Re: Why Aren’t More Intellectuals Believers?
Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2015 7:39 pm
Oh boy,
I think I see the error here, and that is the mistake of equating intelligence to intellectualism. They aren't the same thing. There are plenty of people who are not intellectuals that are very intelligent people. So it is one thing to challenge how one can be say an intellectual and a Christian but that's different than saying that intelligence is not a trait of Christians. The latter essentially says that only people who are non-Christians are intelligent and that would naturally be not only perceived as insulting (and rightly so), but also called out for being a false statement.
Intellectuals do not have a monopoly on intelligence or critical thinking skills. Being an intellectual to me is more like a mentality and a way of life, where the goal is to not just simply question or challenge things, but also come to a deeper understanding of how a given thing actually works as well. It is the pursuit of knowledge for it's own sake, and the acquiring of additional understandings, honest, meaningful, and grounded inquiry, and acquiring additional modes of thinking is its own reward. Many people are more than capable of this whether intellectual or not, but an intellectual does it as part of their enjoyment. It's their personality or rather their nature, but it is not something that in of itself makes one better or worse off than another and is thus not a license for arrogance or pride.
So with that in mind, it will help all of us sdaf if you take back that statement of Christianity not being a trait of the intelligent. It is simply not true.
I think I see the error here, and that is the mistake of equating intelligence to intellectualism. They aren't the same thing. There are plenty of people who are not intellectuals that are very intelligent people. So it is one thing to challenge how one can be say an intellectual and a Christian but that's different than saying that intelligence is not a trait of Christians. The latter essentially says that only people who are non-Christians are intelligent and that would naturally be not only perceived as insulting (and rightly so), but also called out for being a false statement.
Intellectuals do not have a monopoly on intelligence or critical thinking skills. Being an intellectual to me is more like a mentality and a way of life, where the goal is to not just simply question or challenge things, but also come to a deeper understanding of how a given thing actually works as well. It is the pursuit of knowledge for it's own sake, and the acquiring of additional understandings, honest, meaningful, and grounded inquiry, and acquiring additional modes of thinking is its own reward. Many people are more than capable of this whether intellectual or not, but an intellectual does it as part of their enjoyment. It's their personality or rather their nature, but it is not something that in of itself makes one better or worse off than another and is thus not a license for arrogance or pride.
So with that in mind, it will help all of us sdaf if you take back that statement of Christianity not being a trait of the intelligent. It is simply not true.