Running Head: Worldviews
History and Philosophy of Ideas
Maryjean Hall
Siena Heights University
Dr. Patricia L. McDonald
September 25, 2013
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I never questioned my worldviews or even thought about them before, then I started
reading a book called “Naming the Elephant” (Sire, 1989). There is a lot of information that
individuals can get out of this book about worldviews. Once you started reading the book, you
won’t want to put it down. It’s full of great knowledge and insight on worldviews. Individuals
can learn how to create different ways in learning worldviews and how it affects others.
It was interesting how the book was using a father and a son having a conversation about
“what holds the up world” (p.1). The father kept trying to give simple answers to his son, at first
the son was okay with his father’s answer but, by morning his Son would be more confused and
started asking more questions because He didn’t think his father was giving him all the right
answers that he was looking for.
The worldview that was most interesting, and got my attention the most was the
worldview on biblical worldviews. Sire wrote “In the biblical worldview, in short, everything is
first and foremost determined by the nature and character of God. It cannot be said too strongly:
ontology precedes epistemology. Though it may not appear to be so at first, to turn this around
and presuppose the epistemology determines ontology is devastating to the Christian worldview”
(p. 56).
God is everything in my mind this is a belief and worldview I have in God always.
Human knowledge of God is always possible for everyone to believe if they are a Christian and
have God in their hearts. If individuals disagree with this study that is okay, everyone has their
own beliefs. Believing in God is a belief that not everybody views but, there will always be
someone who will argue that they can’t wrap that idea around their minds.
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I know that there are different denominations and cultures that have different views and
different beliefs if God is real or not. But believing in God’s who gave his only son to save our
sins is one’s choice. I believe that if Sire would have included a part of the Christian worldview
which could make God’s word “Gold” and maybe it would be easier for others to believe, but
that part was missing.
Sire writes, “All of us desire to know the truth, not just a story constructed by ourselveseach of us as individuals, some of us as communities or all of us as human beings. And there is at
least one worldview that shows how that is possible, one that can be intimate for each of us as it
can be universal with all of us” (p. 119).I think that this part of this reading helps with the
Christian worldviews and his contact in these explanations help prove his point in trusting
“God”, and his worldviews.
In conclusion sire, recognized all worldviews when it came to the worldviews of God. It
is really hard to define this because there are all different kinds of approaches for everyone who
has their worldviews based on individual’s understandings of Christian beliefs. I believe that this
book will help believers come to help individuals believe in themselves and how they want to
believe in God.
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References
Sire, J. (2004). Naming The Elephant, Worldview as a concept. Intervarsity Press.