| 1 | When we say that some statement “sounds reasonable”, we generally mean it sounds and appears fair, or sensible, or logical. |
| 2 | When we utilize the abilities and skills of our mind to deduce the relation, nature and purpose of objects and concepts as well as rules and ideas, then we are said to use “reason”. |
| 3 | Reason is a word used to define the cause of events, as well as any formal system of thinking using cognitive abilities to conceive, judge, deduce or imply such causes. |
| 4 | Thus, everything in the Universe may be observed and related according to Reason. |
| 5 | The absence of Reason is therefore the absence of cause. |
| 6 | Therefore if there is an absence of Reason in Law, the Law itself ceases to be. |
| 7 | It is why a deep wisdom of truth is the fact that everything in the Universe happens for one or more Reasons. |
| 8 | What these Reasons of the Universe might be and how we might come to be certain of them, is part of the purpose of Summa Elementis Theologica. |
| 9 | As an absence of sensible Reason, gives rise to wild and sometimes bizarre speculation. |
| 10 | For example, to suppose that a Divine Creator is responsible for the ultimate feat of creating the Universe, yet at the same time takes a personal interest in torturing, judging and condemning men and women who digress from the teachings of a certain religion is the height of stupidity and lunacy. |
| 11 | Yet in the absence of Reason, this is precisely one of the many claims that have been made over millennia and continue to be made by many of those who claim divine authority. |
| 12 | Therefore it is of the utmost importance that we address the causes that most affect the mind and life of those who come to read Summa Elementis Theologica. |
| 13 | Why is there so much evil and suffering in the world? Why do we suffer? |
| 14 | Do we really need a model of the Divine Creator? Or can the birth and existence of the Universe be explained without a supreme being? |
| 15 | What is the purpose of life? What is the purpose of our lives? |
| 16 | What happens when we die? Is this the only life we will ever live, or can we live many lives? |
| 17 | If we can live many lives, why can’t we remember our previous lives? |
| 18 | If there is an afterlife, what is it like? Is there any proof? |
| 19 | Do ghosts, angels and demons exist? If so why? What proof is there? |
| 20 | If there is an afterlife, does heaven exist? does hell exist also? If so, why? |
| 21 | If the Divine Creator does exist, why doesn’t such a supreme being intervene and stop evil or help those we love? |
| 22 | If the Divine Creator does exist, did the Divine Creator also create illness and pain? If so why? |
| 23 | If the purpose of life is to be good, who decided what is good or bad? Why then allow bad things? |
| 24 | If the Divine Creator does exist and love us, why is there so much hate and misery? |
| 25 | These are just some of the many questions that people have in the absence of clear Reasons. |
| 26 | Of course, once you start to add in the different doctrines of different religions and their claims as to the existence, nature and mind of the Divine, the number and complexity of such questions can rise exponentially. |
| 27 | Any man or woman in a logical, sensible and reasonable state of mind can also see by these few questions that if unanswered or badly answered, then strong grounds may exist for one to lose a sense of belief and trust in the Divine. |
| 28 | Thus over time, the failure of different religions to address the question of Reason and their own interpretation of the science of the Divine may itself be contributing to declining numbers of adherents. |
| 29 | Fear alone is an insufficient Reason and answer to these questions and only a temporary measure that once the climate changes, ceases to have the same impact. |
| 30 | Force and distraction can only be sustained for so long before those who address Reason by misdirection become irrelevant. |
| 31 | As for Reason, there are some that claim the superior path of discovery and proof is scholasticism. |
| 32 | Scholasticism is in essence a form of Rhetorical argument whereby alleged evidence is mounted in the affirmative or negative until all unreasonable argument is excluded, leaving the only possible conclusion. |
| 33 | Many works of Western philosophy are constructed using the scholastic method of argument of elimination and dialectical reasoning. |
| 34 | However, such constructs do not necessarily follow the arguments of logic and are prone to fallacy. Scholasticism ultimately faded as a path of discovery for Reason, not because it was repudiated, despite the many logical flaws, but because it was streamlined as citation. |
| 35 | Citation is a system and method and reference to a published or unpublished “source” whereby the whole source may be excluded and the simplest and shortest reference included in argument. |
| 36 | Thus with the system of Citation, Scholars no longer had to produce long winded treatises on logical fallacies to argue the truth or merits of a cause, but could instead merely “cite” some claimed superior source. |
| 37 | So it was from the 18th Century and the gradual perfection of the system of Citation, that a raft of fraudulent texts were invented as “primary sources”. |
| 38 | Today, Citation is the dominant method of argument and reasoning whereby a Scholar prepares a Bibliography of Primary Sources used to support their propositions. |
| 39 | Thus if the primary sources are believed to be reliable, such arguments of the Scholar may also be believed – not by merit, but by logical fallacy. |
| 40 | Consequently, the quality of debate and argument has vanished in many academic institutions as the style of Citation has overtaken the substance of argument and Reason. |
| 41 | In truth, a Citation to a thousand year old fraudulent text remains a fraud no matter its age. |
| 42 | As for Reason, there are some that claim the only path of discovery rests in skepticism. |
| 43 | Skepticism is a corrupted philosophy of the infamous ancient Libyian general Pyrrhus (from which we get Pyrrhic victory) more than twenty five hundred years ago who is first claimed as the founder of skepticism. |
| 44 | The word skepticism comes from the ancient Greek skeptikos meaning “thoughtful inquiry” and skeptomai meaning “I consider; examine or view”. |
| 45 | Yet skepticism is far from objective and without logical fallacies, for the very essence of skepticism is the flawed belief that there is no such thing as absolute truth or falsity. |
| 46 | Instead of recognizing that the Homo Sapien mind may be limited in its ability to comprehend and fathom absolutes, it should not preclude their existence. |
| 47 | Indeed, those who proclaim themselves to be skeptics have exhibited some of the most unbalanced, zealous and flawed behavior of all. |
| 48 | Many skeptical writings are riddled with logical fallacies when attacking philosophies which such people are against. |
| 49 | Instead of embracing Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric, many skeptics abandoned even a basic sense of reason. |
| 50 | A frequent example are those who proclaim themselves extreme skeptics or nihilists, who state categorically “God does not exist”. |
| 51 | In logic, such an argument cannot be expressed without the concept of God. |
| 52 | Given that the concept of God must exist in order to express the statement “God does not exist”, God must in fact exist at some level, even if just as a pure concept or idea. |
| 53 | So it is that of all the methods of Reason, the most reliable is the oldest and is pure Philosophy. |
| 54 | To question with cognition and mind and logic. |
| 55 | To remember what we already know of ideas and rules, concepts and objects. |
| 56 | To refrain from quick judgment and to approach life with a clear and open mind. |
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