Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

The fool says in his heart,
    “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
    there is no one who does good.
The Lord looks down from heaven
    on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
    any who seek God.
All have turned away, all have become corrupt;
    there is no one who does good,
    not even one.

• Psalm 14:1-3

I guess you could argue that I did not skip David Hume by bringing his name into the discussion on the same day that I “skipped” the chapter in The Philosophy Book regarding his philosophy.

But I read the chapter, and it simply gave me a headache.  I know, I know.  Leibniz put me to sleep and now Hume gives me a headache.

Hume tried to resolve the differences in the Rationalists and the Empiricists.  He failed in doing so, but through his meticulous series of word definitions, he resolves that Man can be both a sensing person and a rational person.  In the first post on Hume, Hume was Briefly Employed as a Librarian, I poked fun at his statement that anything that was not “true” should be burned.  How could you maintain a library card, much less be a librarian, with that view?

But most modern philosophers were go back to Hume as being one of the earliest modern philosophers.  It is possible though that the love that a certain group has for Hume is that the other philosophers of his day could have some idea of a love of God.  Hume did not.  Or did he?  He may have criticized the Catholic church, but he never claimed allegiance to the Protestant church.  In other words, he might have sounded like he had a vague belief here or there, but it was usually in criticizing the “church” rather than supporting or worshipping God.

While Hume bridged between several branches of philosophy where most modern philosophers could find something of common interest with him, I simply got tired – maybe for a brief moment – with the notion of agnostic skepticism.

As they say of those people who never make decisions, the decision is made for them by time and circumstance.  They made a decision; it was never expressed.  Thus, they stood for nothing.

When agnostics think themselves so smart by doubting and being a skeptic relating to everything, they express a belief.  They believe in their own existence.  They consider themselves above everyone.  They are a kingdom of one.  Themselves alone.  And in the end, they will find themselves alone.  In essence, they are a combination of Voltaire and Berkeley combined, Skepticism and Solipsism unified in a muddle of confusion.  Indeed, quite lost.

As for me, I will choose God.  And God keeps His promises.  He will never let me go.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.