In this extract one of Owen’s forms of gaining a sense of God’s reality is through contemplation of beauty and order in nature. The use of nature in reference to God is a controversial area of philosophy and one that has been discussed for many centuries. One example of this is Thomas Aquinas (1224-74) who stated in his Summa Theologica that knowledge of God could be reached through our human reason, and in particular if we applied reason to the evidence that we see around, that we can reach valuable truths about God. Aquinas applied his reason to come to the conclusion that ‘some intelligent being exists by whom all natural things are directed to their end’. William Paley went on to use nature to attempt to come to the conclusion that God was creator of the universe, comparing the Earth to a watch, Paley stated that when we see all parts of an object working together we assume that their must be a designer and this is also the case with the Earth. However David Hume countered the idea that knowledge of God’s reality could be gained through nature by attacking the reasoning used by Aquinas that if we look at the effects (the world) we can infer the cause (God). Hume argued that cause and effect does not operate as simply as this. Moreover many modern scientists influenced by Darwin such as Richard Dawkins have argued that by looking at nature we can infer only what is scientifically provable through testing, and that to look at the Earth and to make the jump to God is too great.
Another example of Owen’s that Donovan uses to gain a sense of God’s reality in this extract is religious experience that comes as a product of secular pressures of life. This again is a controversial area of sociology and philosophy that has been addressed in detail by Karl Marx. Marx argued that rather than being a source from which to gain knowledge of God, religious experiences that are triggered by secular pressures are a form of ‘religious opium’ that act to nullify the pains of those with lower social status. Marx went on to counter the religious experiences of those of higher social status by claiming that these religious interactions merely act to reaffirm the positions of the ruling classes who are desperate to keep hold of their power. The role of religion as a form of maintaining social structure as argued by Marx is one that can be reinforced by the Christian hymn which emphasises God’s decision to sanction the ‘rich man in his castle, the poor man at his gate’. Thus Marx argues that religious experiences originating from the secular pressures of society lead to know intuitive knowledge of God and rather just act as an opium. However this is an idea that has been argued against by H.H Farmer who argued that religious experiences originating from secular pressures can represent the will of God as can be reinforced by individuals such as Trevor Huddlestone who do good after religious experience despite the fact that it goes against their position in society, which in his case was as a white Archbishop fighting against apartheid despite the fact that it seemingly benefited him as a white man.
Donovan goes on in this extract to argue that the forms of religious experience that Owen suggests are legitimate for gaining knowledge on God seem to be consistent with the teachings of the Bible about how God is known. Donovan’s argument that in the Bible God seeks fellowship with humanity can be reinforced by the Christian idea that God sent his son Jesus in order to set humans free from the original sin of Adam and Eve and enable them through Jesus to gain fellowship and unity with God in heaven. Experiences such as the conversion of St. Paul at Damascus exemplify Donovan’s argument in this extract that God makes himself known through the lives of people. Donovan’s idea that the world is the medium of revealing God’s nature is one that has been explored by many other theologians and philosophers and has been termed ‘natural theology’ which similar to Owen’s ideas, allows for knowledge of God to be achieved through nature. One key proponent of the idea that we can learn about God through natural theology is Mother Teresa who used her views of nature to conclude that “God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls”
As has been shown by all the conflicting viewpoints on the acquisition of knowledge about God, it seems to be an area of philosophy that, like many others, is inconclusive largely due to its subjective nature. In this extract Donovan points out how this idea of intuitive knowledge fits with established Christian ways of thinking, however Donovan in the rest of the article goes on to acknowledge the weaknesses of gaining knowledge of God, arriving at the conclusion that there is no justification for an all or nothing view of religious experience as despite its weaknesses it still has significant value to the individual.
