RE: Theists- do you believe without evidence?
April 28, 2013 at 7:23 pm
(This post was last modified: April 28, 2013 at 7:24 pm by Neo-Scholastic.)
Stating the obvious...
The cornerstone of modern atheism is the belief that everything needing to be explained can be explained in terms of physical phenomena, i.e. physical reduction. Mental phenomena are characterized by two things: raw sensation and intentionality (‘about’ness). These two aspects of reality do not fit within any physical paradigm.
With respect to raw sensation (qualia) modern atheism has two primary solutions. The first is to dismiss qualia by saying that it is actually an illusory by-product of brain processes. I.e. you aren’t actually experiencing anything. The second solution is to admit that raw sensations are real but useless. They do not causally interact with brain processes.
With respect to intentionality, intuitions, thoughts, and beliefs each have subject matter. They are about something. Your belief that the Lincoln Memorial is in Washington D.C. is about the Lincoln memorial. Unlike a belief, a physical thing is not ‘about’ anything. It just is whatever it is. As a physical object performing physical processes, neuronal systems in aren’t ‘about’ anything. Physical reduction cannot preserve the intentional properties of thought. Intentional properties must always be assigned from outside the physical system being described.
Physical theories do not explain everything that needs to be explained because they only consider things that can be quantified. The physical sciences deal only with physical processes without any consideration of the formal or final causes. Both are needed to explain mental processes.
The above relates only to issues of general revelation. Since atheism does not satisfy my intellectual curiosity about things that matter to me, I turn to theology. I believe people choose specific religious traditions largely for familiarity. Each has its own rich and varied history. At some point you must just dive in and see how far it goes.
The cornerstone of modern atheism is the belief that everything needing to be explained can be explained in terms of physical phenomena, i.e. physical reduction. Mental phenomena are characterized by two things: raw sensation and intentionality (‘about’ness). These two aspects of reality do not fit within any physical paradigm.
With respect to raw sensation (qualia) modern atheism has two primary solutions. The first is to dismiss qualia by saying that it is actually an illusory by-product of brain processes. I.e. you aren’t actually experiencing anything. The second solution is to admit that raw sensations are real but useless. They do not causally interact with brain processes.
With respect to intentionality, intuitions, thoughts, and beliefs each have subject matter. They are about something. Your belief that the Lincoln Memorial is in Washington D.C. is about the Lincoln memorial. Unlike a belief, a physical thing is not ‘about’ anything. It just is whatever it is. As a physical object performing physical processes, neuronal systems in aren’t ‘about’ anything. Physical reduction cannot preserve the intentional properties of thought. Intentional properties must always be assigned from outside the physical system being described.
Physical theories do not explain everything that needs to be explained because they only consider things that can be quantified. The physical sciences deal only with physical processes without any consideration of the formal or final causes. Both are needed to explain mental processes.
The above relates only to issues of general revelation. Since atheism does not satisfy my intellectual curiosity about things that matter to me, I turn to theology. I believe people choose specific religious traditions largely for familiarity. Each has its own rich and varied history. At some point you must just dive in and see how far it goes.
