And Prysson's answer came in post 144, beginning with the words ....
Christianity is built on the understanding that God is a perfect being. He is perfect in every way. He is the creator. He knows eveything and has all absolute power. His love is all encompassing.
And later the words ... That is the essential message of Christianity. Philosophically someone who is a chrisitian and truely is filled with the holy spirit will walk in the Lords footsteps and be a good and "christlike" person.
And later the words ... There is no such thing as a perfect person on earth. Only God could achieve that.
Prysson's words describe Christian philosophy well, so I'd congratulate Prysson for presenting them; but ...
How do we know what we know about Christianlity? What is the basis for its epistemology? Answer is Christian religious writings -- C.S. Lewis for instance.
Christian metaphysics is a given: a Christian's first source of knowledge is ... God
The basis for the "goodness" definitions behind Christian ethics is altruism.
Christian esthetics, what's esthetically important to Christians is not to be found in drama, art, literature, etc; but in the afterlife. Best exemplified in my C.S. Lewis quote about man being a nasty, pride filled and dirty creature.
Christian politics -- I'd call it the politics of virtue.
How am I doing, Prysson? And would you like to see a converse review of Rand's Objectivist philosophy?
Well, I guess not. And aren't you surprised?
I'm thinking that post 147 was a major wake up call to prysson, and I'd like to enlarge on my post 147 attempt to explain the basics underlying Christian philosophy in the specific area of epistemology.
Something I'd never noticed in Ayn Rand books before the past few days, are the opening words on that unnumbered page found directly under the book cover. And what I've realized now is that the words written under the "Introduction ot Objectivist Epistemology" cover are significant in explaining philosophical problems in religious philosophies. Here is what's written under Rand's Epistemology book cover.
HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT WE KNOW?
This is the problem that epistemology deals with -- and upon the solution of this problem every other aspect of philosophy must rest. For until we know how we know, we cannot be certain of what we know. And if we cannot know anything with certainty, our capacity to reason, to choose, and to act is subverted at the root.
In a world pisoned by the doctrines of irrationalism, a world afflicted by a sense of helplessness and hopelessness, INTRODUCTION TO OBJECTIVIST EPISTEMOLOGY serves as an invaluable antidote. Here is the foundation of a system of thought -- and a view of man's potential -- that returns us from a shadowland of intellectual paralysis and despair to the real world of individual strength and the efficatious mind.
Going back again to post 147 I wrote ...
How do we know what we know about Christianlity? What is the basis for its epistemology? Answer is Christian religious writings -- C.S. Lewis for instance.
And that does seem to be how Christians know what they know, from what they've read and absorbed in their religious lives ... without any reference to reason.
What's my point?
Objectivist epistemology, in one word, is reason; and it is reason (and rationality) that is treated with contempt by many in this thread.