An Introduction to Philosophy by W. Russ Payne, Bellevue College is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.
https://commons.bellevuecollege.edu/wrussellpayne/an-introduction-to-philosophy/
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Philosophy is a living discipline with historical roots. It is a developmental progression of thought with basic philosophical methods to frame relevant issues in today’s world.
The study of Philosophy has achieved dramatic progress in the philosophy of science and philosophy of mind.
A study of ethics, covers theories of right action, to think about what is good for ourselves and our relationships.
Meta-ethical issues deal with moral truths and what makes them so.
Social justice is about inculcating good values into our communities, in the course of development into moral maturity.
A continuity of thought leads from the historical roots of philosophy to diverse areas of inquiry that significantly contribute to understanding ourselves and our world.
Philosophers have a profound influence on thought processes and on how people think. Philosophy is relevant to people’s lives and makes a difference in the world they live in.
Philosophers are at the cutting edge of the profession, brilliant researchers with clearly articulated fresh perspectives on important issues of matters of significant relevance in today’s world.
A spirit of free and open discourse is the pulsing lifeblood of philosophy. Philosophy is the process of rational enquiry into all aspects of knowledge. Philosophical issues are diverse and far ranging, dealing with three topics – metaphysics, epistemology and ethics.
Metaphysics is concerned with the nature of reality, like the existence of God and human free will. It is a challenge to philosophers to uncover the final and complete truth about the underlying nature of reality.
Metaphysics aims to understand the essence and nature of reality, how things are, can be, could or could not be.
Metaphysics explores the realm of possibility and necessity. Metaphysicians are brilliant explorers of logical space.
Epistemology is concerned with the nature of knowledge and justified belief.
Epistemology is concerned with what we ought to believe and how we ought to reason.
Ethics is concerned with what we ought to do, in order to live and organize our communities.
Moral Relativism substitutes the commands of society for the commands of God. Commands are to be obeyed, not to be inquired into, assessed for reasonableness, or tested against evidence.
Morality in terms of authoritative commands leaves no room for rational inquiry into how we ought to live, treat others and structure our communities.
Philosophy analyzes the possibility of rational inquiry into significant matters of relevance.
While Metaphysics deals with the nature of things, Epistemology is concerned with the knowledge of it, and Ethics boldly asks what should be done about it.
ANOINTED TO SERVE - Miriam Jacob 
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