Faith, Wisdom, and the Transmission of Knowledge through Testimony

In this chapter, a Thomistic account of faith is blended with recent neurobiological research to explore just why we might consider the trust-based, testimonial acquisition of knowledge to be the result of a _virtue_. The motivating worry is that, typically, taking others’ word through trust is apparently easy and passive; why think of this as any kind of success through ability, as a virtue would be? The chaptercontends that it is our empathic capacities working together with our wills that allow us to perceive and actively, appropriately respond to goodness or trustworthiness in others. The consequence is that coming to testimonial knowledge is indeed an _accomplishment_ on the part of one who trusts. It is then suggested that similar processes may be at work in the acquisition and growth of a person’s faith in God.