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Postmodernists believe that the world and reality are central for people to have experiences in so they can build "their truth" as there is no universal truth that exists. It is again up to people to decide how the Earth came into existence, but many believe that the Big Bang Theory is what brought it into existence.

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To the postmodernist, truth is dead and there is no absolute truth. This means that the postmodernist holds no theological view.

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This is where the Marxist philosophy comes into play in postmodern thought. Many postmodernists grasp the idea of an oppressor and the oppressed. This means that postmodernists highly celebrate diversity, leading many minorities and women to pursue revolutions and rights movements.

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Postmodernists agree that the world and universe have to exist or else there would be nothing to help people have experiences to gain knowledge to build "their truth". This is a pragmatic look at ontology, but since everyone can have their "own truth", the postmodernist would also have to see the Christian view as well.

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In postmodernism, there is no universal or absolute truth that exits. This means that people who hold to this philosophical thought allow people to create "their truth". This means what is truthful for one person is not necessarily truth to another person.

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Postmodernism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Postmodernism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Postmodernists believe in three things about knowledge:

1) Knowledge is a human construct
2) Knowledge is fallible
3) Knowledge is gained through exposure

This means that knowledge was created by humanity (there is no absolute truth or knowledge), knowledge can always change as it is always unstable, and the instability is brought on by the fact that the human experience can always change how people look at the world and continually build "their truth".

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Postmodernism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Postmodernism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Again, postmodernists believe in three things about knowledge:

1) Knowledge is a human construct
2) Knowledge is fallible
3) Knowledge is gained through exposure

This means that postmodernists live in a world where knowledge is ever-changing and the only way to validate that is to have experiences from people, objects, or events. This is the only way that people can learn "their truth".

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Vito Corleone (portrayed by Marlon Brando) in Francis Ford Coppola's film 'The Godfather'. The film has very thorough postmodern themes.    

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Since postmodernism is based upon the idea of people having their "own truth", that is the same way with ethics. What might be ethical for one person is not ethical for another and vice versa.

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Much like in Existentialism, post-modernists believe that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Because everyone has their "own truth", what might be beautiful for one person isn't beauty for another and vice versa.

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Pragmatists believe that if there is an order of reality, people have no way of knowing or understanding that reality. For the pragmatist, cosmological reality has been going through change for some time.

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Because we live in a world of experience, according to the pragmatist, we have no way of really knowing if something lies beyond what our human experiences tell us. Faith is not a part of the equation, the only thing we can trust is what we can see and experience.

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Because life experiences are central to pragmatism, a world and universe have to exist. This means that there needs to be a place for all people to have their experiences- and that would be the world.

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Truth is found through human experience. Essentially what works for a person is what is found to be true for them- which is an extremely post-modern thought.

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The ultimate source of knowledge to the pragmatist is their life. Because people move through life and have experiences, the experiences people have are the ultimate sources of knowledge for a person.

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Pragmatism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Pragmatism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Knowledge and truth are tested through human experience and experience, which means that people's lives go through trial and error. This means that people test and verify throughout their lives.

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Charlton Heston as Moses in the 1956 epic, 'The Ten Commandments.'

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To the Pragmatist, good conduct and ethics are found as a social test. Because of this idea, pragmatists were able to validate the last six of the Ten Commandments given to Moses and the Israelites in Exodus. They believe that through good conduct, the social problem can be fixed.

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To the pragmatist, beauty is realized through "social taste" or when people feel that they have an "aesthetic" experience. There is a tearing down of the distinction between fine and practical art. Beauty is again in the "eye of the beholder".

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Because existence precedes essence in existentialism and the argument that the universe holds no meaning or truth, it is hard to make a cosmological argument within Existential thought. Humanity is central to existentialism, not the universe.

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The existentialist turns the idea that God is the creator of all things on its head. To the existentialist, when God made humans, He had the idea of humanity in mind before creating any people. This is the basis for their idea that existence precedes essence. Essentially, God is not needed in existentialist thought.

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Because Existentialism is built upon the human experience, Existentialists place a high importance on human thought and humanity at large. People begin to question their purpose here on earth and who they are, which is central to this philosophical school of thought.

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The Existentialist is more concerned with the thought of how to exist whereas ontology deals with what exists. Essentially, existentialism doesn't even touch the idea of ontology because the existentialist is more concerned with humanity rather than matter.

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Truth to the Existentialist can be created on the terms of the person which is based on the authority of the individual. This is the creation of the existential crisis.

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Existentialism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Existentialism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Going with the idea that existence precedes essence, the ultimate source of truth are the ideas that humans create. Meaning and truth are not built into the universe.

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Existentialism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Existentialism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Due to Existentialism's claim that existence precedes essence, the ideas that people create are the ultimate sources and ways to validate knowledge in existential thought. Many would argue that this is the end of an existential crisis.

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Humphrey Bogart's Rick Blaine in the 1942 classic, 'Casablanca' is the epitome of Kierkegaardian Ethics in a pop-culture setting.

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To the existentialist, there is no absolute in the realm of ethics, therefore, no one can decide what is good conduct. Essentially, every person has the potential to better, worsen, or destroy the human experience.

I would also argue that Kierkegaardian Ethics plays into this as well. Soren Kierkegaard's idea of the "Leap of Faith" as explained by jumping through the aesthetic, the ethical, and the religious is important to existential thought.

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In existential thought, what is beautiful is in the eye of the beholder. What is beautiful to one person may not be beautiful to another and vice versa.

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Neo-Scholastics believe that the world is a rational world- both the secular and religious neo-scholastics hold to that understanding. This means that both sides of the aisle believe that the universe is open to comprehension by mankind. The universe holds inherent truths that are all around us.

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Neo-Scholasticism has both a secular and religious realm and field within the broader field itself. This means that the secular Neo-Scholastic believes that there is no God, but the religious Neo-Scholastic does in fact believe that there is a God.

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To the early neo-scholastic, Aristotle, the idea that people are rational animals with deductive logic is central to the ideals of Neo-Scholasticism. He believed that humans are the only creatures created with the ability to think and that this is humanity's purpose in the world. Alongside that idea, he believed that the universe had a design order where there are cause-and-effect relationships within the universe.

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Because there are both secular and religious forms of this field of philosophical thought. The secularists believe that God does not exist and that that reality is subjective to human inquiry. The religious side of this argument believes that God does in fact exist and that reality is known through faith in Him and what He has given us.

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Neo-scholastics claim that the human mind is rational and that is orientated to look at the rationality of the universe. This then leads to the idea that the mind can create truths by itself and then it can also intuit truth.

Neo-scholastics also believe in Synthetic truth which depends on the human experience. The only key to this source of truth is that it must be tested.

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Neo-Scholasticism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Neo-Scholasticism and the Sources of Knowledge

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Based on Thomas Aquinas's approach, the sources of knowledge can be human reason and then rely on faith as another realm of understanding. This means that the sources of knowledge can be both secular and religious, and this is obtained through education.

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Neo-Scholasticism and the Validity of Knowledge

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Neo-Scholasticism and the Validity of Knowledge

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In Neo-Scholasticism, the validity of knowledge relies heavily on reason and the deductive logic forms. This means that the validity of knowledge comes from human reason and understanding.

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Neo-Scholasticism is based on the fact that most people are rational beings. Because of that, this philosophy relies on the idea that the moral life is a life lived in harmony with reason.

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Neo-scolasticism believes that most humans are created to be creative. This philosophy relies on modern art and poetry as expressions of beauty. They appreciate artwork as it shows the intellect of the artist.

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To the realist, the universe is made up of matter that is set in motion. This means that the world that we live in is what makes up reality.

According to Knight, "The laws controlling the cosmos not only govern the physical universe, but they are also operating in the moral, psychological, social, political, and economic spheres" (Page 51, 'Philosophy and Education').

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Because realism depends so heavily upon human reason and human existence, the need for theology and religion is not necessarily needed in realist thought.

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To the realist, humans are the ultimate thing in the universe. They were created to reason and to ultimately show the truth that is in the universe.

To the realist, humanity is a spectator and participant in what is happening in the universe.

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To the realist, the physical world in which people live is what makes up the ultimate reality. This means that the world is made up of things that operate according to different laws which are embedded into everything within the universe.

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To the realist, truth is discovered through common sense and sensory perception. Inductive reasoning is central to obtaining truth.

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Because the validity of knowledge is found through observable fact in realist philosophy, the physical world is the main source of knowledge for the realist. Some sources of knowledge are: the five senses, authority, deductive reasoning, and the scientific method.

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Truth and the validity of knowledge, to the realist, is found through observable fact. This means that people have to investigate the natural world in order to find truth and the validity of knowledge.

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To the realist, the law of nature is the ethical basis of life. Thomas Jefferson alluded to this idea in the Declaration of Independence with the phrase "inalienable rights". To the realist, ethics and morality are for people to discover through nature.

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To the realist, nature holds the only criteria for beauty. Beauty has to reflect the logic and order of the universe. Because of that, photography is an art form.

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Idealism is built upon the mind and reality being the center of the search for truth, it is up to people to decide and reason how the Earth came into existence.

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Theology and Idealism have been connected since the very beginning. Since the idealist believes that there is an unchanging universal Truth, idealism has always been deeply connected to theology.

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Because idealism is based on people's senses and perceptions, each person has the ability to think and decide their lives for themselves. This will also allow people to come to truth through the sources and validity of knowledge.

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Idealism argues that the nature of existence comes from the mind. In a sense, perception is reality. This is where Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" comes into play because of people living in the "reality" of the cave rather than outside the cave.

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Plato’s Allegory of the Cave - Alex Gendler

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Truth belongs to the realm of ideas. Many of these ideas come from "consistence" and "coherence". The idealist strives to develop a system of truth that is both internal and logical in consistency. This means that the idealist has to check if the claim is in harmony with nature and the ideal structure of the universe.

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Idealists rely heavily on intuition, revelation, and rationalism as ways of gaining and extending knowledge.

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Because idealists depend on their intuition, revelation, and rationalism for the basis of their knowledge, the use of the five senses, the scientific method, and other trial and error tests are what validate an idealist's knowledge.

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Ethics to the idealist is seen as a life that is lived in harmony with the world around it. Universal Moral Law is what helps make humanity moral. There is a sense of the Absolute Self being the most ethical and the epitome of ethical conduct in society, following what God would say is ethical.

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Beauty to the idealist is a reflection of what is ideal. Art that expresses what is absolute is aesthetically pleasing to the idealist- capturing reality in its perfect form.

This painting is a reflection of what Americans thought was ideal as westward expansion continued until the frontier was declared closed in the 1890s. Ideal American society was to continue to be a beacon of light and a city on a hill as manifest destiny was undertaken.

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I believe in the 7-day creation narrative that is described in Genesis 1 and 2. I should also emphasize that I believe in the 7 literal day creation- which means I believe in the 7-day creation narrative and that the days were 24 hours long, not years long (Gen. 1: 5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31). I believe that God is the ultimate creator of the universe and everything in it as described in John 1:1-5.

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I believe that God is the ultimate power in the universe. He is the Creator of the world that we live in, and He holds the whole world in His hands. I also believe that He is a part of the Trinity- where He is one of the distinct persons within Himself. This means that I believe in God the Father, His son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit as described in Luke 1:35, John 1:1-5; Matthew 28:19.

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Because God is the creator of all things, I believe that we as human beings are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). Along with that, I believe that humans are distinctly different from animals and plants, and because of that, God has given us a specific role as humans on His Earth to take care of it. (Genesis 1:28-31). Even though what God created was good and His people were good, man ultimately decided to sin and become separated from God. Because of that, I believe that people are born with an innate sinful nature (Romans 3:23). Humans are ultimately the cause of evil in the world due to our innate sinful nature.

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As explained before, I believe that God created the world, that He is real, and that He is the creator of all humanity. Because of that, the nature of our existence comes from God. The world is His and we are His (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). I also believe that the nature of reality is God’s truth, which brings us to Epistemology.

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As a Christian, I believe that the only truth in the world is God’s truth, which means that truth has been and always will be objective and absolute and never subjective and relative. As a Christian, the Bible, which is God’s inspired word, is the ultimate and the only source of truth in the world. I believe that our ultimate reality will be realized and known when we are reunited with our creator. Once we believe, we are promised everlasting life (John 3:16-18).

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I believe that we as humans know things through our God-given senses and gifts. Those include sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing. I also know that people will say that they will only believe in God when they see Him, but I also believe that faith and belief are important aspects of our Christian walk. God reminds us that even when we have faith as small as a mustard seed, nothing will be impossible for us (Matthew 17:18). I also believe that we can ask God for wisdom and knowledge and that He will grant it to us in a way that is appropriate (James 1:5).

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This is a harder question to answer due to the theories that work with this idea which include the Correspondence Theory, the Coherence Theory, and the Pragmatic Theory. If there is one theory that corresponds the best with Christianity, it is the Correspondence Theory. This is because the Correspondence Theory holds to an objective reality, which is the reality that we all live in, it is in no way subjective.

I also believe that God is all-knowing (Psalm 147:5, John 21:7, Heb. 4:12-23, 1 John 3:20), and because Christians know and understand that, we can have a better understanding of who God is and how He cares for us.

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As a Christian, it is my duty to look at the Christian ethic and use the Bible to help me determine right vs. wrong. As I have stated before in this document, every person is born with a sinful nature due to the fall of man in Genesis. But because of that, God has graciously given us the Bible and Jesus as a road to redemption. In that, God has given us guidelines to help us live a Christian life as seen in the Old and New Testament (Ex. 20:1-17, Matt. 5-7, among others).

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As a Christian, I am to place value on everything that God places value in. This includes His creation and everything in it. I am also to place value on my relationship with Him, which is also an important aspect of being a follower of Christ (Psalm 139:13-14, Numbers 35:33-34, Matt. 19:14, 2 Peter 3:18). I am also to put to death any sin within me and place no value in my old sins and pursue a life that is holy and pleasing to God (Coll. 3:5-6).