Agnosticism is epistemologically self-contradictory on its own assumptions because its claim to make no assertion about ultimate reality rests upon a most comprehensive assertion about ultimate reality.
Cornelius Van TilRead
The only proof for the existence of God is that without God you couldn't prove anything.
Interpretation
This quote suggests that belief in God is foundational for establishing truth and knowledge.
Cornelius Van Til's quote emphasizes the idea that the existence of God is essential for the validation of knowledge and truth. It posits that without a divine being, the basis for proving anything becomes tenuous, as secular or atheistic frameworks may struggle to provide a satisfactory foundation for objective truth. Therefore, it underlines the philosophical argument that God is a necessary precondition for rational discourse and understanding.
In practice
During a discussion on the foundations of morality in a philosophy class.
Agnosticism is epistemologically self-contradictory on its own assumptions because its claim to make no assertion about ultimate reality rests upon a most comprehensive assertion about ultimate reality.
To admit one's own presuppositions and to point out the presuppositions of others is therefore to maintain that all reasoning is, in the nature of the case, circular reasoning. The starting-point, the method, and the conclusion are always involved in one another.
It's not about 'what can I accomplish?' but 'what do I want to accomplish?' Paradigm shift.
Do not paint a picture either of God or the devil on your walls: this will ruin both your walls and the atmosphere.
Despots prefer the friendship of the dog, who, unjustly mistreated and debased, still loves and serves the man who wronged him.
I have discovered that for me - now, maybe it doesn't work for everybody - for me, it is much more effective to arrive at any situation as a man from Mars than to try to fit in.
In a public dialogue with Salman in London he [Edward Said] had once described the Palestinian plight as one where his people, expelled and dispossessed by Jewish victors, were in the unique historical position of being 'the victims of the victims': there was something quasi-Christian, I thought, in the apparent humility of that statement.
Buddhism is a path of supreme optimism, for one of its basic tenets is that no human life or experience is to be wasted or forgotten, but all should be transformed into a source of wisdom and compassionate living.
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