The Five Principles of Middle Way Philosophy - Living Experientially in a World of Uncertainty - Robert M. Ellis

The Five Principles of Middle Way Philosophy - Living Experientially in a World of Uncertainty - Robert M. Ellis

c. Strong, not Weak, Agnosticism

The Five Principles of Middle Way Philosophy - Living Experientially in a World of Uncertainty - Robert M. Ellis

Robert M. Ellis [+-]
Middle Way Society
Robert M Ellis has a Ph.D. in Philosophy and a Cambridge BA in Oriental Studies and Theology. Originally from a Christian background, he spent about 20 years practising Buddhism, including as a member of the Triratna Order. However, he now describes himself as a Middle Way practitioner without exclusive loyalty to any one religious tradition. Over the last 20 years he has developed Middle Way Philosophy, initially in his Ph.D. thesis. This is best described as a practical and integrative philosophical approach, incorporating many elements not only from Buddhism but also from psychology, neuroscience, and other aspects of Western thought. In 2013 he founded the Middle Way Society (www.middlewaysociety.org) to develop and apply Middle Way Philosophy beyond the limitations of the Buddhist tradition, both in theory and practice. Robert has earned a living for more than 20 years as a teacher and tutor of philosophy and related subjects. He has previously published both academic and introductory books about Middle Way Philosophy, and recently a parallel book on Christianity, ‘The Christian Middle Way’.

Description

Contrary to the philosophical assumptions that dominate, ‘strong’ agnosticism (facing up to the state of not knowing) is far more provisional than ‘weak’ agnosticism (not knowing yet, perhaps in future). If the ‘knowing’ of weak agnosticism were to actually occur it would require massive absolute assumptions that the strong agnostic avoids through greater decisiveness. An analogy with addiction may make this clearer. This topsy-turvy cultural attitude to agnosticism results from a widespread obsession with discontinuous ‘knowledge’, and has so far prevented agnosticism being applied to all the other issues (beyond God’s existence) where it needs to be applied.

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Citation

Ellis, Robert. c. Strong, not Weak, Agnosticism. The Five Principles of Middle Way Philosophy - Living Experientially in a World of Uncertainty. Equinox eBooks Publishing, United Kingdom. p. 140-143 Jan 2023. ISBN 9781800503045. https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/view-chapter/?id=44181. Date accessed: 20 Apr 2024 doi: 10.1558/equinox.44181. Jan 2023

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