Rational fideism is the

philosophical Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

view that considers

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

to be precursor for any reliable

knowledge Knowledge can be defined as awareness of facts or as practical skills, and may also refer to familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is often defined as true belief that is distinc ...

. Every

paradigm In science and philosophy, a paradigm () is a distinct set of concepts or thought patterns, including theories, research methods, postulates, and standards for what constitute legitimate contributions to a field. Etymology ''Paradigm'' comes f ...

atic system, whether one considers

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...

empiricism In philosophy, empiricism is an epistemological theory that holds that knowledge or justification comes only or primarily from sensory experience. It is one of several views within epistemology, along with rationalism and skepticism. Empir ...

, is based on

axiom An axiom, postulate, or assumption is a statement that is taken to be true, to serve as a premise or starting point for further reasoning and arguments. The word comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning 'that which is thought worthy or f ...

s that are neither self-founding nor self-evident (see the

Münchhausen trilemma In epistemology, the Münchhausen trilemma, also commonly known as the Agrippan trilemma, is a thought experiment intended to demonstrate the theoretical impossibility of proving any truth, even in the fields of logic and mathematics, without a ...

), so it appeals to assumptions accepted as

belief A belief is an attitude that something is the case, or that some proposition is true. In epistemology, philosophers use the term "belief" to refer to attitudes about the world which can be either true or false. To believe something is to take i ...

(in

reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...

experience Experience refers to conscious events in general, more specifically to perceptions, or to the practical knowledge and familiarity that is produced by these conscious processes. Understood as a conscious event in the widest sense, experience involv ...

respectively). Thus, faith is basic to knowability. On the other hand, such a conclusion is reached not with an act of faith but with reasoning, a rational argumentation.

Definitions

"Rational fideism" has been defined variously. The following are some definitions. For

Joseph Glanvill Joseph Glanvill (1636 – 4 November 1680) was an English writer, philosopher, and clergyman. Not himself a scientist, he has been called "the most skillful apologist of the virtuosi", or in other words the leading propagandist for the approa ...

rational fideism is the view that "Faith, and faith alone, is the basis for our belief in our reason. We believe in our reason because we believe in God's veracity. We do not try to prove that God is truthful; we believe this. Thus, faith in God gives us faith in reason, which in turn "justifies" our belief that God is no deceiver." Richard Popkin sees rational fideism as the opposite of "pure, blind, fideism". Similarly, Domenic Marbaniang sees rational fideism as "the view that the knowledge of God can be certified through faith alone that is based on a revelation that is rationally verified." Observing that the way of both

and

towards the knowledge of ultimate or transcendent reality is bleak, he thinks that while

fideism Fideism () is an epistemological theory which maintains that faith is independent of reason, or that reason and faith are hostile to each other and faith is superior at arriving at particular truths (see natural theology). The word ''fideism'' c ...

is the view that truth in religion rests solely on faith and not on a reasoning process, rational fideism "holds that truth in religion rests solely on faith; not blind faith, but faith that can give rational and cogent answers or reason to warrant the belief." According to

C. Stephen Evans Charles Stephen Evans (born 1948) is an American philosopher. He is one of the United States' leading experts on Søren Kierkegaard and has also published extensively on subjects including philosophy of religion and the relationship of psychology ...

, rational fideism involves the possibility of reason becoming self-critical. Seeing it as the kind of responsible fideism, he states, "If human reason has limitations and also has some ability to recognise those limitations, then the possibility of responsible fideism emerges." Evans states that not only does reason have limitations, it is also tainted by sin making one entitled to faith where reason fails. Patrick J. Clarke defines rational fideism as the approach that sees "reason as capable of providing the intellectual foundation of faith, not ''a priori'' but ''a posteriori'', much as philosophy provides an intellectual foundation to theology."

Arguments for rational fideism

Brendan Sweetman Brendan Sweetman (born 1962 in Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish philosopher whose research interests are in philosophy of religion, contemporary European philosophy, and political philosophy. He is a specialist on the work of French philosopher, Ga ...

notes a type of rational fideism as a view developed by some thinkers who hold that the pragmatic spiritual and moral success of believing in God on faith alone could be used as an "indirect argument for the truth of fideism."

References

External links

* * {{cite journal , last=Insole , first=Christopher , title='Kierkegaard': A Reasonable Fideist? , journal=

The Heythrop Journal ''The Heythrop Journal'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal covering the relations between philosophy and theology. The journal is published by Wiley-Blackwell and was sponsored by Heythrop College (London). With the closure of Heythro ...

, date=October 1998 , volume=39 , issue=4 , pages=363–378 , doi=10.1111/1468-2265.00084 Epistemics Epistemological theories Epistemology of religion Foundationalism History of logic Justification (epistemology) Logic Rationalism Empiricism Theology Faith

Definitions

Arguments for rational fideism

See also

References

External links