The essays collected in this volume represent many years of Professor Nauert's research and teaching on the history of Renaissance humanism, and more particularly on humanism north of the Alps. Much of the early work involved the significant but often-overlooked history of humanism at the University of Cologne, notoriously the most anti-humanist of the German universities. Later essays deal with the most famous humanist of the early sixteenth century, Erasmus of Rotterdam, and natural philosophy, a broad term covering many subjects now associated with natural science, is the topic of three of the pieces published here. Taken as a whole, the book presents a detailed study of intellectual development among European elites.

Frank Schaeffer has a problem with the New Atheists. He also has a problem with the religious fundamentalists. The problem is that he doesn't see much of a difference between the two camps. Sparing no one and nothing, including himself and his fiery evangelical past, and invoking subtleties too easily ignored by the pontificators, Schaeffer adds much-needed nuance to the existing religious conversation as he challenges atheists and fundamentalists alike.

The New Atheist Novel is the first study of a major new genre of contemporary fiction. It examines how Richard Dawkins's so-called New Atheism' movement has caught the imagination of four eminent modern novelists: Ian McEwan, Martin Amis, Salman Rushdie and Philip Pullman. For McEwan and his contemporaries, the contemporary novel represents a new front in the ideological war against religion, religious fundamentalism and, after 9/11, religious terror: the novel apparently stands for everything freedom, individuality, rationality and even a secular experience of the transcendental that religion seeks to overthrow. In this book, Bradley and Tate offer a genealogy of the New Atheist Novel: where it comes from, what needs it serves and, most importantly, where it may go in the future. What is it? How does it dramatise the war between belief and non-belief? To what extent does it represent a genuine ideological alternative to the religious imaginary or does it merely repeat it in secularised form? This fascinating study offers an incisive critique of this contemporary testament of literary belief and unbelief.

Kenny writes By profession I am a philosopher: and in the present century philosophers in this country have been keen to emphasise not only the difficulty of stating God's will on particular issues but the difficulty for human beings of saying anything intelligible at all about the nature of God. It is probably true to say that the majority of philosophers in this country in the last fifty years have been atheists of one kind or another. In his masterly introduction, Kenny explains the autobiographical background to this important new book. For some years, Kenny was a Roman Catholic priest, he lost his faith and resigned from the priesthood. This was something of a cause celebre and Kenny gave a full account of this development in his book The Path From Rome. But, as this book demonstrates, he has never been able to let go of God and he continues to struggle with the intellectual problems of theism and the possibility of believing in God, especially in an intellectual climate dominated by Logical Positivism. In this book Kenny revisits the Five Ways of Aquinas and argues that they are not so much proofs as definitions of God.; He is also in constant dialogue with Wittgenstein for, K

Throughout the sixteenth century, political and intellectual developments in Britain and The Netherlands were closely intertwined. At different times religious refugees from one or other country found a secure haven across the Channel, and a constant interchange of books, ideas and personnel underscored the affinity of lands which both made a painful progress towards Protestantism during the course of the century. This collection of ten new studies, all by specialists active in the field, explores the full ramifications of these links, from the first intellectual contacts inspired by the growth of Humanism to the planting of established Protestant churches. With contributions from specialists in art history, literary studies and history, the volume also underscores the vitality of new research in this field and points the way to several new departures in the field of Reformation and Renaissance studies.

Over the past decade the Religion vs. Atheism debate has generated a lot more heat than light. With passionate advocates on both sides, it is possible we have lost sight of the real people and problems behind the controversies and conflicts. Where does the truth lie? In Faitheism Krish Kandiah asks us to take a long hard look at ourselves - and a more understanding look at each other. Written for both committed Christians and committed Atheists and everyone in between, this accessible and practical book can help all of us find a way to talk about the things that really matter to us in ways that encourage empathy, mutual understanding and respect and yet that don't shy away from tackling the hard topics. The ideas in this book can transform our relationships, our workplaces and our nation as it lays down a path for a genuinely more inclusive, hospitable and understanding society. Krish contends that whether you are a Christian, an Atheist or somewhere in between, we can all grow in our own beliefs and understand each other better. In this challenging exploration of the myths about Christianity and Atheism, time and again we will find the evidence shows that the truth on the ground is not what one might expect - and the potential for genuine understanding is far greater than the antagonists on either side would have you believe.

Are atheists immoral? Does religion cause conflict? Is religion always opposed to science? Boldly paving the way for constructive dialogue between atheists and religious believers, Paul Hedges tackles issues such as the treatment of women, the idea of a pure and empirical realm of 'science', and the association of religion with violence and warfare, debunking the myths and exposing the futility of the battle between 'reason' and 'belief'. Threading deftly between atheism, the major world religions of Christianity, Islam and Buddhism, and smaller groups such as Paganism, Hedges demonstrates a vast scope for agreement and interaction between them which will call to every open minded reader.

A militant Marxist atheist and a "Radical Orthodox" Christian theologian square off on everything from the meaning of theology and Christ to the war machine of corporate mafia. "What matters is not so much that Zizek is endorsing a demythologized, disenchanted Christianity without transcendence, as that he is offering in the end (despite what he sometimes claims) a heterodox version of Christian belief."-John Milbank "To put it even more bluntly, my claim is that it is Milbank who is effectively guilty of heterodoxy, ultimately of a regression to paganism: in my atheism, I am more Christian than Milbank."-Slavoj Zizek In this corner, philosopher Slavoj Zizek, a militant atheist who represents the critical-materialist stance against religion's illusions; in the other corner, "Radical Orthodox" theologian John Milbank, an influential and provocative thinker who argues that theology is the only foundation upon which knowledge, politics, and ethics can stand. In The Monstrosity of Christ, Zizek and Milbank go head to head for three rounds, employing an impressive arsenal of moves to advance their positions and press their respective advantages. By the closing bell, they have not only proven themselves worthy adversaries, they have shown that faith and reason are not simply and intractably opposed. Zizek has long been interested in the emancipatory potential offered by Christian theology. And Milbank, seeing global capitalism as the new century's greatest ethical challenge, has pushed his own ontology in more political and materialist directions. Their debate in The Monstrosity of Christ concerns the future of religion, secularity, and political hope in light of a monsterful event-God becoming human. For the first time since Zizek's turn toward theology, we have a true debate between an atheist and a theologian about the very meaning of theology, Christ, the Church, the Holy Ghost, Universality, and the foundations of logic. The result goes far beyond the popularized atheist/theist point/counterpoint of recent books by Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and others. Zizek begins, and Milbank answers, countering dialectics with "paradox." The debate centers on the nature of and relation between paradox and parallax, between analogy and dialectics, between transcendent glory and liberation. Slavoj Zizek is a philosopher and cultural critic. He has published over thirty books, including Looking Awry, The Puppet and the Dwarf, and The Parallax View (these three published by the MIT Press). John Milbank is an influential Christian theologian and the author of Theology and Social Theory: Beyond Secular Reason and other books. Creston Davis, who conceived of this encounter, studied under both Zizek and Milbank.

Islam is often treated as an inextricable part of Arab culture, and in the minds of many in both the west and the Arab world, to be an Arab is to be a Muslim by default. While many religious minorities, notably the Druze, Jews and Christians, have found ways of reconciling their Arab identity with their beliefs, a far greater challenge faces the growing number of Arabs who identify as atheists, agnostics, or sceptics. Emboldened by the political upheavals of the Arab spring and facilitated by the growth of social media, these predominantly young men and women are becoming an increasingly vocal and assertive presence in Arab societies, despite facing the risk of imprisonment, ostracism, and death. Arabs Without God explores the roots and consequences of this phenomenon, as well as the experiences of those living as 'non-believers' in Muslim countries. Beginning with an examination of the history of atheism in the Arab world, it goes on to consider the circumstances which led these Arab Muslims to question their faith. It also examines the pressures they face in attempting to assert and defend their stance, both in Muslim countries and in the west, where they often find themselves caught between political Islamists who deride them as 'westernised' apostates, and a far right which regards all people from Muslim backgrounds as potential extremists. Arabs Without God argues passionately that these developments, previously ignored by western observers, are of vital importance to the future of Arab societies. For as the author says it is only 'when an atheist can be accepted and respected as a normal human being' that liberty will truly have arrived.

In this volume, Mark Bevir argues that postfoundationalism is compatible with humanism and historicism. He shows how postmodernists, especially Derrida and Foucault, drew on structuralism and the avant-garde in ways that led them to downplay human agency and historical context. He then explores how we today might recover and rethink humanism and historicism. And, finally, he discusses the critical and ethical practices that such ideas might inspire.

Islam is often treated as an inextricable part of Arab culture, and in the minds of many in both the west and the Arab world, to be an Arab is to be a Muslim by default. While many religious minorities, notably the Druze, Jews and Christians, have found ways of reconciling their Arab identity with their beliefs, a far greater challenge faces the growing number of Arabs who identify as atheists, agnostics, or sceptics. Emboldened by the political upheavals of the Arab spring and facilitated by the growth of social media, these predominantly young men and women are becoming an increasingly vocal and assertive presence in Arab societies, despite facing the risk of imprisonment, ostracism, and death. Arabs Without God explores the roots and consequences of this phenomenon, as well as the experiences of those living as 'non-believers' in Muslim countries. Beginning with an examination of the history of atheism in the Arab world, it goes on to consider the circumstances which led these Arab Muslims to question their faith. It also examines the pressures they face in attempting to assert and defend their stance, both in Muslim countries and in the west, where they often find themselves caught between political Islamists who deride them as 'westernised' apostates, and a far right which regards all people from Muslim backgrounds as potential extremists. Arabs Without God argues passionately that these developments, previously ignored by western observers, are of vital importance to the future of Arab societies. For as the author says it is only 'when an atheist can be accepted and respected as a normal human being' that liberty will truly have arrived.

The Taylor Effect presents an original and diverse collection of essays addressing Charles Taylor's magisterial A Secular Age. Ranging from close and critical readings of Taylor's formulations and suppositions; to comparative studies of Taylor and various 'interlocutors'; to applied approaches utilizing Taylor's concepts; to explorations launched from a Taylorian foundation; the 13 chapters comprise a multifaceted exploration of Taylor's multifaceted achievement. Given the vast, synoptic sweep of Taylor's magnum opus, the contributors represent a suitably diverse range of interests, backgrounds and expertise-members of departments of philosophy, literature, philosophical theology, systematic theology, moral theology, education, and political science, whose interests stretch from Plato to Girard, phronesis to pedagogy, Deism to dogmatics, medical ethics to aesthetics... Accordingly, The Taylor Effect is not only one of the first major responses to A Secular Age: the astonishing breadth as well as the quality of contributions will ensure that it remains a central reference point in any future discussion of Taylor's work.

Edward Said and Jacques Derrida: Reconstellating Humanism and the Global Hybrid features essays that invoke Said and Derrida's intellectually rigorous examination of humanism in their works; yet by shifting Said and Derrida out of their contexts-by dis-engaging them from their respective habitats of postcolonial studies and deconstruction-and by placing them in each other's company, the collection reconstellates those traces of their works that open the question of ethics, criticism, and the political in order to reconsider the status of the human subject in the global moment.These fourteen interdisciplinary essays by leading international scholars address present social change and political questions and analyze humanism from the perspectives of literature, theory, history, gender studies, and art in view of the intellectual impact of Said and Derrida on contemporary philosophy. In rethinking the question of humanism, these essays pursue the analysis of pivotal concepts that are theoretically and politically imperative in the global age such as the "human subject", "hybridity", "community", "philology", "secularism", "planetary humanism", "ethical antihumanism", "inhabitancy", "exceptionalism", "utopia", and others.