Question: "For a christian, do we believe idealism or materialism? I think we are neither. Which is our station?"
Yikes! Another philosophical can of goodies...
Materialism = "matter is the only reality in the world."
God who is spirit (not matter) is not acceptable to materialists. So it's not very friendly to Christian faith.
Idealism = In Plato's form of idealism, we can recognise real horses on earth bcos we have in our minds an eternal Idea of what the perfect horse looks like.
St Augustine gave platonism a synthesis with the Christian faith that served the church well for centuries...
According to him, ideas of goodness, truth, beauty reside in the eternal mind of God or Logos. If unhindered by sin, the human soul (mini logos) is able to 'see' them, even though they are not composed of matter.
Not all forms of idealism are compatible with the Christian faith, however, ie Liebniz's philosophy runs close to pantheism according to some folks.
All I'm saying is, philosophical systems are not created equal... none of them is perfect... neither are they all against the Christian worldview... Some systems however are more compatible with the Bible than others...
In that case, I'd venture to suggest that a cautious, modified idealism is better than a materialism that leaves no place for the spirit
For more info:
http://www.newadvent.org
Yikes! Another philosophical can of goodies...
Materialism = "matter is the only reality in the world."
God who is spirit (not matter) is not acceptable to materialists. So it's not very friendly to Christian faith.
Idealism = In Plato's form of idealism, we can recognise real horses on earth bcos we have in our minds an eternal Idea of what the perfect horse looks like.
St Augustine gave platonism a synthesis with the Christian faith that served the church well for centuries...
According to him, ideas of goodness, truth, beauty reside in the eternal mind of God or Logos. If unhindered by sin, the human soul (mini logos) is able to 'see' them, even though they are not composed of matter.
Not all forms of idealism are compatible with the Christian faith, however, ie Liebniz's philosophy runs close to pantheism according to some folks.
All I'm saying is, philosophical systems are not created equal... none of them is perfect... neither are they all against the Christian worldview... Some systems however are more compatible with the Bible than others...
In that case, I'd venture to suggest that a cautious, modified idealism is better than a materialism that leaves no place for the spirit
For more info:
http://www.newadvent.org
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