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
"Do you think atheists go to hell, why or why not?"
Yes. If the atheist does not change his ways, acknowledge his own disobedience toward his Creator, and ask God for forgiveness, he can expect to spend forever in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 21:8; cf Luke 12:46; Hebrews 11:6; Galatians 3:22; John 1:12, 3:3, 3:18, 8:24, 20:31; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9; 1 Corinthians 1:21; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Revelation 20:15). We owe our lives to our Creator. But we don't give Him His due.
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"God knowing in advance how I will use my free will means that god knows which events will lead to me being religious, and which to me being atheist. If God does exist, then doesn't his choice to set forth the latter mean he wanted me to be atheist?"
Yes. God has designed each person for His purposes (Romans 9:21). Some people are designed for judgement and others are designed for forgiveness (Romans 9:22-23). All of us are designed to sin (Romans 3:23, 8:28). This magnifies His graciousness; His perfectly just nature; and His eternal Godhood. Whether or not God plans on you remaining an Atheist and ultimately being judged for your willing rejection of obvious and clearly revealed truths, I have no idea (Romans 1:20; Psalm 14:1).
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"Does Michael Martin's "Atheist's Wager" really show that leading a good life is more important than belief in God?"
No, it doesn't. I'll explain. According to Wikipedia (at the time of this writing), the Atheist's Wager states that if one were to analyze their options in regard to how to live their life, they would arrive at the following possibilities: (A) You may live a good life and believe in a god, and a benevolent god exists, in which case you go to heaven: your gain is infinite.
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