The last post
here mentioned a “project I’m working on”. I have discerned to write a book, or at least attempt to write a book,
encompassing the basic theme of this blog (faith & reason). I have a
general outline completed and have drafted a few chapters; I’m also working with
a proofreader who attends my parish. There seems to be plenty of apologetics out there already, but I think I can offer a unique twist. When I was trained and certified to teach and use a specific process for problem solving and decision making for my job, I began to see commonalities in thinking between the rational processes I was learning and some of the thinking of the various Catholic philosophers, apologists and theologians I was reading.
If you think
about problem solving, it's about finding "truth" objectively,
regardless of feelings, strong opinions, past experience or even intuition.
This kind of reasoning has helped me to see the clear thinking found in
Catholicism and I think I can explain some of these ideas to those who
appreciate rational process, but do not appreciate Catholicism or religion in general.
Topics
include…
- How experience and intuitive thinking can sometimes
lead us astray, whether dealing with a physical problem or a philosophical
problem.
- How the most reasonable, and therefore, the most responsible
conclusions can be determined even when empirical evidence is lacking or
impossible to obtain.
- How the cause of “something”
is never “nothing”.
- Discussion on how the need for objective industry
standards demonstrates the need for an objective moral point of reference.
- How Aquinas regarding contingency
relates to Toyota’s 5 whys.
- The way logic was used by NASA engineers during the Apollo 13 disaster in terms of going wherever the data leads no matter how unbelievable it may seem.
- ...and much more
I would be
targeting someone like I was in my early twenties. Someone born and raised
Catholic, received the sacraments, went to RE (or CCD), but had no real
connection between faith and everyday life; someone who, if faced with a survey
question about religious preference, might struggle between choosing
"Catholic" and "None".
Also, targeting those who lead with their head, making decisions about how to live and what to believe more based on certain rationales then based on feelings. Perhaps someone like the man born blind in John chapter nine; someone neither gullible nor cynical; someone who does not jump to conclusions, but who advances cautiously from one step of reasoning to the next with the confidence to admit “…one thing I do know is that I was blind and now I see” (John 9:25).
As consequence of this, I won’t be posting here as often (for now), but wish me luck, or better still, say a prayer. If you have any advice on how to get a book published, I’d love to hear that too!
“Yet, my God, my life, my holy joy, what is this that I have said? What can any man say when he speaks of you? But woe to them that keep silence – since even those who say most are dumb.”
Also, targeting those who lead with their head, making decisions about how to live and what to believe more based on certain rationales then based on feelings. Perhaps someone like the man born blind in John chapter nine; someone neither gullible nor cynical; someone who does not jump to conclusions, but who advances cautiously from one step of reasoning to the next with the confidence to admit “…one thing I do know is that I was blind and now I see” (John 9:25).
As consequence of this, I won’t be posting here as often (for now), but wish me luck, or better still, say a prayer. If you have any advice on how to get a book published, I’d love to hear that too!
– St. Augustine
From Confessions
