Islam And The Primacy Of Reason
Ali Eteraz
I asked before if there was a place for pure rationalism in Islam and provided an example of one such thinker.
Now, in an article about Islamic Enlightenment we see:
Between 750 and 1050, authors made use of a surprising freedom of thinking in their approach to religions and to the phenomenon of belief. In their analyses, they bowed to the primacy of reason, honoring one of the basic principles of the Enlightenment. This phenomenon took place during a period of effervescence, of intense intellectual exchange, that Islam experienced a little more than a century after its advent, when its followers were seeking to develop a tradition capable of confronting much more sophisticated systems of thought. This was also a time when newcomers to Islam continued to remember theological systems and questions raised by the beliefs that had seen them come into being or evolve (like Judaism, various Christian sects, Manicheism, or Zoroastrianism).
Nevertheless, I think it is great that the Mutazilite school and the falsafa are being revived. More than anything, Islamic thought needs to be subjected to rational debate if Muslims want their religion to stay fresh and relevant.
Roger Bacon, an Englishman of the 13 century, is another important figure in the history of scientific experiment. He learned most of his optical theories from the books of al-Kindi and Ibn al-Haytham. Here is Bacon on the nature of experimental knowledge:
Of course we all lose our tempers now and then. Dean freely admits to being imperfect in this regard, which is why regulars to this establishment will generally be cut more slack than people who we don't know very well.
Still: behave like an adult, or go find somewhere else to play. Thanks.