1.)One paragraph summary of the key idea summarizing the major idea of the section.
The major idea of this section was "Challenges to Faith." Throughout the world there are many challenges to faith and they come in different forms and from different perspectives. The reading book mentions a couple examples such as atheism, scientism, and dehumanization. It is important that, when faced with these different points of view on faith, we don't wholly reject them, but rather we take time to reason through them, deciding if those differnt ideas have any sort of merrit and then coming to a conclusion that will hopefully make you question your faith and eventually strengthen it.
2.)List and explain three of the most important ideas you want to remember from this week.
A. Firstly, I want to remember Friedrich Nietzsche's views on the meaing of life, human beings, and morality. Nietzsche believed that there was not one single meaning of life but rather that every man determined his own meaning except for when a man of superior will imposses his beliefs on the masses. Nietzsche thought that the human race is ultimately destined for great things. But in order for humans to reach their potential they must be led by a a href="http://www.redboots.net/comics/supe_history.htm">superman, a person with great charisma and influence. One thing Nietzsche did not believe in was that we could use reason in order to come to an understanding of a greater truth. Instead he believed that humans should rely on passion and desires. And finally, like his views on the meaning of life, morality is relative, which means that it is subject to change according to the thoughts of each individual person, except for when a superman imposes his/her morality onto the masses, i.e. Jesus, Gandhi, and even Hitler.
B. Secondly, I want to remember Thomas Hobbes' views on the meaning of life, human beings, and morality. Unlike Nietzsche, Hobbes believed that the question of the meaning of life was completely irrelevant because people can't have a meaning when they were not created by any divine being; people are controlled by their animal insticts and desires. Hobbes thought that humans are no different than animals. He didn't think that we would amount to much because we have no free will and are in no way capable of genuine selflessness. Also unlike Nietzsche, Hobbes thought that reason could lead to an understanding of the universe and that all humans are subject to the human condition and that in order to prevent anarchy, a powerful monarchy is necessary. He decribes his plan for a perfect government in his book Leviathan. Regarding morality, Hobbes thought that morality is based on self-interest, or survival of the fittest. It changes with the person, therefore, what is right or wrong for one person may not be right or wrong for another.
C. Finally, I want to remember how St. Ignatius's views clashed with those of Nietzsche and Hobbes. Ignatius believed that everyone has the same purpose in life because we were all created by the same, loving God. He thought that humanity is destined for one thing, the Kingdom of Heaven and that humans are the most glorious of all the creatures in creation. Ignatius believed in the power of reason to reveal some amounts of truth. He thought that rational thought led people to what is good, but we cannot reach truth all by ourselves. In order to reach truth, we need the help of God's grace. When it came to reality Ignatius was very different from both Nietzsche and Hobbes. Ignatius believed that morality is objective, that is there is one law of moral and immoral regardless of whether or not people abide by it.
3.)Images that remind me of the main topics of this section:
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4.)One question that I will keep with me to ponder.
Do I see any truth in the views of Nietzsche or Hobbes? Is it possible for some of their ideas to coincide with those of Ignatius?
5.)What should I try to do to make myself a better person, a more faithful person, from this study?
I don't know the truth about what is actually out there. I can't deny the possibility that there is no God because I cannot prove that God exists. But, no one can prove the He doesn't exist either. I have to face challenges such as atheism and scientism and dehumanization head on in order to learn from them and to overcome them, and in turn, hopefully my faith with become even stronger.
