This course introduces students to principles of philosophical discourse by means of Socratic dialogue, basic epistemology seminars, scholarly cultural analysis, and study of philosophical texts. Students are taught to recognize and avoid informal fallacies in discussion, and to strive for intellectual precision and logical soundness as they search for truth.
This course introduces students to practical problem solving through logical deduction and induction, probability, and proofs of validity in formal systems. This course may include existential quantifiers, sets, and functions. In addition, this course trains students to evaluate argument salience through informal logic and consider critical thinking values such as objectivity and truth.
Logic has long been part of the core of a liberal arts education. In this course, students will learn to become better thinkers and communicators; mastering skills in symbolic logic, fallacy identification, and the philosophy of language. Topics in the history of philosophy and other disciplines will be studied to illustrate the role of logic in the liberal arts and to provide an opportunity for students to use their skills in diverse contexts.
A foundational course designed to familiarize the student with the meaning and relevance of philosophy through a study of its main problems and the principal theories that have been proposed as solutions to them.
The goal of PHIL 3320 is to prepare students for success in global business by teaching ethics from a Christian perspective. Students will be instructed in major approaches to business ethics and will be given opportunities to develop their character in constructive ways via case study participation. Special attention will be devoted to character formation in the context of a Christian worldview. Course topics may include: philosophical and cultural foundations of Business Ethics, the application of ethical principles in the marketplace, the development of constructive decisions and character amid the challenges of global business, the setup of a business ethics program within an organization. Human resources issues of diversity, whistle blowing, recruiting and hiring, and compensation will also be discussed as part of the course’s application phase.
A study of the historical development of Western philosophy from its early beginnings in Greece to the end of the Middle Ages.
An in-depth study of the philosophical foundations for Christian belief and practice, including engaging philosophical criticisms of basic Christian beliefs and teaching.
A continuation of PHIL 3323, beginning with the Renaissance and ending with the more important philosophers of recent times.
An analysis and evaluation of the tragic worldview as expressed in classic literature and philosophies of life. Topics considered could include the role of fate, free will, luck, and providence in moral responsibility, virtue, and happiness. Works considered could include the philosophies of Aristotle, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, and Nietzsche, alongside the dramas of Sophocles and Shakespeare. Special attention will be paid to the problem of evil and the question of whether tragedy is compatible with the Christian worldview.
A course designed to introduce students to medical humanities. The course is an interdisciplinary approach to looking at medical ethics and culture that will focus on the humanities and especially philosophy. Subjects to be covered may include the concept of personhood at the beginning and end of life, the arts and medicine, the historical development of medicine, theology of medicine, and the philosophy of science and medicine.
This course will look at debates in medical ethics. Topics may include abortion, euthanasia, medical testing and research, scarcity and distribution of health care, genetics, privacy, and reproductive technology.
A course exploring an unusual or specialized topic within the field of philosophy. Example topics may include philosophy of time, existence of abstract objects, subject/object division, applied ethics, or pop-culture studies.
Topics are selected on basis of student need and academic qualifications of staff. If regular lectures are not given, a minimum of 30 hours of work for each hour credit must be included. This course may be repeated for credit.
A course in which the major ethical systems and their theories of value and conduct are studied critically and evaluated from a Christian point of view.
Examination of texts from the history of philosophy focusing on the questions of beauty, appropriateness, and value of both art and nature.
Metaphysics is the study of the nature of reality. Topics to be discussed may include freedom of the will, causation, being, the nature of universals, possibility and necessity, space and time, philosophical anthropology and some philosophical theology. This class will provide a survey of these topics as it surveys views of the nature of reality over many different philosophical genres.
Considers questions such as the following: Can I have knowledge of anything outside my own mind – for example, physical objects or other minds? Or is the skeptic’s attack on my commonplace claims to know unanswerable? What is knowledge?
Examination of the philosophical foundations for the natural sciences, as well as conceptual issues surrounding the nature and extent of scientific inquiry.
Readings from post-Idealist Anglo-American philosophers who pursue clarity, precision, and formalized logical argument as the best means to engage recurring philosophical questions.
Examination of texts from the history of philosophy focusing on the relationship between the individual and collective neighbor. In this course, the great philosophers guide us as we wrestle with questions concerning the polis, state, just and unjust government, and the law.
A critical examination of the nature and validity of religious experience and the place of religion in human life. Consideration is given to religious problems such as the existence and nature of God, the source of religious knowledge, the nature of man, the origin and nature of evil. (Offered also as CHRI 4363.)
A course exploring the nature of the mind and its relation to the body, consciousness, and thought. Topics may include personal identity, dualism, other minds, artificial intelligence, intention, and will.
This course will closely study one or more philosophical texts from an important philosophical thinker. Examples include a study of Kierkegaard, a seminar on the Critique of Pure Reason, a close look at The Republic and the secondary literature surrounding it, and the writings of Al Plantinga.
This course continues research, writing, and defense of a thesis project began in PHIL 6380. This course earns one credit hour and may be taken twice. Credit hours earned in this course may not be applied toward any course or credit hour requirements in the Master of Arts in Philosophy degree.
This course will cover the fundamentals of classic Christian apologetics. Topics such as arguments for God’s existence, the problem of evil, and the epistemology of religious belief will be covered.
This course will cover basic logic, including traditional logic, but focusing on modern symbolic logic. In addition to sentence logic and predicate logic, it will include probability and basic modal logic.
This course will deal with basic issues in philosophy of religion, such as arguments, the problem of evil, the relationship between faith and reason, miracles, and life after death. (Offered also as APOL 5320.)
This course explores the methodological and epistemological foundations of contemporary clinical psychology and counseling as well as other philosophical topics relevant to Christian therapeutic practice. These topics may include rationality, free will, clinical relationships, ethics, and philosophy of science. In addition, the way worldview impacts the history and future of clinical practice will be explored and emphasized. Texts assigned may include works by Plato, Aristotle, Epictetus, Augustine, Kierkegaard, James, Freud, Skinner, Piaget, and Kohlberg.
This course will examine fundamental issues such as the nature of ultimate reality or being, the mind body problem, and the nature of freedom and its relationship to determinism. Particular attention will be given to the role of God in metaphysics and to the difference his existence makes for various issues.
This course will examine and assess different accounts of warranted belief and grounds for claims to knowledge. It will give attention to religious epistemology and the impact of theistic belief on epistemic theory.
This course will focus on the nature of the good and the right, and various accounts of these fundamental aspects of moral philosophy, both classical and contemporary. Attention will be given to theistic and Christian accounts of morality, such as natural law theory and divine command theory.
This course will survey major figures, issues and ideas in the history of philosophy from the period of the pre-Socratic philosophers through the middle ages. Particular attention will be given to development of Christian thought in these time periods.
This course will survey major figures, issues, movements, and developments from Descartes in the beginning of the modern period to the early twentieth century. Particular attention will be given to the period of the enlightenment and other movements that have affected Christianity, either positively or negatively.
This course will analyze and assess theories of beauty, value and the nature and meaning of art. Particular attention will be given to the role that belief in God has in the creative process and the meaning and motivation for artistic creation.
This course will explore the history of the relationship between science and religion, including the alleged hostility between the two. It will examine various accounts of the compatibility between the two and ways they can be understood as mutually enriching. Other topics in the philosophy of science and how they interact with theism may be considered. (Offered also as APOL 6320.)
This course will critically examine the main philosophical and religious writings of C. S. Lewis. It will assess the value and ongoing significance of his work for Christian philosophy and apologetics.
This course is a survey of some of the different views of church-state relations that have been developed in western philosophy and in the Christian tradition over the last two thousand years. Its focus is on contemporary thinkers and also on the political philosophies of the major philosophers in the cannon. It includes studies of monarchy, two-kingdom theory, religious toleration, distributive justice, democracy, establishment and disestablishment, and citizenship, among other topics. Upon completion of the course, students will be familiar with the major theories of the relationship between church and state, and will be able to articulate and defend their own views of church-state interaction.
This course will examine the problem of evil as a challenge to theistic and Christian belief, and explore different responses to the challenge, both classic and contemporary.
This course explores topics in both substantive and critical philosophy of history. These topics may include the nature of historical explanation and narrative, the relation of history to other disciplines, and the way in which scholars have viewed historical progress. Of interest will be the way in which the Philosophy of History can inform our theological beliefs, and in particular, our understanding of the life of Christ.
This is a course for students writing a Master’s thesis. Requirements and readings will be set by consultations with a student’s advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies.
