluster, and say things like "self-evident". Do you have an example of something that you consider to be self-evident?
Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm By self evident I mean things that are obvious, like the fact I'm typing now.
In a philosophy forum I used to frequent, one of our number couldn't type, and used a speech-recognition computer to dictate his posts. From my computer terminal, I couldn't tell the difference. It was the same as if he had typed his replies. If I had assumed he was typing, as you ask me to accept that you are typing now, I would've been wrong. His typing was not "self-evident".


Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm My existence, other people, matter, etc, etc. In other words, the things which philosophers debate about and pontificate about but which are in reality totally obvious.
Your existence is self-evident only to you. The existence of other people is the same, but worse. Even the existence of matter is not self-evident; we have only the apparent evidence of our senses to confirm it, and we know how inaccurate our senses (combined with our perception: our 'processing' of sensory data to make sense of it) can be, don't we?


Asif wrote: June 19th, 2021, 12:48 pm As for some matters which are not known, such as is morrisons open past 11 o clock, you may have an educated guess then investigate till its self evident.
In this case, it is your investigation that confirms your theory (that Morrisons is open) is correct or not. The investigation was only necessary because Morrisons being open was NOT self-evident, n'est ce pas?

Something that is self-evident somehow carries with it proof of its own correctness, no?
Misunderstood my entire post!
And used inaccurate examples as well.
I'm not sure why you don't find other minds or matter self evident?
And this "we" you refer to,how do you know what I perceive from your own logic of uncertainty? If you do not trust your perceptions because of the odd mistake or because it being incomplete that's not on me. I trust my intuitions.

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Pattern-chaser »

Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 11:53 am If you do not trust your perceptions because of the odd mistake or because it being incomplete that's not on me. I trust my intuitions.
Good for you. I wish you luck on your journey of learning! 👍
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Asif
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 11:53 am If you do not trust your perceptions because of the odd mistake or because it being incomplete that's not on me. I trust my intuitions.
Good for you. I wish you luck on your journey of learning! 👍
No luck needed,nor passive aggressive comments.
Cheers.

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Pattern-chaser »

Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:09 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 11:53 am If you do not trust your perceptions because of the odd mistake or because it being incomplete that's not on me. I trust my intuitions.
Good for you. I wish you luck on your journey of learning! 👍
No luck needed,nor passive aggressive comments.
Cheers.
I'm autistic. My words are used explicitly, and entirely without implication. [More info here]

Your course differs significantly from mine; I wished (and wish) you luck on yours.
Pattern-chaser

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Asif
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:09 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 11:53 am If you do not trust your perceptions because of the odd mistake or because it being incomplete that's not on me. I trust my intuitions.
Good for you. I wish you luck on your journey of learning! 👍
No luck needed,nor passive aggressive comments.
Cheers.
I'm autistic. My words are used explicitly, and entirely without implication. [More info here]

Your course differs significantly from mine; I wished (and wish) you luck on yours.
These days everybody claims a disease.
If you are intelligent enough to debate,you are intelligent enough to know what your words mean and how they come across.
I wish you well to,but I don't like excuses.

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
gad-fly
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by gad-fly »

Thomyum2 wrote: June 19th, 2021, 10:44 am
Truth is true? I'd say you've almost mastered the art of the tautology. :)

Consider though that there are other senses to the word 'true' beyond just 'factual' - true can also mean loyal or trustworthy (a 'true' friend), or properly aligned (as in carpentry) or consistent with, honest, ideal, etc. I think it just serves to demonstrate that there really is an element of value and quality to the word, just as James was suggesting.
I am wary about the present topic being off-focus by the distraction of side-issues like Truth, Miracle, and so on.

Language is often subject to ambiguity, especially in daily use. Terms are borrowed to emphasize feeling more than what they mean. True means loyal or trustworthy? No. Loyal is loyal. No excuse to use a different term which will only serve to confuse. Guess what. You say loyal instead of true because you value both. You equate one thing good with another also good. loyal = good = true. Hence loyal = true, right? It is an innocent attempt, which does not carry weight in critical thinking in forum like this.

I do not disagree that "there really is an element of value and quality to the word", but that element is subject to your discretion. True friend, true money like the US Dollar, and so on. I have friends, whether trustworthy or not. For me, friends = true friends. As for Us Dollars, I regard currency as (true!) money despite the exchange rate.

There is nothing wrong to play with words. It can be fun too. However, it will be seditious to undermine the foundation on which a term is based on, like challenging Truth being true, and miracle being predictable. The game can be dangerous.
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Pattern-chaser »

Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:10 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:09 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:06 pm

Good for you. I wish you luck on your journey of learning! 👍
No luck needed,nor passive aggressive comments.
Cheers.
I'm autistic. My words are used explicitly, and entirely without implication. [More info here]

Your course differs significantly from mine; I wished (and wish) you luck on yours.
These days everybody claims a disease.
If you are intelligent enough to debate,you are intelligent enough to know what your words mean and how they come across.
I wish you well to,but I don't like excuses.
I have a formal diagnosis of autism spectrum condition (ASC). We communicate differently from you. I know what my words mean, and use them in that way. You insist on seeing implications that I do not put there. That's your 'excuse', and your problem.
Pattern-chaser

"Who cares, wins"
Asif
Posts: 99
Joined: August 21st, 2020, 6:08 am

Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

Pattern-chaser wrote: June 21st, 2021, 7:06 am
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:10 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:06 pm
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 12:09 pm

No luck needed,nor passive aggressive comments.
Cheers.
I'm autistic. My words are used explicitly, and entirely without implication. [More info here]

Your course differs significantly from mine; I wished (and wish) you luck on yours.
These days everybody claims a disease.
If you are intelligent enough to debate,you are intelligent enough to know what your words mean and how they come across.
I wish you well to,but I don't like excuses.
I have a formal diagnosis of autism spectrum condition (ASC). We communicate differently from you. I know what my words mean, and use them in that way. You insist on seeing implications that I do not put there. That's your 'excuse', and your problem.
I have no need for your identity politics or "we",us and them spiel.
I will use my own judgement thanks.
The irony is you were the one claiming our senses or judgements are not self evident,now your certain about your own judgement!

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
gad-fly
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by gad-fly »

"Didn't Satan reportedly encourage Jesus to throw himself down from the top of the temple so that the angels could catch him on the way down? Wouldn't that have been an amazing miracle of the type that would have convinced many people? Yet, Jesus refused. Why would Jesus refuse to provide such convincing evidence? What say you?"

Suppose someone says you cannot swim. would you then jump into the sea to prove that you can? You may? Fine, but if you do it every time you are challenged, let me say you are foolhardy or showing off.

"Furthermore, if a man saves another from drowning, isn't it possible that the man arranged to put the other in danger for no other reason than to save him and thus show tDo others what a good job he had done?"

It can be a show, but that is another issue.
When a man is drowning, and you can save him, you don't think otherwise, except whether you can save him.
What follows:
1. there is a factual event, that someone is drowning.
2. there is factual outcome, that a drowning person is saved.
3. the emergent evidence, that a person can be saved from drowning.
4. the possible validity or application of the evidence, that you are brave, you don't mind getting wet, you are a good citizen, divine intervention, stroke of luck, etc. Pick one, or a few.
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Pattern-chaser »

Asif wrote: June 21st, 2021, 7:21 am
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 21st, 2021, 7:06 am
Asif wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:10 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: June 20th, 2021, 1:06 pm

I'm autistic. My words are used explicitly, and entirely without implication. [More info here]

Your course differs significantly from mine; I wished (and wish) you luck on yours.
These days everybody claims a disease.
If you are intelligent enough to debate,you are intelligent enough to know what your words mean and how they come across.
I wish you well to,but I don't like excuses.
I have a formal diagnosis of autism spectrum condition (ASC). We communicate differently from you. I know what my words mean, and use them in that way. You insist on seeing implications that I do not put there. That's your 'excuse', and your problem.
I have no need for your identity politics or "we",us and them spiel.
I will use my own judgement thanks.
The irony is you were the one claiming our senses or judgements are not self evident,now your certain about your own judgement!
Look, I'm just trying to apologise for offence given wholly inadvertently, and to try to explain. Please accept my genuine apology, and stop ramping up the aggression. Thanks.
Pattern-chaser

"Who cares, wins"
Asif
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Joined: August 21st, 2020, 6:08 am

Re: Faith vs Evidence in Religion

Post by Asif »

My point still stands. Apology accepted. There is no aggression here. Just stating my piece.

Reason: off-topic ad hominem flooding
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