Update: New Blog Features

I should have a new, actual post out sometime within the next week. Until then, I’ve added several new features to the blog that I thought I’d bring attention to.

First, I have added a new page called “Post Directory.” This page contains links to posts on my blog that are organized by series, to make finding specific posts easier. You can access it via the menu above, or by clicking here.

Second, I’ve added a blogroll, a list of links to high quality blogs that I regularly follow and highly recommend. If you look on the right hand side of the page and scroll down, you’ll see the blogroll underneath Archives.

Both of these new features will be updated regularly!

Recommended Links: 8/20/16

As I wrote in my personal update,  I’m busy settling in at school so I haven’t had much time to write. So here are a few links from other blogs that I’ve been reading and would recommend. I’ll return to full length posts hopefully sometime in the next few weeks.

Does the Law of Inertia Disprove the Argument from Motion? via Last Eden. This is a post by philosopher Eve Keneinan about inertia and Aquinas’s First Way. Newton’s Laws are often a common objection to the argument from motion; Ed Feser has responded to this objection in his books The Last Superstition and Aquinas, and more comprehensively in his essay Existential Inertia and the Five Ways. Eve offers an excellent treatment of this topic in a concise post.

A Pilgrim’s Regress: George John Romanes and the Search for Rational Faith. An interesting article about the journey to faith of George John Romanes.

Is it Obvious that God is not a Being Among Beings? A post in a series of posts between several philosophers about the nature of God, specifically concerning the views of Classical Theism and Theistic Personalism.

On Three Problems of Divine Simplicity by philosopher Andrew Pruss. An article whose title is pretty self explanatory.

The Fittingness of Evolutionary Creation. This is an article on a website the entirety of which is pretty unique and interesting, as its title displays: Thomistic Evolution.

Transubstantiation and Reason. An article about the philosophy of the Catholic doctrine of Transubstantiation.

*Note: I do not necessarily agree with, either in part or in whole, any of the articles, or authors thereof, listed above. They are just articles I found interesting to read and think about, and thought might be worth sharing.

 

 

 

Personal Update: Starting School

I don’t usually write much personal stuff on this blog, but tomorrow morning I will be moving across the country, from Tennessee to California, to start college. I’ve lived my entire life in the beautiful city of Chattanooga, and I couldn’t possibly love it more; but I’m extremely excited to be starting this new adventure in my life, with all of the new opportunities and experiences it will bring. To all the friends, peers, teachers, and mentors who have helped me along the way, but most of all, to my family, without whom I would be absolutely nowhere: my utmost thanks and appreciation to you; I am so grateful for all you’ve done.

For the next few weeks I will be moving, settling in, getting used to things, participating in orientations, and starting classes. As such, I probably won’t be having a whole lot of time for much writing. I have tried over this summer to post at least once, but more often twice a week. I have absolutely loved the experience of researching and getting my thoughts down, and to those of you who have read, followed, and commented on/interacted with my posts, I am extremely grateful to you as well. I fully intend to keep writing on a regular basis once I get settled in. Until then, I may post a few shorter things, or post links to other articles which I recommend, but it’ll probably be a few weeks before I get back to full length articles.

Once I return to a regular writing basis, I plan to write series on the last three of Aquinas’s Five Ways, continue my Person of Jesus series, and I have a few other series planned on various philosophical/theological topics. If there is any topic in particular, or any question, about which you’d like me to write, I’d love to hear suggestions!

Until then, thanks again!

-Harrison

The Person of Jesus Part 3: The Historical Jesus

It’s been almost a month since my last post in this series on the person of Jesus. In the Introduction, we looked at the importance of history in general and argued that Jesus is the most significant human who has ever lived. In Part 1, we looked specifically at what impact the mere idea of Jesus has had on history. In Part 2, we looked at Lewis’ and Tolkien’s conception of the Gospel as a “true myth,” and then we laid out a list of questions to act as a framework/guide for our examination of this history altering man. In this post, we will take a look at the academic scholarship that has been done in the area.

In academic circles, this field of inquiry into the life of Jesus is known as “historical Jesus studies,” and it is