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
"How can you dare say that God wouldn't want everyone saved? What about John 3:16? I thought Jesus loved and gave up his life on the cross for the whole world? If not, why create and sustain them? Wouldn't he want them to receive EVERLASTING LIFE?"
John 3:16 (NASB) "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." These words from Christ are frequently quoted out of the greater context of the entirety of scripture. This statement tends to be used as a proof-text of the following claims, among others: 1. God loves every single human being individually. 2. God desperately wants every single human being to be in heaven. 3. Humans have free-will. 4.
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"How is God any different than Santa Claus?"
This is sort of an odd question as there are so many very obvious differences. For example, Santa wears a red hat, whereas God doesn't have a physical head to put a hat onto. I don't know of any religion or worldview that claims that God climbs in and out of chimneys, either. There is, in this question, an implicit attack on theism. However, it is quite possibly one of the silliest attacks on theism I have ever encountered, and I encounter it rather frequently.
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"If there is a God, but there is no evidence to be found for his existence except subjective experiences, is it not reasonable to assume that if he does exist, he does not want us to know about it?"
The conclusion does not seem reasonable to me. First, the premise is very unclear, and I will explain what I mean. Second, in the only way I can see that the premise could be considered true, the conclusion does not seem to be reasonably based on it. AN UNCLEAR PREMISE First, the premise seems unclear in that it seems to suggest that evidence is the only way to justifiably be convinced of something. But note that rational thought cannot exist without reason behind it.
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