Philosophy of Religion Research

"Heart" Role in Pascal’s Religious Epistemology

Editorial

Authors

1 Associate Professor at the Department of Islamic Philosophy and Hikmah, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

2 MA of Philosophy, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Among epistemic justification theories, Pascal believes in fundationalism. In his view, basic beliefs are divided into experimental, mathematical and religious ones. Pascal believes that the experimental beliefs are justified by experiment, while the justification of mathematical and religious beliefs are by another source called "heart". The purpose of this paper is to study the role of "heart" in justification of basic beliefs, especially the religious ones, and to present a clear interpretation of Pascal’s epistemology. The paper is also trying to explain the differences between "heart" and "intellect" in Pascal’s epistemology, and the reason why he employs "heart" in his epistemology instead of "intellect".

Keywords

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Philosophy of Religion Research
Volume 8, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
May 2010
Pages 151-170