This episode continues to explore the question "How Do We Know?" by considering Martin Buber's "I –– Thou" knowing or encounter as a fourth way of knowledge–– relational knowledge as epistemology. In doing so it raises the importance of the question of whether we see reality as essentially a physical process or relational. It also looks at the difference between treating others as  "things" rather than "persons."

Episode 5 of The Quest / How Do We Know? considers the ancient and contemporary concept of the "sensus divinitatis"  (sense of the divine) as an innate faculty of spiritual knowledge––knowledge of and about God.

This fourth episode in "The Quest / How Do We Know?" series, proposes that love is not only a biblically, philosophically, and spiritually, but also  a scientifically legitimate way of knowing –– of epistemology. The reader will recognize the strong connections between tacit knowledge  discussed in the third episode and love knowledge here in this fourth episode.

This episode looks at tacit knowledge as a valid and verifiable way of knowing.

This episode of "The Quest / How We Know," explores the great French Philosopher Paul Ricoeur's idea of a of knowledge that moves through three stages, or what I see as three levels of spiritual thought––precritical, critical, and postcritical. The third stage leads to what Ricoeur intriguingly called "the second naiveté" and what I refer to as "the second innocence" or "the second simplicity." The place of knowledge through authority is explored here. It is also proposed that Ricoeur's work leads to the reasonable conclusion that there are multiple ways of knowing.

This is the first episode in the first chapter of what is planned as a longer series of reflections on a life-long quest for wisdom of heart, spiritual knowledge, and the presence of God. The nine opening twenty minute  episodes each explore the question posed in the subtitle––"How Do We Know?" This entire first series of nine on how we know anything, then, is an exploration of epistemology from a Christian theological perspective. It critiques the epistemology of the Enlightenment, or Age of Reason, and proposes additional ways of knowing as entirely legitimate.

The text for this homily is from the New Testament letter of James (1:2-8)––designated by scholars and saints as a "wisdom book." It is based on my own, rather loose interpretation, which, while true to the original language, is an attempt to accurately translate the thought more than the words.

My friends, as you encounter troubles of all shades and colors, think of them, no matter how severe or difficult, as gifts––as a treasure. Each one is an opportunity for your faith to grow and develop as you struggle with fear and sorrow and hurt and hardship and failure of every sort. Your faith will then become an amazing power within you, transforming the worst and most desperate situations of your life into something good, worthwhile, and wonderfully alive. You will become a perfect, complete, wholehearted person of wisdom who lacks nothing.

 If you don’t know what to do when troubled and hard pressed, pray to the Father for wisdom. God loves to help and does so generously; and, without making you regret that you have asked for help. God won’t be the least bit condescending because you prayed for what you need most. Only, you must seek in faith. You must be confident that it is God's wisdom you really want and to which you are willing to give yourself. If you are uncertain about what you really want, or what and who you are genuinely committed to, if you try to stay in control by keeping your options open, you will be like a wind whipped wave. You will never know the peace or perfection of Christ

A Christian homily of hope for men and women of faith during the COVID 19 pandemic. It sees the pandemic as calling into question who we are as persons, and as an opportunity to explore our deepest sustaining convictions and as a challenge to live rather than merely talk about our theory of life.