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Is it fair to say that when Western philosophers who are religious (such as a few who answer our questions here) profess 'faith' as a justification, they are effectively going against all the tenets of the logic and philosophical analysis they are quite happy to apply elsewhere to epistemology, ontology, &c?
Is it an effective shrug of the shoulders and a 'There ya go! let's move on!' cop out?

This seems particularly important to me in the light of Christians masquerading as Intelligent Designer advocates. I find it hard to believe any scientist or philosopher who was not religious to start with would find the mechanism of the eye or whatever 'irreducibly complex'and use it to deny Darwin's theory. They are simply trying to bolster beliefs already held, as no philosopher would dispute.

And the 'faiths' some philosophers cling to are surely the dominant ones in their societies and/or the ones they were brought up to believe in.

Are we now in the realms of anthropology and psychology in the above beliefs? No one believes in the Greek pantheon or Viking gods any more so how can the new ones hold more credence for those trained in critical thinking?

February 14, 2006

Response from Oliver Leaman on February 16, 2006

Let me address your first point which reappears towards the end also. I think there are thinkers nowadays who have faith and hold that this justifies their religious beliefs, but not in the sense of establishing them logically. They would often claim that faith is a perfectly acceptable way of believing things, and provides a reason for belief, but not the sort of reason that would have to be universally accepted by anyone professing to be rational. I don't think it is just a matter of having the faith one is brought up in, people do after all convert to different religions or from no religion to a specific religion.

Of course, some philosophers think that religious beliefs may be shown to rest securely on both facts and valid arguments, and for them faith is merely a different kind of justified belief. Others though think that faith is a very different kettle of fish and one that should not be dismissed just because it is different from philosophy. Philosophy does not help us work out how to play football either, and it does not follow that there is anything wrong with that sporting activity.

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