"Feelings a philosophical and theological examination"

Do feelings really exist? Are they real? Could feelings just be a chemical reaction? Could feelings be automatic robotic responses? Could what we call instincts just be reflexes?

When someone pinches me,am I reacting? Could what I perceive to be a reaction simply be a non emotional mechanical response to stimuli? Can we know for certain if feelings are real.

If feelings are real,where do they come from? Are they passed down genetically. Are they cultural? Are they learned?
  On star trek the Vulcan only practice logic. They outlaw emotion. The ancient stoic philosophy might be to the right of the mythical Vulcan.
The stoic believed that enotion was evil. They might argue that emotion would keep you from the truth. Truth is found in logic.
If feeling are the enemy if truth,then feelings are a deception. Feeling are not just an illusion but a con artist and a serial .
Epicurians believed that the purpose of life is found in pleasure. Plesure meaning good words. Otherwise man us no better then pigs who indulge in what they see as pleasure. For them that is rolling around in mind . not only us feeling but it us truth.
The problems is that feelings can be wrong. You can deal that someone us lying when they are boring truthful and vice versa.
You can be mad at someone for a less then legitimate reason. A victim if fraud could feel good about the con artist that scammed them out of millions of dollars.
Many modern or post modern psychologist argue that humans do not have instinct. They have reflexes. We are robots or humans. Basicaly everything is a cause and effect. Feelings would not be real.
From a biblical world view, feelings originate from the Lord himself.humans were created in the image of God. If course human emotion are tainted by sin. Romans 3:23,genesis three.
Jerimiah Said that he was conceived in sin. David lements sin affect on humanity after his sin with bethsheba. Sin desorts emotion.
Ephesians says that the god of this world blinds unbelievers from the gospel. Seccond Corinthians speaks that though the veil of the temple was torn,some chose to be veiled.
A biblical view of  feelings is that feelings are real. A person feels. It is not simply a chemical response. God does intervene at times. Pharoe Paul and nabukanezer.
Feelings are incomplete. They can be inaccurate. Feeling are limited. All feelings are tainted by sin. Some day feelings will be redeemed .