For Thomas Reid, accepting first principles in a pious spirit; with trust, hope, and gratitude, means accepting a certain picture of ourselves as creatures whose true good lies in a confident and whole-hearted submission to the laws of the constitution which the benevolent Author of our being has seen fit to give us.
What deeply surprised me when I first discovered the Enlightenment Philosophy of Scottish Common Sense Realism was that it was not antagonistic to Religion. That it shared metaphysical foundations with Christianity in addition to upholding the integrity of Scientific Method. This contradicts the Media messaging tropes of Enlightenment Principles being ‘anti-Faith’ and that they were the means of spawning Atheism, Hedonism, illiberalism, Scientism and many other corrosive ideologies which animated the Progressive and Utilitarian forces in play through the intervening centuries.
Listen to this episode with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Withered Leaves & Spoiled Fruits to listen to this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.
