This is a fair question. After all, we have the Bible, the greatest source of Wisdom ever written that was inspired by God Himself. So why should we read Aristotle or Plato or the Stoics or any other non-Christian philosopher. They were after all Pagans and Gentiles. Well, I have personally found great wisdom and help in the study of the great philosophers, and so did a great many of early Christians. Boethius, Aquinas, and Clement all studied and learned from Greek philosophy. In fact, when reading Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, you will see many references to ‘The Philosopher’ which is referring to Aristotle. I think there are a few good reasons why the study of Philosophy can be incredibly beneficial to Christians, and I will walk through those in this post.
First, a lot of early Christian thought derives from Plato and Aristotle and Greek philosophy in general. In fact, there is a concept called ‘praeparatio evangelica’ which is Latin for “Preparation for the Gospel’, and this concept basically states that God laid the groundwork for the Gospel of Jesus Christ through earlier religions and philosophies. Another way of saying this is that Christianity is the ultimate culmination or completion of these other belief systems. Or that earlier religions and philosophies are blurry images of the trueness of Christianity. Now of course some philosophies are less “blurry” than others, but I think in many ways the Greek tradition prepared the intellectual way for many Christian concepts.
Aristotelian metaphysics is greatly used in the explanation of Christian concepts such as the nature of God, and Aquinas used it as a basis for his arguments for God’s existence. Additionally, Aristotle’s and Plato’s work on ethics have many similarities to Christian teaching and were useful as a logical groundwork for the teachings of the New Testament. So in many ways, understanding philosophy can lead to a greater understanding and ability to communicate the Gospel, reasons for God’s existence, God’s nature, and many other biblical teachings and doctrines.
Another reason these philosophical studies were prominent in the early church was for evangelical reasons. Early Christians lived in a time when many of the gentiles followed these belief systems so an understanding of them allowed Christians to better evangelize and relate to the gentiles. Even today I think this can be important because I think so much of our Western morality is based on these ancient philosophical ideas whether we know it or not. So, I think understanding concepts of morality and virtue philosophically can help lead nonbelievers to Jesus Christ.
I think it can also be of value to take the good of these belief systems and merge them with the biblical teachings. This is something that Erasmus did with the teachings of Stoicism. He saw value in certain teachings such as a virtuous act done with a selfish disposition is not virtuous at all, and he sought to bridge the gap between these Stoic teachings and the teachings of Christ. I think there is a lot of value in this type of activity to redeem and save these ancient belief systems by connecting them to the ultimate truth of Christianity.
Furthermore, I truly believe that these ancient philosophers were trying to uncover and teach the truth of the Christian faith, but they simply lacked the knowledge and faculties to do so in their time. There is a concept of Common Grace which is the grace of God that extends to all men, and I feel confident to say that God gave grace and wisdom to these men which led to these great teachings. Truly, the world is a better place because Aristotle and Plato lived in it. Their teachings may be flawed and incomplete, but they also have led many men throughout history to live better, more virtuous lives and that impact can not be denied. Unfortunately, they lived prior to the life of Christ and did not have the opportunity to hear or accept His teachings.
On a quick aside, it is also for these above reasons that I would make a case that Aristotle is in heaven. The Catholic Catechism in paragraph 847 describes men that who for no fault of their own do not hear the Gospel, but nonetheless seek God in their hearts may be saved. Now, I hold an even less restricted view of salvation than the Catholics and thus very much could support the idea of Aristotle in heaven. Or at a minimum he lives in “Limbo” as Dante describes.
Finally, I would like to mention a piece by Charles Malik called the “Two Tasks of Evangelism”, this is a very well-written argument and case for the intellectual side of faith that I would highly recommend. In it, Malik describes that evangelism is a task that seeks to save the soul and the mind and that in the second task, Christians are failing. I could not agree more with this sentiment. I think in the areas of science, philosophy, or any intellectual pursuit Christians are falling behind, and this is a real shame. After all, Christians created the modern university and have been the minds behind some of the greatest discoveries and creations in the history of the world. However, in this modern age we are losing respect and influence in intellectual discussion because we simply do not engage in many of these disciplines anymore. We must prepare ourselves intellectually for the task of defending and sharing our faith. How people receive the Gospel is shaped by their culture and environment, and we live in a secular culture that values science and intellectual thought. Simply put, I think many atheists are not open to testimony or emotional arguments for God because Christianity is no longer respected intellectually as a viable worldview. Therefore, we must be prepared to explain these concepts in a Christian worldview. Philosophy is the bedrock of all intellectual pursuits. It provides the basis for understanding and explaining all concepts that describe the world around us, and so Christians must start here. We should study Philosophy because it provides the toolset to learn, understand, and teach about God, His Creation, and His plans for us.
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