Download Belief, Truth, Knowledge notes

CE 10
Unit 2: Conscience, Sin, and Reconciliation
Block:
Name:
Date:
Belief, Truth, and Knowledge
Beliefs
Beliefs are your ______________________ - they are the lenses through
which you perceive the world.
• your beliefs are the most important part about you
• beliefs have started wars, bridged communities, ended slavery, and so forth
• We all see things differently - especially morality
• Senses can deceive us and lead us astray
• Beliefs + Desires = __________________
• Problem: there is such thing as False Belief
• we want our beliefs to be true - connect us to reality
• Philosophers have encouraged us to therefore examine our beliefs
Knowledge
Knowledge is an ________________ concept
• Ex: In basketball we shoot in order to score. Shooting is the
activity; Scoring is the attainment intended
• In life, we believe in order to know. Believing is the activity;
Knowledge the intended attainment
_________________ = Properly Justified True Belief
• You cannot know something unless you truly believe it.
• Belief alone isn’t ___________________ for knowledge - you can’t believe something
that is false either.
Truth
Truth is our anchor in the world.
• believing a truth is like hitting the target whereas a falsehood is like missing the mark
• How do we find truth? With ________________.
• Reason connects us to reality and as we will see there
are two different ways of reasoning - Empiricism &
Rationalism
Relativism
The Philosophy of Relativism claims that all so-called truth is relative - no __________________
• Very seductive because it can often serve as a very persuasive excuse for
very bad behaviour
Skepticism: the foundation of Relativism
Skepticism is based on the attitude of ________________.
• True knowledge is ________________, therefore there is no absolute truth.
• Religions (not God) determine right & wrong and all concepts of right & wrong are
invented by humans.
• Better to use inquiry - all questions lead to discovery.
• “Doubt is the vestibule which all must pass, before they can enter into the temple of
truth.” Charles Caleb Colton
Empiricism
Empiricists believe that all knowledge is attained through ____________ experience.
• (Think – empirical data)
• What is the problem with this idea?
•
•
Rationalism
Belief is inevitable in human life and it is __________________.
• Rationalists believe that all knowledge is rooted in reason.
• Rationalist statements are true without the use of senses. (If A is greater
than B, and B is greater than C, then A is great than C)
• Cause and Effect - (yes remember Aquinas) - ___________________________ - we
don’t see the cause yet we believe it happened.
Back to: Belief, Knowledge and Truth
• We believe that humans have the ability to form their ______________________
according to moral principles of right and wrong, which will then lead them to make
rational reasonable judgments.
• At the foundation of this is the belief that:
•
•
•
•
•
•
We are ____________ beings.
We have the ability to reason.
We have the ability to make decisions ______________.
There is such a thing as right and wrong.
We have the ability to know what is right and wrong.
It is _____________ to do what is right rather than what is wrong.
Let’s Practice!
1. Rationalism ____
2. Skepticism ____
3. Empiricism ____
4. Moral Relativism ____
A. all knowledge is rooted in sensory
experience.
B. all knowledge is rooted in reason
and cause and effect.
C. a philosophy of doubt.
D. a philosophy which claims there is
no absolute truth.
Conscience is formed and developed based on our beliefs.