Ethics and moral philosophy Books

Book SynopsisReconsiders contemporary debates about ethics and subjectivity in an extended engagement with the works of fifth-century ascetic, John Cassian (ca. 360 - ca. 435), whose stories of extreme asceticism and transformative religious experience by desert elders helped to establish Christian monastic forms of life.Trade Review“This is a brilliant, original, and important work. Drawing upon the rich, complex ascetic and spiritual thought of late ancient Christian monastic writer John Cassian, Niki Kasumi Clements examines, critically and creatively, the very ground of ethics.” —Douglas E. Christie, author of The Blue Sapphire of the Mind"Clements not only offers a clearer understanding of the nuances in late ancient asceticism, but also contributes to contemporary debates on subjectivity, ethics and agency by inviting her audience to a reflexive engagement with the question of what it means to live well amidst contingencies and crises." —NTT Journal for Theology and the Study of Religion"Clements’ text is not only a valuable contribution to the studies of religion – which it certainly is – but promises a broad and interdisciplinary impact." —Foucault Studies

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Disputes in Bioethics addresses pressing topics in the medical arena. The book will interest students and scholars in medical ethics, nursing ethics, and moral theology." —Thomas Cavanaugh, author of Hippocrates’ Oath and Asclepius’ Snake“Disputes in Bioethics is a real contribution to the field of analytic ethics, in defense of the Christian faith’s insistence that human beings are worthy of respect from conception until natural death.” —Kevin Flannery, S.J., author of Action and Character According to Aristotle“I really learned from Disputes in Bioethics, not only about the issues but also from the clarity, deftness, concision, comprehensiveness, and biting wit of the arguments.” —Matthew R. Petrusek, co-editor of Value and Vulnerability"When a book treats bioethical questions in a manner consistent with the Catholic sanctity-of-life ethic, it deserves readership. Christopher Kaczor’s is such a book." —National Catholic Register"Disputes in Bioethics is accessible yet scholarly, and a very fine orientation around many key issues in contemporary bioethics." —Studies in Christian Ethics

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Disputes in Bioethics addresses pressing topics in the medical arena. The book will interest students and scholars in medical ethics, nursing ethics, and moral theology." —Thomas Cavanaugh, author of Hippocrates’ Oath and Asclepius’ Snake“Disputes in Bioethics is a real contribution to the field of analytic ethics, in defense of the Christian faith’s insistence that human beings are worthy of respect from conception until natural death.” —Kevin Flannery, S.J., author of Action and Character According to Aristotle“I really learned from Disputes in Bioethics, not only about the issues but also from the clarity, deftness, concision, comprehensiveness, and biting wit of the arguments.” —Matthew R. Petrusek, co-editor of Value and Vulnerability"When a book treats bioethical questions in a manner consistent with the Catholic sanctity-of-life ethic, it deserves readership. Christopher Kaczor’s is such a book." —National Catholic Register"Disputes in Bioethics is accessible yet scholarly, and a very fine orientation around many key issues in contemporary bioethics." —Studies in Christian Ethics

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This is a highly accessible introduction to the profound thought of a first-class mind. Anyone interested in Thomism or the subjects treated by Simon, including freedom, authority, and the common good, will find it very readable.” —Giuseppe Butera, editor of Reading the CosmosTable of ContentsAn Account of the Reader, by Way of Acknowledgment Simon’s Works In The Reader: Summary And Guide Part I. Introduction 1. The Philosophy of Yves R. Simon Introduction by Michael D. Torre 2. Method in Philosophy by Jude P. Dougherty Part II. Knowledge 3. Knowledge as Immanent Action Introduction by Raymond Dennehy 4. The Distinction of Thing and Object Introduction by John C. Cahalan 5. Analogy and Metaphysical Knowledge Introduction by Steven A. Long 6. Sensation and Physical Knowledge Introduction by Ralph Nelson 7. Knowledge of Persons and Society Introduction by John P. Hittinger Jr. 8. Moral Knowledge Introduction by Ralph McInerny Part III. Freedom 9. Human Freedom Introduction by David B. Burrell, CSC 10. Human Reason and Will Introduction by Laurence Berns 11. Good Use and Habitus Introduction by Catherine Green 12. The Definition of Moral Virtue Introduction by W. David Solomon 13. Freedom of Intellect Introduction by V. Bradley Lewis 14. Society and the Formation of Free Persons Introduction by Joseph W. Koterski, SJ Part IV. Community 15. Political Society Introduction by James V. Schall, SJ 16. The Definition of Law Introduction by George Anastaplo viii Contents 17. The Common Good and Authority Introduction by Walter J. Nicgorski 18. Work and Society Introduction by John A. Gueguen Jr. 19. Economic Justice Introduction by Thomas R. Rourke 20. Community, Truth, and Culture Introduction by Jeanne Heffernan Schindler Epilogue: Problems in International Order Introduction by Robert Royal Select Bibliography Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This is a highly accessible introduction to the profound thought of a first-class mind. Anyone interested in Thomism or the subjects treated by Simon, including freedom, authority, and the common good, will find it very readable.” —Giuseppe Butera, editor of Reading the CosmosTable of ContentsAn Account of the Reader, by Way of Acknowledgment Simon’s Works In The Reader: Summary And Guide Part I. Introduction 1. The Philosophy of Yves R. Simon Introduction by Michael D. Torre 2. Method in Philosophy by Jude P. Dougherty Part II. Knowledge 3. Knowledge as Immanent Action Introduction by Raymond Dennehy 4. The Distinction of Thing and Object Introduction by John C. Cahalan 5. Analogy and Metaphysical Knowledge Introduction by Steven A. Long 6. Sensation and Physical Knowledge Introduction by Ralph Nelson 7. Knowledge of Persons and Society Introduction by John P. Hittinger Jr. 8. Moral Knowledge Introduction by Ralph McInerny Part III. Freedom 9. Human Freedom Introduction by David B. Burrell, CSC 10. Human Reason and Will Introduction by Laurence Berns 11. Good Use and Habitus Introduction by Catherine Green 12. The Definition of Moral Virtue Introduction by W. David Solomon 13. Freedom of Intellect Introduction by V. Bradley Lewis 14. Society and the Formation of Free Persons Introduction by Joseph W. Koterski, SJ Part IV. Community 15. Political Society Introduction by James V. Schall, SJ 16. The Definition of Law Introduction by George Anastaplo viii Contents 17. The Common Good and Authority Introduction by Walter J. Nicgorski 18. Work and Society Introduction by John A. Gueguen Jr. 19. Economic Justice Introduction by Thomas R. Rourke 20. Community, Truth, and Culture Introduction by Jeanne Heffernan Schindler Epilogue: Problems in International Order Introduction by Robert Royal Select Bibliography Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Medicine and Shariah fills an important and widely felt gap among Muslims. There have been numerous recent works on Islamic bioethics, but none as far as I am aware that specifically focus on the actual interaction between physicians and jurists. Aasim Padela is one of the foremost medical experts who has brought to the fore practical as well as institutional challenges that face Muslim physicians and patients.” —Ovamir Anjum, author of Politics, Law, and Community in Islamic Thought"The book is well written, striking an academic and balanced tone, which cannot be said of much that passes for Islamic bioethics today. I have no doubt that Aasim Padela will be remembered as a pioneer of our field." —Journal of Islamic EthicsTable of ContentsPreface An Introduction to Islamic Bioethics: Its Producers and Consumers 1. The Relationship between Medicine and Religion: Insights from the Fatwa Literature 2. The Islamic Juridical Principle of Dire Necessity (al-ḍarūra) and its Application to the Field of Biomedical Interventions 3. A Jurisprudential (Uṣūlī) Framework for Cooperation between Muslim Jurists and Physicians and Its Application to the Determination of Death 4. Considering Being and Knowing in an Age of Techno-Science 5. Exploring the Role of Mental Status and Expert Testimony in the Islamic Judicial Process 6. Muslim Perspectives on the American Healthcare System: The Discursive Framing of “Islamic” Bioethical Discourse 7. Muslim Doctors and Islamic Bioethics: Insights from a National Survey of American Muslim Physicians 8. Jurists, Physicians, and Others in Dialogue: A Multidisciplinary Vision for Islamic Bioethical Deliberation

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Medicine and Shariah fills an important and widely felt gap among Muslims. There have been numerous recent works on Islamic bioethics, but none as far as I am aware that specifically focus on the actual interaction between physicians and jurists. Aasim Padela is one of the foremost medical experts who has brought to the fore practical as well as institutional challenges that face Muslim physicians and patients.” —Ovamir Anjum, author of Politics, Law, and Community in Islamic Thought"The book is well written, striking an academic and balanced tone, which cannot be said of much that passes for Islamic bioethics today. I have no doubt that Aasim Padela will be remembered as a pioneer of our field." —Journal of Islamic EthicsTable of ContentsPreface An Introduction to Islamic Bioethics: Its Producers and Consumers 1. The Relationship between Medicine and Religion: Insights from the Fatwa Literature 2. The Islamic Juridical Principle of Dire Necessity (al-ḍarūra) and its Application to the Field of Biomedical Interventions 3. A Jurisprudential (Uṣūlī) Framework for Cooperation between Muslim Jurists and Physicians and Its Application to the Determination of Death 4. Considering Being and Knowing in an Age of Techno-Science 5. Exploring the Role of Mental Status and Expert Testimony in the Islamic Judicial Process 6. Muslim Perspectives on the American Healthcare System: The Discursive Framing of “Islamic” Bioethical Discourse 7. Muslim Doctors and Islamic Bioethics: Insights from a National Survey of American Muslim Physicians 8. Jurists, Physicians, and Others in Dialogue: A Multidisciplinary Vision for Islamic Bioethical Deliberation

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[Lasch-Quinn] is a gifted scholar whose examination of ancient works, their modern scholarly reception, and the appearance of big ideas in popular culture is consistently brilliant. . . . She manages to cover over two thousand years of philosophical development in under four hundred pages, and while those pages are dense in content, they are charmingly readable. The introduction, ‘Therapeia,’ is worth the price of the book.” —Front Porch Republic”In her profoundly insightful and thought-provoking work, Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn . . . notes, ‘the problems with contemporary culture stem in part from its inability, even in the event that basic needs are met, to provide adequate resources for the living of everyday life.’ . . . Lasch-Quinn’s work not only informs but urges the reader to seek a deeper understanding of the current problems we face.” —Journal of Sociology and Christianity"Lasch-Quinn has set out in Ars Vitae to embody the best of what true philosophical writing has to offer. She writes in a way that makes her readers better thinkers, more reflective and self-aware, and she does so by showing the development of her own thinking—who her influences are, the sources from which she draws her wisdom, and how philosophy informs her understanding of herself, the culture, and the world in which she lives." —Los Angeles Review of Books"Lasch-Quinn turns to the ancients to persuade her readers that living, contra postmodernism, can bring us to 'the heights of awe, love, and wholeness,' even in the face of great pain and evil. . . . Many of us go through days, weeks, and even years of being beaten down, but suffering, Lasch-Quinn’s book tells us, can be transfigured into beauty, even holiness. " —City Journal"This is what makes Ars Vitae such vital reading. It provides both a thorough-going critique of the therapeutic, self-obsessed ethos so dominant today, and a way beyond it, through the potential development of those inner, moral resources on which true selfhood and a moral community rest." —spiked"Ars Vitae is a remarkable book. . . . The prose feels intensely personal, and even intimate, engaging the reader in the author’s search for meaning with an approach that feels consequential without being personally needy." —Law and Liberty“Lasch-Quinn’s forward-looking vision, developed through an impressive range of learning, ties wholeness, flourishing, selfhood, and health to goodness, truth, and beauty, which remain attainable through the most basic impulses and features of human life. That she makes her argument through accessible and upbeat engagements with everyday realities like literature, film, architecture, and coffee mugs (for which she has a real fondness) only proves her point.” —The Christian Century“Ars Vitae doesn’t just stir the imagination—it stirs the scholarly imagination. It makes one think not simply about its subject but also how one might approach any subject. It is thus an example of both innovation and intervention.” —Christian Scholar’s Review“The book is not a manual but instead a glimpse into, and an invitation to join, a conversation about what is good and how to live. . . . In the end, those who take up Ars Vitae may find themselves, as I did, most grateful to Lasch-Quinn for giving them grounds for hope.” —VoegelinView"Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn’s engaging and learned Ars Vitae: The Fate of Inwardness and the Return of the Ancient Arts of Living is an intellectual tour de force that expounds various branches of ancient philosophy, assesses the scholarly debate around them, and critiques much of the modern appropriation of the classical heritage." —First ThingsTable of ContentsMajor Abbreviations and Sources Acknowledgements Introduction: Therapeia 1. The New Gnosticism 2. The New Stoicism 3. The New Epicureanism 4. The New Cynicism 5. The New Platonism Conclusion: Philosophia Epilogue: Once Bibliography

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The nineteenth-century Russian theologian-philosopher Vladimir S. Soloviev’s renowned ‘Three Addresses in Memory of Dostoevsky’ leads off a number of masterful and, in the West, little-known essays on aesthetics, philosophy, and literature—all in Professor Wozniuk’s excellent renditions. The Heart of Reality is a supremely rewarding book—an introduction to the mind of one of Russia’s greatest thinkers and to the spirit of Russia itself.” “One of the strengths of The Heart of Reality remains Wozniuk’s Introduction, which contextualizes Soloviev’s writings on aesthetics for the general reader by summarizing the overarching characteristics of Soloviev’s ambitious philosophical, religious, and social project: his commitment to the process he termed all-unity. Wozniuk’s translations of the Russian essays are carefully crafted, paying attention to the nuances of the original and manifesting an awareness of the pitfalls of decoding the linguistic structures of one language and representing them in another. As a result of this attention to detail and awareness of the issues involved in translation, both the poetic and non-poetic aspects of the translation emerge as elegant and readable. Wozniuk’s translation of Soloviev’s essays on beauty, love, and ethics makes a noteworthy contribution to the body of available English translations of Russian religious philosophy and aesthetics. I highly recommend it not only for graduate and undergraduate libraries, but also for undergraduate courses in the humanities on Russian and Western intellectual history.”—Ars Disputandi“Illuminating . . . and immensely informative.”—Slavonic and East European ReviewThis book is a reliable and fascinating introduction to the springs of Soloviev’s own thought, in the Russian culture that was so dear to him. It is important and timely.”—Studies in Christian Ethics“The translations of Soloviev’s texts are in clear, elegant English. One is able to get a grasp here of the genius of this often contradictory, controversial, and, in many ways, overshadowed personality and his thinking.”—Cistercian Studies Quarterly“This collection . . . provides a good introduction to the thinker Berdyaev called Russia’s greatest philosopher. . . . The central essays of this collection focus on beauty in nature, on the meaning of both beauty and of love, and an approach to aesthetics.”—Religious Studies Review“The Heart of Reality is obviously an attempt to help situate Soloviev more clearly in the mainstream of Western religious philosophy and Christian thought. For this, we should be grateful to the editor.”—Contact“Vladimir Wozniuk’s translation and edition of Vladimir Soloviev’s work is a major contribution in Russian thought and theology. What is particularly impressive about this collection is the thoughtfulness with which it is put together.”“Excellently translated. . . . Featuring a useful introduction, endnotes, and index, this book will be valuable for academic and large public libraries.”—Choice“The present anthology is right on target in emphasizing that the centrality of aesthetics and its close interconnection with religion were arguably Soloviev’s most substantial contribution to philosophy and theology . . . The Wozniuk volume . . . is a meritorious increase of our awareness of this significant thinker.”—The Review of Metaphysics“. . . A useful volume for readers who wish to follow up their interest in one of Russia’s key religious thinkers.”—Theological Book Review

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The Way of Medicine is a book that I wish I could put into the hands of all medical students and health care professionals. In a winsome and persuasive way, it places the disputed questions of contemporary medicine within the broader context of the profession of medicine whose goal is the health of patients, not merely fulfilling whatever desires the patients happen to have.” —Christopher Kaczor, author of Disputes in Bioethics“The Way of Medicine is a bold intervention into what has become commonplace in medicine: the physician as service provider, the physician as a mere cog in the wheel of social functioning.” —Jeffrey P. Bishop, author of The Anticipatory Corpse"This work is . . . engaging, offering a clear exhortation to reinsert common sense into medical practice. The book should be an inviting read for both experienced doctors and clinically naïve students." —ChoiceIn building from foundational considerations to a moral vision for medical practice, this book is a welcome addition to the literature on medical ethics. Curlin and Tollefsen articulate the philosophical underpinnings of the Way of Medicine both in contrast to and in conversation with major current thinkers across the spectrum of medical ethics traditions, with extensive references providing further commentary and citations for additional reading. —Family MedicineThis short but highly insightful volume is a welcome addition to the literature onthe philosophy of medicine and ought to be recommended reading for both bioethicists interested in debates about morality in medicine as well as physicians seeking abetter understanding of their own professional vocation. —The New BioethicsWe argue that the medical profession has neglected a question that anyone thinking about going into medicine must consider: what is medicine? The question is really about medicine’s point: we understand what medicine is by understanding what it is for: what is its point, purpose, or end? —Farr Curlin and Christopher Tollefsen, The Pillar"The Way of Medicine offers an engaging account of an ancient approach to medicine that seeks to care for people through caring for their health. . . . In order to deepen the argument for adopting this approach, I hope that others will build on this project by more robustly articulating the moral and philosophical vision within which the Way of Medicine is at home." —Public Discourse"Curlin and Tollefsen provide a sound diagnosis of one of the major problems facing society today: the erosion of the practice of medicine. While not an overtly theological work, The Way of Medicine equips Christian medical trainees and physicians with language that helps them better situate the practice of medicine within their faith and then reconcile that practice with the pluralistic society in which they practice." —Christian BioethicsTable of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. The Way of Medicine 2. The Requirements of Practical Reason 3. The Doctor-Patient Relationship 4. Autonomy and Authority 5. The Rule of Double Effect 6. Sexuality and Reproduction 7. Abortion and Unborn Human Life 8. Medicine at the End of Life 9. Last-Resort Options 10. Conscientious Medicine

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The Way of Medicine is a book that I wish I could put into the hands of all medical students and health care professionals. In a winsome and persuasive way, it places the disputed questions of contemporary medicine within the broader context of the profession of medicine whose goal is the health of patients, not merely fulfilling whatever desires the patients happen to have.” —Christopher Kaczor, author of Disputes in Bioethics“The Way of Medicine is a bold intervention into what has become commonplace in medicine: the physician as service provider, the physician as a mere cog in the wheel of social functioning.” —Jeffrey P. Bishop, author of The Anticipatory Corpse"This work is . . . engaging, offering a clear exhortation to reinsert common sense into medical practice. The book should be an inviting read for both experienced doctors and clinically naïve students." —ChoiceIn building from foundational considerations to a moral vision for medical practice, this book is a welcome addition to the literature on medical ethics. Curlin and Tollefsen articulate the philosophical underpinnings of the Way of Medicine both in contrast to and in conversation with major current thinkers across the spectrum of medical ethics traditions, with extensive references providing further commentary and citations for additional reading. —Family MedicineThis short but highly insightful volume is a welcome addition to the literature onthe philosophy of medicine and ought to be recommended reading for both bioethicists interested in debates about morality in medicine as well as physicians seeking abetter understanding of their own professional vocation. —The New BioethicsWe argue that the medical profession has neglected a question that anyone thinking about going into medicine must consider: what is medicine? The question is really about medicine’s point: we understand what medicine is by understanding what it is for: what is its point, purpose, or end? —Farr Curlin and Christopher Tollefsen, The Pillar"The Way of Medicine offers an engaging account of an ancient approach to medicine that seeks to care for people through caring for their health. . . . In order to deepen the argument for adopting this approach, I hope that others will build on this project by more robustly articulating the moral and philosophical vision within which the Way of Medicine is at home." —Public Discourse"Curlin and Tollefsen provide a sound diagnosis of one of the major problems facing society today: the erosion of the practice of medicine. While not an overtly theological work, The Way of Medicine equips Christian medical trainees and physicians with language that helps them better situate the practice of medicine within their faith and then reconcile that practice with the pluralistic society in which they practice." —Christian BioethicsTable of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. The Way of Medicine 2. The Requirements of Practical Reason 3. The Doctor-Patient Relationship 4. Autonomy and Authority 5. The Rule of Double Effect 6. Sexuality and Reproduction 7. Abortion and Unborn Human Life 8. Medicine at the End of Life 9. Last-Resort Options 10. Conscientious Medicine

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Book SynopsisThis study locates Aquinas's theory of infused and acquired virtue in his foundational understanding of nature and grace.Aquinas holds that all the virtues are bestowed on humans by God along with the gift of sanctifying grace. Since he also holds, with Aristotle, that we can create virtuous dispositions in ourselves through our own repeated good acts, a question arises: How are we to understand the relationship between the virtues God infuses at the moment of grace and virtues that are gradually acquired over time? In this important book, Angela McKay Knobel provides a detailed examination of Aquinas's theory of infused moral virtue, with special attention to the question of how the infused and acquired moral virtues are related. Part 1 examines Aquinas's own explicit remarks about the infused and acquired virtues and considers whether and to what extent a coherent theory of the relationship between the infused and acquired virtues can be found in Aquinas. KTrade Review“Knobel provides what is now likely the best book available on virtue in Aquinas’s thought. Through meticulous engagement with Thomas’s text, she delineates the commonalities and discontinuities between the acquired and infused virtues and supplies a decisive intervention in recent debate on the relationship between them.” —William C. Mattison III, author of The Sermon on the Mount and Moral Theology"Much ink has been spilled over the question of the relation between the acquired and the infused virtues in Aquinas’s thought. To this dense thicket of debate, Angela McKay Knobel brings admirable clarity, judicious attention to texts, and constructive imagination. Warmly recommended!" —Jennifer A. Herdt, author of Putting on Virtue"A masterpiece of careful, insightful analysis and respectful but forthright critique...a major contribution to both Thomistic scholarship and virtue theory more generally." —Speculum"The first substantial English monograph on Aquinas's account of the infused virtues in many years, and the most significant treatment of the issue since Gabriel Bullet." —The Review of Metaphysics"Knobel’s book is a fine study of Aquinas’s theory of virtue that will be essential reading not only for scholars working in the field of Thomistic ethics, but for any moral theologian interested in reflecting on the dynamics of graced human action." —Journal of Moral Theology"Knobel presents her case with an admirable rigour and clarity." —TheologyTable of Contents1. The Structure of Natural Virtue 2. The Structure of Supernatural Virtue 3. Relating the Virtues: Aquinas’s Texts 4. Interpretive Options Part I: Coexistence 5. Interpretive Options Part II: Unification 6. A Proposal for a Way Forward

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Book SynopsisFictions, Lies, and the Authority of Law discusses legal, political, and cultural difficulties that arise from the crisis of authority in the modern world.Is there any connection linking some of the maladies of modern lifecancel culture, the climate of mendacity in public and academic life, fierce conflicts over the Constitution, disputes over presidential authority? Fictions, Lies, and the Authority of Law argues that these diverse problems are all a consequence of what Hannah Arendt described as the disappearance of authority in the modern world. In this perceptive study, Steven D. Smith offers a diagnosis explaining how authority today is based in pervasive fictions and how this situation can amount to, as Arendt put it, the loss of the groundwork of the world.Fictions, Lies, and the Authority of Law considers a variety of problems posed by the paradoxical ubiquity and absence of authority in the modern world. Some of these problems are jTrade Review“It is hard to break new ground in thinking about the nature and practice of authority, but Smith’s book, with its introduction of the idea of a fiction into the existing understanding, does just that. And the book’s careful and creative use of multiple philosophical and social science disciplines is an added and unusual benefit.” —Frederick Schauer, author of The Force of Law"In this provocative and illuminating work, one of our most insightful legal thinkers explores the nature of real authority. Steven Smith reveals that a loss of authority would be far from liberating. Instead he offers a hopeful account of how genuine authority exists and provides us with a firm place on which to stand." —Richard Garnett, co-editor of First Amendment Stories"As he has so often in his previous work, Steven Smith leads us to see familiar concepts in a new light and brings to bear a wide range of disciplines to conversations about law and legal theory. In this work, our understanding of authority gets the Smith treatment, and the result is an imaginative and critical contribution to the literature on legal authority." —Michael P. Moreland, director of the Eleanor H. McCullen Center for Law, Religion and Public Policy, Villanova University"As Smith argues, a good legal fiction must be both plausible and beneficial, else we have little reason to play along with it. But what makes the fiction plausible?" —Public Discourse"[This book's] intelligence, clarity, and candor make it a fine example of what a work of legal theory ought to be. Although legal authority has been much studied, Smith sheds new light on it." —The Review of PoliticsTable of ContentsPrologue: The Puzzling (Alleged) Disappearance of Authority 1. The Fictional Foundations of (Modern) Political Authority 2. Fictional Authority and the Problem of Constitutional Interpretation 3. Our Quasi-Fictional Government 4. From Political Fictions to “Living with Lies” 5. Authority and Faux Authority 6. Is Genuine Authority Possible? Epilogue: Authority Outside the Cave?

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Book SynopsisThis book explores a wide range of philosophical issues in their connection with theism, including views of free will, ethical theories, theories of mind, naturalism, and karma-plus-reincarnation.In this clear and logical guide, C. Stephen Layman takes up eight important philosophical questions about God: Does God exist? Why does God permit evil? Why think God is good? Why is God hidden? What is God's relationship to ethics? Is divine foreknowledge compatible with human free will? Do humans have souls? Does reincarnation provide the best explanation of suffering? Based on more than thirty years of experience in teaching undergraduates and in leading philosophical discussions related to God, Layman has arranged the text to deal with each of these eight questions in one or two chapters apiece.Many philosophical works take up questions about God, but the chapters of this book plunge the reader very quickly into the arguments relevant to each question. Layman presenTrade Review“Only someone such as C. Stephen Layman, who has worked in philosophy of religion for many years, could write such an informative and accessible book.” —James P. Sterba, University of Notre Dame“Both the breadth and the depth of exposition will educate readers in matters of more general metaphysical and epistemological interest than can be found in many student texts in philosophy of religion.” —R. Douglas Geivett, co-editor of The Testimony of the Spirit"C. Stephen Layman’s gift for explaining complicated things is on display in this wonderful introduction to eight well-chosen questions about God. The questions range from traditional to novel, and the answers to them include key extant replies along with some new gems from Layman himself. A great companion for your next philosophy of religion unit or course!" —Jeanine Diller, co-editor of Models of God and Other Alternative Ultimate Realities"Stephen Layman’s insightful explication of the major claims of traditional theism has a clear unity in spite of its broad range. Layman writes with a clarity that makes the book accessible to the lay reader while also offering an original approach to the war of the world views that should be required reading for scholars in philosophy of religion." —Laura L. Garcia, editor of Truth, Life and Solidarity"In methodical fashion, philosophy professor Layman offers a no-nonsense defense of theism—'the belief that God exists and is the Creator of the universe.' . . . any reader looking for cogent arguments to support their personal belief in God will find plenty to bolster them here." —Publishers Weekly"The major virtues of C. Stephen Layman's book are its clarity, its concision, its accessibility, and its scope. . . . . God: Eight Enduring Questions offers a careful and cogent case for theism. . . it also provides a remarkably clear and accessible overview of some of the most important debates in contemporary philosophy of religion." —Theological Studies"All theo-philosophical analytic thinkers will find Layman's book both compelling and thorough. ...Recommended." —ChoiceTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. Does God Exist? Part I 2. Does God Exist? Part II 3. Why Does God Permit Evil? 4. Why Think God is Good? 5. Why is God Hidden? Part I 6. Why is God Hidden? Part II 7. How is God related to Ethics? 8. Is Divine Foreknowledge Compatible with Human Free Will? Part I 9. Is Divine Foreknowledge Compatible with Human Free Will? Part II 10. Do Humans Have Souls? Part I 11. Do Humans Have Souls? Part II 12. Does Reincarnation Provide the Best Explanation of Suffering? Epilogue Works Cited

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Book SynopsisThis book explores a wide range of philosophical issues in their connection with theism, including views of free will, ethical theories, theories of mind, naturalism, and karma-plus-reincarnation.In this clear and logical guide, C. Stephen Layman takes up eight important philosophical questions about God: Does God exist? Why does God permit evil? Why think God is good? Why is God hidden? What is God's relationship to ethics? Is divine foreknowledge compatible with human free will? Do humans have souls? Does reincarnation provide the best explanation of suffering? Based on more than thirty years of experience in teaching undergraduates and in leading philosophical discussions related to God, Layman has arranged the text to deal with each of these eight questions in one or two chapters apiece.Many philosophical works take up questions about God, but the chapters of this book plunge the reader very quickly into the arguments relevant to each question. Layman presenTrade Review“Only someone such as C. Stephen Layman, who has worked in philosophy of religion for many years, could write such an informative and accessible book.” —James P. Sterba, University of Notre Dame“Both the breadth and the depth of exposition will educate readers in matters of more general metaphysical and epistemological interest than can be found in many student texts in philosophy of religion.” —R. Douglas Geivett, co-editor of The Testimony of the Spirit"C. Stephen Layman’s gift for explaining complicated things is on display in this wonderful introduction to eight well-chosen questions about God. The questions range from traditional to novel, and the answers to them include key extant replies along with some new gems from Layman himself. A great companion for your next philosophy of religion unit or course!" —Jeanine Diller, co-editor of Models of God and Other Alternative Ultimate Realities"Stephen Layman’s insightful explication of the major claims of traditional theism has a clear unity in spite of its broad range. Layman writes with a clarity that makes the book accessible to the lay reader while also offering an original approach to the war of the world views that should be required reading for scholars in philosophy of religion." —Laura L. Garcia, editor of Truth, Life and Solidarity"In methodical fashion, philosophy professor Layman offers a no-nonsense defense of theism—'the belief that God exists and is the Creator of the universe.' . . . any reader looking for cogent arguments to support their personal belief in God will find plenty to bolster them here." —Publishers Weekly"The major virtues of C. Stephen Layman's book are its clarity, its concision, its accessibility, and its scope. . . . . God: Eight Enduring Questions offers a careful and cogent case for theism. . . it also provides a remarkably clear and accessible overview of some of the most important debates in contemporary philosophy of religion." —Theological Studies"All theo-philosophical analytic thinkers will find Layman's book both compelling and thorough. ...Recommended." —ChoiceTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. Does God Exist? Part I 2. Does God Exist? Part II 3. Why Does God Permit Evil? 4. Why Think God is Good? 5. Why is God Hidden? Part I 6. Why is God Hidden? Part II 7. How is God related to Ethics? 8. Is Divine Foreknowledge Compatible with Human Free Will? Part I 9. Is Divine Foreknowledge Compatible with Human Free Will? Part II 10. Do Humans Have Souls? Part I 11. Do Humans Have Souls? Part II 12. Does Reincarnation Provide the Best Explanation of Suffering? Epilogue Works Cited

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Book SynopsisWhat is civility, and why has it disappeared? Ann Hartle analyzes the origins of the modern project and the Essays of Michel de Montaigne to discuss why civility is failing in our own time.In this bold book, Ann Hartle, one of the most important interpreters of sixteenth-century French philosopher Michel de Montaigne, explores the modern notion of civilitythe social bond that makes it possible for individuals to live in peace in the political and social structures of the Western worldand asks, why has it disappeared? Concerned with the deepening cultural divisions in our postmodern, post-Christian world, she traces their roots back to the Reformation and Montaigne's Essays. Montaigne's philosophical project of drawing on ancient philosophy and Christianity to create a new social bond to reform the mores of his culture is perhaps the first act of self-conscious civility. After tracing Montaigne's thought, Hartle returns to our modern society and argues thaTrade Review“The insistent point of What Happened to Civility—that civility is collapsing as enlightenment ideology’s relentless advance swamps the premodern, traditional sources of nobility and mercy that Montaigne relied upon to create civility in the first place—is new, true, and significant.” —Benjamin Storey, co-author of Why We Are Restless“No other book-length treatment of Montaigne’s notion of civility exists. Hartle succeeds admirably well in showing that Montaigne’s conception of civility helped to shape modern self-understanding in significant ways.” —John C. McCarthy, editor of Modern Enlightenment and the Rule of Reason"Time spent with this book will be rewarded, both with a heightened sense of the importance of civility to human happiness and wonder for the artistry of a great essayist like Montaigne." —The American Conservative"The book is a good contribution to a troubling debate, and one with which Montaigne himself would have been pleased." —Church Times“Ann Hartle analyzes the reasons for the contemporary decay of civility, which was given its modern formulation 'out of the fragments of the shattered classical-Christian tradition' in Montaigne’s Essays. She goes on to consider 'what has been lost in the movement from sacred tradition as the social bond' to its secular form, notably a 'public standard of moral virtue.'" —ChoiceAnn Hartle’s What Happened to Civility offers an inviting proposition: civility should be understood as a human invention and therefore is ultimately doomed to failure. -Perspectives on PoliticsTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. The New Adam: The Philosopher’s Sleight-of-Hand 2. The New Order: Hidden Mastery 3. Authenticity: The Greatest Thing in the World 4. Civility: Suppressing the Human Self 5. The Deterioration of Civility: When Everything Becomes Political 6. Living among the Ruins: The Disintegration of the Social Bond Bibliography

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This book is a well-written introduction to philosophy that has a systematic approach informed by the history of philosophy. There are many introductory philosophy books available, but I am not aware of one with quite this approach and spin on the issues.” —Christopher Kaczor, author of Disputes in Bioethics“Philosophy, Reasoned Belief, and Faith is a solid, well-written, well-organized, theistic-leaning introduction to philosophy.” —Gregory Bassham, co-author of Critical Thinking: A Student’s IntroductionTable of ContentsTo The Instructor To The Student Acknowledgements Dedication Unit One. Three Things to Know before You Dive into Philosophy 1. How Philosophy Began 2. The Socratic Method 3. And a Little Bit of Logic Unit Two. Philosophy of Religion 4. The Design Argument 5. Design and Evolution 6. The Cosmological Argument Interlude 1: A Survey of Modern Cosmology 7. The Problem of Evil Unit Three. Epistemology 8. What Can We Know? 9. C. S. Lewis and the Argument from Reason Unit Four. Philosophy of the Human Person 10. The Mind-Body Problem 11. Do We Have Free Will? Unit Five. Philosophical Ethics 12. Is It Reasonable to be Moral? Interlude 2: Or Should We All Become Moral Relativists? 13. Moral Reasoning Applied to the State 14. God and Morality

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Drawing on a rich tapestry of Catholic and Protestant sources, Devan Stahl demonstrates the need for metaphysics if Christian bioethics is to successfully confront the eugenic temptations of genetic technologies.” —Paul Scherz, co-editor of The Evening of Life"In this beautifully deep work, Devan Stahl highlights the wisdom of disabled people, too often left out of theological considerations around the utilization of medical advancements. Disability's Challenge to Theology is a bedrock book for bioethics and disability theology and sets the table for us to have conversations in nuanced, faithful ways that will bear fruit." —Bethany McKinney Fox, author of Disability and the Way of Jesus“Stahl argues that churches must include the voices of disabled individuals in Christian ethical discernment. This important, theologically rich book will be of interest to scholars of theological bioethics, especially those working in the Protestant tradition. Interested lay readers, too, may find the text helpful.” —Choice“Given the relative dearth of books in theological bioethics, Disability's Challenge to Theology: Genes, Eugenics, and the Metaphysics of Modern Medicine is a welcome contribution to the field. In addition to being of interest to Christian ethicists, Stahl's book will be of interest to those considering the implications of the capability approach for bioethics and disability studies.” —Hastings Center Report"Devan Stahl’s Disability’s Challenge to Theology is a step toward reconciliation for some of the sins of the modern church, offering itself as a starting point for developing processes for faithful decision-making and guidance in relation to genetic testing and therapies." —Journal of Disability and Religion"In Disability’s Challenge to Theology, Devan Stahl offers an insightful and multilayered critique of liberal Christian embrace of eugenics movements....Her work is particularly valuable for the spotlight it shines on the theological and social conflation between sin, suffering, and disability." —Political Theology"While Stahl draws from and speaks to Christian ethicists and theologians, non-Christian and even non-religious thinkers will benefit from reading her book." —Reading ReligionTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction 1. Science, Religion, and the Ideal Eugenic Man 2. Theological Influences on the Scientific Revolution 3. The Metaphysics and Theology of Genetic Medicine 4. Natural Theology and Genetic Ontology 5. Disability and Personhood 6. The Limits of Natural Law in Christian Genetics 7. Practical, Embodied Wisdom 8. Disability Inclusion and Virtue within the Church Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis book provides an ethical framework for understanding the good and how we can experience it in increasing measure.Trade Review"Philosophy in the analytic tradition has long needed a phenomenology for ethics. This book meets the need with an original framework for ethics that aims to be Christian. Contending that only pleasurable mental states have intrinsic value, Kevin Kinghorn advocates for objectivity in matters of goodness and badness but not in matters of rightness and wrongness. He makes illuminating use of the ideas of 'feeling tones' and 'feeling connected to others' to elaborate his phenomenology for ethical relationships. The result is a novel and clarifying treatment of foundational ethical issues with special attention to Christian ethics. Overall, this is a very important contribution to the field of philosophical ethics." —Paul K. Moser, Loyola University Chicago"This is a terrific work, in many respects. It is ambitious, clear, engaging, and energetic. The better part of the second half of the book makes some original, positive moves in thinking about values from the standpoint of Christian theism. The material is nuanced and well illustrated with analogies and thought experiments. The first half also displays creativity and ingenuity." —Charles Taliaferro, St. Olaf College“A lucidly written, cogent argument for a bold and original thesis well worth the reader’s serious consideration—a proposal not responsibly ignored. Highly recommended.” —David Baggett, co-author of God and Cosmos: Moral Truth and Human Meaning"A Framework for the Good is a creative and intriguing book. It challenges certain familiar conceptions of the good and the good life while striving to remain faithful to biblical—and specifically Trinitarian—categories. And even if some readers do not agree with Kinghorn’s arguments or certain starting assumptions, their horizons will be expanded and their moral thinking benefited by this bold work." —Paul Copan, Professor and Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics at Palm Beach Atlantic University“Like David Baggett and Jerry Wells . . . and others, Kinghorn . . . seeks to provide a philosophical treatment of morality that takes Christian theology seriously. Recommended.” —Choice“[Kinghorn’s] writing is scholarly, and this book seems to grow naturally out of his previous work. It does, however, stand on its own as an insightful contribution to the long philosophical heritage of examining what the truly good life is. Highly recommended for university and seminary libraries.” —Catholic Library World"Kevin Kinghorn's A Framework for the Good sets out and defends in detail a formal meta-ethical position concerning the relationship between the good and the right. It also offers a substantive account of what behaviors will contribute to our good, hence how to discern right from wrong, and describes how Christian theism fills in this account." —Religious Studies Review

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This book is a superb resource that documents the many Christian roots of the just war tradition’s thought and practice. It is much needed now to remind us of how God’s people have sought best to meet each age’s spiritual and temporal challenges. Just War and Christian Traditions deserves a central place of reference and influence in debates on this topic.” —Mark A. Jumper, co-editor of The Holy Spirit and the Reformation Legacy“Eric Patterson and J. Daryl Charles have produced a substantive and highly accessible book for anyone interested in the ethics of warfare. Highly recommended.“ —Bruce Riley Ashford, author of One Nation Under God“It is a special tragedy that the tradition of Just War, so earnestly needed as bellicose powers rise and global order strains, is too often forgotten or dismissed. Thanks to the scholars in these pages, a contemporary, accessible, and tradition-anchored anthology is now available to Christians on both why and how Just War matters. It is a magnificent and long overdue effort.” —Robert J. Joustra, author of The Religious Problem with Religious Freedom"So much more than merely a reminder of the development of just war thinking throughout the years, this splendid book offers wise, insightful, and truly useful guidance for readers as they seek to navigate the challenges of our complex twenty-first century. It is a privilege to recommend this remarkable volume." —David S. Dockery, co-editor of Christian Worldview Handbook"Just War and Christian Traditions is a rich, multi-layered compendium of essays from a wide array of Christian thinkers. This is a treasure trove of just war history, thought and application. Patterson and Charles should be commended for writing such a timely and necessary book." —David C. Iglesias, director of the Center for Faith, Politics & Economics“This collection reminds us that the just war framework is not a new way of thinking but one grounded in scripture, natural law, and the wide Christian intellectual tradition.” —Marc LiVecche, author of The Good Kill“This wonderful, balanced collection explores the development of just war thinking in eight major religious traditions/denominations. It should be read by anyone interested in how Christians have approached, or should approach, matters of war and peace.” —Mark David Hall, author of Great Christian Jurists in American History"A valuable and helpful resource that fills a particular gap in existing just war literature. The collection's essays are thoughtful, accessible, and rich with theological and historical insights." —Reading ReligionTable of ContentsContributors Foreword: The Honorable John Ashcroft 1. Christian Approaches to Just War, Peace, & Security, Eric Patterson and J. Daryl Charles 2. Catholic Just War Thinking, Joseph Capizzi 3. The Orthodox Church on Just War, Darrel Cole 4. Luther’s Political Thought and Its Contribution to the Just War Tradition, H. David Baer 5. John Calvin and the Reformed View of War, Resistance, and Political Duty, Keith Pavlischek 6. Anglican Thought on Just War, Daniel Strand and Nigel Biggar 7. Methodism and War: Mark Tooley 8. Praying for Peace but Preparing for War: Baptists and the Just War Tradition, Timothy Demy 9. Anabaptists and the Sword, J. Daryl Charles

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Book SynopsisThis much-needed anthology contains historically informed insights and analysis about Christian just war thinking and its application to contemporary conflicts.Recent Christian reflection on war has largely ignored questions of whether and how war can be just. The contributors to Just War and Christian Traditions provide a clear overview of the history and parameters of just war thinking and a much-needed and original evaluation of how Christian traditions and denominations may employ this thinking today.The introduction examines the historical development of Christian just war thinking, differences between just war thinking and the alternatives of pacifism and holy war, distinctions among Christian thinkers on issues such as the role of the state and lesser evil politics, and shared Christian theological commitments with public policy ramifications (for example, the priority of peace). The chapters that follow outlinefrom Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, ReTrade Review“This book is a superb resource that documents the many Christian roots of the just war tradition’s thought and practice. It is much needed now to remind us of how God’s people have sought best to meet each age’s spiritual and temporal challenges. Just War and Christian Traditions deserves a central place of reference and influence in debates on this topic.” —Mark A. Jumper, co-editor of The Holy Spirit and the Reformation Legacy“Eric Patterson and J. Daryl Charles have produced a substantive and highly accessible book for anyone interested in the ethics of warfare. Highly recommended.“ —Bruce Riley Ashford, author of One Nation Under God“It is a special tragedy that the tradition of Just War, so earnestly needed as bellicose powers rise and global order strains, is too often forgotten or dismissed. Thanks to the scholars in these pages, a contemporary, accessible, and tradition-anchored anthology is now available to Christians on both why and how Just War matters. It is a magnificent and long overdue effort.” —Robert J. Joustra, author of The Religious Problem with Religious Freedom"So much more than merely a reminder of the development of just war thinking throughout the years, this splendid book offers wise, insightful, and truly useful guidance for readers as they seek to navigate the challenges of our complex twenty-first century. It is a privilege to recommend this remarkable volume." —David S. Dockery, co-editor of Christian Worldview Handbook"Just War and Christian Traditions is a rich, multi-layered compendium of essays from a wide array of Christian thinkers. This is a treasure trove of just war history, thought and application. Patterson and Charles should be commended for writing such a timely and necessary book." —David C. Iglesias, director of the Center for Faith, Politics & Economics“This collection reminds us that the just war framework is not a new way of thinking but one grounded in scripture, natural law, and the wide Christian intellectual tradition.” —Marc LiVecche, author of The Good Kill“This wonderful, balanced collection explores the development of just war thinking in eight major religious traditions/denominations. It should be read by anyone interested in how Christians have approached, or should approach, matters of war and peace.” —Mark David Hall, author of Great Christian Jurists in American History"A valuable and helpful resource that fills a particular gap in existing just war literature. The collection's essays are thoughtful, accessible, and rich with theological and historical insights." —Reading ReligionTable of ContentsContributors Foreword: The Honorable John Ashcroft 1. Christian Approaches to Just War, Peace, & Security, Eric Patterson and J. Daryl Charles 2. Catholic Just War Thinking, Joseph Capizzi 3. The Orthodox Church on Just War, Darrel Cole 4. Luther’s Political Thought and Its Contribution to the Just War Tradition, H. David Baer 5. John Calvin and the Reformed View of War, Resistance, and Political Duty, Keith Pavlischek 6. Anglican Thought on Just War, Daniel Strand and Nigel Biggar 7. Methodism and War: Mark Tooley 8. Praying for Peace but Preparing for War: Baptists and the Just War Tradition, Timothy Demy 9. Anabaptists and the Sword, J. Daryl Charles

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Book SynopsisThis book offers a holistic account of the problems posed by freedom of expression in our current times and offers corrective measures to allow for a more genuine exchange of ideas within the global society.The topic of free speech is rarely addressed from a historical, philosophical, or theological perspective. In The Collapse of Freedom of Expression, Jordi Pujol explores both the modern concept of the freedom of expression based on the European Enlightenment and the deficiencies inherent in this framework. Modernity has disregarded the traditional roots of the freedom of expression drawn from Christianity, Greek philosophy, and Roman law, which has left the door open to the various forms of abuse, censorship, and restrictions seen in contemporary public discourse. Pujol proposes that we rebuild the foundations of the freedom of expression by returning to older traditions and incorporating both the field of pragmatics of language and theological and ethical coTrade Review“Freedom of speech is under siege today. Unless we relearn its foundations, there is a serious risk that we will lose it. Jordi Pujol reminds us of these foundations and their crucial role in rehabilitating free speech in an age of official and unofficial censorship.” —Samuel Gregg, author of Reason, Faith, and the Struggle for Western Civilization“Firmly rooted in venerable, even ancient, schools of philosophical and moral thought, The Collapse of Freedom of Expression looks to the future without nostalgia for what is irrevocably in the past. Jordi Pujol is fully open to the unprecedented newness of the historical and social context in which we find ourselves but remains confident that addressing these developments requires a renewal of foundational questions and principles. His book is well worth the attention of all of us who care about the past and the future of freedom of expression, and about the fundamental human goods that it aims to secure." —Paolo Carozza, co-editor of The Practice of Human Development and DignityTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Foreword by John D. Peters, Yale University Introduction Part I – Freedom of Expression under Threat: Emblematic Cases 1. I am not Charlie Hebdo. Defending Freedom of Expression but Not Its Content 2. The Paradox of Freedom of Expression on Campus 3. The Threat of Religious Fanaticism: Jyllands Posten and the Regensburg Address 4. The Rise of a New Orthodoxy: The Intolerance of Secular Relativism 5. Facebook’s Content Moderation Rule: Private Censorship of Public Discourse PART II – The Liberal Tradition of Freedom of Expression and Its Contradictions 6. The Sustainability of the Liberal Rationale: Main Critiques 7. A Fabricated Notion of Tolerance 8. The Epistemological Shortfall: A Homogenous Concept of Discourse 9. The Anthropological Shortfall: Modernity’s Idea of Mankind 10. The Neutrality of the Public Space: A Useful Fiction PART III – Historical and Philosophical Development of Freedom of Expression 11. The Origins of Freedom of Expression 12. Old-School and New-School Censorship 13. The Classical Tradition of the Founding Fathers of The United States 14. The Contemporary Tradition in the United States: Holmes and Harvard 15. The European Tradition: Hate Speech Laws PART IV – Reconstructing the Foundations of Freedom of Expression 16. Reframing Freedom of Expression as a Human Good 17. Reconsidering the Legal Grounds 18. Reshaping the Harm Principle. Pragmatics of Language and Natural Ethics 19. Repairing the Relationship Between Secular and Sacred 20. Revisiting the Limits of Freedom of Expression

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Book SynopsisBishop argues that something has gone sadly amiss in the care of the dying by contemporary medicine and in our social and political views of death.Trade Review“The book’s interdisciplinary nature, along with its careful analyses combined with concrete stories of real human struggles with death and dying, no doubt, will be of interest to those engaged in medicine, bioethics, philosophy, theology, and debates concerning public health policies; but all those interested in the place of the body in modern technoscientific culture will find it engaging and cogent.” —Per Caritatem". . . this book will prove to be a seminal, conversation-changing monograph especially in bioethics and philosophy of medicine. . . . It will challenge the fundamental presuppositions that structure most courses in bioethics or death and dying. It is certainly a must-read for scholars and graduate students in these fields, but with guidance, it is an accessible and important text to use with undergraduates interested in bioethics or theology and medicine as well." —Modern Theology"This is a genuinely novel approach that invites one to completely reassess why healthcare institutions and professionals function as they do. It also invites us to question how our lives are shaped by our anticipated deaths. . . . This is not an easy book, but it is worth devoting time to reading it and thinking about the questions it poses. It is beautifully written and carefully argued, and instead of shying away from difficult and potentially disruptive issues in modern medicine it exposes them and challenges us to think again." —Times Higher Education“In this evocatively titled book, physician Bishop joins his Catholic sensibility with a Foucaldian analysis of medicine and power to expose the ambiguities and complexities of contemporary end-of-life issues. . . . Bishop examines issues such as how the need for donated organs since the 1950s has shaped care of the dying in troubling ways, the contesting passions surrounding the Terri Schiavo case, and the trivialization of the religious lives of caregivers and dying patients as wrought by the professionalization of palliative care.” —Library Journal"The Anticipatory Corpse: Medicine, Power, and the Care of the Dying [is] a compelling read and a groundbreaking work in philosophy and bioethics. Written by physician, bioethicist, and philosopher Jeffrey P. Bishop, the book presents an eloquent argument as to how the profession’s care of dying persons has evolved as well as a provocative and insightful critique of the present state of such care. . . . The Anticipatory Corpse . . . is engaging, provocative, and difficult to put down. . . . For physicians, lawyers, philosophers, chaplains, nurses, and other professionals whose work is centered on life’s final chapter, I wholeheartedly recommend this book." —Journal of the American Medical Association“Jeffrey Bishop . . . takes the reader on a journey into the past to provide insight into how the dead body plays an integral and unrecognized role in the present state of medicine in his book . . . . He argues that the corpse is the end of the practice of medicine.” —Journal of Medical Humanities“It is hard to overestimate the importance of Bishop’s book, not least because of the unchallenged, well-nigh hegemonic place occupied by medicine in western culture . . . . The theological acuteness and pastoral warmth that flow through Jeffrey Bishop’s book make it the most compelling argument for the superiority of this type of humane medicine over the ubiquitous and utterly flaccid ‘biopsychosociospiritual’ pretensions of modern medical practice. But as a challenge to the story of western liberalism, and the central place of medicine within it, The Anticipatory Corpse is also the most important book of 2011.” —ABC Religion and Ethics“The Anticipatory Corpse is interesting, provocative and important—one of the most novel contributions to the field of bioethics of the last several decades. Bishop has many illuminating new things to say about the ethics of medical care for the dying. In the process, he helps to explain why bioethics itself is in such a sad state.” —America"In this brilliant book, Jeffrey Bishop, who is both a physician and a philosopher, turns his clinical and analytical gaze on medicine. His diagnosis is bleak: 'There is something rotten in the heart of medicine.' Nine of the ten chapters are devoted to the diagnosis, showing the source and history of the disease and some of its symptoms, always focusing on how medicine approaches death and care for the dying. . . . In the last chapter, he turns his attention to therapeutic possibilities for medicine and raises a series of provocative questions, the most provocative of which is the last line of his book: Might it not be that only theology can save medicine?" —The Christian Century“The Anticipatory Corpse has the potential to become a classic in the field of medicine. . . . Bishop’s critique of contemporary medical practices and the fundamental philosophical questions underlying them are a stark reminder that the practices of medicine—many of them very good indeed—should not become ends in themselves.” —Ethics and Medicine

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Book SynopsisTracing the shifts within Nietzsche’s understanding of the human condition, Alejandro offers an original interpretation of his philosophy, arguing that it was a philosophy of reconciliation.Trade Review"I am confident that this book will be considered essential reading for any scholar doing serious research into Nietzsche's thought and its implications. . . . The author carefully traces the shifts and turns and occasionally the contradictions and dead-ends in the development of Nietzsche's major themes. I have never read an account of Nietzsche's thought as fully and convincingly supported by textual reference as this book. Others will disagree with the author's readings of Nietzsche, that is the nature of scholarship, but I cannot see how they could be ignored." —Edward Portis, Texas A & M University"This is a major work on Nietzsche. Roberto Alejandro offers us a reading of Nietzsche's herculean efforts that Nietzsche scholars and scholars who write about modernity and postmodernity will be unable to ignore. This wide ranging and deep book addresses major issues in cultural history, psychoanalysis, cultural anthropology, and the vast literature on modernity and secularization. I expect this to be a book that generates debate and discussion for years to come." —Robert Hollinger, Iowa State University"Roberto Alejandro delivers a rich, lively account of Nietzsche's quest for meaning. By focusing on the theme of historiobiography, Alejandro illuminates Nietzsche's bold attempt to place himself at the center of a comprehensive account of the rise and fall of Western civilization. A thoughtful, well-crafted book, written very much in the spirit of Nietzsche himself." —Daniel Conway, Texas A & M University“Alejandro may have put his finger on the secret to Nietzsche’s appeal by emphasizing the redemptive motif in Nietzsche’s writings. Nietzsche saw humans as ‘religious animals’—unique among living creatures in demanding meaning for their lives. And he presents himself as a redeemer (ecce homo) who offers meaning. . . . The three major metaphors of Nietzsche’s story are the will to power, the overman, and eternal recurrence. Taken together they enable Nietzsche ‘to relate the real story of Christianity’ and make him, as Erich Heller has pointed out, one of the most radical religious writers of the 19th century.” —Choice"In Nietzsche and the Drama of Historiobiography, Roberto Alejandro challenges this tradition and attempts to redefine the meaning of Nietzsche's entire corpus, offering an interpretation that integrates man and work, and highlights parallel tensions in both. His book offers a fresh and thoughtful reconsideration of Nietzsche's lifelong project. . . . Ultimately, this book records a unified vision of Nietzsche's work that is stimulating, fresh, and valuable." —Dialogue“Alejandro’s critical reflections cut to the core of Nietzsche’s arguments for constructing a healthy culture, and his prescriptions for becoming an authentic thinker.” —Foucault Studies

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Book SynopsisA complex, intellectually jarring, and valuable book, one which reveals how early America became her true self as we now know her. Kirkus ReviewsThe United States is currently experiencing a crisis of citizenship and democracy. For many of us, there is a sense of forlornness caused by losing sight of human connectedness and the bonds of community. Originally published in 1973, and long out of print, The Idea of Fraternity in America is a resonant call to reclaim and restore the communal bonds of democracy by one of the most important political theorists of the twentieth century, Wilson Carey McWilliams.This sprawling and majestic book offers a comprehensive and original interpretation of the whole range of American historical and political thought, from seventeenth-century White Puritanism to twentieth-century Black American political thought. In one sense, it is a long and sustained reflection on the American political tradition, with side glancesTrade Review“A treasure of political and cultural reflection awaits the reader in the form of this splendid new edition of Wilson Carey McWilliams’s The Idea of Fraternity in America. This is political theory with a soul that speaks to reflective citizens as such.” —Daniel J. Mahoney, author of The Statesman as Thinker"Wilson Carey McWilliams remains the great modern critic of American liberalism, while also recognizing its crucial virtues. As Susan McWilliams Barndt says in her insightful and moving introduction, 'fraternity is a critical part of the American inheritance, providing ballast and inspiration against the prevailing trajectory of things.'” —Marc Landy, author of American Government"The reissue of Wilson Carey McWilliams’s The Idea of Fraternity in America is a welcome opportunity for a new generation of readers to discover McWilliams’s unique gifts. No one was better at understanding the uniquely difficult role that literary genius plays in a democratic regime—the 'second voice' in the conversation about the meaning and the possibility of American democracy." —Dennis Hale, author of The Jury in America"One of the most impressive published dissertations of the twentieth century. The fiftieth-anniversary edition from the University of Notre Dame Press is well worth the long read." —Law & LibertyTable of ContentsPreface Abbreviations Introduction 1. Clan, Tribe, and City 2. Fraternity and the Myths of Identity 3. Fraternity and Modern Politics 4. The Ambiguous Ideal: Fraternity in America 5. Puritanism: The Covenants of Fraternity 6. John Winthrop: The Statesman 7. The Fruits of the Earth: Cain in New England 8. The American Enlightenment 9. The Jeffersonians 10. The Divided House 11. Emerson and Thoreau: The All and the One 12. Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Citizen 13. Herman Melville: The Pilgrim 14. The Gilded Age 15. Whitman and Bellamy: Nations of Lovers 16. Mark Twain: The Teacher 17. Old Americans and New 18. Generations of the Lost 19. Fearlessness and Fear: The New Deal and After 20. Native Sons Epilogue: A Note on Generation and Regeneration Bibliographic Notes Index

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Book SynopsisA complex, intellectually jarring, and valuable book, one which reveals how early America became her true self as we now know her. Kirkus ReviewsThe United States is currently experiencing a crisis of citizenship and democracy. For many of us, there is a sense of forlornness caused by losing sight of human connectedness and the bonds of community. Originally published in 1973, and long out of print, The Idea of Fraternity in America is a resonant call to reclaim and restore the communal bonds of democracy by one of the most important political theorists of the twentieth century, Wilson Carey McWilliams.This sprawling and majestic book offers a comprehensive and original interpretation of the whole range of American historical and political thought, from seventeenth-century White Puritanism to twentieth-century Black American political thought. In one sense, it is a long and sustained reflection on the American political tradition, with side glancesTrade Review“A treasure of political and cultural reflection awaits the reader in the form of this splendid new edition of Wilson Carey McWilliams’s The Idea of Fraternity in America. This is political theory with a soul that speaks to reflective citizens as such.” —Daniel J. Mahoney, author of The Statesman as Thinker"Wilson Carey McWilliams remains the great modern critic of American liberalism, while also recognizing its crucial virtues. As Susan McWilliams Barndt says in her insightful and moving introduction, 'fraternity is a critical part of the American inheritance, providing ballast and inspiration against the prevailing trajectory of things.'” —Marc Landy, author of American Government"The reissue of Wilson Carey McWilliams’s The Idea of Fraternity in America is a welcome opportunity for a new generation of readers to discover McWilliams’s unique gifts. No one was better at understanding the uniquely difficult role that literary genius plays in a democratic regime—the 'second voice' in the conversation about the meaning and the possibility of American democracy." —Dennis Hale, author of The Jury in America"One of the most impressive published dissertations of the twentieth century. The fiftieth-anniversary edition from the University of Notre Dame Press is well worth the long read." —Law & LibertyTable of ContentsPreface Abbreviations Introduction 1. Clan, Tribe, and City 2. Fraternity and the Myths of Identity 3. Fraternity and Modern Politics 4. The Ambiguous Ideal: Fraternity in America 5. Puritanism: The Covenants of Fraternity 6. John Winthrop: The Statesman 7. The Fruits of the Earth: Cain in New England 8. The American Enlightenment 9. The Jeffersonians 10. The Divided House 11. Emerson and Thoreau: The All and the One 12. Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Citizen 13. Herman Melville: The Pilgrim 14. The Gilded Age 15. Whitman and Bellamy: Nations of Lovers 16. Mark Twain: The Teacher 17. Old Americans and New 18. Generations of the Lost 19. Fearlessness and Fear: The New Deal and After 20. Native Sons Epilogue: A Note on Generation and Regeneration Bibliographic Notes Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This is an outstanding book that makes an innovative and sophisticated contribution to our understanding of the Nicomachean Ethics in particular and of Aristotle’s practical philosophy in general.” —Gerald M. Mara, author of The Civic Conversations of Thucydides and Plato“Notable for clarity, good sense, and insight, Mary Nichols’s lovely book is a delight and a treasure.” —Harvey C. Mansfield, author of Manliness"An impressive and accomplished study of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics. . . .Nichols' book is among the very best contemporary studies of Aristotle. Essential." —ChoiceTable of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction 1. Our Unfinished Humanity: A Divine Gift (Book 1) 2. Ethical Virtue: Nature, Character, and Choice (Books 2-3) 3. The Virtues of Living Together (Book 4) 4. A Shrine to the Graces: Justice and Tragedy (Book 5) 5. Intellectual Virtue: Prudence, Wisdom, and Philosophy (Book 6) 6. Human Strength and Divine Perfection (Book 7) 7. Friendship: Family, Political Community, and Philosophy (Books 8-9) 8. Divine Thoughts and Political Reform (Book 10) Conclusion: Aristotelian Piety for a Liberal Politics

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“The wide range of authors and the variety of approaches, from analysis of literature and critique of limitations of one or another position, to reports on actual development work in different parts of the world, make it a rich compendium contributing to an important conversation between Catholic social teaching and the capability approach.” —Patrick Riordan, S.J., author of Recovering Common Goods"This is a book to borrow and relish. ...It wrestles thoughtfully with an issue that should concern us all in a pluralistic world that faces very serious, human-induced, global challenges." — Church TimesTable of ContentsIntroduction by Séverine Deneulin and Clemens Sedmak Part 1. Foundations 1. The anthropologies of CST and CA by Amy Daughton 2. Orthodox personhood: Clarifying the anthropological presuppositions of human development by Dana Bates 3. Freedom and agency: A conceptual exploration within CST and CA by Lori Keleher 4. Dignity and community in CA and CST by Joshua Schulz 5. Persistent gender inequality: Why CST needs CA by Katie Dunne 6. Integral ecology: Autonomy, the common inheritance of the earth and creation theology by Cathriona Russell 7. Caring for the earth: Challenges for CST and CA by Clemens Sedmak Part 2. Common Ground for Action 8. Development as freedom together: Human dignity and human rights in CST and CA by Meghan Clark 9. Encounter and agency: An account of a grassroots organization in Uganda by Ilaria Schnyder von Wartensee and Elizabeth Hlabse 10. Agency, power and ecological conversion: The case of the Conflict-Free Technology campaign by Guillermo Otano Jiménez 11. Integral human development: A role for children’s savings accounts? by James P. Bailey 12. Preferential option for the poor and solidarity in practice: A Salzburg initiative to combat child poverty in Romania by Helmut P. Gaisbauer 13. Combining CST and CA to promote integral human development by Séverine Deneulin and Augusto Zampini-Davies Conclusion by Clemens Sedmak and Séverine Deneulin

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Book SynopsisIn The Peaceable Kingdom Stanley Hauerwas claims that to begin by asking what is the relation between theology and ethics is to have already made a mistake. Hauerwas's claim, and his contribution toward a socially constituted and historically embodied account of the moral life and moral reason, are often charged with sectarianism, relativism, and tribalism. Emmanuel Katongole defends Hauerwas's dismissal of the traditional philosophical problem of the relation between ethics and religion. It is, he argues, part of Hauerwas's wider attempt to set aside the dominant Kantian moral tradition. Standard fare in moral philosophy, inspired by that tradition, fosters a highly formal, ahistorical view of ethics that does not do justice to our experience of ourselves as moral agents.Trade Review“Katongole’s well-written book is a significant contribution. ...[A] historical conception of the moral life that is among the most coherent and comprehensive to date. ...[T]his fine work deserves to be read widely.” —Theological Studies“Katongole gives us the best critical analysis of Hauerwas’ work currently available.”—Pro Ecclesia“[A] comprehensive and perceptive understanding of Hauerwas’s work.... [L]ucid and authoritative....” —Studies in Christian Ethics

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Book SynopsisGiven the largely Eurocentric nature of moral theology in the history of the Roman Catholic Church, what will it take to invest the theological community in the history and moral challenges of the Church in other parts of the world, especially Africa? What is to be gained for the whole Church when this happens in a deep and lasting way? In this timely and important study, Paulinus Ikechukwu Odozor brings greater theological clarity to the issue of the relationship between Christianity and African tradition in the area of ethical foundations. He also provides a constructive example of what fundamental moral theology done from an African and Christian (especially Catholic) moral theological point of view could look like.Following a brief history of the development of African Christian theology, Odozor examines responses of African theologians to African tradition and Christian responses to the reality of non-Christian religions. In a context where the African religious experienTrade Review"This is an ambitious book, a big book. The scholarship is sound and the author engages a range of authors and their views. Odozor takes seriously the critical and moral demands of Christian theology as well as those of African indigenous religions and their cultures. There is perhaps nothing so thoroughgoing on this topic since Bénézet Bujo’s Foundations of an African Ethic: Beyond the Universal Claims of Western Morality." —M. Shawn Copeland, Boston College"There are very few in theological ethics who can draw people into conversation through their combination of insightful argument and their gracious welcome to those in other academic fields. In Morality Truly Christian, Truly African, Paulinus Odozor succeeds on both counts, speaking boldly but charitably across ecclesial, cultural, and academic divides. By articulating an ethical methodology drawn from the moral reasoning of the African Christian churches, taking seriously the challenges of cultural particularity but also moral realism, and also giving the reader a sense of the complex pursuit of the truth about God and the human in history, Odozor has dared (and delivered) what few would attempt but many need—a genuinely comparative theological ethics." —David A. Clairmont, Tisch Family Associate Professor of Theology, University of Notre Dame"This work is truly astounding in its breadth and depth, and is bound to become a standard textbook in African moral theology. New is the accent on received Christian tradition as a principal source of such moral theology. Odozor engages in dialogue with various moral theologians (Karl Barth, Paul Tillich, Paul Knitter, and James Gustafson) and theologians of African morality (John Mbiti, Laurenti Magesa, and Elochukwu Uzukwu). The seven guidelines for theological inculturation in Africa are particularly illuminating and may be a good entry point into this work for the nonspecialist." —James Chukwuma Okoye, C.S.Sp., Duquesne University"Odozor has produced a definitive study that will determine the future of theological conversations about the place of African moral theology in world Christianity. His triple dialogue with African Christian theologies, Catholic fundamental moral theologies, and African traditional religious ethics is comprehensive in scope, rich in depth, systematic in analysis, and encyclopedic in presentation. This is Odozor at his best as he displays the traits of an ethical reasoning which is both Christian and African, addresses contextual questions without being parochial, and engages with moral issues which will help navigate the shifting landscape of World Catholicism." —Stan Chu Ilo, DePaul University“Odozor attempts to branch away from the Eurocentric nature of the Catholic Church’s history of moral theology in his book Morality Truly Christian, Truly African. Focusing on ethical foundations, he discusses the relationship between Christianity and the traditions of Africa. The continent’s rich traditions are powerful sources of meaning and identity in Christian evangelization.” —U.S. Catholic"Odozor has written an outstanding work on African Christian moral theology. He places great emphasis on theological enculturation, a continual process of dialogue between theology and culture. For Odozor, the enculturation process involves a triple dialogue involving African Christian theologies, Catholic fundamental moral theologies, and African traditional religious ethics." —Choice“Odozor’s analyses of the meaning and function of tradition and culture, the encounter of African traditional religion and Christianity, the post-Vatican II encouragement to inculturate the faith, the relation of ‘new’ theologies to historical Catholic theology, and the impact of political divisiveness in a changing global political situation are comprehensive and complex. The African Church has much to teach us, and this text marks a paradigm shift in the study of Catholic moral theology.” —Catholic Library World“Odozer analyzes African Christian theological ethics by simultaneously taking into account both the whole Christian moral tradition and African moral traditions. . . . I recommend this book to readers interested in becoming acquainted with the present status of African Christian theology and ethics; and moral theologians who want to engage with the growing contributions of current African Christian theological ethics will find this volume a valuable resource.” —Theological Studies"In Morality Truly Christian, Truly African, Father Odozor examines issues, some of them neuralgic, arising from the enculturation of Catholic moral discourse in a religiously pluralistic African situation. 'My hope,' he writes, 'is that theologizing in such an open way, as I try to do here in this book, will help to bring the church and the entire theological community into conversation about Christian ethics (moral theology) in the African context so that what goes on in that part of the Christian community will be of interest to all as a ‘Christian theological thing,’ and not just as an ‘African thing.’ I believe that what goes on in the current African church and theology should be of great interest to the theological community elsewhere, given the potential of this emerging church and its current and growing impact on the rest of the church.'" —Spiritan“The landscape of global Christianity has changed significantly in recent decades. This notion is the foundational premise of Odozor’s book . . . and he draws upon scholarship that suggests that the centre of global Christianity is shifting from Europe and North America to Africa, Asia and Latin America. . . . This shift in the epicenter of Church membership has consequences not only for the kind of theology that is required to answer questions faced in those particular contexts, but also for the theological project in its entirety as new contributions emerge from these places that shape how we understand our faith in its entirety.” —Studies in Christian Ethics

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Book SynopsisIn his latest book, Marshall Gregory begins with the premise that our lives are saturated with stories, ranging from magazines, books, films, television, and blogs to the words spoken by politicians, pastors, and teachers. He then explores the ethical implication of this nearly universal human obsession with narratives. Through careful readings of Katherine Anne Porter's The Grave, Thurber's The Catbird Seat, as well as David Copperfield and Wuthering Heights, Gregory asks (and answers) the question: How do the stories we absorb in our daily lives influence the kinds of persons we turn out to be? Shaped by Stories is accessible to anyone interested in ethics, popular culture, and education. It will encourage students and teachers to become more thoughtful and perceptive readers of stories.Trade Review"Shaped by Stories is a well-written, interesting, and humane book on the value of narratives in ethics and in our lives. The volume enters into conversation with a growing, and popular, body of literature, which considers the role of stories, narrative, and literature for ethics and for moral education more generally. Marshall Gregory combines well-grounded observations about literature and about human life, including his own life, in this illuminating interdisciplinary contribution to the ethics of literature." —Pamela Hall, Emory University"From a lifetime of reflecting on the ethics of fiction, Marshall Gregory has given us an elegant analysis of the power of stories to instruct and delight. No one interested in storytelling will want to be without this incisive guide to both the myriad ways that stories shape our lives and the strategies writers use to affect our responses to their fictions. Both the theoretical and practical halves of Shaped by Stories have a clarity and eloquence that yield their own instruction and delight." —Robert D. Denham, Fishwick Professor of English, Roanoke College"Shaped by Stories weaves its own compelling story about the pervasive ethical effects of reading narrative, with Marshall Gregory serving as a highly engaging and ethically admirable narrator—a very model of good company." —James Phelan, Distinguished University Professor of English, Ohio State University"Marshall Gregory's Shaped by Stories brings ethical criticism to the level of felt experience. Witty and passionate, full of personal reflections and sharp examples, this book will help anyone who has been drawn to the mysterious power of stories to think more carefully about the connections between narrative art and human ethos. Gregory reminds us that the urgency of our need for stories is tied permanently to the requirements of being human, the need to exercise judgment, belief, and empathy in the process of becoming who we are." —Annette Federico, James Madison University“Gregory's overarching thesis is ‘that stories are an important component of the ethical development that all human beings undergo because stories are an important component of every human being's education about the world.’ . . . [an] elegantly written, amiable, argot-free study. Gregory fills the book with relevant personal examples and draws on a lifetime of engagement with narratives and thoughtful, down-to-earth considerations of their impact. A generous works cited makes it an exceptionally useful resource. . . . This is a book every serious reader should investigate and all libraries should own. Essential.” —Choice“Marshall Gregory’s Shaped by Stories: The Ethical power of Narratives, informal and anecdotal rather than scholarly, makes the familiar claim that narrative is a tool for psychologically modeling conflict management.” —Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900“Marshall Gregory’s new book has its roots in influential studies of ethics and literature published in the late 1980s and early 1990s. . . . In addressing the book to a broad, general audience rather than critics or academic professionals, he is appealing to a culture obsessed with narrative to think reflectively about how the stories we encounter daily in such a variety of forms shape our ethos. Gregory’s passionate conviction about the topic’s relevance is apparent on every page. In its directness, lucidity, personal humor, and warmth, Shaped by Stories will indeed engage a wide variety of readers. The ultimate value of this book is the way it welcomes and extends discussion of ethics.” —Victorian Studies“Marshall Gregory utilizes the power of story, often his own, to reach into the minds and consciousness of academics and laypersons alike. His goal is to open a dialogue between people, about people, and the possible reasons story affects human behaviors and characters . . . . He challenges his readers to enter the real controversial dialogue. Gregory does not propose one specific ethic, but he dares to present the fact that there are ethics that cannot be escaped behind the blind of relativism.” —Sixteenth Century Journal

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Book SynopsisKnud Ejler Løgstrup's The Ethical Demand is the most original influential Danish contribution to moral philosophy in this century. This is the first time that the complete text has been available in English translation. Originally published in 1956, it has again become the subject of widespread interest in Europe, now read in the context of the whole of Løgstrup's work. The Ethical Demand marks a break not only with utilitarianism and with Kantianism but also with Kierkegaard's Christian existentialism and with all forms of subjectivism. Yet Løgstrup's project is not destructive. Rather, it is a presentation of an alternative understanding of interpersonal life. The ethical demand presupposes that all interaction between human beings involves a basic trust. Its content cannot be derived from any rule. For Løgstrup, there is not Christian morality and secular morality. There is only human morality.Trade Review“Løgstrup's The Ethical Demand is a challenging and valuable addition to the growing ethical literature meeting the desperate needs of our own time. The book is a particularly valuable addition because of its attempt to meet the difficulties implicit in the Kantian and Kierkegaardian moral traditions which have been so influential in Europe in the past one hundred years." —The Canadian Catholic Review“[T]his book presents an interesting new way of looking at ethics, and its account of the various ways we rationalize our failures to live up to the demand had me examining how far I fell short. It would prove interesting to compare it to accounts of ‘particularist’ ethics, and of the ethics of care.” —Comptes rendus philosophiques (Philosophy in Review)“This is highly original and rewarding, if difficult, treatise on moral philosophy. Løgstrup, in the same general tradition as Kant whom he criticizes severely, gives a philosophical account of the commandment to love the neighbor as the basis of ethics. Løgstrup's version of the moral imperative, or ‘ethical demand,’ is ontological: it is the silent, radical, one-sided, impossible, unarticulated, and anonymous demand that ‘we take care of the life which trust has placed into our hands.’ . . . A revised and expanded version, with a helpful introduction, of a 1971 edition, this edition includes both the final chapter, a polemic against Kierkegaard’s Works of Love, and an article attacking teleology and deontology. The critique of Kierkegaard is particularly incisive. . . .” —Religious Studies Review“. . . The volume is a useful introduction to the work of a very insightful heart and mind. Indeed, The Ethical Demand is one of those rare books that can inspire readers to moral virtue. . . . English readers are in the considerable debt of Fink, MacIntyre, Hauerwas, and Notre Dame Press for making Løgstrup's magisterial work again available in translation. It is an exercise in attention, a schooling of empathy, that deserves to be much more widely read and responded to.” —Modern Theology“This collection of essays by the late Danish philosopher and theologian Løgstrup presents his theory of using phenomenology in understanding our ethical decisions. According to Løgstrup, phenomenology not only provides an understanding of human existence but also of ethics, through examination of phenomena of ethical concepts. . . . Løgstrup combines detailed writing with an excellent critique of competing ethical theories to explain his own ethical theory, which stresses the moral experience over ethical principals. These essays will be valuable to scholars and students in philosophy and ethics.” —Library Journal

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Book SynopsisThe View from Within examines the character of reason and the ability of an individual to effectively distance himself from the normative framework in which he functions in order to be self-critical and innovative. To accomplish this task, Menachem Fisch and Yitzhak Benbaji critically employ or reject the recent writings of Brandom, Friedman, Frankfurt, Walzer, Davidson, Williams, Habermas, Rorty, and McDowell to offer a fundamental analysis of the character of reason and the problem of relativism. This ambitious book forcefully raises the problem of rational normative change and makes the unique and insightful claim that although we cannot be convinced by normative criticism to modify or replace our norms, we can be rationally motivated to do so by the effect of exposure to trusted critics. Its unprecedented analysis, with its solution to the problem of normative self-criticism that has baffled philosophers for the past sixty years, will be welcomed by both students aTrade Review"This is a bold and wide-ranging book that offers a novel solution to a central problem of philosophy: if there is no normatively neutral language in which to compare normatively distinct vocabularies, how can transitions from one vocabulary to another ever be rational? Combining great analytic subtlety with deep knowledge of the history of science, Fisch and Benbaji argue that a central role is played by the ambivalence induced in insiders when they engage external critics within the 'trading zones' of discourse. A tour de force, this book sheds new light on many areas of philosophy. Indeed, by examining the role of familiar phenomena that philosophers often neglect, such as ambivalence and indecision, The View from Within illuminates the destabilizing as well as the creative potential of reason throughout human life." —Paul Franks, University of Toronto and Yale University“The View from Within is a thorough evaluation of the arguments made by contemporary philosophers about the normative character of reason and the derivative problem of relativism. Fisch and Benbaji have admirably compared and contrasted competing positions, and with a balanced critique, they have made a sustained effort to ‘save’ rationality and provide new guideposts for its philosophical evaluation. A timely and important contribution.” —Alfred I. Tauber, Boston University"How can one change one’s mind about the very standards one applies as a critical thinker without losing a grip on one's reasons? Fisch and Benbaji assess the state of the question in a remarkably wide range of fields: Kuhnian philosophy of science, interpretive social theory, pragmatism from Rorty to Brandom, and Frankfurt's philosophy of personal identity. Then they offer an answer of their own, which integrates a social account of rationality as a trait agents exhibit when exchanging reasons with one another and a subject-centered account of rationality as a trait agents exhibit when criticizing their own commitments from within. The result is a fresh and illuminating approach to the nature of rationality and normativity." —Jeffrey Stout, Princeton University“. . . this thought-provoking study is important for anyone interested in rationality and the normativity of rational standards.” —Choice“Fisch and Benbaji frame their critique in dialogue with the recent writings of leading contemporary philosophers in a detailed analysis of the character of reason, the problem of relativism, and how to comprehend scientific change more generally. Firmly placed within the context of current debate, the authors provide a thorough evaluation of recent arguments as well as offering an important critique of normative reason in scientific discourse.” —Philosophy in Review“. . . there is a lot to admire here and the book is likely to find a cross-disciplinary audience among those interested in broad questions about facts and norms, cultural diversity and the plurality of values.” —The Philosophical Quarterly

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Book SynopsisInvestigates the psychological foundations of human sociability as they are treated in the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Argues that Rousseau provides a pessimistic, or tragic, teaching concerning the nature and scope of human connectedness. Trade Review“John Warner is among the few scholars to have carefully analyzed Rousseau's understanding of human relationships, and in Rousseau and the Problem of Human Relations he has done so with great sensitivity and keen intelligence. Warner reveals with admirable clarity how Rousseau both inspires his readers to long for wholeness in harmonious relationships with others but also intimates the tragic impossibility of ever truly satisfying such longings.”—Joseph Reisert,Colby College“Rousseau combines two positions that seem to be at odds with each other: he insists that by nature humans are asocial, but he claims that—precisely because of this—politics is radically important. The issue of how humans relate to each other is central to his thought. Warner investigates different relations (pity, family, friendship, etc.) and how each contributes to political life. He has defined his issue clearly and executes his plan well. He has a fine sense of when scholars have gone astray by emphasizing one side of Rousseau's thought at the expense of the other. He demonstrates that, for Rousseau, political and social problems are permanent and intransigent.”—Christopher Kelly,Boston College“This well-written, well-researched book represents an interpretation of Rousseau’s oeuvre from the standpoint of the longing for ‘wholeness,’ or unity, in the asocial human species, rather than primarily freedom, or moral autonomy, for example. . . . The best parts of the book are the author’s engagement with other interpretations of Rousseau, especially the judicious discussion of the problems with the neo-Kantian–Rawlsian school of Rousseau criticism.”—W. J. Coats Choice“Warner’s book offers a lucid and intelligent interpretation of Rousseau that understands the challenge of human relations not as a problem to be solved but rather as a fundamental, insoluble condition to be lived with and within. Warner successfully resists the twin poles of the radically individualist and radically collectivist interpretations of Rousseau by emphasizing the dynamic, irreducible tension at the heart of Rousseau’s project. This book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of that tension and its role in Rousseau’s different models of human association.”—Denise Schaeffer The Review of PoliticsTable of ContentsContents Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Prologue 1 Rousseau’s Theory of Human Relations 2 Social Longing and Moral Perfection 3 Pity and Human Weakness 4 Romantic Love in Emile 5 Romantic Love in Julie 6 Friendship, Virtue, and Moral Authority 7 The Ecology of Justice 8 The Sociology of Wholeness Epilogue Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis work examines the main causes of the moral dilemmas in which Christians find themselves. The author provides an introduction to moral philosophy and examines the sources of Christian principles. He concludes that Christian values still offer an authoritative alternative.

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Book SynopsisAn engaging, accessible survey of the ethical issues faced by engineers, designed for studentsTrade Review“Very accessible and well-organized...I hope that many (future) engineers will read this book, so that they will learn to better understand the social and moral responsibility that comes with their chosen profession.”—Lambèr Royakkers, Science and Engineering Ethics"Johnson’s book is a welcome addition to the suite of engineering ethics texts currently available, especially with respect to those intended for undergraduate engineering students.” —Richard Burgess, Texas Tech University"Johnson has written a compact, clear, readable, and well-organized textbook for use in Engineering Ethics courses."—Michael D. Jaworski, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley"Johnson has the perfect touch for elucidating engineering ethics debates. No one understands better the distinctions between individual behavior and organizational culture, microethics and macroethics, and conventional and emerging technologies."—Joe Herkert, North Carolina State University"This relevant and pragmatic book is especially timely given the accelerated pace of engineering innovation. Engineers of all backgrounds will find this very helpful as they navigate complex sociotechnical issues."—Missy Cummings, Duke University

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Science and the Good is a closely argued, always accessible riposte to those who think scientific study can explain, improve or even supersede morality [. . .] A generous and thoughtful critique”—Simon Ings, The Daily Telegraph“Well worth reading”—Marcus Arvan, Metascience"Science and the Good is a compelling critique of half-baked ideas that have acquired pervasive and unwarranted influence in Anglophone public discourse today. One could not ask for a more timely and incisive contribution to contemporary cultural debate."—Jackson Lears, Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of History, Rutgers University"Science and the Good provides an incisive and timely analysis of the pressing question: can science demonstrate what morality is and how we should live? Hunter and Nedelisky carefully expose the inadequacies and dangers of ‘the new science of morality.’"—Peter Harrison, author of The Territories of Science and Religion

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Book SynopsisAn award-winning scholar and teacher explores how Shakespeare’s greatest characters were built on a learned sense of empathyTrade Review"Straightforward, persuasive and eminently sympathetic....[C]onveys the pure thrill of close reading: the almost dizzying effect of peeling away layers on a great work of art to find further strata beneath—the intense pleasure of getting it."—Melissa Holbrook Pierson, Wall Street Journal“A study of Shakespeare's genius for arousing empathy - even in unexpected contexts”—The Tablet“A warm and committed book, firmly rooted in long experience of the classroom. Its teaching majors in personal reflection on issues well pitched towards young people at university.”—Emma Smith, Times Literary Supplement “Of Human Kindness is a dazzling book, tight in its prose, expansive in wisdom. From teaching Shakespeare, Paula Marantz Cohen learned the Bard's amazing ability to reach us in our humanity.”—David Blight, Yale University“Cohen has captured a deep truth about Shakespeare’s work that has not been explored before—his insight into the human heart that reveals our ‘better angels.’ This is a subtle and smart work that adds substantially to our understanding of the greatest writer the world has known.”—Carmen Khan, Artistic Director, The Philadelphia Shakespeare Theater"Thoughtful, astute, invitingly readable—and uncommonly timely. Especially now that so many younger readers are casting suspicious glances at Shakespeare, Of Human Kindness shows with mind-changing clarity why his work has never been more relevant to our common problems."—Terry Teachout, drama critic, The Wall Street Journal"Paula Marantz Cohen approaches Shakespeare as a passionately close reader, concentrating less on the dramatic spectacle of the plays than their poetic richness and depth. The result is a marvellously perceptive and stimulating primer on the essential humanity, and humaneness, of this supreme literary artist."—John Banville, author of The Sea"By tracing the evolution of character and complexity throughout his plays, this book ingeniously shows how Shakespeare, by enlarging his own compass of empathy, also created a more well-rounded and empathetic character for all humanity."—Devorah Baum, author of Feeling Jewish

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Book SynopsisProfessional and Ethical Issues in Psychology is an examination of the changing dynamics and ethics of psychology as a profession.

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Book SynopsisMuch more than just an anthology, this survey of humanity''s search for the meaning of life includes the latest contributions to the debate, a judicious selection of key canonical essays, and insightful commentary by internationally respected philosophers. Cutting-edge viewpoint features the most recent contributions to the debate Extensive general introduction offers unprecedented context Leading contemporary philosophers provide insightful introductions to each section Table of ContentsNotes on Contributors viii Preface x Personal Acknowledgments xii Acknowledgments xiii General Introduction 1 Joshua W. Seachris Section I Understanding the Question of Life’s Meaning 21 Introduction 23 Thaddeus Metz 1.1 Why 29 Paul Edwards 1.2 Untangling the Questions 40 Garrett Thomson 1.3 Questions about the Meaning of Life 48 R. W. Hepburn 1.4 Philosophy and the Meaning of Life 62 Robert Nozick 1.5 The Concept of a Meaningful Life 79 Thaddeus Metz 1.6 Assessing Views of Life: A Subjective Affair? 95 Arjan Markus Section II What Does God Have to Do with the Meaning of Life? 113 Introduction 115 John Cottingham 2.1 Ecclesiastes 121 2.2 On Living in an Atomic Age 133 C. S. Lewis 2.3 Is the Existence of God Relevant to the Meaning of Life? 138 Jeffrey Gordon 2.4 The Absurdity of Life without God 153 William Lane Craig 2.5 Is Nature Enough? 173 John Haught 2.6 Religion and Value: The Problem of Heteronomy 183 John Cottingham 2.7 Could God’s Purpose Be the Source of Life’s Meaning? 200 Thaddeus Metz Section III The Loss of Meaning in a World Without God: Pessimistic Naturalism 219 Introduction 221 Garrett Thomson 3.1 On the Vanity of Existence 227 Arthur Schopenhauer 3.2 A Free Man’s Worship 230 Bertrand Russell 3.3 The Absurd 236 Thomas Nagel 3.4 Why Coming into Existence Is Always a Harm 245 David Benatar 3.5 Secular Philosophy and the Religious Temperament 262 Thomas Nagel Section IV Finding Meaning in a World Without God: Optimistic Naturalism 275 Introduction 277 Erik J. Wielenberg 4.1 The Human World 282 John Kekes 4.2 Time and Life’s Meaning 296 Richard Taylor 4.3 The Meanings of Lives 304 Susan Wolf 4.4 Intrinsic Value and Meaningful Life 319 Robert Audi 4.5 God and the Meaning of Life 335 Erik J. Wielenberg 4.6 The Varieties of Non-Religious Experience 353 Richard Norman 4.7 Emergent Religious Principles 367 Ursula Goodenough Section V The Meaning of Life and the Way Life Ends: Death, Futility, and Hope 371 Introduction 373 John Martin Fischer 5.1 A Confession 380 Leo Tolstoy 5.2 Annihilation 388 Steven Luper-Foy 5.3 Why Immortality Is Not So Bad 404 John Martin Fischer 5.4 The Immortality Requirement for Life’s Meaning 416 Thaddeus Metz 5.5 Human Extinction and the Value of Our Efforts 428 Brooke Alan Trisel 5.6 Free Will, Death, and Immortality: The Role of Narrative 445 John Martin Fischer 5.7 Death, Futility, and the Proleptic Power of Narrative Ending 461 Joshua W. Seachris 5.8 Divine Hiddenness, Death, and Meaning 481 Paul K. Moser

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Book SynopsisBlackwell Companion to the Problem of Evil presents a collection of original essays that clarify and evaluate various problems of evil. Featuring contributions by a variety of established and emerging scholars, essays define and explore the various problems of evil that arise for both theists and non-theists.Table of ContentsNotes on contributors ix Preface xi Acknowledgments xiv Part I Problems of Evil 1 1 A brief history of problems of evil 3 Michael W. Hickson 2 The logical problem of evil: mackie and plantinga 19 Daniel Howard-Snyder 3 A new logical problem of evil 34 J.L. Schellenberg 4 Rowe’s evidential arguments from evil 49 Graham Oppy 5 Explanation and the problem of evil 67 Paul Draper and Trent Dougherty 6 A carnapian argument from evil 83 Richard Otte 7 The experience of evil and support for atheism 98 Jerome Gellman 8 The problem of animal pain and suffering 113 Robert Francescotti 9 Hell and the problem of evil 128 Andrei A. Buckareff and Allen Plug 10 The problem of apparently morally abhorrent divine commands 144 Wesley Morriston 11 God because of evil: An ad hominem argument from evil for belief in God 160 Marilyn McCord Adams Part II Theodicies 175 12 A brief history of theodicy 177 René van Woudenberg 13 Counterpart and appreciation theodicies 192 Justin P. McBrayer 14 Free will and soul-making theodicies 205 Daniel Speak 15 The connection-building theodicy 222 Robin Collins 16 Best possible world theodicy 236 Hud Hudson 17 Providence and theodicy 251 Thomas P. Flint 18 A christian theodicy 266 Laura W. Ekstrom 19 Toward an Indian theodicy 281 Purushottama Bilimoria 20 Earth’s epistemic fruits for harmony with God: an Islamic theodicy 296 Mohammad Ali Mobini 21 On constructing a Jewish theodicy 309 David Shatz 22 Feminism and the problem of evil 326 Beverley Clack 23 Process theism and theodicies for problems of evil 340 James A. Keller 24 Theodicy in a vale of tears 349 Evan Fales 25 Antitheodicy 363 N.N. Trakakis Part III Skeptical Responses 377 26 A brief history of skeptical responses to evil 379 T.M. Rudavsky 27 Peter van Inwagen’s defense 396 Meghan Sullivan 28 A defense without free will 411 Derk Pereboom 29 Skeptical theism, CORNEA, and common sense epistemology 426 Thomas D. Senor 30 The moral skepticism objection to skeptical theism 444 Stephen Maitzen 31 The global skepticism objection to skeptical theism 458 Ian Wilks 32 Theistic objections to skeptical theism 468 David O’Connor 33 Skeptical theism and the “too much skepticism” objection 482 Michael C. Rea Index 507

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