Is there such a thing as 'natural reason? 'From a realistic point of view,it seems hardly disputable to admit the existence of a common human nature:otherwise,how could we speak about mankind as a whole? How c...Is there such a thing as 'natural reason? 'From a realistic point of view,it seems hardly disputable to admit the existence of a common human nature:otherwise,how could we speak about mankind as a whole? How could we identify a human being,when we meet one? The most relevant and distinctive quality of human nature is reason: 'natural'reason,because it belongs to everyone,whatever their place of birth,their culture,and the historical period of their life. The universal validity of natural reason is founded on an intuitive grasp of the so-called 'first principles of knowledge';and,in order to draw from them logically and ethically coherent conclusions,it is necessary to adopt an appropriate mode of thought-an appropriate 'mentality'. In the development of the Western culture it is possible to identify four 'mentalities': the 'analytical'mentality,the 'synthetic'mentality,the ' dialectic ' mentality, the ' analogical ' mentality. Univocal mentalities( especially analytical and dialectical) have not led the West to the attainment of wisdom,but rather have distorted and diverted the Western quest for truth;the real greatness of the Western culture can only be appreciated through a deep understanding and an intense practice of the analogical mentality,the best example of which is to be found in the work of St. Thomas Aquinas.展开更多
文摘Is there such a thing as 'natural reason? 'From a realistic point of view,it seems hardly disputable to admit the existence of a common human nature:otherwise,how could we speak about mankind as a whole? How could we identify a human being,when we meet one? The most relevant and distinctive quality of human nature is reason: 'natural'reason,because it belongs to everyone,whatever their place of birth,their culture,and the historical period of their life. The universal validity of natural reason is founded on an intuitive grasp of the so-called 'first principles of knowledge';and,in order to draw from them logically and ethically coherent conclusions,it is necessary to adopt an appropriate mode of thought-an appropriate 'mentality'. In the development of the Western culture it is possible to identify four 'mentalities': the 'analytical'mentality,the 'synthetic'mentality,the ' dialectic ' mentality, the ' analogical ' mentality. Univocal mentalities( especially analytical and dialectical) have not led the West to the attainment of wisdom,but rather have distorted and diverted the Western quest for truth;the real greatness of the Western culture can only be appreciated through a deep understanding and an intense practice of the analogical mentality,the best example of which is to be found in the work of St. Thomas Aquinas.
