Buy the truth and do not sell it; wisdom, instruction and insight as well. - Proverbs 23:23
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can stand against the devil’s schemes...when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground...stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist... - Ephesians 6:10, 13, 14
It has been a challenge for me to decide in what order to write and post which topics. My research and writing method so far has been ⅓ as the Spirit moves, ⅓ pure excitement, and ⅓ Rabbit-trail ADD. If I try too hard to nail the ideal release schedule, my perfectionism will land me in the dreaded creative purgatory of Analysis Paralysis. Bear with me as I work all this out in real time.
That being said, one topic DID come up as proper to address before proceeding, because anything can become discombobulated without a method of critical thinking, the foundation of which is known as the Trivium.
The Trivium was taught in the first “schools” to arise in the Western world - the Greek Paideia (instruction and discipline) - which became known as Classical education. It was implemented at Plato’s Academy, Aristotle’s Lyceum, and in such practices as the Socratic Dialogue. The Romans applied the paideia to their early forms of education, training adepts in the 7 liberal arts: Trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric), and Quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music theory). After the fall of Rome, a struggling populous focused more on survival skills; higher education could have vanished if it had not been preserved in the monasteries. The liberal arts re-emerged later, with the added dimension of Christianity, thanks to the monks.
The Trivium method of learning is based on 3 sets of knowledge:
Grammar: answers the question of the Who, What, Where, and the When of a subject
Logic: answers the Why of a subject.
Rhetoric: provides the How of a subject.
This methodology is not structurally taught in most schools, apart from elite institutions. When this information is received out of order, our minds don’t instinctually snap to the Grammar, making the subsequent Logical and Rhetorical parts difficult indeed.
Take Picasso: if all you saw were his cubist abstract works, you might not understand them apart from the rich artistic tradition he was a part of that birthed an innovative expression; Picasso had to learn traditional painting methods first before he could execute something that broke the conventional rules. You can argue if the works are good or bad...but how could you even start your thesis if you didn’t understand painting - aesthetic and the zeitgeist - in the first place?
Why the Trivium Matters in Spiritual Warfare
Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. - Proverbs 4:6-7
A direct application for this method of critical thinking is apologetics: defending the faith through reason, proof texts, and experiential evidence. Evangelism is spiritual warfare in the sense that it spreads the truth and hope of the Gospel to a broken, lost world that is, as the Bible tells us, under the (God-given) authority of the prince of the air. In post-modern times, intellectual discourse like the Socratic Dialogue can be an effective method for leading someone out of darkness.
Whether it’s that road or otherwise, the substratum is being able to discern Truth. But sadly, it’s not so simple. A frequent name given to Satan is the father of lies. False were the first words he spoke to Eve, and that same line is all he ever repeats in different ways, over and over: “Is that really the truth? Did God really say that? If you do this instead, surely you will be better off.” We will go deeper into this in Part 2 of this essay on the Trivium.
Fake news. Photoshop. Deep fake. Critical thinking could not be more, well, critical.
Combat the father and minions of lies; learn to discern the truth. Eve was deceived, Adam was persuaded. In this Spiritual war, thinking is defensive, and speaking truth is offensive, in both senses of the word.
We will take a deeper look into examples and tactics in subsequent posts.
Until then, stay vigilant, friends.
The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception. - Proverbs 14:8
*Picasso montage from www.mymodernmet.com