One of the things Rene Descartes (possibly my favorite philosopher) is known for is coining the phrase, "I think; therefore, I am." He went into seclusion until he could prove that the world was real. He eventually came out, using this reasoning: I think; therefore, I exist. I cannot create the universe; therefore, there must be a God. God is good and He wouldn't trick us (a sneaky little trick - that assumes God is good); therefore, this world is real.
What I like about Descartes is the way he questioned reality; he took nothing for granted. He started with doubt.
It's this sort of philosophy that has made the statement, "You can't even know that the chair you sit on is real." I have heard Christians criticize this way of thinking as foolish. But I totally disagree and am slightly insulted; extremely intelligent people thought like that. And they were right.
If knowledge is defined as being completely and objectively certain through the use of flawless logic and irrefutable evidence, then there is no way to know that this world exists. You could very well be living in a world of your subconscious's creation. In fact (and other Christians will cringe when I say this), but there is no completely objective way to know that God exists. We can't be sure that there is a God. Any "evidence" you have that supports this could be a figment of your subconscious, or a lie handed to you by some being looking to deceive you.
People might freak out at this, but it's actually a very good thing. It's a good thing because it emphasizes even more the importance of faith. We live in a world in which we make many assumptions, simply to navigate reality. We sit believing the chair will hold us. We speak, believing the people who hear us are real. We pray, believing God is real and hears us. This may sound like heresy, but it's not. It is vitally important to realize that nothing you can do, none of the evidence you collect, can prove the existence of God. It's a matter of faith. If we can see that we need faith simply to live our lives, we can appreciate more fully the role faith has in our relationship with God. We choose, out of all the alternatives, to believe that the world is real, God is real, and His sacrifice was extremely real. We believe it, but we can't know it. Unless we redefine knowledge.
I read a book in Philosophy called Longing to Know. The woman who wrote the book compared "knowing" (mainly knowing that God is real) to getting to know and trust her mechanic. She de-emphasized evidence and facts, and instead highlighted the importance of trust and experience. Ultimately, knowing is a matter of belief.
I can't know that God exists. But I choose to believe in Him and His existence and goodness. Because, ultimately, I belief will be shown to be well-placed.
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