Catholic Studies

Unit 1

Theology

the reasonable study of the Christian faith

trivium

3 literary studies of Grammar, logic (dialectic) and rhetoric

quadrivium

Liberal arts studied arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and music after the trivium

logic

rational philosophy

natural philosophy/ “physics“

The study of nature. Biology, botany, zoology

anthroplogy

scientific study of humanity, examining biology, culture, behavior and evolution across past and present societies

natural theology/ “theology“

Logical inquiry of the divine. gods/God. Related to metaphysics

ethics

the morality of man

Metaphysics

Beyond nature-the science of being/existence

epistemolgy

nature and bases of knowledge. Natures, origins and limits of knowledge

revealed theolgy

sacred scripture and sacred tradition

tradition

A way of life passed down

Tradition

Sacred tradition, one of God’s two channels to us. (the other being sacred scripture)

transcendent

Otto’s “numinous” + Eliade’s “sacred“

religous studies

looking at religion from an outside view. Trying to understand why religions do something. Similar to anthropology.

theology

Looking from the inside. Accept one religion’s traditions and then askes why it make sense.

general/natural revelation

• Use human reason to uncover

• Open to all people

• This leads to natural theology.

special/historical revelation

• Revealed to specific people (special) at different points in History.

• Points to Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition which leads to revealed theology.

fideism

tendency of Christians to separate the realm of faith from the realm of reason

scientia

knowledge. Uses syllogism an argument for with at least 2 premises that lead us to a conclusion

reason

the process of forming judgement, inferences and conclusions

rationalism

evidence

• scientific determinable facts

• Personal experience

• Probability

• Authority

materialism

determinism

strong scientism

weak scientism

Other truths could exist outside of scientific explanation but they are less important.

self-refuting statement

metaphysical realism

correspondence theory of truth

conscious states

plausibility structure

“classical model“ of personal freedom

“contemporary model“ of personal freedom

potential infinity

• Could exist based on what could be (counting)

• Past time doesn’t count because it actually happened

• Can’t pass infinity

actual infinity

• If it exists that infinity - infinity= infinity (hotel example)

• We have not discovered anything that is truly infinity.

omnipotent

All powerful, The first cause, creating something out of nothing

historicism

The claim that all truth is culturally contextualized, and ultimately true only at certain times and in certain places, such that everything can change, everything does change,

omnipresent

Created all things in a single moment and as we live in a transient reality, active effort must be put in to make sure we are continuing to exist that something is present at all times.

contingent/contingency

necessary/necessity

deductive logic

inductive logic

Ontological Argument