Prompt 3

Jasmyn Burks

Mrs. Welhelmus

AP English Language

10 August 2013

Religion or Reason

      During the middle ages, one had to chose between reason or faith when it comes to the creation of the world and Universe. A person would have a hard time believing the reason of philosophy and the facts of science while still keeping faith in their religion. Many people were afraid to accept philosophy once they committed to their faith. Plato and Aristotle were born before Christ, so when Christianity became so popular, it was hard to accept Plato and Aristotle's teachings and philosophies. People felt that their philosophies threatened what they believed in.

      During this era, people were trying to figure out the truths in what is real and not real. As a result, there was controversy on the truths on what philosophy teaches and what religion teaches. In this era, Christianity helped mend the troublesome and curious minds about life and the Universe. As more people were practicing Christianity, less people practiced the philosophical way of life.

      When St. Augustine and Aquinas came into the philosophical world, they wanted to blend philosophy and Christianity. By “Christianizing” the teachings of Plato and Aristotle, it allowed people to think with reason while still having faith in God. St. Augustine thought that Plato's teachings were not to far from Christianity, he even thought Plato had knowledge of the Old Testament. “St. Augustine believed that before God created the world, the ideas were in the divine mind.” Aquinas found similarities between Aristotle's ideas and Christianity. When Aristotle taught that their was a single being or force that controlled every being in the world, Aristotle could have been talking about God or maybe he was talking about something else. Regardless, the fact that Aristotle may have been talking about God would mean that there was a similarity in his teachings and Christianity.  As a result, Plato's and Aquinas's philosophies could be more accepted.