Miracles
A sensibly perceptible effect produced by God to testify to truth
What is the Catholic definition of a miracle?
A French Philosopher and Mathematician. He lived from 1596-1650. His most famous philosophical works are Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy.
Who is Rene Descartes?
An Augustinian monk and theologian. He wrote the 95 Theses, which led to the Protestant Reformation.
Who is Martin Luther?
Literally, “I think, therefore I am.” This Latin phrase was Descartes’ insight that would serve as the grounding for his philosophy.
What is Cogito Ergo Sum?
Logic based on argument involving deductively necessary relationships and including the use of syllogisms and mathematical symbols
What is formal logic?
A transgression of a law of nature by divine action
What is Hume’s definition of a miracle?
The idea that knowledge can be arrived at through the use of reason
What is rationalism?
The idea that knowledge must be arrived at through sense experience
What is empiricism?
A friend and tutor of Rene Descartes who helped focus his attention back on mathematics
Who is Isaac Beeckman?
Logic that uses evaluation of natural language arguments, especially common logical fallacies
What is informal logic?
This philosopher critiqued the argument from miracles by arguing that miracles violate a law of nature.
Who is David Hume?
A model of the universe with the earth at the center.
What is the Ptolemaic model?
A model of the universe with the sun at the center
This argument relies on the idea of “perfection.” In essence, Descartes can imagine an infinitely perfect being. Since it is more perfect to exist in the mind and reality than in the mind alone, the being must exist in reality. Therefore, God exists.
This is an appeal that presents what most people, or a group of people think, in order to persuade one to think the same way.
What is a bandwagon argument?
Laws of nature are arrived at through this logical process.
What is induction?
A scientist and philosopher. Lived from 1561-1625. He wrote the Novum Organum and exemplified a Renaissance belief in the power of progress through scientific learning.
Who is Francis Bacon?
Dialectical method of reasoning and education, based on the teaching of the Catholic Church
What is scholasticism?
A universal language that relies heavily on mathematics to arrive at scientific truths. This approach hopes to combine all the different areas of study into one comprehensive field.
What is mathesis universalis?
Attacking your opponent’s character or personal traits in an attempt to undermine their argument
What is ad hominem?
a statement of an invariance or ‘uniform experience’ that has so far been observed to be the case
What is a law of nature?
Locke, Berkeley, Hume
Who are the British empiricist philosophers?
Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz
Who are the continental rationalist philosophers?
These TWO arguments lead Descartes to doubt sense experience, mathematical truths, and truths of logic.
What are the Dream Argument and Evil Genius Argument?
Intentionally creating a caricature of a person’s argument with the aim of attacking the caricature rather than the actual argument
What is a straw man?