Discuss how Plato and Aristotle set the framework for the evolution of Christianity and Islam.
Viewings:
Clip from The Matrix (1999)
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave
Plato’s Theory of Forms; part 2
Plato’s Theory of the Soul, or, the Allegory of the Chariot
Questions:
What do you think of when you think of “perfection”? Is it a positive or negative concept?
In the Book of Genesis, as well as the entire Hebrew Bible, we never find the concept of “the soul” or a notion of immortality and eternal life. What are your views on these subjects?
Do you believe there are two realms of reality, the physical world and the spiritual world? What is the relationship between the two?
Express your opinions on this statement by the Christian writer C.S. Lewis: “You don’t ‘have’ a soul, you are a soul. You ‘have’ a body.”
Readings:
Abu Hammid Al-Ghazali, “There Is No Evil in God’s Perfect World.” (.pdf handout)
Passages from Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Scriptures, from The Human Rights Reader (.pdf handout)
St. Thomas Aquinas, “On Just War,” from The Human Rights Reader , p. 70.
St. Augustine, “On War, Peace, and Harmony,” from The Human Rights Reader , p. 69.
Christian theology and the “Just War Theory.”
Rabbi Or N. Rose, “Heaven and Hell in Jewish Tradition.” My Jewish Learning (website)
Questions:
Given the Greek idea of the infinite perfection of God, describe the influences of Plato and Aristotle in the larger paradigms of Christianity and Islam. How do Greek ideas of the soul and of God compare with the depictions of God in the Book of Genesis?
How did Platonic paradigms influence St. Augustine? How did Aristotle influence Al Ghazali? In what ways did both monotheistic theologians reject certain aspects of Greek philosophy?
