Ask a Christian philosopher a question

[juvenissun]

I'm not insisting that anyone have a Ph.D. to call themselves a philosopher. Socrates never had one, and yet he is arguably a philosopher.

I do want to know what someone means when they call themselves a philosopher. Do they have a Ph.D, and where? Or, if not, just what are they claiming about themselves?


eudaimonia,

Mark

If one has a Ph.D., is he qualified?

 

[quatona]

You define it. Then see the consequences.

Ah, moral consequentalism. That´s a surprising turn in the argument.
And what are the consequences of lieing and of commanding others to lie that make the latter compatible with perfection but not the first?

 

[GrimKingGrim]

A common passage I see a lot of facebook is "every tongue shall confess." What is confessed and by who? And why does it include all tongues?

 

[juvenissun]

Ah, moral consequentalism. That´s a surprising turn in the argument.
And what are the consequences of lieing and of commanding others to lie that make the latter compatible with perfection but not the first?

You shoot at a wrong direction.
Your question should be: what are the consequences if a god who lies.

 

[quatona]

You shoot at a wrong direction.
Your question should be: what are the consequences if a god who lies.

My question was too inconvenient? Ok.

 

[DogmaHunter]

I know many here have asked me questions and for whatever reason I either was unable to respond, chose not to respond, or did not see the question and thus have left the questioner feeling overlooked.

Therefore I propose that in this thread, if anyone wants to ask me a question post it and I will address it. Since there are numerous questioners and I am but one, I ask that you only present one question to me. Not two or three or ten, no statements or claims, but just one question. No memes, gifs, sarcasm or cynicism. No jokes, and nothing that would cause this thread to be closed.

No questions about why I haven't answered this question or that.

So if anyone has a question that fits that criteria the ask and I shall attempt a worthy response. If there passes an interval of time between the last question I answer, then the first person to have asked a question can ask another one and so in turn following that order.

Think carefully about what you will ask and make the question succinct as possible.

Thank you.

In what ways does "christian philosphy" actually contribute to the advancement of knowledge of human kind? What is the purpose / usefullness of this "profession"?

 

[Eyes wide Open]

It has to be. You do not understand.

Perfection stands in contrast to something else, it has an opposite attribute. As an example God is depicted as perfect, in contrast to its opposite, the devil, Satan, Lucifer...and so on. Again God is depicted as perfect by showing unconditional love (by some) 'as opposed' to its opposite....love with conditions. So if God is perfect and jealousy is part of God's nature, what is its opposite attribute? Maybe you could help me understand?

 

[Archaeopteryx]

And wasn´t Jeremy a reincarnation of elioenai?

Elioenai26 was reluctant to indicate whether he would kill at the apparent behest of some divine authority (1), but in the end his response suggested that he might very well comply with such a command (2). anonymous person's response is more definitive (3).

 

[Eudaimonist]

If one has a Ph.D., is he qualified?

Assuming that the college he went to is a respected one for philosophy degrees, it does suggest that she or he had written and successfully defended a thesis paper, which does strike me as enough for one to call oneself a philosopher. At least in this case I would know what someone meant by describing themselves as a "philosopher", instead of merely as "philosophical".

Likewise, if someone calls himself a "physicist", I would accept a Ph.D. in physics at a quality university as good reason to respect the title.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[juvenissun]

Perfection stands in contrast to something else, it has an opposite attribute. As an example God is depicted as perfect, in contrast to its opposite, the devil, Satan, Lucifer...and so on. Again God is depicted as perfect by showing unconditional love (by some) 'as opposed' to its opposite....love with conditions. So if God is perfect and jealousy is part of God's nature, what is its opposite attribute? Maybe you could help me understand?

Love is not the only attribute to God. Justice is another very important one. Jealousy is an expression which follows the attribution of justice.

 

[juvenissun]

Assuming that the college he went to is a respected one for philosophy degrees, it does suggest that she or he had written and successfully defended a thesis paper, which does strike me as enough for one to call oneself a philosopher. At least in this case I would know what someone meant by describing themselves as a "philosopher", instead of merely as "philosophical".

Likewise, if someone calls himself a "physicist", I would accept a Ph.D. in physics at a quality university as good reason to respect the title.


eudaimonia,

Mark

So, would a Ph.D. in physics be qualified for both a physicist and a philosopher?

 

[DogmaHunter]

Love is not the only attribute to God. Justice is another very important one. Jealousy is an expression which follows the attribution of justice.

But there is no justice in christianity, since the core tenet is "forgiveness" through accepting a scapegoat carrying the "punishment" that you deserve...

There is no "justice" where there is "mercy".

Mercy is the suspension of justice.
You can't be just and merciful at the same time.

That's like being a married bachelor.

 

[Albion]

If one has a Ph.D., is he qualified?

Yes--if it has been earned in the field of philosophy.

It's not a good idea for anyone to refer to himself in debate or Q&A as a philosopher or historian or theologian, etc. if his credentials amount to little more than an interest in those fields.

 

[juvenissun]

But there is no justice in christianity, since the core tenet is "forgiveness" through accepting a scapegoat carrying the "punishment" that you deserve...

There is no "justice" where there is "mercy".

Mercy is the suspension of justice.
You can't be just and merciful at the same time.

That's like being a married bachelor.

You are correct from an atheistic point of view. It is a hard question.

But, some one have figured out a perfect solution to it.

 

[juvenissun]

Yes--if it has been earned in the field of philosophy.

It's not a good idea for anyone to refer to himself in debate or Q&A as a philosopher or historian or theologian, etc. if his credentials amount to little more than an interest in those fields.

If so, they why do we call people "Doctor of Philosophy" when the person only study chemistry, for example.

 

[Albion]

If so, they why do we call people "Doctor of Philosophy" when the person only study chemistry, for example.

For one thing, you don't get to be a Doctor of Philosophy period.

It's "Doctor of Philosophy in _______"

Let's just recognize that the way it works is that PhD's are awarded in many different fields and you don't get to be a credentialed philosopher just because you have been awarded one in some other field--just as you don't get to be a Doctor of Medicine because you earned a PhD in Sociology.

This is the highest level of accomplishment. It's also possible to earn a degree of "Doctor" in some field itself that's not up to the level of a PhD. The PhD is supposed to represent an unusually high level of competence in learning all round and with the recipient having done unique research.

 

[DogmaHunter]

You are correct from an atheistic point of view. It is a hard question.




But, some one have figured out a perfect solution to it.

My position on theistic claims is irrelevant here.


What is relevant is what the words mean.

Mercy = suspension of justice.

Justice and mercy cannot coexist.
Either justice prevails or mercy is shown.

You can't have your pie and eat it too...

 

[Eudaimonist]

So, would a Ph.D. in physics be qualified for both a physicist and a philosopher?

No.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[FrumiousBandersnatch]

Mercy = suspension of justice.

Justice and mercy cannot coexist.
Either justice prevails or mercy is shown.

You can't have your pie and eat it too...

It's a good point; a potential response might be that is assessed on a case-by-case basis (by some suitably divine criteria), but that appears to fail if we take the description 'all-merciful' at face value, which implies that justice is suspended in favour of mercy in all cases. This puts 'justice' in the interesting position of never actually being done - becoming only a scale against which the degree of mercy can be measured...

 

[juvenissun]

No.


eudaimonia,

Mark

So a Ph.D. in physics can only be called a philosopher?