This post (and the last one) is/are a great encapsulation of conclusions I've been reaching over the past few years. As a person educated in a STEM field while simultaneously trying to be an intellectually honest Christian, I feel that critical realism is the most cogent epistemological posture to take. I wasn't aware of the term critical realism, so thank you for exposing me to it!
I wonder, though, how to help the every-day SDA congregant develop this posture. It seems that we've both been exposed to a gauntlet of perspectives outside of our (often insular) faith community that have honed our more nuanced perspectives. How do we help our fellow believers when most of them will never have these same exposures?
I think of this especially as the "Baconian" attitude seems to be "baked in" to our denomination; I would posit that many people who join Adventism do so because of a sense of discovering a special truth that no-one else has (which ironically to me seems like a type of gnosticism). To challenge this sense of security will be very destabilizing for these folks.
Anyway, thanks for the super interesting post and I'm enjoying exploring your substack!
I've really appreciated your two pieces on critical realism. You make a good case for humility in claims of truth. I agree that this approach is likely to be more acceptable to post-religious and postmodern people.
Thank you so much for reading and for the encouraging feedback, Dr. Fortin! I’m glad you appreciated these reflections and that they resonated with you.
This post (and the last one) is/are a great encapsulation of conclusions I've been reaching over the past few years. As a person educated in a STEM field while simultaneously trying to be an intellectually honest Christian, I feel that critical realism is the most cogent epistemological posture to take. I wasn't aware of the term critical realism, so thank you for exposing me to it!
I wonder, though, how to help the every-day SDA congregant develop this posture. It seems that we've both been exposed to a gauntlet of perspectives outside of our (often insular) faith community that have honed our more nuanced perspectives. How do we help our fellow believers when most of them will never have these same exposures?
I think of this especially as the "Baconian" attitude seems to be "baked in" to our denomination; I would posit that many people who join Adventism do so because of a sense of discovering a special truth that no-one else has (which ironically to me seems like a type of gnosticism). To challenge this sense of security will be very destabilizing for these folks.
Anyway, thanks for the super interesting post and I'm enjoying exploring your substack!
Thanks, Jonathan! I'm really glad it resonated so much with you.
I've really appreciated your two pieces on critical realism. You make a good case for humility in claims of truth. I agree that this approach is likely to be more acceptable to post-religious and postmodern people.
Thank you so much for reading and for the encouraging feedback, Dr. Fortin! I’m glad you appreciated these reflections and that they resonated with you.