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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > General > Philosophy of religion
Hinduism comprises perhaps the major cluster of religio-cultural
traditions of India, and it can play a valuable role in helping us
understand the nature of religion and human responses to life.
Hindu image-worship lies at the core of what counts for Hinduism -
up-front and subject to much curiosity and misunderstanding, yet it
is a defining feature of this phenomenon. This book focuses on
Hindu images and their worship with special reference to
Vaisnavism, a major strand of Hinduism. Concentrating largely, but
not exclusively, on Sanskritic source material, the author shows in
the course of the book that Hindu image-worship may be understood
via three levels of interpretation: the metaphysical/theological,
the narratival or mythic, and the performative or ritual. Analysing
the chief philosophical paradigm underlying Hindu image-worship and
its implications, the book exemplifies its widespread application
and tackles, among other topics such as the origins of
image-worship in Hinduism, the transition from Vedic to image
worship, a distinguishing feature of Hindu images: their multiple
heads and limbs. Finally, with a view to laying the grounds for a
more positive dialogic relationship between Hinduism and the
"Abrahamic" faiths, which tend to condemn Hindu image-worship as
"idolatry", the author examines the theological explanation and
justification for embodiment of the Deity in Hinduism and discusses
how Hinduism might justify itself against such a charge. Rich in
Indological detail, and with an impressive grasp of the
philosophical and theological issues underlying Hindu material
culture, and image-worship, this book will be of interest to
academics and others studying theology, Indian philosophy and
Hinduism.
This volume is based upon the seventh series of lectures delivered
at Yale University on the Foundation established by the late Dwight
H. Terry of Plymouth, Connecticut, through his gift of an endowment
fund for the delivery and subsequent publication of "Lectures on
Religion in the Light of Science and Philosophy." The deed of gift
declares that "the object of this Foundation is not the promotion
of scientific investigation and discovery, but rather the
assimilation and interpretation of that which has been or shall be
hereafter discovered, and its application to human welfare,
especially by the building of the truths of science and philosophy
into the structure of a broadened and purified religion. The
beliefs of men in the past, the author makes clear, were inevitably
inspired by their fears of an incomprehensible universe and were
derived from their ideas of the supernatural. Science has gradually
created a new set of sanctions; and the religion of today, freed
from the dread of the unknown, must be formed on this new
foundation. Professor Montague proceeds to outline the basis of a
philosophy of life reconceived from this point of view, applying to
it the term Promethean Religion. It is a volume which will
stimulate new thought and discussion, a distinguished addition to
the important volumes already published on the Dwight Harrington
Terry Foundation.
Since the Buddha did not fully explain the theory of persons that
underlies his teaching, in later centuries a number of different
interpretations were developed. This book presents the
interpretation by the celebrated Indian Buddhist philosopher,
Candrakirti (ca. 570-650 C.E.). Candrakirti's fullest statement of
the theory is included in his Autocommentary on the Introduction to
the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatarabhasya), which is, along with his
Introduction to the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatara ), among the
central treatises that present the Prasavgika account of the
Madhyamaka (Middle Way) philosophy. In this book, Candrakirti's
most complete statement of his theory of persons is translated and
provided with an introduction and commentary that present a careful
philosophical analysis of Candrakirti's account of the selflessness
of persons. This analysis is both philologically precise and
analytically sophisticated. The book is of interest to scholars of
Buddhism generally and especially to scholars of Indian Buddhist
philosophy.
Eighteenth-Century Dissent and Cambridge Platonism identifies an
ethically and politically engaged philosophy of religion in
eighteenth century Rational Dissent, particularly in the work of
Richard Price (1723-1791), and in the radical thought of Mary
Wollstonecraft. It traces their ethico-political account of reason,
natural theology and human freedom back to seventeenth century
Cambridge Platonism and thereby shows how popular histories of the
philosophy of religion in modernity have been over-determined both
by analytic philosophy of religion and by its critics. The
eighteenth century has typically been portrayed as an age of
reason, defined as a project of rationalism, liberalism and
increasing secularisation, leading inevitably to nihilism and the
collapse of modernity. Within this narrative, the Rational
Dissenters have been accused of being the culmination of
eighteenth-century rationalism in Britain, epitomising the
philosophy of modernity. This book challenges this reading of
history by highlighting the importance of teleology, deiformity,
the immutability of goodness and the divinity of reason within the
tradition of Rational Dissent, and it demonstrates that the
philosophy and ethics of both Price and Wollstonecraft are
profoundly theological. Price's philosophy of political liberty,
and Wollstonecraft's feminism, both grounded in a Platonic
conception of freedom, are perfectionist and radical rather than
liberal. This has important implications for understanding the
political nature of eighteenth-century philosophical theology:
these thinkers represent not so much a shaking off of religion by
secular rationality but a challenge to religious and political
hegemony. By distinguishing Price and Wollstonecraft from other
forms of rationalism including deism and Socinianism, this book
takes issue with the popular division of eighteenth-century
philosophy into rationalistic and empirical strands and, through
considering the legacy of Cambridge Platonism, draws attention to
an alternative philosophy of religion that lies between both
empiricism and discursive inference.
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Soren Kierkegaard
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Todd Speidell, Greg Marcar, Andrew Torrance
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Does it make sense - can it make sense - for someone who
appreciates the explanatory power of modern science to continue
believing in a traditional religious account of the ultimate nature
and purpose of our universe? This book is intended for those who
care about that question and are dissatisfied with the rigid
dichotomies that dominate the contemporary debate. The extremists
won't be interested - those who assume that science answers all the
questions that matter, and those so certain of their religious
faith that dialogue with science, philosophy, or other faith
traditions seems unnecessary. But far more people today recognize
that matters of faith are complex, that doubt is endemic to belief,
and that dialogue is indispensable in our day.
In eight probing chapters, the authors of The Predicament of Belief
consider the most urgent reasons for doubting that religious claims
- in particular, those embedded in the Christian tradition - are
likely to be true. They develop a version of Christian faith that
preserves the tradition's core insights but also gauges the varying
degrees of certainty with which those insights can still be
affirmed. Along the way, they address such questions as the
ultimate origin of the universe, the existence of innocent
suffering, the challenge of religious plurality, and how to
understand the extraordinary claim that an ancient teacher rose
from the dead. They end with a discussion of what their conclusions
imply about the present state and future structure of churches and
other communities in which Christian affirmations are made.
In "Reclaiming Theodicy," Michael Stoeber explores various themes
of theodicy - theology that defends God in the face of evil - by
creatively developing a distinction between transformative and
destructive suffering. Emphasising the importance of human
compassion and illustrating various spiritual experiences of God
that are healing, the book proposes a narrative of life within
which one might understand suffering in relation to a personal God
of ultimate power and love, and suggests basic principles toward
developing a politics of compassion.
If the secular university by definition is non-sectarian or
non-denominational, then how can it accommodate a discipline like
Christian theology? Doesn't the traditional goal of theological
study, which is to attain knowledge of the divine, fundamentally
conflict with the main goal of secular academic study, which is to
attain knowledge about ourselves and the world in which we live? So
why should theology be admitted, or even care about being admitted,
into secular academic life? And even if theology were admitted,
what contribution to secular academic life could it make? Working
from a Christian philosophical and theological perspective but also
engaging a wide range of theologians, philosophers, and religious
studies scholars, Christian Theology and the Secular University
takes on these questions, arguing that Christian theology does
belong in the secular university because it provides distinct
resources that the secular university needs if it is going to
fulfill what should be its main epistemic and educative ends. This
book offers a fresh and unique perspective to scholars working in
the disciplines of theology, philosophy, and religious studies, and
to those in other academic disciplines who are interested in
thinking critically and creatively about the place and nature of
theological study within the secular university.
What if there is no strong evidence that God exists? Is belief in
God when faced with a lack of evidence illegitimate and improper?
Evidentialism answers yes. According to Evidentialism, it is
impermissible to believe any proposition lacking adequate evidence.
And if any thesis enjoys the status of a dogma among philosophers,
it is Evidentialism. Presenting a direct challenge to Evidentialism
are pragmatic arguments for theism, which are designed to support
belief in the absence of adequate evidence. Pascal's Wager is the
most prominent theistic pragmatic argument, and issues in
epistemology, the ethics of belief, and decision theory, as well as
philosophical theology, all intersect at the Wager. Other prominent
theistic pragmatic arguments include William James's celebrated
essay, 'The Will to Believe'; a posthumously published and largely
ignored pragmatic argument authored by J.S. Mill, supporting the
propriety of hoping that quasi-theism is true; the
eighteenth-century Scottish essayist James Beattie's argument that
the consoling benefit of theistic belief is so great that theistic
belief is permissible even when one thinks that the existence of
God is less likely than not; and an argument championed by the
nineteenth-century French philosopher Jules Lachelier, which based
its case for theistic belief on the empirical benefits of believing
as a theist, even if theism was very probably false. In Pascal's
Wager: Pragmatic Arguments and Belief in God, Jeff Jordan explores
various theistic pragmatic arguments, and the objections employed
against them. Jordan presents a new version of the Wager, what he
calls the 'Jamesian Wager', and argues that the Jamesian Wager
survives the objections hurled against theistic pragmatic arguments
and provides strong support for theistic belief. In addition to
arguing for a sound version of the Wager, Jordan also argues that
there is a version of Evidentialism compatible with a principled
use of pragmatic arguments, and that the Argument from Divine
Silence fails. Objections found in Voltaire, Hume, and Nietzsche
against the Wager are scrutinized, as are objections issued by
Richard Swinburne, Richard Gale, and other contemporary
philosophers. The ethics of belief, the many-gods objection, the
problem of infinite utilities, and the propriety of a hope based
acceptance are also examined.
The Christian College and the Meaning of Academic Freedom is a
study of the past record and current practice of the Protestant
colleges in America in the quest to achieve intellectual honesty
within academic community. William C. Ringenberg lays out the
history of academic freedom in higher education in America,
including its European antecedents, from the perspective of modern
Christian higher education. He discusses the Christian values that
provide context for the idea of academic freedom and how they have
been applied to the nation's Christian colleges and universities.
The book also dissects a series of recent case studies on the major
controversial intellectual issues within and in, in some cases,
about the Christian college community. Ringenberg ably analyzes the
ways in which these academic institutions have evolved over time,
outlining their efforts to evolve and remain relevant while
maintaining their core values and historic identities.
"Pragmatic Encroachment, Religious Belief and Practice" engages
several recent and important discussions in the mainstream
epistemological literature surrounding 'pragmatic encroachment'. It
has been argued that what is at stake for a person in regards to
acting as if a proposition is true can raise the levels of
epistemic support required to know that proposition. Do the high
stakes involved in accepting or rejecting religious beliefs raise
the standards for knowledge that 'God exists', 'Jesus rose from the
dead' and other propositions? Professor Rizzieri also examines
whether or not knowledge and justification norms of belief and
action undermine the pragmatic grounds for religious belief
suggested by William James. Rizzieri argues that such norms favor
an attitude of hope, as opposed to belief, under conditions of
uncertainty. Finally, Rizzieri argues the connections between
knowledge and rational action undermine radically externalist
accounts of religious knowledge and proposes an alternative account
of the justification of religious beliefs.
This unique and pioneering book critically appraises current work
from both the cognitive science of religion and the evolutionary
study of religion. It addresses the question: Why does the believer
possess supernatural or religious beliefs in the combined context
of his cognitive biases, their adaptive usefulness measured in
terms of survival and reproduction, and the impact of social
learning and cultural traits? The authors outlines a pluralistic
approach to the study of religion that does not treat religion as
an accidental by-product but an adaptation selected by natural
selection. Chapters discuss the role of religious components for
the evolution of cooperation and altruism, and explore the
development of atheism and secular ideas, in cognitive and
evolutionary terms. Topics such as the usefulness of religion, the
transmission of religious beliefs, and a Darwinian approach to
religion are among those addressed. Contrary to standard views,
religious biases are regarded as shaped by cultural influences and
not merely by natural dispositions. This monograph will
particularly appeal to researchers who are looking for a scientific
explanation of religion and religious beliefs but who do not stop
at the level of narrow cognitive and evolutionary accounts. The
work will also be of interest to students of philosophy, sociology,
religious studies, theology, or anthropology who seek to explain
such fascinating, complex, and unequivocal phenomena as religion
and religious components.
In this radical reinterpretation of Rousseau, Jeremiah Alberg
reveals the neglected theological dimension of Jean-Jacques
Rousseau's philosophy. Alberg shows how only Christianity can bring
the coherence of Rousseau's system to light, arguing that the
philosopher's system of thought is founded on theological scandal
and on his inability to accept forgiveness through Christianity.
This book explores Rousseau's major works in a novel way, advancing
his system of thought as an alternative to Christianity.
The Berlin lectures in The Grounding of Positive Philosophy,
appearing here for the first time in English, advance Schelling's
final existential system as an alternative to modernity's reduction
of philosophy to a purely formal science of reason. His account of
the ecstatic nature of existence and reason proved to be decisive
for the work of Paul Tillich and Martin Heidegger. Also,
Schelling's critique of reason's quixotic attempt at self-grounding
anticipates similar criticisms leveled by poststructuralism, but
without sacrificing philosophy's power to provide a positive
account of truth and meaning. The Berlin lectures provide
fascinating insight into the thought processes of one of the most
provocative yet least understood thinkers of nineteenth-century
German philosophy.
C. S. Lewis was one of the most influential Christian apologists of
the 20th century. An Oxford don and former atheist who converted to
Christianity in 1931, he gained a wide following during the 1940s
as the author of a number of popular apologetic books such as Mere
Christianity, Miracles, and The Problem of Pain in which he argued
for the truth of Christianity. Today his reputation is greater than
ever-partly because of his books and partly because of the movie
Shadowlands, starring Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger. In
advocating Christianity, Lewis did not appeal to blind faith, but
to reason. Convinced that Christianity is rationally defensible, he
boldly declared: "I am not asking anyone to accept Christianity if
his best reasoning tells him that the weight of the evidence is
against it." But do Lewis's arguments survive critical scrutiny? In
this revised and expanded edition of his book originally published
in 1985, philosopher John Beversluis takes Lewis at his word,
sympathetically examines his "case for Christianity," and concludes
that it fails. Beversluis examines Lewis's argument from desire-the
"inconsolable longing" that he interpreted as a pointer to a higher
reality; his moral argument for the existence of a Power behind the
moral law; his contention that reason cannot be adequately
explained in naturalistic terms; and his solution to the Problem of
Evil, which many philosophers regard as the decisive objection to
belief in Christianity. In addition, Beversluis considers issues in
the philosophy of religion that developed late in Lewis's life-such
as Antony Flew's criticisms of Christian theology. He concludes
with a discussion of Lewis's crisis of faith after the death of his
wife and answers the question: Did C. S. Lewis lose his faith?
Finally, in this second edition, Beversluis replies to critics of
the first edition. As the only critical study of C. S. Lewis's
apologetic writings, this readable and intellectually stimulating
book should be on the bookshelves of anyone interested in the
philosophy of religion.
The philosopher and poet Vladimir Solovyov (1853-1900) is largely
unknown to English readers, though translations of his works do
exist. This book presents his central teachings and analyses his
treatment of the non-Christian religions, Buddhism and Taosim in
particular. This now makes it more possible to reassess his
religious philosophy as a whole. The book will be of interest to
students of comparative religion, theology, philosophy and Russian
intellectual history.
Archbishop of Canterbury from 1272 until his death in 1279, the
Dominican friar Robert Kildwardby has long been known primarily for
his participation in the Oxford Prohibitions of 1277, but his
contributions spread far wider. A central figure in the Late Middle
Ages, Kilwardby was one of the earliest commentators of the work of
Aristotle, as well as an unwavering proponent of Augustinian
thought and a believer of the plurality of forms. Although he was a
prominent thinker of the time, key areas of his philosophical
thought remain unexamined in contemporary scholarship. Jose Filipe
Silva here offers the first book-length analysis of Kilwardby's
full body of work, which is essential in understanding both the
reception of Aristotle in the Latin West and the developments of
later medieval philosophy. Beginning with his early philosophical
commitments, Silva tracks Kilwardby's life and academic thought,
including his theories on knowledge, moral happiness, and the
nature of the soul, along with his attempts to reconcile
Augustinian and Aristotelian thought. Ultimately, Robert Kilwardby
offers a comprehensive overview of an unsung scholar, solidifying
his philosophical legacy as one of the most influential authors of
the Late Middle Ages.
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