Have we as a culture cut our heads from our hearts? Adam Pelser joins Hank to discuss virtue formation in the life of a Christian and the importance of intentionally cultivating proper emotions as opposed to viewing emotions as unreliable indicators of truth. The fact of the matter is that emotions are not the enemy of objective rationality. Emotions, properly understood, can actually provide a greater understanding of truth. Unfortunately, far too many have embraced what Pelser calls the guillotine view of rationality—cutting off our heads from our hearts in an effort to embrace pure rationality. It is critical for Christians to reunite our heads with our hearts and avoid the pitfalls of a purely intellectual pursuit of God by engaging in intentional practices as a Christian community that help us become fully human by cultivating emotions and virtues that bring us closer to Christ—the true purpose of the Christian life.

For more information please see two articles written by Adam Pelser linked below.

Reasons of the Heart: Emotions in Apologetics https://www.equip.org/article/reasons-heart-emotions-apologetics/

Communicating Truth through Humor, Ridicule, and Emotions https://www.equip.org/article/communicating-truth-through-humor-ridicule-and-emotions/

Topics discussed include: What is it like to be a Christian philosopher at a military academy? (2:55); what is the relationship between philosophy, theology and science? (6:00); what is the role of emotions in the life of a Christian? (8:25); experiencing God through our emotions (12:40); Thomas Aquinas and the pitfalls of a purely intellectual pursuit of God (19:40); what is virtue formation and why is it important? (27:00); the can we train our emotions? (34:45); the connection between spiritual disciplines and cultivating virtues (39:00); how emotions can help us develop a greater understanding of truth (43:45); the importance of engaging in critical thinking and discussion as families, churches and communities (47:00); why are many people more fearful of physical death than spiritual death? (54:05); love is central virtue of life (59:30); the emotional experiences of religious atheists like Albert Einstein (1:05:20); how can we experience God? (1:09:15); the difference between properly cultivated emotion and raw emotionalism (1:12:45); the role of repetition in the formation of habit and virtues (1:21:30); deification—why has Western theology largely forgotten the larger arch of salvation stretching from creation to deification in favor of the smaller arch stretching from fall to redemption (1:25:15).

Other articles by Adam Pelser:

Becoming a “Seasoned” Apologist

Genuine Temptation and the Character of Christ

Developing Discernment in Devotional Reading

Philosophy, Politics, and the End of Liberal Arts Education

The Shack Movie – Heretical or Healing?

The Abolition of Man Today

Thomas Reid: Minister, Philosopher and Champion of Common Sense

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