Philosophy

“One of the most important philosophers of our day died last weekend, and almost no one noticed.”

By SI Filings
Jan 21 2020

"Conservatism, simply, is the philosophy that in every sphere of life there are transcendent and foundational principles of order to which society must conform in order to both survive and flourish. These transcendent principles, which manifest in fixed, natural laws, preserve culture from the chaos that necessarily ensues from non-foundational philosophies such as progressivism, individualism, democratism, and post-modernism." - Mark Snoeberger

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Philosophy
Conservatism
Roger Scruton
680 reads

Clarence Thomas on the harmony of faith and reason

By SI Filings
Dec 26 2019

"Christ’s famous admonition to give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God (Mark 12:17) is widely regarded as radicalizing the Jewish conviction that the power of earthy rulers is limited by God’s divine law, a conviction that would become a crucial feature of the Western understanding of government power." - Acton

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Faith and Reason
Philosophy
485 reads

Book Review – Plantinga's Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism

By Aaron Blumer
Apr 03 2019
Image of Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism
Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism
by Alvin Plantinga
Oxford University Press 2011
Hardcover 376

Lesser mortals like me can’t claim to fully understand everything Alvin Plantinga writes in books like Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism. What we can do is pick up some high-protein food for thought, and possibly, along the way, improve our thinking habits in some potent ways. I read the book primarily as an audiobook, but also in the hardcover form.

First, some context. Plantinga is an analytical philosopher. He writes from a Christian worldview, but—at least in this book—isn’t really doing apologetics for Christianity or for creation doctrine, except maybe indirectly.

Rather, the book is focused on a single two-part question—and the author’s focus throughout is laser sharp. The question is this: Is there really any substantial conflict between science and “theistic religion,” and is there instead substantial conflict between science and naturalism?

Much of the time, Plantinga refers to Christian theism in particular, but he occasionally points out that most of what he is attempting to show applies to other theistic religions as well. His thesis is stated in the Preface:

There is superficial conflict but deep concord between science and theistic religion but superficial concord and deep conflict between science and naturalism. (ix)

Plantinga sums up what he means by naturalism. Also from the Preface:

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