Controversies: Faith and Reason [Public]

Description

To be human is to seek the good. But how do we know what the good is? Across history, two principal sources of claimed knowledge have stood in both tension and dialogue: faith and reason—revelation and philosophy. In our own age, shaped by secular presuppositions and scientific reductionism, these two are often portrayed as irreconcilable. Must we choose between them? Or can they belong to a coherent whole?

This advanced seminar examines one of the most enduring controversies in the history of thought: the relation between faith and reason. Beginning with Leo Strauss’s 1948 lecture “Reason and Revelation,” we trace the problem through Averroës, Moses Maimonides, Augustine, and Thomas Aquinas, before turning to contemporary reflections by Gilson and Sokolowski. Along the way, we confront questions that remain decisive: Can reason prove or disprove faith? Does revelation alter the activity of reason? Is there such a thing as a “Christian philosophy”? What distinguishes philosophy from theology?

The seminar consists of eight weeks of guided study. Each week includes a 40–80 minute recorded lecture, primary texts (compiled into a master PDF), and a live, semi-structured discussion session (Saturdays 11:15am–12:15pm ET). Full participation requires 8–10 hours per week of sustained engagement.

This seminar does not impose a conclusion about the relationship between faith and reason, but aims to lead participants through the questions themselves—an inquiry essential to anyone who seriously seeks the right way to live.