tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post1956553048941708979..comments2024-03-15T17:06:31.642-05:00Comments on The Piety That Lies Between: A Progressive Christian Perspective: Naturalist vs. Supernaturalist: Identifying the Chief Points of ContentionEric Reitanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-43865755417556114852008-11-19T11:14:00.000-06:002008-11-19T11:14:00.000-06:00Tom,Thanks for the thoughtful post. As I was formu...Tom,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the thoughtful post. As I was formulating my reply, I decided it was too lengthy to leave as a comment--so it will appear as my next post.Eric Reitanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06135739290199272992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6215077578479252542.post-10879667595028159042008-11-17T18:12:00.000-06:002008-11-17T18:12:00.000-06:00"In short, we are faced with an essentially pragma..."In short, we are faced with an essentially pragmatic choice. Do we choose to be the kind of people who avoid at all cost the risk of being duped by an alluring illusion, and who forge ahead in life like those mountain men of old to test their mettle against an indifferent world? Or do we choose to be the kind of people who live in the hope that there is truth in the religious inkling, the feeling that something greater and more wonderful lies beyond the horizons of experience, making itself felt most clearly in the deepest longings of our souls?"<BR/><BR/>If you're interested in getting a maximally unbiased, objective view on reality, then you should take all possible steps to insulate your knowledge claims from the influence of your hopes, longings, etc. Since Christianity presents itself as an objective worldview, one that makes claims about what really exists (e.g., god), its followers should choose the first course above, and seek to "avoid at all cost the risk of being duped by an alluring illusion." But that doesn't seem to be the choice they make, perhaps because they have higher priorities than the ethics of empiricism Taylor speaks of. If staying undeluded isn’t your top priority, the chances are that you’ll end up in delusion. About which see for instance <A HREF="http://naturalism.org/epistemology.htm" REL="nofollow">Reality and its rivals</A>. <BR/><BR/>Regards,<BR/><BR/>Tom Clark<BR/>Center for Naturalism.Tom Clarkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08414754510736349472noreply@blogger.com