Should philosophy be a part of the ordinary Christian life?

Philosophy can be part of the Christian life. It’s certainly helpful to know philosophy, but it’s not critical; it’s not absolutely necessary. We don’t need to be familiar with the writings and tradition of Plato and Socrates. We don’t need to know Aristotelian language or concepts in order to live the Christian life. They can be helpful, however, especially as we understand the distinguishing features of Christianity over and against various philosophical concepts.

I will say this: as we look at the ancients, such as the Stoics and other various thinkers throughout time, a lot of concepts and notions they taught or wrote are biblical. Of course, not all of them are biblical, and many of them don’t come from biblical truth. But they have similar biblical strains running through them—that is probably the best way to say it. They don’t begin with the Bible or use biblical language, but it is interesting that some of the ancients, by the light of nature, their understanding of creation, and their understanding of how man exists and works, taught principles that share similar biblical strains of truth.

This transcript is from a live Ask Ligonier event with Burk Parsons and has been lightly edited for readability. To ask Ligonier a biblical or theological question, email ask@ligonier.org or message us on Facebook or Twitter.