54 M. Sait Özervarli
In fact some modern philosophers including Immanuel Kant also chal-
lenged ontological and cosmological arguments for the existence of
God; this had a great impact on contemporary discussions in philoso-
phy of religion. Theist thinkers, who are not in favor of using philo-
sophical argumentation methods in matters of faith, suggest that reli-
gious texts do not emphasize the issue of evidence, but rather underline
the significance of firm conviction of the heart through divine guid-
ance. They point out that philosophical arguments prove the existence
of God only as a theoretical conception in the mind and that the logi-
cal necessity of His existence that is reached through reasoning may
affect the freedom of belief, which is offered by God to everyone.^60
Today, especially, reformed epistemologists strongly defend a view
that believing in God is “properly basic” in human beings and does not
require proving.^61 Similarities between these views and Ibn Taymiy ya’s
approach are quite remarkable and deserve further studies and com-
parative analyses.
3. Love of God as a Human Expression
of Divine Wisdom
Under the previous headings I focused on Ibn Taymiyya’s understand-
ing of divine wisdom, his approach to its reflections on freedom of
action in the light of his criticisms of the Muʿtazilīs and Ashʿarīs, and
also the innate ability of human nature to comprehend divine wisdom
and guidance. Henceforth, I will highlight Ibn Taymiyya’s consider-
ation of the love of God as an essential dimension of human nature
and its potential to enable one to acknowledge the existence of divine
wisdom with greater conviction and efficiency.
In line with his views on divine wisdom and human affinity to belief,
Ibn Taymiyya emphasizes that the Koran bases humans’ religious
belief on true love of and devotion to God. Theologians neglect the
60 For discussions on the topic, see Hick, John: Arguments for the Existence of
God, London 1970, pp. 101–105. And for the details of the same debate between
Richard Swinburne and Dewi Zephaniah Phillips, see Messer, Richard: Does
God’s Existence Need Proof?, Oxford 1993.
61 On this view and various approaches regarding the issue of reason and belief in
contemporary discussions in philosophy of religion, see Plantinga, Alvin: Rea-
son and Belief in God, in: Alvin Plantinga and Nicholas Wolterstorff (eds.):
Faith and Rationality, Notre Dame and London 1991, pp. 16–93.
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