THE RHETORIC OF “TERROR’’ AND THE RHETORIC OF “JIHAD”: A PHILOSOPHICAL AND THEOLOGICAL EVALUATION

Download PDF

In this article, I will try to demonstrate the misuse of the rhetoric of “terror” and “jihad” and the fact that this rhetoric avoids the formation of a” communicative process.” With the word “rhetoric” I mean the persuasive use of language especially for political means. READ MORE…

ENTROPY and GOD

Download PDF

The second law of thermodynamics, also known as the law of entropy, is considered one of the most fundamental laws of the universe. This law states that the disorder in the universe is constantly increasing in a single direction. This law has great importance, especially in terms of the debate of whether the universe has a beginning and an end, a debate that has been raging between theists and atheists throughout history. In addition to this, entropy also has to be considered in discussions of the “argument from design” and the “miracles,” both of which are important subjects in philosophy of religion. In this paper, after defining entropy and presenting some of its important physical and philosophical points, the results of this law will be analyzed under four headings from the point of philosophy of religion. The first of these headings concerns the end of the universe, the second its beginning, the third the argument from design, and the fourth the miracles. READ MORE…

DETERMINISM, INDETERMINISM, QUANTUM THEORY AND DIVINE ACTION

Download PDF

ABSTRACT

While the theory of relativity is the most important theory of modern physics at the macro level, quantum theory is the most important theory at the micro level (subatomic). In this article, we shall attempt to analyze how quantum theory was the first to shake the foundations of the deterministic interpretation of the universe that had previously dominated the natural sciences, and how its “ontological indeterministic” interpretation enabled new points of view related to the questions about divine action, miracles and free will. In this article, we do not claim that quantum theory proves the existence of divine intervention, miracles and free will; in other words we are not engaging in natural theology. What we are trying to do is to demonstrate the error of the assertion according to which, from the point of view of positivism, divine intervention and miracles are impossible, since they would be violations of natural laws. In other words we are claiming that the formulation of a theology of nature is ‘possible’ within the framework of the laws of modern science (but not claiming that this view is scientifically correct). We would like to stress in particular that as we do this, our attempt to show what the ‘possible’ is does not include a claim related to what the ‘actuality’ is. READ MORE…