Panentheism Addressing Philosophy's Responsibility

If we united religion, science and philosophy, what would it offer us? What would if offer us as a species? It may provide us with a means of coming to a consensus regarding what it is we believe we are and why it is we believe we exist. It was Carl Sagan who best expressed it when he said: "We are privileged to influence and perhaps control our future. I believe we have an obligation to fight for others, who came before us, and to whom we are all beholden and for all those who, if we are wise enough, will come after. There is no cause more urgent, no dedication more fitting then to protect the future of our species. Nearly all our problems are made by humans and can be solved by humans. No social convention, no political system, no economic hypothesis, no religious dogma is more important." The means of developing such a consensus is through the development of a concept defined by Stephen Hawking as a 'universal philosophy.' This 'universal philosophy' could be achieved by using a process developed by Husserl: using 'bracketing' and applying the process of 'reduction' as outlined by Husserl. 'Bracketing' is the process of eliminating any superfluous and irrelevant perceptions that are a part of our everyday lives until one is left with life's primary essentials. 'Reduction' is the process of examining what remains, the primary essentials - to make sense of ones 'intentionality'. In short, it is Husserl's development of process that helps us to develop Hawking's concept of a 'universal philosophy'. It is the process of 'bracketing' and 'reduction' that helps us to formulate answers to the three basic questions: Where are we? What are we? Why do we exist? In essence, it is Husserl who has defined the process and Hawking who has named the product of that process. A search for purpose is in essence a search for a 'universal philosophy' based upon 'truths'. This 'universal philosophy' - this means of modeling a 'universal ethic' upon which we and all life throughout the universe can agree - needs to be found in order to resolve the many socially divisive issues we confront as a species. Perhaps more importantly, we need to develop this understanding, this model, before we confront other life forms with which we may have decidedly differing views. If our species does not put such a consensus in place, we may once again find ourselves divided and in conflict. As history has shown over and over again, we will find ourselves at war with each other.

Author: Daniel J. Shepard

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Publication Date: Jul 14, 2014

Number of Pages: 172 pages

Binding: Paperback or Softback

ISBN-10: 1503329909

ISBN-13: 9781503329904