Philosophical Understanding

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer explains that there is a very basic problem associated with each individual's innately subjective understanding of the world: it makes generalizing feelings or experiences to all of humanity unavoidably inaccurate. In other words, no matter how deeply we might feel about one thing or another, we cannot reasonably assert that anyone else feels the same way. The writer points out that obviously, this presents a problem for religion, because religion is concerned with providing some form of meaning for our existence. Yet, precisely how that meaning is conveyed must fall somewhere in between pure individualism and interconnectedness. The writer concludes that religion could be interpreted as more natural than science: science must operate on the same form of knowledge - faith - that gives any of our lives meaning.

From the Paper:

"Throughout the history of mankind there have been two major ways by which human beings have claimed to attain knowledge: through direct observation and through revelation. One of these modes of gaining knowledge has led us down the most practical avenues of our development. It most likely, for example, that the earliest people who discovered how to harness fire did so by observing it in action, and employing trial and error to eventually arrive at a workable technique. It is far less likely that these individuals were simply inspired to rub two sticks together in a particular manner independent of any empirical knowledge achieved over the course of their lives. In other words, few people would accept the idea that God told the first person who made fire how to go about it."

Sample of Sources Used:

• McGreal, Ian P. (1992). Great Thinkers of the Western World. New York: Harper Collins.
• Russell, Paul. (2005). "Hume on Religion." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Oct. 4.
• Smart, Ninian. "The Experiential Dimension." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 2006

More papers on Philosophical Understanding:

• Analytical Essay # 56776 : "Understanding the Cave Allegory"
• Essay # 67965 : "Understanding Humanity "
• Essay # 3720 : "Philosophical Dialectic vs. Sophistic Rhetoric"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: