The Greek Philosophers

Post No. 5 Read Time: 2 minutes.

The Ancient Greeks

When the ancient Greeks traveled to India and other places, they found that rules, morals, and customs varied from region to region. This observation led to the development of philosophy, a field dedicated to the study of wisdom, moral inquiry, and introspection.

Socrates contributed to this development by emphasizing freedom. He recognized that different individuals have unique frameworks guiding their lives, which broadened his understanding of humanity. In response to conflicting moral codes, he chose to dedicate his life to seeking wisdom that could provide insight into these differences. He developed the method of asking probing questions.

Aristotle’s ideas significantly influenced Western civilization. He observed that specific rules, laws, and customs varied across regions. Instead of being discouraged by these differences, he argued that humans naturally develop governing attitudes. As their knowledge grows, they respond to reason, logic, and order.

Plato believed in the immortality of the soul and viewed philosophical inquiry as a means to test existing concepts. He asserted that learning is about rediscovering forgotten knowledge—latent within consciousness—rather than creating new information. Through priori reasoning, individuals recognize the eternal forms with which they were familiar before birth.

Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato have significantly influenced beliefs and lifestyles throughout history. Their teachings encourage individuals to achieve their potential, despite often confronting the realities of sin and self-criticism.

The concept of natural law emerged from the synthesis of biblical teachings on the inherent value of mankind and the Greek belief in human rationality. The combined wisdom of Socrates, Aristotle, Plato, and others led to the formulation of natural rights.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The development of philosophy in ancient Greece, especially through the teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, fostered a new approach to understanding morality, wisdom, and the nature of law and human rights. Their insights laid the groundwork for the concept of natural law by blending Greek rationalism with biblical views of human value.

Key Points

Ancient Greeks noticed that moral codes and customs varied between regions, prompting deeper philosophical inquiry.

Socrates introduced the method of questioning and emphasized the importance of individual frameworks for understanding life.

Aristotle observed the diversity of laws and customs but saw them as a reflection of humans’ capacity for reason and governance.

Plato asserted that learning is the recollection of innate knowledge and believed in the immortality of the soul.

The philosophies of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle have had a lasting influence, encouraging self-discovery, moral inquiry, and the pursuit of potential despite human flaws.

The concept of natural law emerged from the integration of Greek philosophical thought and biblical teachings about human dignity and rationality.

American Founders and Constitution Month

The Utah State Legislature has designated the month of September each year (beginning in 2023) as American Founders and Constitution Month.

In support of this request, the Area Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is asking Church members to reenergize a spirit of patriotism and recognition of God’s hand in the origin and destiny of America, that we will be a nation under God, not without God.

It was not by chance that the Puritans and others who followed later left their native land and sailed to New England where they were inspired to establish the God-given system of government under which we live.

Our rights come from God. Civil power is justified only when it secures, promotes, and defends those rights. Essential to the citizens of a free-born society, freedom of conscience and expression are woven into the very soul of our nation.

Holistically outlining the interconnectedness of the historical events which overcame the Dark and Middle Ages and led to the development and establishment of America’s civil and religious liberties, my recent publication, America’s Grand Design, is a timely reminder that God governs in the affairs of men.

Preparing the way for the 1820 vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the ongoing restoration of the Gospel of Christ, this series of events is described by the Old Testament prophet Isaiah as “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

My conclusions are these:

The America experiment–the foundation of the blessings of liberty and justice for all–was foreordained.
We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny.
America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design.

The right to offer opinions about morality, society, politics, literature, art, science, or virtually any other subject developed gradually and took centuries of struggle to establish. For these essential characteristics of life to continue:

We must stop the mindless destruction of historical America.
Because error is preached all the time, truth must be repeated constantly.
We must reawaken to the truth that “righteousness exalts a nation.”

Please see: http://www.americasgranddesign.com (Special price: $12.00).

Why I Wrote a Book

What does it mean that the American experiment was foreordained? The Ten Commandments, the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount, and the the Golden Rule–these articulate the divine and universal standards upon which all nations will stand or fall.

Five years ago, I began reading Thomas Jefferson, The Art of Power. Nearing the end of the Prologue, I was stunned by the Pulitzer Prize winning author’s words as he asserted that there was “nothing foreordained about the American experiment.”

As the days passed, I could not get those words out of my mind. They went against everything I had been taught about America’s founding and against everything I believed. Furthermore, I was deeply troubled that this point of view was gaining ground and beginning to take hold in the consciousness of the American people.

I gradually came to the conclusion that society will choose and decide; that someone’s values will prevail in the end. It was at that point that I decided to get involved, to push back against the secular perspective, to take a stand on behalf of freedom, religious liberty, America’s founding, and our Founding Fathers.

In the book I address many topics. With regards to whether the American experiment is foreordained, my study and research reaffirmed my personal beliefs. We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design. Established for the rights and protection of all people, the United States Constitution represents the practical guarantee in the political arena that adherence to natural law and Christian teachings will protect freedom across the globe. Thus, America is a land with not only a sacred history and a prophetic destiny but also a tremendous responsibility to serve as a beacon of hope.

The foundation of knowledge flows from reading. I read to learn of those who have passed before, to weigh and consider, to discover something of value. I read to improve my mind and morals and to regulate my conduct, to mark the great events of the world, to discover new ideas, to separate the chaff from the wheat, and to make myself contemporary with past ages. I read to be taught, because what is written is beyond my own power to have produced.

George Macdonald wrote, “As you grow ready for it, somewhere or other, you will find what is needful for you in a book.” I hope this book will be useful in your search for truth.

For additional information: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

The Big Ideas of Life and Liberty

In Search of What Can Unite Us

Nations have boundaries, but there is no limit to the sphere of ideas. Big Ideas control the world; they are mightier than armies. Big ideas lift civilizations.

Big Ideas spring from noble and great souls, from those who contemplate God’s works, feel a generous concern for the good of humankind, exhibit sincere humility.

Our first parents were instructed in two Big Ideas: “multiply and replenish the earth” and “in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread.”

Champions of Big Ideas, Abraham is the father of nations. Moses is the great lawgiver. Isaiah saw the transcript of God, and in language both poetic and prophetic, wrote of the Messiah and of “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

The rise of the Greeks brought the Big Ideas of the Classical Age which influenced western civilization more than any other people. The Romans spread Greco-Roman ideas across the world.

With immortal words, “Do unto others, as you would have others do unto you,” Jesus brought forth the ultimate in Big Ideas: the sacred covenant of eternal society, thus connecting the visible and invisible worlds in a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born. Inspired by this Big Idea, Thomas Jefferson declared that each and every soul has “the right to life.”

The thousand years of darkness was a period of decline in spiritual learning and scriptural literacy. The term “Dark Ages” is directly linked to the efforts of medieval church leaders to keep the Big Ideas of the Bible out of the hands of the people and to mediate spiritual enlightenment through priests and bishops of the Roman Catholic Church.

The ages of Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, Discovery, Colonization, and Independence are testimonials to the power of Big Ideas. Beginning with the printing of the Bible and culminating with the ratification of the United States Constitution, the underpinnings of Western civilization were put in place by courageous and visionary individuals who fought against ecclesiastical overreach, scholastic intimidation, and the divine right of kings in pursuit of their civil and religious liberties.

In the ongoing effort to maintain our freedoms, we must value “the sacred right of conscience,” another Big Idea. The Founding Fathers concluded that only with careful cultivation of the soul, with attention to “the laws of nature and of nature’s God,” and with the uplifting assistance of family, church, and local community, America’s citizens could learn to control their passions and act worthy to receive the blessings of liberty.

The ages of Romanticism and Restoration are also testimonials to the power of Big Ideas. Encouraging emotion and creativity, Romanticism emphasized our relationship with the natural world and the sublime.

Among the Big Ideas presented in the Book of Mormon is that there is an opposition in all things, that this life is the time to prepare to meet God, that we should mourn with those that mourn, comfort those who stand in need of comfort, and stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places.

Building on the premise that we are being tested as a nation by small ideas that divide us, former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw shared his unique perspective on how Big Ideas over the past several decades united us and shaped what he called the American century.

These Big Ideas included our defense of freedom against Nazi and Sino aggression, creation of the GI Bill, establishment of minority rights, unleashing science and technology through the vision of going to the moon, emphasis on conservation, new opportunities for girls and women, opening relations with China, confronting and defeating the value system of the Soviet Union, knitting civilization back together after the fall of the Berlin Wall, improving the world through the gifts, influences, and inspiration of talented and visionary individuals and ordinary women and men. Summarizing his list of Big Ideas, Mr. Brokaw wondered where America would be today without them.

Against this backdrop, I pose the question: what are the Creator’s plans for the human family? My answer is based on the Big Ideas embedded within scripture, reason, and modern revelation.

At the dawn of creation God gave us freedom of choice, informed us that this earth would be created for us, and told us that we would be given physical bodies. Our reaction was stunning: “. . . the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy” (Job 38:7). We are on earth to prove ourselves, to grow, to build relationships, and to gain experience.

Explained Joseph Smith, “At the first organization in heaven we were all present and saw the Savior chosen and appointed and the plan of salvation made, and we sanctioned it.” The Prophet further declared, “The great plan of salvation is a theme which ought to occupy our strict attention and be regarded as one of heaven’s best gifts to mankind.”

The contention in heaven was that Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the devil said he would save them all. When the grand council gave its vote in favor of Jesus Christ, the devil rose up in rebellion against God thus beginning the war in heaven.

“The war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth, and there are those today who are saying, ‘Look, don’t get involved in the fight for freedom. Just live the gospel.’ That counsel is dangerous, self-contradictory, unsound” (Ezra Taft Benson).

Big Ideas illustrate that we are on earth for a purpose, that a divinity stirs within us. Accompanying this certainty is another Big Idea, declared by Cicero, “There is, I know not how, in the minds of men, a certain presage, as it were, of a future existence.”

Another Big Idea, we are all born for a higher destiny than that of earth. “Divine wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come” (Mad. de Stael).

The ultimate in Big Ideas puts everything into perspective as we contemplate where we came from, why we are here, and where we go when we die. Searching for answers to our spiritual and intellectual concerns on the boisterous sea of liberty, the words of our Maker, the Great Governor of the Universe, ring out, “This is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

To learn more, please go to: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

Religious Freedom: Cornerstone of Peace

The current divisions in the United States are distressing, complex, and increasing in intensity. In the main, they spring from differences between the religious and secular.

As a result of these differences, signs abound that the great battles of the future will occur over the free exercise of conscience, religion, and free expression. Because obedience to the law and political toleration are fundamental to peace and prosperity, if there was ever a time for religious influence to be re-examined, that time is now.

Such a refocus is essential because religious freedom is at the core of what America is and what it stands for. Yet, it is under fire from those who openly ask whether religion belongs in American public life at all.

“For the first time in nearly 300 years, important forces in American society are questioning the free exercise of religion in principle–suggesting that free exercise of religion may be a bad idea, or at least, a right to be minimized” (Douglas Laycock).

With no sense of history, some claim that religious people and institutions violate the constitutional separation of church and state if they bring their beliefs into the public square. A few scholars have even gone so far as to argue that religion does not deserve to be tolerated, much less receive special protection.

The intent of this blog is to promote shared interests and values for the good of society. It is put to forth ideas which will serve the needs of the people and the common good.

It is my belief that those who question the value or legitimacy of religious liberty do not understand that religious freedom is woven into the very soul of America. It is “the cornerstone of peace in a world with many competing philosophies” (D. Todd Christofferson). It is a cherished heritage we must defend.

Explained by historian Perry Miller, “When the English undertook to plant colonies in America, they commenced . . . not with propositions about the rights of man or with the gospel of wealth, but with absolute certainties concerning the providence of God.”

Our nation was founded as an experiment in human liberty: “It was religion, which, by teaching men their near relation to God, awakened in them the consciousness of their importance as individuals. It was the struggle for religious rights, which opened their eyes to all their rights. It was resistance to religious usurpation which led men to withstand political oppression. It was religious discussion which roused the minds of all classes to free and vigorous thought. It was religion which armed the martyr and patriot in England against arbitrary power, which braced the spirits of our fathers against the perils of the ocean and wilderness and sent them to found here the freest and most equal state on earth” (William Ellery Channing).

Religious purpose connected the Puritans of Massachusetts and stirred Virginia’s first colonists, with both groups looking to God for their success. William Penn (Pennsylvania) and Roger Williams (Rhode Island) established colonies dedicated to the principle of religious liberty.

Furthermore, the principal influence in public debates leading up to the American Revolution was the King James Bible. Indeed, America’s War for Independence cannot be understood without taking into account the religious teachings that motivated patriots to action.

Believing that no provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience, Thomas Jefferson defined freedom of thought as the most critical goal of the American Revolution. As the grand architect of our Founding Charter, Jefferson was firm in his conviction that without the freedom to live and practice what we believe, the other freedoms are irrelevant. These are the truths that called Americans to action and upon which this nation was founded.

Religious liberty is a fundamental right. “In a pluralistic society, promoting one’s values for the good of society is not imposing them on others–it is putting them forward for consideration along with others. Societies will choose and decide. Someone’s values will prevail in the end, and all of us have the right–and duty–to argue for what we believe will best serve the needs of the people and most benefit the common good” (Christofferson).

Religion and religious freedom are deeply connected to both the formation of America and our ongoing effort to form a more perfect Union and establish justice. Drawing upon our noble heritage as Americans, this is our moment to defend our fundamental freedoms. As Winston Churchill said on the eve of the Second World War, let us “arise again and take our stand for freedom as in the olden time.”

For further information, I invite you to visit: http://www.americasgranddesign.com