Midterm Question 9

What I’ve always understood from the “philosophy done well is science; philosophy done poorly is religion/theology” is that when you’re in your daily life, do you find the answers to your questions from a scientific standpoint, or are you turning to religion? Lane has always talked about what I like to call the “scientific ladder,” where math is at the bottom and theology is at the top. If you want to lead a good philosophical life, you should live your life from the bottom of the ladder up. Meaning that you should always look first to math for the answer; if you cant use math, try physics; if not physics, try biology; if not biology, try psychology; if not psychology, try sociology; and if all of those fail, then you’ll turn to theology – which then means that you cant find an answer and you “don’t know.” By turning to theology for life’s answers you’re admitting that you don’t know. You should approach things scientifically in order to practice “good philosophy.”