Many consider Plato (428–347 B.C.) to be the greatest philosopher who ever lived. He is my favorite personally. I consider myself a Platonist, albeit with some modifications, of course. In this regard, I consider the previous 56 posts to be simply a prologue to this post. A.N. Whitehead (1861–1947), an English mathematician and philosopher, said […]
Category Archives: Philosophy
56. The Hope of Resurrection and the Hopelessness of Reincarnation
In the West, we have three main beliefs concerning the afterlife – materialistic annihilation, reincarnation, and resurrection. Before continuing with this post, stop briefly for a moment and consider what your view is of the afterlife, if indeed you have given it much thought. Please leave your comments below.
55. Man Is the Measure of All Things
Is man the measure of all things? And what does Protagoras mean by this exactly? Some have called him the father of relativism, but we will see in this article that Protagoras actually meant something very different by his famous statement. Read on to see how this relates to issues such as the Civil Rights […]
54. Protagoras – The First Sophist and Philosophical Revolutionary
“Man is the measure of all things.” This famous dictum is familiar to most of us, yet I imagine that most people have no idea who uttered those words. You can probably guess by the title of this post that it was none other than the philosopher Protagoras. But what did he mean by it […]
53. The Greek Sophists – Authentic Philosophers or Purveyors of Deception?
For those familiar with philosophy, the word “Sophist” brings to mind a highly articulate snake oil salesman who, through eloquence and smoothness of speech, is able to manipulate people into doing what he wants. In the ancient world, it was said that the Sophists could convince people it was night when it was day. This […]
52. From Democritus to Einstein – Atomists Discover the Secrets of the Universe
Atomic theory has a long, rich life in human history. The Presocratic atomists developed a metaphysical theory to explain the idea of change, which was in contrast to Parmenides’ idea of constant Being. This theory eventually led to the modern scientific application of nuclear energy and nuclear warfare. The dynamic duo of atomism was Leucippus […]
51. Heraclitus – Fire as the Universal Principle
This article is a repost of Post 32. This repost was prompted by some very interesting comments and challenges left by an perceptive reader named Al. Below is one of his comments: “Your statement, “Heraclitus did not believe in universal flux” is not accurate at all. You take away Heraclitus’s major contribution to philosophy. Precisely, […]
49. God Becomes Man at the Center Point of History
In my second annual Christmas post, I would like to highlight for you one of my most favorite paintings of all time. It is entitled The Annunciation, by Fra Angelico. The Annunciation – when the angel Gabriel told Mary that she was going to have the Christ child – was a common art theme in […]
48. Empedocles – Love and Strife
Of the various qualities attributed to Empedocles, humility was not one of them. He is quoted as saying: “I am among you as an immortal god, no longer mortal, honored by you all, wreathed in garlands and crowns.” As a physician, he earned this reputation by performing some noteworthy feats, such as saving the Sicilian […]
47. Anaxagoras – Mind as the Origin of the Universe
According to the Roman historian Valerius Maximus, when Anaxagoras returned to his hometown of Clazomenae, Ionia after an extended journey abroad, he saw that his estate had been abandoned. Rather than become despondent as many people would, he simply said, “Unless they had perished, I would not have been saved.”1 As the story goes, after […]