Ph1: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY

1. Nearly all of us when we are very young have questions about some of the
most basic things that as we grow older we stop questioning and accept
more and more what others tell us. But it happens that some of us reach
a point where we realize that: Not everything we believe is true.
Philosophy begins in a sense of wonder. It begins when we wonder about
what otherwise is taken for granted or assumed to be true.

2. In the philosophical cauldron of Ancient Greece, aside from Platonism and

Aristotelianism, several other schools or movements also held sway:
Sophism, Cynicism, Skepticism, Epicureanism, Hedonism, Stoicsm & Neo-
Plantonism.

3. The history of Western Philosophy is usually divided into 4 periods, each

with its own focus and famous thinkers: Ancient, Medieval, Modern and
Contemporary.

4. Aristotle developed his account of the Four Causes from his analysis of
change. The four causes are: causa efficiens, causa finalis, causa formalis
& causa materialis.

5. The following Latin philosophical terms and phrases are examples of

important concepts used in philosophy: abstraction, accidens,
apprehension, beatitude, beato, bonum, esse, finis operis, per se,
pulchrum, veritas, a priori, a posteriori, actus purus, ipsum esse
subsistens, primum movens, quinque viae, summum bonum, tabula rasa
and via negative.
 Ph2: LOGIC
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. Philosophy accomplishes knowledge of the world by means of human

reason. It is the universal science because it considers the totality of
reality and investigates the basic causes of all things. Logic is the art and
science of correct reasoning. It directs the reasoning process in order that
man may acquire knowledge of the truth in an orderly way, with ease and
without error.

2. Simple apprehension, the first mental operation, is the process of grasping

or abstracting the essence of a thing without affirming or denying
anything about it. Its mental product is called idea, the verbal
manifestation of which is called term.

3. Judgment is a mental operation that pronounces the agreement or

disagreement between two ideas. A proposition is a linguistic expression
or the sensible sign of the judgment. In order to be true, a judgment
should conform to reality. It is important to note that it is not the mind
that dictates what reality should be; rather, it is reality that dictates what
the mind should think.

4. Reasoning is a mental act whereby starting with several judgments which

we relate to one another, we arrive at a new judgment which necessarily
follows from the preceding ones. Every reasoning process involves a
number of previously known truths, called the premises. And from the
premises, a new truth, or the conclusion, is inferred. An inference is the
drawing of a conclusion from one or more premises.
5. Arguments can be of two kinds: inductive and deductive. When the
conclusion follows from the premises necessarily, the process is called
deduction; when the conclusion follows from the premises with a degree
of probability less than certainty, the process is called induction.
Induction starts with particular knowledge; deduction with universal
truths.

Errors in argument, called fallacies, can occur. A fallacy is a type of

argument that may seem to be correct but which proves, upon examination,
not to be so. A fallacy is a false argument that has the appearance of truth.
At the same time it conceals error, it projects an apparent truth.
 Ph3: ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Jose Salvador D. Mallari, MA

1. Socrates’ predecessors, also called the Ionians are concerned about

questions like “What are things really like?” and “How can we explain the
process of change in world?” They called naturalist and monist. Their
solutions to these questions thereafter are dubbed as philosophy.

2. One of the prevailing problems in ancient philosophy is the attempt to

explain change. Heraclitus, Parmenides, Zeno, Empedocles and
Anaxagoras had their solutions to the problem.

3. The Sophists and Socrates made a significant paradigm shift in their

approach to philosophy. Man has become the center of philosophizing
during their time. Among the issues discussed are Theory of Knowledge
and Moral Thought.

4. Plato brought all the diverse philosophical concerns of his predecessors

into a unified system of thought. Philosophy was concretely figure out,
having divisions like epistemology, moral philosophy, political philosophy
and cosmology.

5. Philosophy in the ancient period flourished even more in the advent of

Aristotle. Special emphasis was given in his metaphysics and ethics.
Epicureanism, Stoicism and Skepticism are schools of thought after
Aristotle.
 Ph4: HISTORY OF CHINESE PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Isidro D. Puyat, MA, PhL

1. Chinese mind is essentially humanistic.

2. Basic characteristics of Chinese mind: sage as highest achievement, this-

world-people, life is a cycle of ups and downs, coordination of thought and
mind.

3. China’s major thinkers: Confucius, Mencius, Lao Tzu, Mo tzu, Chuang Tzu,
Yang Chu.

4. “The highest accomplishment of man is to be a sage, and to be a sage is

to be one with nature.” Its implications in relation to respect of nature and
environment.

5. Chinese Classic: I Ching, Han Fe Tzu, Hsun Tzu, The Great Learning, The
Mean,

6. Four (4) noble truths of and the 8-fold path as central tenets of Buddhism.

7. Confucius: “The family is the paradigm of human society.” The society is

the reflection of the family.
 Ph5: PHILOSOPHY OF BEING
Rev.Fr. Aldrin B. Domingo, MA, PhL

1. The divisions of being from the standpoint of INTELLIGIBILITY (Essence and

Existence), EXISTENCE (Substance and Accidents) and ACTION (Act and
Potency)

2. Being, those restricted with ontological contingency, follows an ontological

pattern. The Uncaused Being falls beyond the pattern. Beings are
generally classified as logical and real.

3. The Supreme Principles of being are understood as the highest principles

which are immediately derived from the concept of being: the Principle of
Identity, the Principle of Contradiction, the Principle of Excluded Middle,
and the Principle of Sufficient Reason.

4. The Transcendental Properties of being are defined as certain supreme

modes or attribute necessarily connected with every being, which are
different phases of the same fundamental being, but are not explicitly
contained in its concept as such. They are as follows: unum, aliquid,
verum, bonum, and pulchrum.

5. Nature and status in being of evil. Evil is a privation in being. It does not
exist objectively, but only in a subject that is ontologically good. There is
no per se cause of evil. The defectibility of contingent being is ultimately
traced on the pre-ontology of contingent brings. Therefore, defectibility is
not traceable to God.
 Ph6: PHILOSOPHY OF NATURE
Rev.Fr. Jestoni T. Macapas, MA

1. Cosmology is a branch of philosophy. It is the study of the whole

material universe. It has limitations and scope because it does not
include man in its study. Its method is ‘a posteriori’. Cosmology is a
science. However, it is not only a science but also a metaphysical
science.

2. A quantified reality is that which has a plurality of parts and so can be

divided. It connotes a body. A body is a material substance, normally
extended by three dimensions and marked by four important
characteristics: composition, changeability, contingency, and
limitation.

3. Bodies as quantified reality have effects. Bodies are extended,

impenetrable, divisible, measurable, and continuous. Bodies as
extended reality have two effects, namely internal and external
extension.

4. What makes a body a body? In the pursuit of knowing the ultimate

constitution of bodies, some theories explain it. These theories may be
reduced to four: Monism, Atomism, Dynamism, and Hylemorphism.
Hylemorphism holds that a body is composed of primal matter and
substantial form. By exclusion, we prove the hylemorphism as an
acceptable theory since it is manifestly reasonable and evidence-
based.

5. Cosmology is a philosophical study of the beings of the material

universe other than man as living. Life is not a being, a substance, a
person. Life is an abstract term designating the characteristics of
certain acts and the properties of the being that performs them. Life,
as such, does not exist; only living beings exist. Living beings possess
immanent activities, while non-beings have transient activities. Three
theories explain the nature of living beings: Vitalism, Mechanism, and
Aristotelian Vitalism.
 Ph7: MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. Medieval thinkers developed a new tradition in philosophy by combining

the views of ancient Greek philosophers with religious doctrine. Discuss
the historical movement from a mistrustful relationship between
philosophy and early Church to philosophy which has become increasingly
a quest for God.

2. The philosophy of St. Augustine – influences in Augustine’s philosophy;

relationship between faith and reason; theory of divine illumination;
God’s existence; love as central to Augustine’s moral philosophy; the Two
Cities as the foundation of his political philosophy.

3. Early medieval period is usually described as an episode of intellectual

and cultural decadence, which is far from truth. What followed was not
the extinction of the classical Latin learning that had nourished the earlier
part of medieval period, but a narrowing of focus and a redirecting of
interest. Boethius, Pseudo-Dionysius, The problem of Universals, St.
Anselm and his ontological argument, Muslim and Jewish philosophers.

4. The great achievement of St. Thomas Aquinas was that he brought

together insights of classical philosophy and Christian theology. Faith and
reason. Knowledge of God’s existence and nature. Aquinas on Creation
and the world. Aquina’s moral philosophy: happiness through fulfillment of
natural and supernatural ends. Political philosophy: law and government.

5. Three medieval philosophers after Aquinas were particularly significant.

Scotus defended the position of voluntarism, while Ockham advocated the
position of nominalism. Against Aquinas’ highly rational and technical
 articulation of religious concepts, Eckhart defended the mystical view that
religion involves a more direct encounter with God.

Ph8: PHILOSOPHY OF KNOWLEDGE

Rev.Fr. Aldrin B. Domingo, PhL

1. What is Epistemology? Explain and define the object of epistemology.

Differentiate the formal object from the material object of epistemology.

2. What is knowledge? Problem of knowledge and its origin. Principal

solutions to the problem of knowledge: skepticism, positivism,
rationalism, existentialism and scholasticism. Genesis and development of
knowledge. Knowledge as relationship between subject and object. Act of
knowing as a process. Is knowledge of reality corresponds to the same
reality?

3. Both faith and science command a firm assent on the part of the intellect
through the motive by which the intellect gives its assent differs.

4. Quid sit veritas? What is truth? Truth is the adequation or conformity

between the thing and the intellect: “ adequatio rei et intellectu.” This
definition of truth expresses the formal reason of truth, namely, the
conformity or agreement between the thing and the intellect, and it
likewise covers all the significations that the “term” “truth” may assume.

5. The cognoscitive faculties are infallible per se, though per accidens they
are fallible, while man is fallible per se and infallible per accidens.
 Ph9: HISTORY OF INDIAN PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Isidro D. Puyat, PhL

1. Philosophy is reflective thinking. Knowledge and wisdom in relation to

Gandhi’s philosophy.

2. Basic characteristics of Indian Philosophy. Life, philosophy and religion are

one.
Three basic concepts form the cornerstone of Indian philosophical thought:
the self or soul (atman), works (karma), and liberation (moksha).

3. Traditional/orthodox Indian philosophical schools. Logic and intuition.

4. The nature and philosophical significance of Jain and Buddhist dissent

from the Vedic and Brahmanical tradition.

5. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi’s Satyagraha and Ahimsa (1869-1948) as

testament to radical change. The purpose of life is to know oneself. 4.
Knowledge is a liberating experience, and wisdom is salvific.

Philosophy is for life, the amelioration of the individual, and for the
transformation of society.
 Ph10: MODERN PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. Renaissance philosophy is linked to a diverse group of intellectual

movements that emerged in reaction to the medieval world view. One of
this was Humanism, which emphasized the study of classical authors and
the central role of human reason in discovering truth and structuring the
community. Luther, who was at the forefront of the Protestant
Reformation, rejected the rationalistic scholastic system and its proofs for
God and argued instead that faith, trumps reason in the search for
religious truth. The scientific revolution brought about both new scientific
discoveries and new methods of conducting scientific inquiry.

2. Rationalism is the philosophical view that emphasizes the ability of human

reason to grasp fundamental truths about the world without the aid of
sense of experience. Descartes, Spinoza and Leibniz, who all came from
Continental Europe, are the leading figures of Rationalism. Empiricism is
the theory that experience is the source of all knowledge and knowledge
cannot be derived through the exercise of reason alone. The British
philosophers Locke, Berkeley and Hume belong to the empiricist school of
philosophy.

3. “ Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and
awe…the starry heavens above and the moral law within, “said Immanuel
Kant. According to him, our theoretical human reasoning organizes our
sense experience in order to gain knowledge while our practical reasoning
deals with the universal rules of moral duty that regulate our practical
behavior. Hegel argued that the nature of reality is the thought of the
Absolute. The dynamic process by which the Absolute operates is dialectic
insofar as it involves the tension of thesis and antithesis, which resolves
into a synthesis of these two.
4. After Kant and Hegel, three nineteenth century philosophers developed
their views in critical reaction to German idealism. Kierkegaard
emphasized a more subjective notion of human existence and rejected
the rationalistic conception of human nature that was modeled after
objective mathematical and scientific thinking. Marx’s philosophy is
focused on dialectical materialism, the view that history is governed by
causal economic forces, which are as mechanical as the laws that govern
physics and biology. Nietzsche argued that modern society was changing
in such a way that traditional values were collapsing, and a new set of
values were needed to prevent chaos. For Nietzsche, aesthetics was the
most promising alternative to religion.

5. Utilitarianism and positivism were two promising philosophies of the

nineteenth century that continued in the empiricist tradition.
Utilitarianism is an ethical theory associated with Bentham and Mill that
an action is morally good if it produces as much good as or more good
than any alternative behavior. Bentham’s utilitarian calculus states that
the rightness of actions can be precisely calculated by considering seven
factors regarding the pleasure that result from that action. Comte
championed the scientific theory of positivism, which is that (1) there are
no secret purposes within nature to be discovered and (2) we formulate
scientific laws by observing the constant relations among various
phenomena.
 Ph11: MODERN ASIAN THOUGHTS
Rev.Fr. Isidro D. Puyat, PhL

1. Modern philosophy is an attempt at reorienting ourselves to living in a new

mental, emotional, and psychological landscape, with everything we had
ever known, felt safe with, and were certain about suddenly gone and
having to make our own way forward, alone.

2. Unity of though and action.

3. “Not all beliefs are true.”

4. Science is submerged by life. A good life is better than empty science.

Contemplation as conclusion of well-lived life.

5. Fear of punishment is a primitive reason for being good.

Ph12: ADVANCED PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN PERSON
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. Asking questions is undeniably a part of the human condition. All of us

have been asking questions since the dawn of our own personal
histories. Not only do we ask questions, but we do so continuously and
about everything. Indeed, perhaps no facet of our total human
experience is more easily recognizable than the fact that we humans
are incessant questioners.

2. The problem of human knowing is central to the problem of what it

means to be human. It is not surprising, therefore, that the problem of
knowing has played an important role in the historical development of
Western philosophy. How this problem is resolved does, to a high
degree, shape and determine one's view regarding a philosophy of the
human person.

3. Language, the human expression of thought in sensible symbol, is

perhaps the greatest of all human achievements. Without language the
human would not be able to accomplish much of lasting significance.
Without language we would not only be incapable of communicating
with our fellow humans but we would also be incapable of making
anything, for in order to make anything we must communicate
thought.

4. Volition is one of the most actively discussed problems in philosophy,

and it is likewise one of the most difficult questions that the
philosopher must face. The problem is not precisely whether or not we
humans perform volitional acts, but rather what the nature of these
acts is. More exactly, the problem revolves around the question as to
whether or not the human volitional act is free.

5. Through emotion we are in effect taught that the human is a unity of

mind and body, both of which are so intimately in accord with, and
attuned to, each other that something of each is shared in the activity
of the other. In an emotional experience the body is rather
mysteriously sharing in the consciousness of the mind.

Ph13: CONTEMPORARY PHILOSOPHY

Rev.Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. The basic feature or description or theme of the 20 th century or

contemporary period in the history of philosophy? What is its focus?
What does this period want to address?

2. Present the basic tenets and the proponents of the following:

(1) Phenomenology, (2) Pragmatism, and (3) Analytic Philosophy.

3. The Tripartite Existential Structure of Human Being according to

Martin Heidegger.

4. The (3) three Canonical Philosophical Theories of Truth according to

Pragmatic Philosophers.
 Ph14: PHILOSOPHY OF GOD
Rev.Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. We have no intuitive knowledge of God, because we cannot

perceive Him directly, the proper object of man’s intellect is the
“sensible”, that is “material being”. By a process of abstraction
sensible beings in the outside world become present in our mind. All
human knowledge is based on the data of the senses, according to
the axiom: “nihil est in intellectu, quin prius fuerit in sensu”. Our
knowledge of God is only INDIRECT and DISCURSIVE. But indirect
and discursive knowledge is valid and genuine, so long as it is
logical. In the same manner as a scientist can draw valid
conclusions concerning the nature of physical realities, from
scientific investigations, so also the philosopher can draw valid
conclusions concerning the nature of spiritual realities from the data
of the outside material sensible world, provided by the senses.

2. St. Thomas Aquinas “the Five Ways:” Its Cosmological value in

proving the existence of God.

3. The compatibility or Incompatibility of the presence of evil and the

presence of the GOOD GOD in the world. And the involvement of
Man’s freedom in the occurrence of evil. On what account is man’s
freedom to be qualified as cause of evil or is evil to be discussed
metaphysically?
 Ph15: PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
Rev.Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. Rudolf Otto’s Basic Idea of the Holy. And how does he highlight it
with the concept of “Mysterium Tremendum et fascinans?”

2. Accordingly, Gadamer’s lasting contribution to philosophy is an

understanding of truth in human affairs that is superior to the
scientific methodology that remains firmly entrenched in the social
sciences. Question: What are Gadamer’s main contributions about
this religious turn? Give at least three main contributions.

3. What is the main idea of Gadamer’s concept of Ignoramus? Give at

least three significant meanings.

4. The contemporary disposition that ‘God does not exist,’ due to the
belief of “God’s recalcitrance’ (i.e. God is from above, God is holy,
God is away up there and no one can reach out to him) and because
of which man focuses on ‘extreme anthropomorphism’ (extreme
dependence on the self). Elaborate on this concern.
 Ph16: SOCIAL & POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
Rev.Fr. Jeffrey P. Alarilla, PhL, MBA

1. Common good consists of those goods and values by means of which a

society is to help each member in the realization of tasks which they
alone cannot sufficiently achieve. Common good promotes and makes
possible the integral human existence for its members and composes
several values.

2. Social Contract Theory was mainly inspired by a renewed interest in

biblical religion during the seventeenth century. It is certainly influenced
by the biblical language of ‘covenant’ and ‘contract’ (both between
individuals and God) in the Old Testament. Thomas Hobbes and Jean-
Jacques Rousseau explain the need for social contract based on the
nature of man.

3. We distinguish between general and particular justice, and divide

particular justice into commutative justice and distributive justice.
Commutative justice deals with exchanges, while distributive justice deals
with distribution. A fair share is not necessarily an equal share.

4. Niccolo Macchiavelli writes that in order to be a god ruler, the prince

needs to possess the following qualities: knowledge of the art of war, not
concerned with living virtuously, parsimonious (ungenerous) rather than
generous, a reputation for being a man of outstanding ability, skeptical
about the advice that he receives, and prefers being feared than being
loved.
5. Baron de Montesquieu holds that there are three types of governments:
republican governments, which can take either democratic or aristocratic
forms; monarchies; and despotism. He emphasizes that no organ of power
should be given unchecked power in its sphere. Thus, he proposes his
theories of separation of powers and checks and balances.

Ph17: PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE & CULTURE

Rev.Fr. Jose Salvador D. Mallari, MA

1. Early inquiry into language can be traced back to as long ago as 1500 BC.
Aristotle, the Stoics, the Scholastics in the medieval era like Peter
Abelard, William of Ockham and John Duns Scotus have their significant
contributions in the development of Philosophy of Language. Language
began to play a more central role in the late 19 th.

2. The philosophy of language is mainly engaged in th activity of clarifying

meanings of our linguistics expressions. It is different from Linguistic
Philosophy and relevant in resolving disagreements or disputes.

3. Ideal language philosophy and ordinary language philosophy are the two
influential movements in the philosophy of language in the analytic
tradition.

4. Under the ideal language philosophy are Gotlob Frege, Bertrand Russel,
Ludwig Wittgenstein (the “Early Wittgenstein”), and the logical positivists.

5. Under the ordinary language philosophy are Ludwig Wittgenstein II, J.L
Austin and John Searle.
 Ph18: AESTHETICS
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA
 Ph19: PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Rev.Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. Science is often thought to be the ultimate form of objective and rational

inquiry, and scientists are widely regarded as being able to gather and
interpret evidence and use it to arrive at conclusions that are
“scientifically proven” and so not just the product of ideology or prejudice.
However, there are some features of science that are more or less
universal and which can investigate philosophically without needing to
know much about the cutting edge of scientific research.

2. Science is derived from the facts. Through the use of induction method,
scientific theories and laws are formulated from a large number of
observable statements made under a large variety of conditions. One of
the major tasks of a theory of inductive inference is to say what degree of
support the premises can give a conclusion.

3. The problem of induction certainly shows that the justification of scientific

knowledge is problematic and that there is a need for a precise theory of
confirmation if any form of inductivism is to be defensible. Karl Popper
argued that science is fundamentally about falsifying rather than
confirming theories, and so he thought that science could proceed without
induction because the inference from a falsifying instance to the falsity of
a theory is purely deductive. From this, he proposed as alternative to
inductivism his theory of scientific method called falsificationism.

4. In the 1960s, there was a crisis of both realism and rationality in

philosophy of science that has yet to be resolved. There are now many
who question the rationality and objectivity of scientific knowledge. In his
Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas Kuhn studied the history of
science and seemed to argue that science is both non-inductive and non-
rational. He argued that the evolution of the history of science does not
consist in the steady accumulation of knowledge, but often involves the
wholesale abandonment of past theories.

Ph20: COMPARATIVE PHILOSOPHY

Rev.Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. DISCOURSE in Comparative Philosophy is a relatively new area of

study for the Western mainstream philosophers and even for
Western-oriented philosophy scholars across the globe. DIALOGUE
is a key concept in this comparative endeavor. In what sense or way
this philosophical discipline becomes necessary and at the same
time relevant to the whole intention of studying philosophy.
Determine its unique and distinct features if there are any.

2. Describe the landscape of each of the three civilizations namely; the

Agora, The Warrying Sates and the Wilderness.

3. Describe the characteristics of each form of humor/laughter.

 GE5: MORAL PHILOSOPHY (ETHICS)
Rev. Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. The Thomistic definition of Law. Then, explain each of its components.

2. A human act, from which two effects may result, one good and one evil, is
morally permissible under four conditions. If any of these conditions is
violated, then the action is not justifiable and should not be done. What are
these ‘four conditions’ according to the Principle of Double Effect?

3. Conscience is the proximate norm of morality. It is proximate because it is

what directly confronts an action as good or bad. Explain its salient role in
determining the morality and immorality of the human act.
 SC1: SEMINAR ON PLATO AND ARISTOTLE
Rev. Fr. Isidro D. Puyat, PhL

1. Idealism of Plato and Realism of Aristotle.

2. What is real and what is true according to Plato and Aristotle?

Plato asks, “What do you want your world to be?” Aristotle asks, “How
do you fit into the world that already exists?”

Plato asks, “What’s your dream?” Aristotle replies, “Wake up and smell
the coffee.”

3. The meeting point of Plato and Aristotle.

SC2: SEMINAR ON FILIPINO PHILOSOPHY
Rev. Fr. Jose Salvador D. Mallari, MA
 SC3: SPECIAL QUESTIONS IN PHILOSOPHY (Thomism)
Rev. Fr. Jersey Prepose

1. Being is anything that exists or something that is real or something that

has existence.

2. According to Boethius, "a person is an individual substance of a rational

nature."

3. St. Thomas Aquinas states, "veritas est adaequatio rei et intellectus."

4. God's existence is not self-evident but it can be demonstrated logically.

5. Evil is privation.
 SC4: FAITH AND REASON
Rev. Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. Discuss in a nutshell the historical development of the encyclical

from the template of Aeterni Patris to Fides et Ratio. What was the
pressing concerns to be addressed in the 19 th century period which
greatly conditioned the urgency for this encyclical?

2. In Chapter 2 of Fides et Ratio Pope John Paul II points out that

Sacred Scripture identifies wisdom with the love-filled knowledge of
God, while the classical philosophers identify wisdom with a rigorous
and systematic knowledge of the first principles of being and of the
good for human beings. Discuss the tensions that this difference
raises for Christians in their attempt to determine what posture they
should take toward non-Christian philosophy. (Refer to Chapter 4
of Fides et Ratio (#36-43) as a basis for your answer.)

3. On what account Reason (as represented by philosophy) is distinct

from Faith (Theology) and how these two are profoundly
complementary to each other.
SC5: SEMINAR ON CONTEMPORARY PHILOSOPHY
Rev. Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. Contemporary Philosophy outlines the three controversial yet

significant schools of thought which continue to shape the
philosophical landscapes together with the ideologies that affect the
present time. These prominent schools of thought are: Analytical,
Pragmatism, and Phenomenology. Draw forth each of the basic
tenets or concerns together with its implications into the
contemporary landscape.

2. In Discussing Max Horkheimer’s Critical Theory he draws a kind of

critical distinction between ‘traditional theory’ and ‘critical theory’
on the basis of their normative and practical goals. For which
Horkheimer lays down three important assumptions:
a. (1) The Anthropological Turn,
b. (2) Man’s emancipation, and
c. (3) The decentralization of the emancipative impulse

3. In the After Virtue, Alasdair MacIntyre mentions about the failure of

the modern project. (What is it? What is its implication to the
contemporary notion of Ethics/Morality? And if there is a failure,
what is it?) On the pretext of this failure, he retrieved a kind of
solution (although not definitive) due to the increasing
contemporary problems. By considering the value of ‘Tradition’ say
for instance, Thomistic Tradition, MacIntyre still conceives a ray of
light in employing the importance of Thomistic Tradition as a way of
safeguarding the ethical way of life of people in the contemporary
times. Discuss it.
 SC6: SPECIAL QUESTIONS IN ETHICS
Rev. Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. Aquinas once said, “Grace builds upon nature.” How will you integrate
the theological virtues in connection to the cardinal virtues? Show how
the concept of “Grace” related to the concept of “man’s nature.”

2. If “No one deliberately does evil.” But why there seems to be certain
human actions that are evil by nature? What are the determinants of
moral action then? Enumerate and explain each. And how these
determinants of morality affect the human choices (whether moral and
immoral)?

3. Enumerate and explain each of the modifiers of Morality. And how

these modifiers affect (whether affirmatively or negatively) our
understanding of ‘rights’ and ‘duties,’ ‘freedom’ and ‘responsibility’
and the ‘fundamental option (choice)’ of every day life?
 AE1: ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY
Rev. Fr. Jose Salvador D. Mallari, MTh, MPR

1. Environmental ethics only emerge as an academic discipline in the 1970’s.

It revolves around questioning and rethinking of the relationship of human
beings with the natural environment. Anthropocentric and bio-centric
perspectives are among the prevailing thoughts about the relationship
between humans and the environment.

2. The Judeo-Christian idea that humans are created in the image of the
transcendent supernatural God, who is radically separate from nature also by
extension radically separates humans themselves from nature. Such thinking
is believed by many as the culprit for the massive destruction of the natural
environment.

3. Leopold’s Land Ethic claims that land is a community is the basic concept
of ecology, but that land is to be loved and respected is an extension of
ethics. His land ethic attempts to extend our moral concern to cover the
natural environment and its non-human contents.

4. The Key features of Arne Naess’ Deep Ecology endorses the view that all
living things are alike in having value in their own right, independent of their
usefulness to others. Thus, his environmental philosophy respects the
intrinsic value of all.

5. Ecocentrism, Ecofeminism Biocentrism are among the prevailing schools

of thought in dealing with global environmental problems and concerns. On
the other hand, Social Ecology claims that all of our present ecological
problems originate in deep-seated social problems.

6. Pope Francis in his Encyclical Laudato Si presents paradigms and

principles in taking care of our common home. His ecological education and
spirituality, as well as his treatment on ecological conversion speak a lot
about his environmental philosophy.

AE2: HERMENEUTICS
Rev. Fr. Sedfrey J. Calderon, MA

1. How relevant interpretation and hermeneutics are in our day-to-day

life?

2. Why is philosophical hermeneutic not just a particular theory of

knowledge?

3. Why is language important in the hermeneutics of Gadamer?

4. Why is mediation the heart of hermeneutic experience?

5. How did Descartes contribute to the history of hermeneutics?

6. Discuss Schleiermacher’s hermeneutics of the Spirit.

 AE3: PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
Rev. Fr. Jason C. Balan, MA

1. Compare and contrast Confucius and Plato’s Understanding of

Education in the Authoritarian State. And enumerate and explain
briefly the salient characteristics of education in an Authoritarian State.

2. Explicate on Amy Gutmann’s Principles of Non-Repression and Non-

Discrimination in connection to authority and education in a
Democratic State.

3. Contrast Education as a source of freedom and political power with

Education as an instrument of social and political despotism.

4. Explicate this: “Effective Teaching Pedagogy ought to EVOKE,

PROVOKE, INVOKE, and CONVOKE Critical Thought.”
 AE4: EXISTENTIALISM, PHENOMENOLOGY, & POST
MODERNISM
Rev. Fr. Dan Derrick E. Embuscado, MA

Note: Please answer concisely and direct to the point.

1. Similarities and Differences: Existentialism, Phenomenology, Post

Modernism Philosophy.

2. Choose 2 of the existentialist philosophers and explain their main

thoughts.

3. Choose 2 phenomenology philosophers and explain their main thought.

4. Mention 1 or 2 post-modern philosophers and explain their main thoughts.

5. Mention one important issue we are facing today and choose one
philosopher whose thoughts can address the problem. Explain your
answer.