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Philosophy > Via Negativa > Flashcards

Via Negativa Flashcards

1
Q

Religious Language:

A

Questions the existence of God or the nature of his attributes, in terms of the limits of human language.

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2
Q

Bible reference to God.:

A

Bible uses terms such as ‘king’, ‘Shepard’ and ‘lord’ to demonstrate that God is not a lord or a king, in the way o the earthly king.

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3
Q

Ludwig Wittgenstein:

A
  • Noted that this variety in his philosophical investigations, including making us stories, plays, acting, guessing riddles, telling jokes, asking, thanking and praying.
  • He speaks of ‘countries different kinds of use’ and argues that it is the work of the philosopher to contemplate those usages.
  • ‘Philosophy is a battle against the bewitchment of our intelligence of language. ‘
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4
Q

Two types of sentences:

A

Cognitive and non-cognitive.

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5
Q

Cognitive:

A

Questions whether a sentence is true or false.

E.g: Dublin is the capital of Australia. False and cognitive claim.

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6
Q

Non-Cognitive:

A

Sentences which is not appropriate to ask questions.

E.g: Orders, commands, poetry, prayers, more linguistic, are non-cognitive.

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7
Q

Richard Dawkins:

A
  • Would question whether sentences are cognitive or not.
  • Took the bulk of sentences which are untrue, for Dawkins, the believer speaks sentences which are untrue.
  • Others believe sentences like ‘God exists’ are true sentences.
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8
Q

Origen:

A

In the third century, had argued that the genesis made no sense as a statement of fact, but that it was to be understood figuratively as indicating certain mysteries.

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9
Q

Discourse of faith:

A

Recent years, evidence suggests that all religious sentences are non-cognitive. Described as a discourse of faith.
Discourse of faith: Language as used within the religious aspect of life. Its significance and meaning are internal to a given religion.

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10
Q

Via- negativa: the apophatic way:

A

By saying what God is not, we are saying what he is.

E.g God is not a bicycle.

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11
Q

Gods portrayal in scriptures:

A
  • In Judaism, the very name of God is nit fully articulated.
  • In Islam, God s never portrayed visually.
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12
Q

Basil the Great (330-379) and Gregory of Nyssa (335-395):

A

Pointed to the human inability to know the essence of God. They argue that if we cannot know the mind and the essence of an ant, with his limited mind and language skills (ants have tiny brains), we can never begin to understand God.

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13
Q

Ponticus (345-399):

A

The highest understanding is ‘pyre prayer’, a union with God without words or images, a bare awareness of something beyond anything created.

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14
Q

KEY: Pseudo Dionysius:

A

Made a distinction between the cataphatic and apophatic theology.
- The via postiva does attempt to use theological language to describe God, using divine names of scripture like ‘The Good’, ‘Light of the world’, ‘life’ and so on.
-These give us a real knowledge of God.
- for the via negative it is provisional knowledge, because God lies far beyond those names.
In other words, cataphatic way uses human language to describe God, and apophatic way disagrees with this because they believe that words aren’t compatible enough to describe a divine being like god.

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15
Q

John Scotus Eriungena 810-877:

A
  • Translated significant parts of the works of the Pseudo Dionysius and the influence can be seen strongly in his own treatment of God.
  • God is beyond all meaning and intelligence, and he alone possesses immorality. His light is called darkness of its excellence, as no creature can comprehend either what or how it is.
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16
Q

Moses Maimondies: Adopted via negativa:

A
  • Warns continually of the dangers of anthropomorphising God.
  • Points out that the scriptures draw inevitably on human language, when they speak of ‘ the mouth of God’, ‘God’s right hand’ and so on, we must not think of God as literal as these phrases.
17
Q

St Thomas Aquinas:

A
  • Was sympathetic to via negativa proponents and insight.
  • The essence of God was far beyond the human understanding or human language.
  • The apophatic way was a prelude to understanding God.
  • Took the view that God us bit ignorant or not limited by time surely tells something about God, even if we cannot know what that something may be.
18
Q

AO2: Criticisms to Via- negativa:

A
  • Any understanding that can be gleaned through his approach is actually negligible. E.g. to say that God is not a bicycle, gives no deep insight into the nature of God.
  • To give a negative statement, creates an awareness of what is being denied.
  • Perhaps we need both via negative and via postiva to describe God.
  • Anthony Flew: By the apophatic way, we will end up arguing God out of an existence by ‘ a thousand qualifications’.
19
Q

W.R. Inge:

A

was concerned that to deny God his descriptions was to lead to an ‘annihilation’ of both God and humanity. If we strip God from his descriptions, simply because our descriptions are limited and based on finite, human experience, we are in danger of loosing the essential link between God and the world.
-Chritian orthodoxy insists in Gods involvement in the world.

20
Q

Christian thinkers G.K Chesterton and Pierre Telihard de Chardin:

A

spoke about the ‘divinisation of matter’, believed that finding God through our material existence was all part of his divine plan of salvation. For Telihard, if we talk significantly about God’s relationship with material things, then we are inevitably saying something positive, however, limited about him.

21
Q

Teresa of Avila :

A

Used via-negativa to describe her ineffable religious experience.

22
Q

AO2: Strengths:

A
  • Doesn’t limit God
  • Emphasises the mystery and the ‘otherness’ of God.
  • wont change culture and isn’t subjective like symbolism.
23
Q

Symbolism:

A

Developed by Paul Tillich, an approach where religious language is not literal and use metaphors to discuss God.

24
Q

Tillich: Difference between signs and symbols:

A
  • A sign is something that points something else by convention. E.g. a road sign.
  • A symbol is something which participants in that to which it points. E.g. Flag to a nation represents that nation but also is party of the reality of that nation.
25
Q

Religious language and symbolism:

A
  • According to Tillich, religious language has characteristics of symbols. To say ‘God is love’, is simply a participation in the reality of God, its not a sign.
  • The term is both ‘affirmed and negated’. It is affirmed, because God is love, negated because love is a human ter.
  • To see a symbol participating in God is also to acknowledge its limitations.
26
Q

Ao2: Participation:

A

Tillich doesn’t develop on what he means by participation, it doesn’t tell us how these words participate with Gods nature.

27
Q

Example of symbol in Bible: Jesus:

A

Jesus became a symbol to reveal to us this ultimate the truth of God.

28
Q

Example of symbol in Bible: Shepard:

A

The lord is my Shepard; I shall not want. He makes them lie down in green pasture: he leaded me beside the still waters:
Tillich interpretation:
-The lord is like a Shepard, he cares for us like a Shepard cares for his sheep.
- God brings us to places of rest and peace, like green pastures for sheep.

29
Q

Four things symbols do:

A
  1. They point to something beyond themselves.
    - Telling you something beyond than what it is.
  2. They participate in that to which they point to.
    - Causes you to feel in a certain way. Triggers a certain emotion.
  3. They open up levels of reality which are usually close to us.
    - Opens levels of reality which are unique.
  4. They open up dimensions of the soul.
    - They can make your soul feel a certain way.
30
Q

Language of symbols:

A

Are non-cognitive because they’re not trying to express the specific truth about God.

  • Inspirational
  • Emotional
  • Representational
  • Interpretive
  • Subjective
  • Suggestive rather than specific.
31
Q

J.H Randall Jr:

A
  • Argues that religious symbols are both non-cognitive and non-representative.
  • Meaning that it makes no sense to ask whether they are true or not.
  • Religion is a human activity which contributes to human culture.
  • Uses music as an example: music also emotionally awakens us that nothing else can do. It tells us no truths about the nature of things, but works with its own musical language.
  • For Randall, religion is the same, it has its own world, arousing special feelings which nothing else can, but it contains no truth about the world.
  • Randall’s interpretation does not seek to determine the truth or the accuracy of God as a symbol.
  • Randall believes that religion is simply just a cultural function. If one prays to ‘God’, they are simply praying to themselves.
32
Q

Religious symbols serves different functions: J.H.Randall jr

A
  1. Motivational- inspiring people into actions.
  2. Social- Common understanding binds people together and strengths social bonds.
  3. Communication- Expresses things normal human languages cannot.
  4. Expresses experience of divine, by illuminating hidden depth of understanding.
33
Q

MacQuarrie’s symbols:

A
  • Recognises that some symbols, e.g. road signs, are arbitrary. It is intrinsic symbols, what Tillich recognises symbols to be, which participates somehow with something of significance.
  • By intrinsic symbols, MacQuarrie means that a symbol is linked to the event they symbolise connecting the believer to it. A candle near a Tabernacle connects the Christian to the belief that God is ever present. It acts s a bridge.
34
Q

Janet Martin Soskice:

A

Symbol and metaphor is integral to religious understanding and about the mysterious reality of the absolute otherness of God combined with God’s total presence in the world.

Philosophy (4 decks)

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