# Philip Melanchthon on the importance of philosophy to theological method



## Reformed Covenanter (Aug 29, 2022)

Since, therefore, ignorant theology has so many ills, it is easy to judge that the Church has need of many great arts. For in order to judge and to explain correctly and distinctly complicated and obscure things, it is not sufficient to know the common precepts of grammar and dialectic, but varied knowledge is needed; for many things are to be taken from natural philosophy, and many are to be contributed to Christian teaching from moral philosophy.

Furthermore, there are two things for the acquiring of which great and varied knowledge and long practice in many arts are necessary, namely method and style of discourse. For no one can become a master of method, unless he is well and rightly versed in philosophy – indeed in that one kind of philosophy that is alien to sophistry, searches for and discloses truth properly and by the right path. Those who are well versed in these studies, and have obtained for themselves the habit (_hexin_) of relating to method everything that they want to understand or teach to others, also know how to represent methods in religious discussions, how to clear up what is complicated, pull together what is scattered and shed light on what is obscure and ambiguous.

Great and abundant knowledge is also needed for another purpose, namely for the shaping of a discourse, as all know who have occupied themselves even slightly with literature. No less study is needed in order to acquire this habit (_hexin_) of shaping method. It cannot be achieved by those who are not versed in most parts of philosophy. Those who have no practice in these would obtain only the shadow of method, even if they acquired dialectic. None produces what is corrupt and sophistic more often than these men. Whereas they consider themselves masters of method, they nevertheless stray from the path, and they are, to use the Homeric word, blind watchmen (_alaoskopoi_). ...

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Philip Melanchthon on the importance of philosophy to theological method


Since, therefore, ignorant theology has so many ills, it is easy to judge that the Church has need of many great arts. For in order to judge and to explain correctly and distinctly complicated and …




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Reactions: Like 4


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## RamistThomist (Aug 29, 2022)

Oh boy


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## Tychicus (Aug 29, 2022)

This was good.


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