This past month has been quite busy, and I have had but little time to respond to some questions on foundations of reality and modern theistic arguments from a budding young philosopher. (BTW, his 3 month post op check up has been positive I take occasion to publicly thank St. Georges Hospital, London and others.)
Where, we can draw a pivotal lesson from say a watch, which may be accurate but is not truthful, as it computes, but does not contemplate. Minds contemplate, machines only compute, blindly carrying out designed movements constrained by the GIGO principle . . . garbage in, garbage out.
U/D: In honour of UD’s inimitable, indefatigable . . . and too often underappreciated . . . BA77, I add this web clip on an Omega Watch movement:
[youtube ctj-RDbTBMU]
I have pulled together some thoughts in light of an argument from Gordon Clark, with inputs from Nash, Maverick Philosopher and sometime UD commenter Ilion over at Reppert’s Dangerous Idea blog. BTW, there is also a side-light from the Nye-Ham debate.
I am not really comfortable laying out such in detail at UD, as it is more theology-Philosophy than science, but think it relevant enough to post beginnings and an onward link:
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>>Friday, February 28, 2014
Rom 1 reply, 47: In light of Gordon Clark’s argument in brief, an argument from necessary (thus, eternal) truth to the reality of God as eternally contemplative . . . and, designing . . . Mind
In Faith and Reason, pp. 162 ff, the late Ronald Nash summarises an argument to God by Gordon Clark that apparently traces to Augustine, that we may cite and slightly adapt following bloggist and commenter Ilion (HT):
P1. Truth exists.
P2. Truth is immutable (unchangeable).
P3. Truth is eternal (–> without beginning or end; lasting for ever).
P4. Truth is mental (pertaining to mind or minds).
P5. Truth is superior to the human mind
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So
C6. Truth is God
[–> or, perhaps:
C6‘: The Truth Himself is the Infinite-Personal Mind we commonly call God, who eternally contemplates necessary — thus eternal — Truth and truths.]
This and similar arguments have been batted around in academic fora, apologetics exchanges and of course on the Internet. Generally, in a somewhat dismissive cast of mind and heart.
But, I think there is something there and we should not toss out baby with bathwater.
More broadly, I think . . . MORE >>
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Okay, what do you think? END
PS: First UD post with a new Win 8 machine. Win 8 is a work in progress. The old machine refuses to go into retirement, though.
PPS: Just to underscore a point of correction in reply to malicious trollery, a screenshot from Crick’s The Astonishing Hypothesis:
![A screen-shot from Crick's The Astonishing Hypothesis, p. 3 [HT: Google Books]](https://uncommondescent.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/GBks_asthypclip_Crick.png)