“All of the buildings and all of the costs/Were once just a dream in somebody’s head.”—-Peter Gabriel, “Mercy Street”
After you have determined what criteria you will use to determine what is true and what is false, the next logical question is one of causation. Was the visible universe created by an all-powerful intelligence transcending human understanding, or is it all there is? In other words, are you an idealist or a materialist?
Consider the quote from Peter Gabriel. Every building is a product of an infinite number of decisions, and not just from the owner, builder, and architect; it includes everything about the economic and social systems that made its construction possible. The material components of it are just inert parts of the planet. Are we to believe that the ultimate driving force behind the building is the raw materials for steel and glass?
Materialism has some intellectual appeal; it is simpler than idealism, and it avoids what I call the animal problem (more on that in a future post). It lacks a satisfactory answer to what I call the Joan of Arc problem (also to be discussed later), however, and it is contrary to my personal experience. Put me in the idealist camp.