This paper examines the relationship between faith and reason from a Christian perspective. The thesis argues that through theology, Christians can avoid relying solely on secular philosophy and reason to explain Christian concepts, while still affirming compatibility between faith and reason in pursuing truth. The paper outlines different views on the relationship, including faith and reason being in tension, faith seeking understanding, and a synthesis between the two. It concludes that while faith and reason may seem contradictory, Christianity recognizes the role of reason when guided by faith, and that both theology and philosophy can complement each other in understanding religious beliefs and pursuing truth.

1. Thesis Statement and Outline
FAITH AND REASON ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS OVERVIEW It is now time to take what
you have been learning about the meaning of faith and the role of reason and synthesize this
information into an understanding of the proper relationship between faith and reason.
While you have studied multiple approaches to understanding this relationship, you will
now have the opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of these ideas and develop
your own understanding of how faith and reason should be understood to relate to one
another. This is important, because, as you know from your studies so far, how one
understands the role of reason and faith has an impact on many important theological and
apologetic ideas and issues. INSTRUCTIONS The goal of this assignment is for you to reflect
critically on the question of how faith and reason are related to one another. You will write
a 3,000-word paper that advances and defends a comprehensive description of the proper
relationship between faith and reason. Because of the nature and goals of this assignment,
you are permitted to incorporate work done on other assignments in this course (only) in
the development of this paper. However, you should refine, revise, and redevelop ideas
from these other assignments if you are going to incorporate them into this paper. You must
take into consideration the broad scope of the course materials and relevant outside
research, with special focus on the models of faith and reason that have been defended by
various scholars and theologians. At a minimum, the paper must define faith (which must
involve a discussion of Christian faith specifically and its core beliefs), define reason, discuss
relevant biblical data on both, and survey various alternative models of how faith and
reason relate to one another. The assignment.
Note - Please look at the attached paper, it is done already, but all I want is for you to open
the paper, bring out the Thesis Statement , refine it if possible and use the sources and form
it into an outline for the paper is all the instructor wants, and I will also need a Title page
which I will send to you. Thanks.
Again, look at what I want using the attached paper , a Thesis Statement, and An outline
using the attached paper. Thanks.
ERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
A Sample Paper Submitted to / Professor
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Completion Of
C BO – U

2. P
By
March 6, 2021
Introduction
Athens is widely considered to be the origin of Western philosophy while Jerusalem is the
origin of Christianity, which are two institutions on which the debate of faith and reason are
based. The classical debate on faith and reason continues to be provocative among
theologians and secular philosophers where some affirm the compatibility of the two while
others refute a common ground can be realized. Faith is paramount among religious
believers as it is posited that truth can be attained through conviction. Likewise, reason has
been credited for the attainment of truth associated with earthly knowledge such as that
which is scientific in nature. Nonetheless, not all truth can be premised on the utilization of
either faith or reason due to inevitable contradictory foundations. The contention thus
arises when faith-based truth is pursued through reason leading to the argument that non-
demonstrable truth is non-existential, particularly among secular philosophers. While faith
facilitates a subjective understanding of God and concepts such as evil and good, reason
tends to over-rely on established laws of nature.
Thesis: Through theology, Christians can avoid reliance on secular philosophy, or rather
reason alone, for validity in explaining Christian phenomena, as well as affirm the
compatibility of faith and reason in the pursuit of truth.
Christian Faith Perspective
Based on Jesus Christ's teachings and way of life, Christianity is a religion based on the
belief in God's promises. According to Sergey Astapov faith is centered on the irrationality
of consciousness and the anticipation of promises that cannot be ascertained through
human reasoning. Essentially, through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ,
promises are given to Christian believers such as on eternity following the fulfillment of a
righteous life here on earth and adherence to biblical teachings, particularly on the gospel of
Christ. Thus faith becomes a central component in Christianity as it is first based on a
supernatural being and expected phenomena such as miracles that conventionally would be
perceived as irrational and unrealistic unless proven. A biblical example of a demonstration
of faith in God is represented in the story of Abraham after being asked by God to sacrifice
his son only for a lamb to be provided miraculously on the spur of the sacrifice. Secondly,
faith is based on the probability of disruption of the laws of nature, which can be achieved
through communication with the supernatural being, in this case, God, and influencing the
occurrence of extraordinary phenomena through prayers, and fasting, among other
religious practices associated with Christianity. Thirdly, the Christian faith is based on
believing in supernatural doctrines and ideologies as prescribed through scriptures and
religious leaders such as priests and prophets. Therefore, though reason does play an
important role in the explanation of divergent earthly realities, supernatural phenomena
may demand faith only.
Reason Perspective
Reason has also been widely accepted as a conduit through which earthly
knowledge is acquired. According to Steve Wilkins, philosophical inquiry is based on reason

3. whereby through seeking justification, avoiding biases, and being objective, logical and
evidential knowledge is attained. Reason can be defined as the utilization of the cognitive
faculties to arrive at an understanding that is premised on demonstrable evidence.
Philosophy is inherently based on the utilization of reason in the pursuit of knowledge.
Secular philosophers have thus been seen arguing that the use of reason proclaims more
authority over faith, especially where religious beliefs are barely premised on logic.
Nonetheless, the use of reason is acknowledged even in the bible, for instance, in Isaiah 1:18
where God calls upon his people to join him in reason for cleansing of sins. While the use of
reason is not refuted in its entirety in the Christian faith, theology does not accept the
notion of reason superiority over faith. An examination of how reason and faith can be made
compatible in the attainment of truth, both secular and religious, is thus indispensable.
Through the development of an understanding of the different perspectives that engulf the
faith and reason debate, a compatibility approach can be attained.
Faith and Philosophy in Tension Perspective
The faith and reason in tension viewpoint posits that faith is hostile to science due to its
limited use of empirical evidence and its non-apologist nature. On the other hand, theology
posits that not all truth can be established through scientific inquiry or logic, especially that
which involves God. According to Wilkins, theology posits that reason is simply human and
thus antagonistic towards faith thus hindering the salvation of man. Essentially, the
knowledge of God cannot be comprehensively and meaningfully attained through pursuing
evidential inquiry. Religious scholars such as Martin Luther have been recorded cautioning
against the use of reason to determine spiritual truth and knowledge of God. While reason
as a faculty of inquiry is acknowledged for its contribution to secular knowledge, a similar
approach cannot be adopted in the pursuit of the knowledge of God. This is based on the
fact that God's knowledge is appreciated subjectively and some religious truths can only be
acknowledged through faith. Fundamentally, theology posits that the overreliance on faith
exhorts human capacity and demeans eternity and salvation which are assured via faith.
On the other side of the controversy, secular philosophy posits that truth can only be
established through logic. As Wilkins further postulates, philosophy is more inclined to the
use of reason in enhancing the pursuit of truth and limiting the influence of cultural, social,
religious, and personal bias. Secular philosophers have also accused those relying on faith of
utilizing reason-embedded equipment such as various scientific technologies yet they deny
the superiority of reason over faith. For instance, computerized systems, which are logic-
developed, are being used across the religious and secular worlds for the efficiency of daily
activities such as communication and accounting. The bone of contention thus remains on
to what extent is reason admissible to the pursuit of the knowledge of God.
A distinction between knowledge of God and earthly knowledge is essential for settling the
tension that arises whenever the debate on faith and reason arises. According to Wilkins,
faith is based on principles that cannot be demonstrated via reason, and thus utilizing logic
to ascertain the knowledge of God is untenable. On the contrary, reason is based on laws of
nature that are simply regularities, some of which are not demonstrable but rather faith-
based. For instance, some scientific investigations rely on faith for them to be accepted as
truth. This is evident in the fact that scientists will commonly rely on the integrity of other

4. scientists' works, which essentially is faith. As Vittorio Possenti posits, even earthly
knowledge, such as that developed through scientific inquiry, cannot be limited only to
reason. At some point, faith becomes integral for scientific projects to succeed. Such is the
argument among theologians where it is premised that some truths can be attained by
engaging both faith and reason though when it comes to the knowledge of God such an
approach may be problematic.
Faith Seeking Understanding Perspective
While faith and reason can be perceived by some to be in opposition, seeking the
knowledge of God first can help in establishing both spiritual and earthly knowledge.
Through reference to Augustine’s works and his journey towards finding salvation, Wilkins
posits that reason is a gift from God and thus should not be perceived to be superior to faith.
Reason should be subjected to divine authority for knowledge and understanding of God to
be attained. Caution is however given among Christians on the use of reason autonomously
without subjugating it to divine authority. Through reference to the book of 1 Corinthians
1:2, Wilkins emphasizes that human beings’ rationality is limited when it comes to the
understanding of God’s mysteries and works. Nonetheless, that does not mean that reason
does not play an important role in advancing earthly knowledge such as in medicine,
engineering, and other fields of study that have evidently advanced man’s civilization.
Instead, it should be understood that it is only through first developing faith in God can
human rationality become instrumental in understanding God’s works.
While the ability to use reason to solve earthly problems is God-given and thus should not
be condemned, understanding of the knowledge of God is established in the scripture but
can only be discerned correctly through first developing faith in God. Essentially, in-depth
and extensive knowledge of the scripture is first recommended to gain a divine disposition
that will help in the utilization of reason correctly. With reference to Augustine’s
confessions, his attempt to understand God through acquiring earthly knowledge first such
as Manicheism only resulted in confusion. Necessarily, the use of reason should be divine-
based. Augustine further emphasizes the need for Christians to first believe to understand
God’s works rather than starting with understanding then hoping to believe.
Fundamentally, faith should lead to understanding and not vice versa.
The Synthesis of Reason and Faith
While knowledge of God gained through faith can lead to salvation, an
understanding of God gained through reason autonomously may not necessarily lead to
salvation. As Wilkins continues to emphasize, both philosophy and theology need to be
integrated to develop an understanding of God that can prepare humans to attain salvation.
Based on the works of Thomas Aquinas, Thomistic Synthesis posits that through natural
theology, human reason and experience can limitedly facilitate a certain level of knowledge
of God though not comprehensive. Essentially, philosophy should not be perceived in its
entirety to be void of means through which understanding of divine realities such as
salvation can be attained, and more importantly God, but rather as an instrument through
which spiritual studies can be examined. Though reason alone does not have direct access
to divine realism as through faith, truths about God can be discerned indirectly via natural
theology’s rationalization of God’s creations.

5. Salvation being the ultimate goal for a Christian can be attained through the
synchronization of faith and reason. More importantly, apart from reading and
understanding the scripture, Christians should pursue an understanding of other schools of
thoughts with the intention of building up on their faith and rationale regarding Christian
beliefs. As Alvin Plantinga demonstrates, a Christian can meaningfully defend and
evangelize the gospel of Christ through first believing and secondly, developing theological
and philosophical awareness of rational Christian belief. As A. P. Moreland posits, reason
has an important role to play in understanding God’s works and thus should supplement
faith. Essentially, reinforcing reason through faith and focusing on areas of convergence
between theology and philosophy can enhance a divine and rational understanding of God.
Conclusion
Faith and reason remain controversial areas of study among theologians and philosophers,
especially on where authority lies. Martin Luther was against reason as he argued that it is
against spirituality and God’s works such as miracles. Ironically, Luther, like other
theologians in the past was an expert in philosophy, based on his extensive use of reason in
his arguments, particularly against social vices and phenomena. The tension view on faith
and reason posits that the manner in which humans gain knowledge of God varies from how
the same humans pursue worldly knowledge. Essentially, not all God’s knowledge can be
demonstrated via reason as some of it may be presumed irrational if examined through a
human viewpoint. Fundamentally, Christianity cautions against knowledge of God through
human reason autonomously and rather love should take the place of reason.
Fundamentally, knowing of God is heart-centered and subjective, unlike earthly knowledge
that is objective and achievable through Enlightenment notions. Nonetheless, Christianity
recognizes the essence of reason which is guided by faith. More important to note is that
religion has never necessarily been against reason as many prominent religious leaders in
the past and the modern world were arguably apologists. It is, therefore, important to
examine how theology and philosophy complement each other in the pursuit of truth
regarding religious beliefs, and how both can be compatible in the pursuit of truth and
salvation.
Bibliography
Astapov, Sergey N. "The contradictory unity of faith and reason in Christian theoretical
thought." HTS: Theological Studies 75, no. 4 (2019): 1-9.
McGrath, Alister E. The Christian theology reader. John Wiley & Sons, 2016.
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worldview. InterVarsity Press, 2017.
Moreland, James Porter. Love your God with all your mind: The role of reason in the life of
the soul. Tyndale House, 2014.
Peterson, Michael, William Hasker, Bruce Reichenbach, and David Basinger. Reason &
Religious Belief: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion. 5th ed. New York: Oxford
University Press, 2013. ISBN: 9780199946570.
Plantinga, Alvin. Knowledge and Christian Belief. Grand Rapids: Wm B. Eerdmans, 2015.
ISBN: 9780802872043.
Possenti, Vittorio. "Faith and reason: what relationship?." Zeszyty Naukowe KUL 59, no. 1

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