The word “philosophy” may conjure up many different ideas. For some, it is rich, ancient, old men lying around and asking questions with obvious answers. For others, it may bring to mind people sitting in microbreweries and coffee shops wearing beanies with no job as they ask irrelevant questions about the meaning of life. For those looking to graduate and get a degree in anything useful, the idea of taking time to study philosophy may just seem like a ridiculous waste of energy and resources.
Philosophy, however, is so much more than that. It is necessary to pause and question what you believe and why that matters.
In the last several years, ACU has ended its philosophy major and significantly limited its philosophy minor, offering only a few classes and special-interest courses each year. This veering away from philosophy is harmful for students and society as a whole.
Dr. Vic McCracken, a professor in the Department of Bible, Missions and Ministry, who focuses on philosophy and ethics. He defined philosophy as the study of the “big questions.”
“What is truth?” he said. “What is right? What does it mean to be a good person? Is it possible for us to know anything? Are there good reasons to believe that God exists? Why is there evil in the world? These are just some of the examples of questions that philosophy invites us to consider.”
McCracken said that these important questions follow everyone around, even if they are not explicitly studying philosophy, but in studying philosophy, you develop the ability to “live deeply” and “think critically.”
Dr. Paul Morris was a professor in the department of engineering and physics. He said that it’s important to ask philosophical questions so you know who you are, what you believe and how you want to live your life.
He emphasized that it is also important to ask questions about your faith.
“Is there a God? If so, what is he like?” said Morris, in a note he wrote. “Do we have free will? Why is there something rather than nothing?”
He also said students should focus on the transcendentals, “truth, beauty and goodness,” to better understand the world we live in.
McCracken said that although fewer students may want to study philosophy as a subject, the topic is all around us, and most of us have at some point in our lives asked these hard questions.
“I think a drive to answer these questions is something that makes us distinctively human,” said McCracken. “The desire to know more about our lives has been a persistent one among students, in my experience.”
