Intellect

To summarize the last post; When we make choices there are two factors involved. One is the desire itself and the other is our deliberation. We deliberate to determine if the desire is good and should be pursued and then think about the right way to go about making it happen. If desire is dictating actions without checking in with reason, there is no filter. This is what is meant by vice. Well being isn't considered and it is harder to say such actions are by choice. But if desires aren't involved, the actions become routine and mechanical. Actions done this way are done out of duty or another higher ideal. It is hard to say that these actions are by choice either. It is only by having desire and reason working harmoniously together that we control our choices. Good reasoning chooses good desires and good choices are made. We see this conflict in religious studies. Faith verses works or flesh verses spirit. But we have to admit that faith without works is dead and the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak....Both need to work together properly to make good choices.

Now we are looking at the intellect. It is the part of our rational mind that obtains, stores and analyzes information. Some areas exist to make material things, some to figure out the world around us, and yet others help us make judgment calls concerning the direction of our lives. It is an interesting topic and today there are numerous theories about the origin. But we are studying the areas themselves and looking at their characteristics.

We have already discussed the scientific part where we make associations between things we observe. Scientific things have to be presented to others where they can see the same thing. Science is concerned with actions and things that repeat themselves and so we find constants and rules by observation. It deals with certainties and tries to eliminate variables The next area is art.

The area of our intellect called art makes variations. We study words and paragraph structure to write books and plays. Another area of art would be architecture. In this area we study the science of structure then we put it to use with our creativity. Art isn't concerned as much with constants but it uses them to make what is in the creators head. All art has the origin of a maker and an object that he wants to make or has already made. It excludes things that just come natural. Some say that natural things are artwork from God but we are discussing the human intellect and things that come out of the human mind. An artist takes existing objects and makes what he wills out of them.

After art we have practical wisdom. Some believe this is the most important area of the intellect.