What is the Unsentimental Sentiment?
Short Definition
Life asks two fundamental questions: what do you want and how will you get it. We must determine our values and then achieve them. The Unsentimental Sentiment is the anchoring dream around which my life revolves. My purpose is to be introspectively transparent, refreshingly rational, and, above all, enjoyable to read. I am letting you inside my intellectual and spiritual pilgrimage because I believe it is fascinating and important. If I can help you think through and develop your philosophy, making it more explicit and certain, then I will have served my purpose. I intend to articulate an executive philosophy of life, which works for the simple reason that it is true.
Further Explanation of my Philosophy and Purpose:
To answer the two fundamental questions we must know the nature of reality. This knowledge is not automatic and therefore must be learned. To the extent you ignore reality, you have a false interpretation of life. Our tools are: reason to determine values, and action to achieve them. In our search for truth about reality, we must give primacy to reason, and not mysticism or materialism. Reason is only a means — the truth can be sought from a variety of perspectives. We tend to focus on the stuff that interests us personally. I focus on history, philosophy, theology, and psychology. I’m interested in exploring many of the paradoxes of life: knowledge/wisdom, practice/theory, mind/body, success/happiness, nihilism/purpose.
I am a Christian Hedonist, meaning that I aim for the deepest happiness which is open to man. Namely, the glorification of “The Ultimate Idea” (God) by enjoying Him forever. Jesus Christ claimed to be that ultimate idea. Religions have started in opposition to this claim. The question for you now is: what is “The Ultimate Idea”? And how do you know? Does it matter?
I believe Jesus’ claim unequivocally, and we will explore His grand claim on the levels of prophecy, irreversible history, and philosophy (all branches).
Although I’m not interested in mysticism, I recognize a massive disparity between knowledge and experience. I will not dismiss experience or knowledge which sounds ”miraculous” to me simply on the basis of its incredibility. But these must turn out upon investigation to be rational miracles, meaning that they align with the rest of reality. Incredible experience or knowledge is possible both in the sense of the incompleteness of scientific knowledge and the cosmological plausibility of special or continual supernatural, extra-mundane intervention. In addition to judging incredible claims with reality, I will use the patented Deuteronomy Test for saving time on dead-end claims to special experience: if the “prophet” predicts something that never happens, he is a quack.
I borrow the phrase “Unsentimental Sentiment” from Richard Weaver (1910-1963), a quiet English professor at the University of Chicago who saw the degradation of Western Civilization as a historical fact. Weaver used his writings to combat the modern assault on language among other things.
The Unsentimental Sentiment is my way of dealing with life’s two questions of what I want and how I will get it. A sentiment is a general, comprehensive view of the world. We must already have a metaphysical dream to even talk about the concept of “the world” or “reality”. Yes, a sentiment is ultimately a refined emotion. But this is precisely why mine is an “unsentimental” sentiment. Emotions do not have to be random. In fact, they should be based on reason. To be “unsentimental” means to be tough-minded, to face facts or difficulties realistically and with determination. Hence, the unsentimental sentiment is a global picture of the universe based on reality. I do not separate truth and utility because they are not opposed to each other; indeed, they are complementary: truth is concerned with value creation and utility with achievement.
My name is Brian Gabriel. I live in Spokane, Washington, USA.
Contact me at bgousa@yahoo.com