9 Reasons Christians should Reason

I’m not sure you saw this video where it seems a women on argues that reason somehow led to the Holocaust. It’s been making it’s way around the internet. I thought I would post it because it reflects a very Strange dichotomy between Faith and Reason. SOMEHOW people were offended that some Atheists were honoring reason on the same day that was dedicated to prayer. But WHY should reason offend us? Reason is a great gift from God!

Here are 9 Reasons Christians should Reason!

1. Theology is a life lived between reason and love. If we remove reason from the picture we have to way no speak of God or make sense of God. Reason gives us the language to point in God’s direction (even if we can only hope to do it incompletely).
2. Justin Martyr argued philosophy was the greatest portion of people and that at its heart, it is a quest for holiness. He was convicted of his belief that philosophy is a quest for truth  and that Jesus is the fulfilled wisdom of the ages. He is the personified wisdom of God. To hate reason, for Justin, was to reject Christ, for reason led to Christ. He said to live without reason is to be an enemy of God.
3. Athanasius argued – That although God was larger than any rational construct, Reason was a tool that could be used to help make the revelation of God useful for everyday people. Reason functioned as the bridge between the infinite life of God and the finite lives of individuals. Critics said that since the life of God is so far removed from human experience biblical terminology is the only thing that could be used. To put this another way:
   

   “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves”
   -John Paul II, in FIDES ET RATIO (an excellent letter about this very thing!)

4. Gregory of Nazianzus argued faith and reason are partners. Reason is a wonderful tool, but a limited one. Although reason on it’s own can never contemplate God fully (it’s not a good tool for the Job) it can move people in the right dirrection. For Gregory faith and reason worked together in all things. Reason can help lead people to faith and Faith brings reason to it’s fulfillment.
5. John of Damascus believed  the story of God’s actions is revealed by divine disclosure in partnership with human reason. The Bible tells the story of the expression of the greatest Revelation of God, Jesus and it does so by processing that revelation through the reason of human beings. All treasures of wisdom were held in Christ, but reason is one of the great sources to revive them.
6.  God’s revelation is a marriage of deeds along with reason. Jesus deeds sin, death, and the devil, but we only know of this because God choose to use reason to lead his church to understanding. 
7. Reason is not in competition with God. It is created like all things, and in being created it is grounded in the reality of God. To know reason is to know another part of God’s creation which declares God’s glory. Be rational, it’s a gift from God!
8. Christ is the goal. Philosophy and theology are both seeking truth, and as a Christian I believe that truth rests in Christ. If Reason finds truth embrace it, for in it’s truth we see Christ more clearly.
9. Finally I offer a traditional out of context proof-text from the Bible. In Isaiah 1:18 God says, “Come now, let us reason together.” God said it, I believe it, that settles it. 😉

Ok and here is the silly clip that inspired this whole thing:

http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1

I coincidentally attended a lecture on faith and reason last night, so my mind was reflecting on this stuff already when I saw the video. I offer my thanks to Brian E Daley, who inspired a lot of this last night with his lecture “Logos as reason and logos incarnate.”