Tentatively Christian; looking for a reasonable discussion

[Whateverist]

What are numbers? They can be part of a description of objects. They seem to be such an obvious aspect of so many things which we might describe, it can almost seem their essence must be out there, tied up in all the things to which they apply. But numbers exist within the world of ideas. There is no reason to ascribe any independent existence to them apart from their use to the life of a mind. They certainly have a depth of interrelatedness that is as beautiful as it is useful. Like logic, numbers reveal a world of necessary relationships that are there to be discovered. Unlike with colors, no one wonders "do numbers seem the same to others as they do to me?" We understand that numbers, though they exist as such only in the life of the mind are nonetheless neither arbitrary nor subject to personal opinion. To perceive the world as we do is to take note of number and to recognize many true and false applications of numbers.

Like everyone else here, the best I can do is to vomit up a number of impressions lacking any useful structure. I'm sure there are well articulated theories on the subject but I can't say that I've been drawn to work out any personal point of view about this. Sorry.