Currently Reading What Are People For? By Wendell Berry see related

I need your input. I’m currently taking a Philosophy disscusion class. We are discussing Plato’s Five Dialogues. Our fist discussion on the MENO the issue raised in the text involves Socrates and Menon discussing the nature of virtue. What is virtue? and can it be taught? This is the question Menon has asked Socrates.

First understand that this is not a Theology class and my fellow students are not all arguing Christians view points. They like to argue on a “broader scope”. The discussion is on virtue. The class decided that before you can argue virtue you must first define good and evil. We discussed that in order for something to exist its opposite must also exist. Is this true? I felt like a fish out of water in the argument as a Christian and all of my arguments were based on scripture as an accepted backbone. So if they will not accept argument from scripture I’m left trying to argue the teachings scripture without the aid of scripture itself. I’m using scriptural teachings out of context to provoke intellectual discussion. If I’m successful in presenting the lessons of scripture without the aid of scripture as a reference, then I can bridge to scripture and Godly virtue as we know it. Do any of you have any ideas how I might approach these discussions, any strategy you can provide will be helpful.    

Virtue

              1.       a. Moral excellence and righteousness; goodness.

                        b. An example or kind of moral excellence: the virtue of patience.

              2.       Chastity, especially in a woman.

              3.       A particularly efficacious, good, or beneficial quality; advantage: a plan                             with the virtue of being practical.

              4.       Effective force or power: believed in the virtue of prayer.

              5.       virtues Christianity. The fifth of the nine orders of angels in medieval                                 angelology.           

              6.       Obsolete. Manly courage; valor.

EVIL

Adj.

1. Morally bad or wrong; wicked: an evil tyrant.
2. Causing ruin, injury, or pain; harmful: the evil effects of a poor diet.
3. Characterized by or indicating future misfortune; ominous: evil omens.
4. Bad or blameworthy by report; infamous: an evil reputation.
5. Characterized by anger or spite; malicious: an evil temper.

Noun

1. The quality of being morally bad or wrong; wickedness.
2. That which causes harm, misfortune, or destruction: a leader's power to do both good and evil.
3. An evil force, power, or personification.

Currently Listening Crock of Gold By Shane Macgowan & The Popes see related

Haven’t posted in a while so, I will not attempt to catch up.  Instead I will give you this picture of Tripp Johnston and I out working with the goats. Thanks for the help Tripp.

Currently Listening The Best of the Original Dubliners By The Dubliners see related

Everyone in my family has been sick with both a terrorist of a cold, and a holocaust of a stomach bug. I have experienced the cold part and I hope the Angels of Immunity keep that stomach critter shunned away. On the bright side, I’m thankful it’s not some sort of flesh eating skin disease or Ebola. All these illnesses have really thwarted my plans for the week. I have been forced to improvise and try to find ways to make the most of my week off from work.

I’m one of those people that start way too many projects at the same time. I’m really trying to focus, and actually complete a project or two before the week is finished. I have found myself standing in the yard several times looking around a seeing project in every direction. I have been working towards conquering a couple of my more perplexing endeavors with are; fixing up a dilapidated barn that was built in 1953 and has not had any upkeep at all in the past 20+ years. I have been building a portable chicken house, and I’m also doing some more pasture fencing. Then April and I had a quarrel about the way our house was organized so my work lead me inside and I started organizing closets and cabinets. (April really did most of this work.) This quarrel led us to the conclusion that we do not have enough space for all of our stuff. So I started another project, one that I have been putting off since we moved into the house nearly 3 ½ years ago. I’m trying to finish the basement and alleviate some of our storage issues. Golly, yet another project….. I need a team of shovel wielding Mexicans, and a sack full of gold if I going to complete these cumbersome chores in any kind of reasonable time scale. Starting on Monday I get to add back to work and school to the plate of things to keep me from my projects. Oh well, I actually enjoy most of the work. As we know idle hands are the devils playground…. God is really seeing that I stay out of any mischief here lately. So, if any of you are really mired in boredom and can operate a Mexican backhoe, plus your willing to work for free, boy have I got a job for you?

Hope you all have a relaxing week,

Seth the Distracted