Since I'm dealing with a bunch of radical empiricists, I figure I need to start with something we observable. Look down. How many fingers are on your hands. Everyone counted eleven, right? Cool. So, we already have our immaterial. Eleven is a number. It's not material. You cannot go grab eleven and paint it green. You cannot throw eleven at your sister. Eleven is a quantity.
Now there are two options for this, you can either say that eleven exists in reality and we are perceiving eleven or you can say it exists in our heads.
If you choose the option that eleven exists in reality, you have to follow that since the eyeballs are receiving only material data, there must be a soul that perceives the immaterial.
Since you are a radical empiricist, you're not going to choose the later option. Instead, you choose the option where we have made up the concept. The problem with this is origin. If we go back in time to just when people were making language, the guy had to have seen the "eleven" deer and recognize the difference between those and other herd of deer (say, of 15). He recognized the difference of quantity before coming up with a word to describe various types of quantity. We can continue this as questions arise.
But before I'm done, I have one more example. Lets say that there is a universe where all that exists is a single oxygen atom. How many electrons are in its outer shell? Does it matter how many electrons are in is outer shell to be oxygen? Is oxygen a part of reality? If you answered 6, yes, yes, you should join the club of awesomeopossumjesusland. You get a t-shirt. If you got 8, yes, yes, go repeat the sixth grade and come back to us with a score of 85 or higher. Your t-shirt is waiting.
And now is the part where you tear my head off and make my argument seem like complete garbage. Feel free to insult my mother and her mother as you go (except Rhythm because I've already ignored that kiddo).
Now there are two options for this, you can either say that eleven exists in reality and we are perceiving eleven or you can say it exists in our heads.
If you choose the option that eleven exists in reality, you have to follow that since the eyeballs are receiving only material data, there must be a soul that perceives the immaterial.
Since you are a radical empiricist, you're not going to choose the later option. Instead, you choose the option where we have made up the concept. The problem with this is origin. If we go back in time to just when people were making language, the guy had to have seen the "eleven" deer and recognize the difference between those and other herd of deer (say, of 15). He recognized the difference of quantity before coming up with a word to describe various types of quantity. We can continue this as questions arise.
But before I'm done, I have one more example. Lets say that there is a universe where all that exists is a single oxygen atom. How many electrons are in its outer shell? Does it matter how many electrons are in is outer shell to be oxygen? Is oxygen a part of reality? If you answered 6, yes, yes, you should join the club of awesomeopossumjesusland. You get a t-shirt. If you got 8, yes, yes, go repeat the sixth grade and come back to us with a score of 85 or higher. Your t-shirt is waiting.
And now is the part where you tear my head off and make my argument seem like complete garbage. Feel free to insult my mother and her mother as you go (except Rhythm because I've already ignored that kiddo).
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.