IJSHMS

A Contemporary Understanding of Divine Illumination as a Source of Knowledge

© 2024 by IJSHMS

Volume 2 Issue 3

Year of Publication : 2024

Author : Donna T. Hobbs

DOI : 10.56472/25839756/IJSHMS-V2I3P103

Citation :

Donna T. Hobbs, 2024. "A Contemporary Understanding of Divine Illumination as a Source of Knowledge" ESP International Journal of Science, Humanities & Management Studies (ESP-IJSHMS)  Volume 2, Issue 3 : 15-24

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Abstract :

This paper examines the evolution of epistemology, the process for understanding the source of cognitive data, by contrasting theological, existential, and phenomenological approaches to synthesis. Data is not just an integral variable for obtaining knowledge but also becomes the raw material for individual understanding of reality. Starting with the Ancient Greek philosophers, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, this timeline covers almost 1800 years, 470 B.C. to A.D. 1308. My objective is to connect the Greek philosophies regarding the source of knowledge to the Christian theologies of Saint Augustine, Saint Anselm, Saint Bonaventure, Saint Thomas Aquinas, and Saint John Duns Scotus. The transition of the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire, the advent of Christianity, the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the subsequent reconstruction of the Holy Roman Empire, and the discord between the Western Latin Church and the Eastern Greek Church provide the context in which the evolution of epistemology is considered.

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Keywords :

Evolution of Epistemology, Phenomenological Approaches, Divine Illumination, Source of Knowledge.