Can You Believe & Doubt at the Same Time? Cognitive Science's Take on Faith (Joshua Mugg) Ep. #266

What does it mean to believe something—and can we genuinely believe while also experiencing doubt? In this episode of the Center for Hebraic Thought and the Biblical Mind Podcast, Mike Tolliver talks with philosopher Dr. Joshua Mugg about his book From Human Reasoning to Belief and his alternative to the influential “dual process” theory of human reasoning.Mugg explains why he rejects the idea that the mind is simply divided between fast, intuitive thinking and slow, rational thinking. Instead, he proposes that human reasoning operates across multiple dimensions, allowing us to adjust how we think, gather evidence, recruit other beliefs, and repeatedly reconsider our conclusions.The conversation then explores how this account of human cognition helps illuminate one of the Bible’s most intriguing statements: “I believe; help my unbelief” in the Gospel of Mark. Mugg’s theory of fragmented belief suggests that people can hold different beliefs within distinct cognitive contexts, helping explain how faith and doubt can coexist.Mike and Josh also discuss anxiety, emotion and reasoning, conspiracy theories, religious belief, deconstruction, Michael Polanyi, Esther Meek, the relationship between faith and certainty, and whether faith will remain in the eschaton. This wide-ranging conversation offers a fresh perspective on belief, doubt, faith, and what it means to know.Buy Dr. Mugg's book here: https://www.routledge.com/From-Human-Reasoning-to-Belief-An-Empirical-Account/Mugg/p/book/9781032736952Contact us at The Biblical Mind: Click HereWe are listener supported. Give to the cause here: https://thebiblicalmind.org/give/For more articles: https://thebiblicalmind.org/Social Links:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HebraicThoughtInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/hebraicthoughtThreads: https://www.threads.net/hebraicthoughtX: https://www.twitter.com/HebraicThoughtBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hebraicthought.orgChapters:00:00 Introduction to Dr. Mugg and the focus on belief01:02 Dr. Mugg's background and academic journey02:37 From theology to philosophy: questions of knowledge04:24 Overview of dual process theory in reasoning05:55 Critique of dual process theory and its messiness07:41 An alternative to dual process theory: a soundboard model11:16 Rerunning reasoning in everyday life and decision making15:50 The biblical story of the father and Jesus' response19:59 Fragmentation of belief and domain-specific reasoning24:02 Belief in the context of ancient Israel and religious practices27:14 Conspiracy theories and reasoning patterns31:01 The role of emotion in reasoning and belief33:23 Faith, hope, and love in the eschaton36:10 Personal journey and influence of Polanyi and Meek39:33 Christian philosophy and naturalistic methodology42:58 The relationship between faith and belief in biblical and philosophical context44:46 Conclusion and future discussionsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.