Re: methodological naturalism - origin of the term?

From: George Murphy (gmurphy@raex.com)
Date: Thu Aug 28 2003 - 21:43:28 EDT

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    Howard J. Van Till wrote:
    >
    > >From: George Murphy <gmurphy@raex.com>
    >
    > > I am not as nervous as some about the term "provisional atheism," recalling
    > > that in the first centuries Christians were sometimes called "atheists"
    > > because they didn't
    > > believe in the deities that the pagans worshipped. & if it's a question of
    > > whether or
    > > not I believe in the god who insists on leaving his fingerprints all over
    > > the evidence, I am /a/ that particular /theos/.
    >
    > In a world in which everyone both understood and respected the limited
    > technical meaning of a term like "provisional atheism," perhaps I would have
    > far less objection to it. However, observing the rhetorical strategy of
    > using such a term to reinforce the careless melding of methodological
    > naturalism (a statement about the limitations of natural science) with
    > ontological naturalism (a statement that excludes the category of deity from
    > reality) would, I presume, bother both of us.

            "Provisional atheism" isn't a term I use myself & I recognize the tendentious
    character of it in debates about science & divine action. But it also isn't a term I
    run away from. If confronted with it in debate I would (a) make the point that I did
    above about the deity I _don't_ believe in & (b) challenge the challenger to say whether
    or not he/she believes in the God revealed in Christ who _doesn't_ "leave his
    fingerprints all over the evidence."
            The application of the term "atheists" to Christians seems to have been done by
    the general populace at least as much as by philosophically sophisticated pagans.

            "[The proconsul] sought to persuade [Polycarp] to deny [Christ] saying, 'Have
    respect to thy old age' and other similar things, according to their custom, [such as],
    'Swear by the fortune of Caesar; repent, and say, Away with the Atheists.' But
    Polycarp, gazing with a stern countenance on all the multitude of the wicked heathen
    then in the stadium, and waving his hand towards them, while with groans he looked up to
    heaven, said, 'Away with the Atheists.'"
                                            Martyrdom of Polycarp 9.

                                                    Shalom,
                                                    George
     

    George L. Murphy
    gmurphy@raex.com
    http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/



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