classics digests, reflections and reviews
In a previous post, I wrote about how a person would draw lessons on faith from nature, as shown in Prince Andrew’s encounter with the Oak Tree in Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Similar encounters are scattered throughout the novel. Tolstoy believes that communion with nature is necessary if man is to live with integrity, not just to survive. He could not have written about such communion so vividly, if he […]
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Disclaimer I recently read a blogpost titled Kierkegaard is wrong in which the author critiques Kierkegaard’s notion of “faith” in Fear and Trembling. In short, he argues that the notion of a God who demands the sacrifice of one’s child by faith is not only absurd, but also immoral. It is a very thoughtful and balanced article. As I’m somewhat of a fan of Kierkegaard, and have pondered the subject, […]
Read more“Only he who does not believe in God can believe that men, who are of his own kind, may order his life so as to make it better.” “Men see that there is something wrong with their life and endeavor in some way to improve it…But to improve oneself, one must first admit that one lacks goodness, and this is annoying. And they turn all their attention away from that […]
Read moreThe End of Spiritual Man Aristotle writes that the end of man is to think and act. If a man doesn’t think or act, he is not actually living nor fulfilling his telos; If a newborn baby doesn’t eat, grow and play around, something is terribly wrong. From a Calvinist perspective, man in his fallen state is spiritually dead. It is impossible for him to seek God or do any […]
Read moreThe pagan philosopher Plutarch writes that, regarding beliefs in God, we should avoid two extremes: atheism and superstition. The former abandons all ideas of God, whereas the latter holds false ideas of a malevolent deity. In Book 3 Chapter 2 of the Institutes, Calvin provides a definition of the Christian faith, which is opposed to both atheism and superstition: Faith is a firm and sure knowledge of the divine favor […]
Read moreFaith, History and Scripture Suppose one can prove that the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life are historically accurate, the Holy Scripture authentic, and the Church’s Doctrine infallible, is it then sufficient for an individual to have Faith? Johannes Climacus’ (Kierkegaard’s pseudonym) answer is no. He goes further and posits that even if all the above were proven to be unreliable, it would not affect the Faith of a genuine disciple. […]
Read moreHow Far Can We Know the Truth? In Plato’s Meno, an argument is raised that there is no such thing as a “truth seeker”, because if a man knows the truth already, there is no need to seek, and if he doesn’t, he can’t seek, since he wouldn’t recognize it even if he stumbles upon it. Socrates’ solution to Meno’s paradox is Recollection, i.e., the soul, which is immortal, already […]
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