Philosophy Archives - Page 22 of 22

Democracy Is Christian Even When The State Is Not

May 9, 2009 by EnnisP 2 Comments

If We Don’t Love Our Enemies
At The Government Level
We’ll Never Do It Individually

Over at the Huffington Post Robbie Gennet has made some interesting remarks about the impossibility of a democracy being Christian. In his words,

“There is no such thing as a Christian…Muslim… or Jewish Democracy…(or a solely Heterosexual one, for that matter).”

“True Democracy,” he says,

Means True Equality and no religion sees itself as equal to all the others (and they feel especially unequal to secularism and atheism)…In this country, the vast majority of them (the religious) feel that the USA was founded as a Christian nation and should be run like one, which is anathema to the true Democratic ideals of our founding fathers.

The truth is Mr. Gennet and I agree and disagree. I agree that America is not A Christian nation, and from the start that was never the intent, but I would say emphatically that democracy is Christian.

That doesn’t mean the US is a Christian nation but it does mean that the US is managed by biblical principles and that makes democracy Christian even when the state is not.

A nation is very different to a democracy. In fact, once a state becomes Christian, it ceases to be a democracy and that is what our forefathers understood. [Read more…] about Democracy Is Christian Even When The State Is Not

What Is The Point of Truth

May 7, 2009 by EnnisP 1 Comment

Christians have “Truth” but they often miss the point entirely. It’s like the guy who drives a petrol hogging, smog belching SUV but uses recycled-paper checks to pay the bill. You don’t have to be ecologically minded to see the contradiction. It appeases Green philosophies in one way and abuses them in another. It is like putting water in a bucket that has a large hole in the bottom. What’s the point?

Christians are guilty of this faulty logic also. We love the truth, or at least we give that idea lip service often and very loudly, but the question is, which truth do we love most and better yet, why do you love it? What’s your purpose? What’s the point? [Read more…] about What Is The Point of Truth

The Difference Between “Being” and “Doing” Good

May 2, 2009 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

We Were Created
For Good Works

From the minute we are born we are told what is good, shown how to perform it, commanded to live it, and disciplined if we don’t. Consequently, each of us grows up with a sense of what is good and, more importantly, how we measure up. Usually, our self-assessment is heavily influenced by several factors:

Attitudes Of Authority Figures

If our parents/teachers respond with understanding toward our failures or firm but accepting discipline toward our wayward tendencies, we feel fairly good about ourselves even if we shouldn’t.

Positive responses encourage a “warm fuzzy” that fosters a sense of confidence about how good we are. We feel normal and safe. There’s nothing to worry about.

If authority figures are constantly critical, however, we develop a sense of hopelessness. “Can I ever be good enough?”

We all feed off the responses of others to our behavior and that’s partly how we develop a sense of how good or bad we are. The assessment may be inaccurate. [Read more…] about The Difference Between “Being” and “Doing” Good

Is Science Acting Like Religion?

April 16, 2009 by EnnisP 2 Comments

Philosophy is an area of study which confuses many but intrigues us all. If you have ever read a philosophy book you know exactly what I mean. The popular definition of philosophy is “the love of wisdom” (not knowledge) which is really more vague than clarifying but The Free Dictionary helps us out with a very thorough definition, a portion of which follows: Philosophy is…

The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs

That is to say, philosophers tediously discuss ideas that can’t be proven true or false. They target your “beliefs” (faith) about the fundamental issues of life and focus on questions like these:

Where did we come from?
How did we get here?
How do we exist?
What are thoughts made of?
What constitutes morality?

Why You Should Donate Blood Plasma

April 7, 2009 by EnnisP 8 Comments

Become A Part Of The Solution.
Donate!

I originally started out donating only blood and, that, only occasionally. My last donation was toward the end of 2008 and the tests following that extraction revealed antibodies from my recent bout with shingles.

With that knowledge in hand the blood bank called me right away, spoke very kindly and almost begged me to donate plasma. They needed my shingles antibodies and giving plasma was the way to share them.

Always one to help, I agreed. I started with a bit of apprehension but soon learned there was nothing to be afraid of. Since my first draw I have donated plasma several times and learned quite a bit about this very valuable substance and the many life saving or enhancing things it is used to do. [Read more…] about Why You Should Donate Blood Plasma