CHRISTIAN PHILOSOPHY UNDER THE EYES OF LEONEL FRANCA

Abstract

It is impossible to ignore the conflict between faith and reason. It has always existed. Today, old questions about the meaning of life require new answers. The objective of this article is to bring to light the relationship between Christianity and philosophy based on the thinking of Leonel Franca. In his time, there were those who understood faith as alienation from reality and those who defended the independence of faith in relation to the illusions of human reason. Leonel Franca positions himself in search of an answer to the question: is faith alienation or does it respond, without prejudice to reason, to the main desires of the human being? For the Jesuit thinker, Christianity, by offering a system of truths, not only influenced Western thought, but also opened itself up to culture and philosophy, thus facilitating greater interaction between the two. Leonel Franca’s synthesis, bringing the possibility of dialogue, also responds to those who defended the impossibility of a Christian philosophy.

Keywords: Christianity. Philosophy. Dialogue. Leonel Franca.