6 ideas
7493 | Let us reason together, saith the Lord [Isaiah] |
Full Idea: Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord. | |
From: Isaiah (23: Book of Isaiah [c.680 BCE], 01.18) | |
A reaction: A verse which not only offers Biblical support for philosophy, but would also seem to be a challenge to Christian fideists. |
16210 | Humean supervenience says the world is just a vast mosaic of qualities in space-time [Lewis] |
Full Idea: Humean supervenience says the world is a vast mosaic of local matters of particular fact. We have a geometry of external relations of spatio-temporal distance between points, and local qualities at points. …In short: we have an arrangement of qualities. | |
From: David Lewis (Introduction to Philosophical Papers II [1986], p.ix-x) | |
A reaction: [compressed] This is the key fundamental tenet of David Lewis's philosophy. He names it after Hume because it contains no necessary connections. It is 'supervenient' because all worldly truths reduce to and depend on the mosaic. His thesis is contingent. |
15034 | Are genera and species real or conceptual? bodies or incorporeal? in sensibles or separate from them? [Porphyry] |
Full Idea: I shall beg off talking of a) whether genera and species are real or situated in bare thoughts alone, b) whether as real they are bodies or incorporeals, and c) whether they are separated or in sensibles and have their reality in connection with them. | |
From: Porphyry (Isagoge ('Introduction') [c.295], (2)) | |
A reaction: This passage, picking up on Aristotle, seems to be the original source that grew into the medievel debate about universals. It seems to rather neatly lay out the agenda for the universals debate which is still with us. |
9426 | The world is just a vast mosaic of little matters of local particular fact [Lewis] |
Full Idea: The world is a vast mosaic of local matters of particular fact, just one little thing and then another. | |
From: David Lewis (Introduction to Philosophical Papers II [1986]) | |
A reaction: Basing laws on this picture is what Lewis calls 'Humean Supervenience'. |
7608 | The world is established, and cannot be moved [Isaiah] |
Full Idea: The world is also established, that it cannot be moved. | |
From: Isaiah (23: Book of Isaiah [c.680 BCE], 93.1) | |
A reaction: This verse caused big trouble for Galileo. The only reason I can think of for Isaiah to write this is that occasionally people were prone to panic, and worry that the Earth might suddenly and abruptly be moved. |
7343 | Beside me there is no God [Isaiah] |
Full Idea: I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. | |
From: Isaiah (23: Book of Isaiah [c.680 BCE], 44.06) | |
A reaction: This seems to be the first clear statement (c. 680 BCE) of monotheism, certainly preceding any Greek views on the subject (cf. Idea 2629,Idea 7347). It is not just an arrogant assertion by the jews, but a humble sacrifice, donating their god to humanity. |