[net.philosophy] quotes

tiberio (04/01/83)

I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with
sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.
						-Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

So far as I can remember, there is not one word in the Gospels in praise
of intelligence.
						-Bertrand Russell

djhawley (04/04/83)

I agree with Bertrand Russell, I don't remember anything in the Gospels
praising intelligence either.

However I vaguely remember admonitions of St. Paul
   - be as wise as serpents, but harmless as doves
     ( ie be intelligent in your behaviour, but use it for good, not evil )
   - bring every thought captive to Christ.
     ( Paul REASONED with unbelievers - Greek philosophers in the marketplace
       for one occasion in The Acts of the Apostles )

These just hit me right away. Also since the Judaeo-Christian tradition
claims that God communicates propositionally to humankind, then obviously
our intellect must be used to know Him. Since we are commanded to know
Him, there is tacit approval of honing your intellect for this purpose.

By the  by, this is one way that we are created in God's image.

Any more on "In praise of intellect" in christian theology ?

     David ( wish I was as smart, and as holy as St. Paul ) Hawley