Rationalism
Definition
Rationalism describes any philosophy that claims that beliefs and opinions should always be logical, deductive conclusions rather than being based on experience, observations, religious teachings, or divine revelation.
Keywords: Rationalism, Philosophy, Logical, Reasoning, Deductive, Experience, Observations, Religious, Revelation, Contradictory.
Veracity
Rationalistic claims are false .
Proof
All self-refuting or contradictory claims are deductively false.
Premise 1: Only deductive conclusions should be believed.
Premise 2: Premise 1, being the foundation or starting point of the philosophy, is not itself a deductive conclusion.
Conclusion: Therefore, premise 1, also known as "rationalism", should not be believed.
Rationalistic claims, when adhered to, require the rejection of rationalistic claims. To accept them is to reject them, making rationalism inherently contradictory and deductively false.
Gilbert Guttlebocker, Defender of Dragons
Riveting, yet absurd; romantic, yet innocent; Gilbert Guttlebocker, Defender of Dragons is a little Roald Dahl, a little Harry Potter, and a little Chronicles of Narnia, all rolled into one. Timothy McCabe collaborates with the great Benedict Ballyhoot to bring you the novel of the century!
In Printed Form
Along with numerous other authors including Don Landis, Bodie Hodge and Roger Patterson, Timothy McCabe contributes analyses of various world religions and cults in this volume from Master Books.
Other Writings
"Aren't Allah, Brahman and Yahweh just different names for the same God?"
No. Allah is a generic Arabic term for an ultimate creator God, and could be applied by Arabic speaking peoples to any ultimate creator God, whether He be the God of the Sikhs, the Muslims, the Christians, or the Jews; while Yahweh is the personal name of the God of Christians or Jews only (roughly translated "THE EXISTING ONE"); and Brahman is the non-personal God specific to Hinduism and related religions.
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"How does your belief system, and the authorities upon which it is based, guide your behavior?"
The Bible teaches in Matthew 22:36-40 that all of God's laws for humanity depend upon obedience to the following two commands: 1. Love God. ("Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.") 2. Love your neighbor. ("Love your neighbor as yourself.") The most important thing to note here is that love for God must always come before and have total priority over love for other people -- otherwise we fall into idolatry.
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"What happens to people who don't accept what you claim?"
Nothing happens to people who don't accept what I personally claim. However, Jesus made some striking statements about those who do not accept HIS claims. He taught that the two greatest commandments were to love the Lord God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:37-39) In Luke 16, Jesus tells a story about a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus.
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