Philosophy of religion Books

Book SynopsisCalled The Black Pope by many of his followers, Anton La Vey began the road to High Priesthood of the Church of Satan when he was only 16 years old and an organ player in a carnival...On Saturday night I would see men lusting after halfnaked girls dancing at the carnival, and on Sunday morning when I was playing the organ for tent-show evangelists at the other end of the carnival lot, I would see these same men sitting in the pews with their wives and children, asking God to forgive them and purge them of carnal desires. And the next Saturday night they''d be back at The carnival or some other place of indulgence.I knew then that the Christian Church thrives on hypocrisy, and that man''s carnal nature will out!From that time early in his life his path was clear. Finally, on the last night of April, 1966?Walpurgisnacht,the most important festival of the believers in witchcraft?LaVey shaved his head in the tradition of Ancient executioners and announced the formation of The Church Of Satan. He had seen the need for a church that would recapture man''s body and his carnal desires as objects of celebration.Since worship of fleshly things produces pleasure, he said, there would then be a temple of glorious indulgence . . .

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Book SynopsisThis deluxe hardback edition presents Gibran''s poetic masterpiece The Prophet, featuring gilded page edges, beautiful black and white illustrations and a foil-embossed cover design. The Prophet is a concise but deeply profound prose poem set in the city of Orphalese. Before leaving on a journey to his homeland, the prophet Almustafa imparts words of wisdom to the crowds, touching on occasions of birth, marriage, death and all of life''s other milestones. An international bestseller, it has furnished individuals the world over with words of joy or consolation. Introduced by John Baldock, this beautiful Wibalin-bound edition makes a wonderful gift for anyone seeking insight and reflection on life''s simple truths. ABOUT THE SERIES: Arcturus Ornate Classics are beautifully bound editions of iconic literary works across history. These compact, foil-embossed hardbacks are printed using deluxe ivory paper and make the perfect gift.

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Book SynopsisFriedrich Nietzsche's philosophical work Beyond Good and Evil questions conventional morality and intellectual assumptions. According to Nietzsche, conventional morality, which is founded on cultural and religious conventions, is constrictive and inhibits people from completely expressing who they really are. According to Nietzsche's will to power theory, people naturally want to use their power and influence to influence others. He also presents the notion of the superman, a mythical being free to choose their own moral standards and transcend conventional morality. Nietzsche criticises standard philosophical notions like the concept of truth and the notion of free will throughout the whole book. He contends that reality is relative and dependent on one's viewpoint, and that free will is an illusion produced by our need for control. While Beyond Good and Evil is difficult to read, it is nonetheless a significant contribution to contemporary philosophy. It inspires people to reconsider their convictions and look for a more genuine and satisfying existence outside of conventional cultural conventions.

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Book SynopsisWhat Is Metaphysics?offers an exposition, informed primarily by the Islamic metaphysical tradition, of principial and divine knowledge as distinct from information or merely factual knowledge.

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Book SynopsisExplores atheism from a new perspective. Since our beliefs about the most important things in life aren't usually based on arguments, we should look beyond atheistic arguments and explore what truly motivates the atheist. Could certain ideals or experiences explain the turn to atheism?Table of Contents1. A new approach to atheism; 2. Motivations for atheism; 3. Atheistic frameworks; 4. The presumption of atheism; 5. Atheistic arguments and faith; 6. Atheistic arguments and God; 7. Life after atheism.

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Book SynopsisIn this passionate and heartfelt book, Richard Holloway interrogates the traditional ways of understanding the Bible. In doing so he demonstrates the power of the great Christian stories as they apply today, away from their sometimes antiquated settings, providing a blueprint which takes the core teachings of the Christian past and invigorates them with renewed power for today's world.Trade ReviewA sensitive, brave and inspiring book -- KAREN ARMSTRONGI don't know when I have been more impressed, indeed, excited, by a work . . . It answers the seemingly tormenting questions in a completely satisfying way -- RUTH RENDELLA thoughtful, playful, courageous and deeply altruistic book . . . a fine companion for anyone who wishes to live a life of any depth -- A.L. KENNEDYIt will appeal to all of us who continue to be interested in the moral challenge of our time -- JEANETTE WINTERSONThis is an exhilarating book. It is not every day that you encounter a person of Richard Holloway's experience wrestling with the very foundations of his chosen way of life. This in itself gives the book a tone of urgency * * Scotsman * *With imagination and audacity, Richard Holloway's Doubts and Loves offers a fearless critique of the faith, with uncertainty and disbelief accorded full dignity * * Sunday Herald * *Holloway's latest book is engaging, accessible, informative, sensible and compassionate. One of the fascinating things about Doubts and Loves is the light it sheds on the writer. The picture that emerges of Richard Holloway is of an intelligent, learned, very decent man, struggling to find his way through the absurdities, anachronisms and cruelties of the faith that has been at the very centre of his life * * Sunday Herald * *

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Book SynopsisThis classic and controversial book examines the roots of the idea of virtue, diagnoses the reasons for its absence in modern life, and proposes a path for its recovery.Trade Review“After Virtue is a striking work. It is clearly written and readable. The nonprofessional will find MacIntyre perspicuous and lively. He stands within the best modern traditions of writing on such matters.” —New York Review of Books“MacIntyre’s arguments deserve to be taken seriously by anybody who thinks that the mere acceptance of pluralism is not the same thing as democracy, who worries about politicians wishing to give opinions about everything under the sun, and who stops to think of how important Aristotelian ethics have been for centuries.” —The Economist“After Virtue is a rigorous, ambitious, and original book. It is a reinterpretation of the entire history of Western moral philosophy, as decline, fall, and—possibly—rebirth.” —The Village Voice“MacIntyre has reconsidered and extended his ideas since the 1981 and 1984 editions, but retains his central thesis that it is only possible to understand the dominant moral culture of advanced modernity adequately from a standpoint external to that culture. He is still an Aristotelian, he says, but has come to believe that Thomas Aquinas expressed Aristotle's views better than the old man himself did.” —Reference and Research Book News“If MacIntyre’s admittedly bleak diagnosis of our times is not accepted, the rivalry it sparked surely has some benefit for the interface between competing traditions. And where it is accepted, it will also be because those who accept it have not give up on our capacity, despite everything else, to be virtuous.” —Catholic Books Review"Alasdair MacIntyre in After Virtue has written one of the most important books of the decade… a stunning critique of current moral philosophy and moral practice." — Commonweal MagazineMaIntyre’s After Virtue is one of the most widely read books of moral philosophy to appear in recent years. It is written with little of the technical arguments that limits the readership of many philosophy works and has drawn considerable response from readers outside academe.” —The Chronicle of Higher Education

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Book SynopsisIn Mind and Cosmos Thomas Nagel argues that the widely accepted world view of materialist naturalism is untenable. The mind-body problem cannot be confined to the relation between animal minds and animal bodies. If materialism cannot accommodate consciousness and other mind-related aspects of reality, then we must abandon a purely materialist understanding of nature in general, extending to biology, evolutionary theory, and cosmology. Since minds are features of biological systems that have developed through evolution, the standard materialist version of evolutionary biology is fundamentally incomplete. And the cosmological history that led to the origin of life and the coming into existence of the conditions for evolution cannot be a merely materialist history. An adequate conception of nature would have to explain the appearance in the universe of materially irreducible conscious minds, as such. No such explanation is available, and the physical sciences, including molecular biology, cannot be expected to provide one. The book explores these problems through a general treatment of the obstacles to reductionism, with more specific application to the phenomena of consciousness, cognition, and value. The conclusion is that physics cannot be the theory of everything.Trade ReviewMind and Cosmos is ... extraordinarily ambitious. Nagel proposes not merely a new explanation for the origin of life and consciousness, but a new type of explanation: 'natural teleology.' * George Scialabba, Inference: International Review of Science *Nagels book is provocative, interesting and important * Simon Oliver, Studies in Christian Ethics *Nagels arguments are forceful, and his proposals are bold, intriguing, and original. This, though short and clear, is philosophy in the grand manner, and it is worthy of much philosophical discussion. * Keith Ward, The Philosophical Quarterly *This is a challenging text that should provoke much further reflection. I recommend it to anyone interested in trying to understand the nature of our existence. * W. Richard Bowen, ESSSAT News & Reviews 23:1 *[This] troublemaking book has sparked the most exciting disputation in many years... I like Nagel's mind and I like Nagel's cosmos. He thinks strictly but not imperiously, and in grateful view of the full tremendousness of existence. * Leon Wieseltier, The New Republic *A sharp, lucidly argued challenge to today's scientific worldview. * Jim Holt, The Wall Street Journal *Nagel's arguments against reductionism should give those who are in search of a reductionist physical 'theory of everything' pause for thought... The book serves as a challenging invitation to ponder the limits of science and as a reminder of the astonishing puzzle of consciousness. * Science *Mind and Cosmos, weighing in at 128 closely argued pages, is hardly a barn-burning polemic. But in his cool style Mr. Nagel extends his ideas about consciousness into a sweeping critique of the modern scientific worldview. * The New York Times *[This] short, tightly argued, exacting new book is a work of considerable courage and importance. * National Review *Provocative... Reflects the efforts of a fiercely independent mind. * H. Allen Orr, The New York Review of Books *Challenging and intentionally disruptive... Unless one is a scientific Whig, one must strongly suspect that something someday will indeed succeed [contemporary science]. Nagel's Mind and Cosmos does not build a road to that destination, but it is much to have gestured toward a gap in the hills through which a road might someday run. * The Los Angeles Review of Books *A model of carefulness, sobriety and reason... Reading Nagel feels like opening the door on to a tidy, sunny room that you didn't know existed. * The Guardian *Fascinating... [A] call for revolution. * Alva Noe, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *The book's wider questions -- its awe-inspiring questions -- turn outward to address the uncanny cognizability of the universe around us... He's simply doing the old-fashioned Socratic work of gadfly, probing for gaps in what science thinks it knows. * Louis B. Jones, The Threepenny Review *[Attacks] the hidden hypocrisies of many reductionists, secularists, and those who wish to have it both ways on religious modes of thinking ... Fully recognizes the absurdities (my word, not his) of dualism, and thinks them through carefully and honestly. * Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution *This is an interesting and clearly written book by one of the most important philosophers alive today. It serves as an excellent introduction to debates about the power of scientific explanation. * Constantine Sandis, Times Higher Education *... reading this book will certainly prove a worthwhile venture, as it is certain to have an inspiring effect on the reader's own attitude towards mind and the cosmos. * Jozef Bremer, Forum Philosophicum *Table of ContentsI. Introduction ; II. Antireductionism and the Natural Order ; III. Consciousness ; IV. Cognition ; V. Value ; VI. Conclusion

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“In this magisterial study, Vioulac proposes a radical reversal of thought, employing Biblical inspiration and philosophical rigor. Apocalypse of Truth dares to tap into a counter-archive that reaches deeper and further back than Heidegger’s rethinking of truth as unconcealment, reviving the long-ignored idea of apocalypticism. What results is not only a stunning rereading of St. Paul, Meister Eckhart, Hölderlin, Hegel, and others, but also a subtle loosening of the mythological grip that Western ontology has too long imposed on its subjects. A tour de force in its own right, Vioulac’s book builds on the recent breakthroughs in phenomenological and post-phenomenological thought, bringing a fresh realignment with Christianity and the 'incarnation of truth' it invites us to wager anew." -- Hent de Vries, New York University“In and through a learned, historically far-reaching, and textually rigorous meditation on Heidegger’s diagnosis of our modern nihilism, Vioulac turns to the apocalyptic revelation of Saint Paul for truth that would undermine modernity’s subjection of all beings to the logic of production and management by means of rational calculation and technological power. In sharp contrast to such machination, wherein humans become—like everything else—interchangeable, Vioulac advances a thinking of the frailty and vulnerability of finite, embodied, and mortal existence, and of the love and mourning essential to such existence. Thanks to an admirably graceful and faithful translation by Matthew J. Peterson, English readers will encounter a challenging and original thinker who sheds light on the disasters of our capitalistic and technological age.” -- Thomas A. Carlson, University of California, Santa Barbara"Including a foreword by Jean-Luc Marion, this book introduces French philosopher Jean Vioulac to an English-speaking audience. In six chapters, each with multiple sections, Vioulac takes readers through an analysis of Heidegger’s understanding of the disclosure of truth only to challenge that disclosure with the concepts of apocalypse, absence, and abyss. The climax of the book is the fourth chapter, in which Vioulac’s challenges reveal a productive encounter between Heideggerian thought and Christianity, with the latter characterized as a task of mourning an end already past. Along the way, Vioulac engages with Marx, Nietzsche, Meister Eckhart, and Hölderlin among others to provide a rich reading of Heideggerian epochal Being and the metaphysical destiny of the West." * Choice *Table of ContentsPreface Jean-Luc Marion Translator’s Note Matthew J. Peterson Chapter 1. Clarifications §1. Clairvoyance, Evidence, Lucidity §2. Sufficiency and Faultiness §3. History and Determination: Destiny §4. Language and Community Chapter 2. From the Equal to the Same §5. Machination §6. Cyberspace §7. Equalization §8. Equalization and Appropriation Chapter 3. Truth and Its Destiny §9. Ontology and Truth §10. Abyss and Mystery §11. Origin and Beginning §12. Decay of Truth §13. Safeguard of Truth §14. Teleology and Eschatology Chapter 4. Apocalypse and Truth §15. The Concept of Apocalypse §16. Pauline Thought of the Apocalypse §17. The Apocalyptic Regrounding of Truth Chapter 5. On the Edge of the Abyss §18. Apocalypse of the West §19. Poetics of Truth Chapter 6. Abyss of the Deity §20. The Name of the Prophet §21. The Death of God §22. Friedrich Hölderlin §23. The Last God“Only a god can still save us” Meister Eckhart The Adieu Epilogue Notes List of Primary Sources Index

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Book SynopsisIn Susceptible to the Sacred, Bani Shorter, a well-known Jungian analyst, examines the psychological experience of ritual in contemporary life and how this promotes awareness of the individual''s natural potential. Basing her book on live material, she investigates, with great sensitivity, how people perceive the sacred and use ritual in their search for purpose, motivation and transformation.Trade ReviewBani Shorter articulates a vision for individuation in our changing epoch, and has helped to construct substantial elements of a bridge towards that vision. In a book of hope and inspiration, she has produced a companion for the seeker and initiate, a challenge to analytical psychology, and an aid to our collective dilemmas.- HarvestBani Shorter articulates a vision for individuation in our changing epoch, and has helped to construct substantial elements of a bridge towards that vision. In a book of hope and inspiration, she has produced a companion for the seeker and initiate, a challenge to analytical psychology, and an aid to our collective dilemmas.-HarvestTable of Contents1 Made by media 2 Instant liturgy? 3 Theatre of the soul 4 The rite of creativity 5 Listening to subjectivity 6 Prisoner of a thousand faces 7 If ritual dies

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Book SynopsisVery Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, InspiringWhat is faith? It usually means religious belief, and sometimes diverse religions are grouped together as ''faiths'', with reference to ''faith leaders'' or ''faith schools''. What we have faith in matters, and that involves our reason, involving claims to truths that affect everyone. Faith is not just a personal attribute, like tastes, but should be open to public examination and debate. In this Very Short Introduction, Roger Trigg argues that all faith needs reason. He puts contemporary discussions into historical perspective, particularly in the context of Christianity. The author argues that faith also involves a commitment to action and that matters for all social life. Because religion is typically directed at what is seen as of crucial importance for human life, faith should not be marginalized or privatized. It will permeate every idea of how people should behave, and has a role in the public square, however respectful it should be to competing views within a democracy. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

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Book SynopsisT.F. Torrance''s Conflict and Agreement in the Church gathers together his most influential essays and articles on topics relating to ecumenism. Himself involved heavily in the ecumenical movement, he wrote that ''ours must be the task of learning together again how to confess, like the early Church, faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour and God in all its breadth and length and height and depth, and therefore in the overflowing love of God.'' Out of this conviction grew a comprehensive doctrine of the Church ''in which our differences are lost sight of because they are destroyed from behind by a masterful faith in the Saviour of men.''In this first volume, Torrance presents a set of essays engaging theologically with different denominations, along with responses to particular problems facing the ecumenical project. In particular, writing after the third world conference on faith and order, he addresses the hopes and barriers it raised to closer ecumenical relations. Throughout, Torrance''sTrade Review'The book is one that demands the closest attention from any theologian who interests himself in the field of Faith and Order, and since this field now coincides with the major doctrines of the faith, it is not too much to say that no one who is interested in the proper formulation of these doctrines in our time can afford to neglect it. For the non-specialist. . . the theology becomes lucid if one is prepared to give oneself to it with the attention and concentration it demands and deserves, and then it becomes plain that something of the highest importance is being said.' - William Nicholls, in TheologyTable of ContentsPreface 7 Introduction 11 Part 1 Discussions with Churches 1 With Anglicans (a) The Apostles And The Ministry of The Church 23 (b) The Apostolic Ministry 34 (c) Catholicity 48 (d) The Fulness of Christ 57 (e) Prob­lems of Reunion 69 2 With Presbyterians (a) What is The Reformed Church? 76 (b) Our Witness Through Doctrine 89 3 Presbyterian -­ Anglican Relations (a) What is The Church? 104 (b) Intercommunion and the ­Union of the Church 122 (c) A New Approach 134 4 With Romans (a) The Prob­lem of Discussion With Rome 146 (b) The New Mariological Dogma 156 (c) Romans and Reform 163 Part 2 Prob­lems of Faith and Order 1 Amsterdam -­ The Nature and Mission of the Church 195 2. Lund 226 Where do we go from Lund? 3 The Atonement and the Oneness of the Church 238 4 ­Towards Evanston 263 Our Oneness in Christ and our Disunity as Churches 5 The Hope of Israel 284 Israel and the Incarnation 6 Christ the Hope of the World 304 Christ the First and the Last Index of Biblical References 317 Names Subjects

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Book SynopsisThis work explores the evolution of religious dualism, the doctrine that man and cosmos are constant battegrounds between forces of good and evil. Integrating political, cultural and religious history, Yuri Stoyanov illuminates the dualist religious systems.

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Book SynopsisThis book explores the relationship between religion and the life sciences, focusing on Christianity and evolution. It brings fresh insights to the science/religion debate for general readers, undergraduate and graduate students interested in evolutionary biology, genetics, philosophy of science, history of science, and philosophy of religion.Trade Review'The indefatigable Michael Ruse has produced a fascinating and most distinctive book in his Understanding the Christianity–Evolution Relationship. Eschewing a conventional approach to exploring this aspect of the science and religion question, Ruse uses his exceptional knowledge of the history and philosophy of biology to look at a very wide range of aspects of the Christianity–evolution relationship. These he illuminates with his inimitable turns of phrase and frequent deep insights.' Revd Professor Michael J. Reiss, University College London and the International Society for Science and Religion'As a prolific and insightful commentator on Darwin and all things 'Darwinian, Michael Ruse has few, if any, equals. Devotee of modern Darwinian science, but no hater of Christianity, he offers refreshing balance by showing how both Christianity and science have been influenced, though differently, by the same rival paradigms of mechanism and organicism. Readers should not expect a deep theological treatise, but they will find a lively introduction to discourse about science and religion, written with striking informality and providing plenty of stimulus to polish their own thinking.' John Hedley Brooke, University of Oxford'The compatibility, or not, of science and religion (specifically Christianity) is a centuries-old issue, which intensified in 1859 with Darwin's extension of the mechanistic explanation of the structure and behavior of the world around us to living things, including humans. Ruse offers, not an answer, as such, to this debate, but a skillful examination of the intellectual chess-match: moves and countermoves. The template of his narrative centres on the mechanistic and organismic views of nature. This thread is brilliantly embellished with clear expositions of all the perspectives advanced over the last two or so centuries.' R. Paul Thompson, Professor Emeritus, University of Toronto'In this little book, Michael Ruse reaps a huge harvest from decades of writing on the relationship between evolutionary science and Christianity. Displaying an admirable breadth of learning in both Christian theology and evolutionary biology, Ruse shows that in their best formulations, neither human enterprise needs to wage war against the other. Ongoing hostilities originate either from bad articulations of Christianity (Creationism), bellicose banishment of final causes from science (New Atheism), or (as often) both together … Ruse writes in a lively, readable, often humorous style, and with a gift for making difficult concepts in science and theology accessible to non-experts. Above all, the book should make us consider, at least, that contrary to common opinion, an intellectually honorable peace between Darwinism and Christianity is not only possible but is advantageous to science, to Christianity, and to society as a whole.' John R. Schneider, Professor Emeritus, Theology, Calvin University'Michael Ruse has gifted us with a masterful treatment of the relationship between Christianity and evolutionary biology. Ruse insightfully frames the book around the historically and philosophically great differences (as well as interactions) between explanatory approaches that see the world as operating, at rock bottom, according to intelligent purpose or by physical causality. This guiding motif allows Ruse to apply insights gained in his distinguished career to major issues in the ongoing and growing Christianity-science discussion. The attentive reader will learn much about science, the history of science, and the varieties of Christian positions involved, and additionally receive a privileged glimpse into how one person, an expert who has pondered these important issues for a lifetime, conscientiously navigates them.' Michael L. Peterson, Professor of Philosophy, Asbury Theological SeminaryTable of ContentsPreface; 1. Rival paradigms; 2. The mechanists' god; 3. The organicists' god; 4. Humans; 5. Environment; 6. Hate; Epilogue; Common Misunderstandings; Bibliography.

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Book SynopsisThis volume provides a reliable point of entrance to the thought of Duns Scotus while giving a snapshot of some of the best research that is now being done on this difficult but intellectually rewarding thinker.Table of ContentsIntroduction; 1. John Duns Scotus's life in context Stephen D. Dumont; 2. The modal framework of Duns Scotus's argument for the existence of a first cause Richard Cross; 3. Duns Scotus on essential order in De primo principio and elsewhere Thomas M. Ward; 4. Duns Scotus on how God causes the created will's volitions Gloria Frost; 5. Duns Scotus on free will and human agency Martin Pickavé; 6. Duns Scotus on the dignities of human nature Marylin McCord Adams; 7. Duns Scotus on matter and form Cecilia Trifogli; 8. Duns Scotus, intuitionism, and the third sense of 'natural law' Thomas Williams; 9. The bound of sense – adequacy and abstraction in the later works of Duns Scotus Wouter Goris; 10. Before univocity – Duns Scotus's rejection of analogy Giorgio Pini; 11. Analogy after Duns Scotus: the role of the analogia entis in the Scotist metaphysics at Barcelona, 1320–1330 Garrett R. Smith.

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Book SynopsisThis Critical Guide contains sixteen new essays from an international group of leading Hegel scholars that shed much-needed light on both the whole and the parts of the Encyclopedia system. It will be invaluable to students and professional scholars with an interest in Hegel and the history of philosophy.Trade Review'These studies … prove not only to be faithful to the intention which animates the Hegelian project of an Encyclopedia, but also demonstrate the relevance of a work which is dedicated to putting it into light.' Thomas Anderson, Archives de philosophie (translated from French)Table of ContentsIntroduction Sebastian Stein and Joshua Wretzel; 1. Logical and Natural Life: One Aspect of the Relation Between Hegel's Science of Logic and his Encyclopedia Robert Pippin; 2. Hegel's Encyclopedia as the Science of Freedom Sally Sedgwick; 3. Essence in Hegel's Encyclopedia and Science of Logic: The Problem of Form Stephen Houlgate; 4. The Concept's Freedom Jean-François Kervégan; 5. From Logic to Nature Christian Martin; 6. Hegel's Philosophy of Nature: The Expansion of Particularity as the Filling of Space and Time Ralph M. Kaufmann, Ansgar Lyssy and Christopher Yeomans; 7. Hegel's Anthropology: Transforming the Body Jane Dryden; 8. Hegel's Critique of Materialism Joshua Wretzel; 9. Hegel's Psychology: The Unity of Theoretical and Practical Mind Dean Moyar; 10. Political Ontology and Rational Syllogistic in Hegel's Objective Spirit Paul Redding; 11. Taking the System Seriously: On the Importance of 'Objective Spirit' for Hegel's Philosophy of Right Thom Brooks; 12. §§556-563: Art as a form of absolute spirit: the discursive, the non-discursive, the religious, and the political Terry Pinkard; 13. The stubbornness of nature in art: a reading of §§556, 558 and 560 of Hegel's Encyclopedia Ioannis Trisokkas; 14. The Encyclopedia's Notion of Religion Roberto Vinco; 15. Hegel's concept of philosophy: Spinozism in disguise? Sebastian Stein.

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Book SynopsisFor over 40 years, Mary Midgley made a forceful case for the relevance and importance of philosophy. With characteristic wit and wisdom, she drew special attention to the ways in which our thought influences our everyday lives. Her wide-ranging explorations of human nature and the self; our connections with animals and the natural world; and the complexities of morality, gender, science, and religion all contributed to her reputation as one of the most expansive and compelling moral philosophers of the twentieth century. Mary Midgley: An Introduction is the first substantive introduction to Midgley''s influential philosophy on the human condition. This volume, supplemented by original interviews with Midgley, outlines the concepts and perspectives for which she is best known and illuminates the philosophical problems to which she devoted her life''s work.Trade ReviewMcElwain became a friend as well as an interpreter to Midgley over the decade he spent on this project. Midgley is compulsively quotable--a crucial skill for a popular philosopher and one of the delights of McElwain's book are the many quotations he includes, not only from across her enormous oeuvre, but also from years of interviews conducted at her home outside Newcastle. * Environmental Values *An original and imaginative philosopher, Midgley (1919–2018) wrote with passion, wit, and clarity on a wide range of subjects … This introduction to Midgley's thought is admirably clear, accessible, wide-ranging, and sympathetic … Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower- and upper-division undergraduates, graduate students, general readers. * CHOICE *McElwain offers a clear and lucid exploration of the philosophical concerns and contributions of the late Mary Midgley. Balancing depth and breadth, he engages and connects her views on ethical, environmental, feminist, and epistemological themes. Midgley emerges as a philosopher acutely sensitive to the possibilities for integration between the many aspects of human existence and the perils of their fragmentation. We should take from this book a richer understanding of Midgley and a deeper vision of the the role of philosophy in caring for ourselves and our world. * Ian James Kidd, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Nottingham, UK *Mary Midgley is the ideal philosopher for those who believe nothing is simple, that human nature is both bestial and cultural, that gender is neither a construct nor biological destiny, that we are one with nature yet keen to be separate, that we are selfish and social at the same time. We can only love a philosopher who respects contradictions and embraces our animal nature. She will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest we have ever had. * Frans de Waal, C.H. Candler Professor, Emory University, Atlanta, USA *Mary Midgley deserves to be recognized as one of the most interesting and individual philosophical minds of the twentieth century. McElwain’s book captures the personality of a thinker overflowing with ideas, buzzing with excitement and on a mission. Midgley retained the sense of wonder and mischief that characterizes childhood into her late 90s. She transforms that wonder into wisdom though her deep knowledge of philosophical method and history, and her serious study of human and animal nature. For Midgley, philosophers must be cartographers for their time, and this book provides those uninitiated into her complex and systematic philosophy with an invaluable map. * Rachael Wiseman, Lecturer in Philosophy, University of Liverpool, UK *Table of Contents1. Philosophical Plumbing 2. Human Nature and the Self 3. Morality and Wholeness 4. Animals and Why They Matter 5. Our Connection to Nature 6. Gender and Fragmentation 7. Science in Context 8. Religion, Science, and Complexity 9. Afterword: One World, But A Big One Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisExamines themes of loss and mourning in the late work of Derrida.In this book, Kas Saghafi argues that the notion of "the end the world" in Derrida''s late work is not a theological or cosmological matter, but a meditation on mourning and the death of the other. He examines this and several other tightly knit motifs in Derrida''s work: mourning, survival, the phantasm, the event, and most significantly, the term salut, which in French means at once greeting and salvation. An underlying concern of The World after the End of the World is whether a discourse on salut (saving, being saved, and salvation) can be dissociated from discourse on religion. Saghafi compares Derrida''s thought along these lines with similar concerns of Jean-Luc Nancy''s. Combining analysis of these themes with reflections on personal loss, this book maintains that, for Derrida, salutation, greeting, and welcoming is resistant to the economy of salvation. This resistance calls for what Derrida refers to as a "spectro-poetics" devoted to and assigned to the other''s singularity.

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Book SynopsisOffers an immanent critique of Levinas''s core philosophical proposals by reference to his allegedly eurocentric statements.Levinas''s big idea is that our lived sense of moral obligation occurs in an immediate experience of the otherness of the Other, and that moral meaning is grounded in alterity rather than identity. Yet he also held what seemed an inconsiderate, or "eurocentric," view of other cultural traditions. In Saying Peace, Jack Marsh explores this problem, testing the coherence and adequacy of Levinas''s central philosophical claims. Using a twofold method of reconstruction and critique, Marsh conducts a holistic immanent evaluation of Levinas''s major works, showing how the problem of eurocentrism, and abiding ambiguities in Levinas''s political and religious thought, can be traced back to specific problems in his general philosophical methodology. Marsh offers an original analysis of Levinas''s method that verifies and extends existing critical work by Jacques Derrida, Robert Bernasconi, Judith Butler, and others. This is the first book to foreground the normative question of chauvinism in Levinas''s work, and the first to perform a holistic critical diagnosis of his general philosophical method.

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Book SynopsisArgues that Giambattista Vico''s early modern account of Roman mythology was a sophisticated attempt to present an epistemological and political critique of the aristocratic way of conceiving the world.Living in a province dominated by powerful oligarchs, Giambattista Vico (1668?1744) concluded that political philosophy should work to undermine aristocratic authority and prevent political devolution into feudalism. Rejecting the possibility that the free market could successfully instill civil behavior, he advocated for a strong central judicial system to work closely with citizens to promote stability and justice. This study puts Vico in conversation with other Enlightenment thinkers such as Locke, Rousseau, and Mandeville to show how his alternative warrants serious consideration. In contrast to scholars who read Vico''s New Science as a defense of the imagination, this study casts his account of poetic wisdom politically as an epistemological critique of the aristocratic mentality. Myth and Authority argues that Vico''s depiction of pagan religion is a refined attempt to explain how oligarchy maintains its stranglehold on power. While Western civilization did not follow the path Vico suggested, it may now be more relevant as concerns grow about the increasing influence of the wealthy on civil institutions.

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Book SynopsisThis boxed set includes all three volumes from James K. A. Smith's highly acclaimed Cultural Liturgies series: Desiring the Kingdom, Imagining the Kingdom, and Awaiting the King. In Desiring the Kingdom (winner of a Christianity Today Book Award), Smith casts a new vision for worldview through the lens of Christian liturgy, re-visioning education through the process and practice of worship. Imagining the Kingdom shows how worship works in shaping us through liturgical practices. Smith helps us understand and appreciate the bodily basis of habit formation and how liturgical formation--both "secular" and Christian--affects our fundamental orientation to the world. Awaiting the King explores the religious nature of politics and the political nature of Christian worship, sketching how the worship of the church propels us to be invested in forging the common good.

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Book SynopsisWith over 40,000 copies in print since its original publication in 1982, Steve Evans's Philosophy of Religion has served many generations of students as a classic introduction to the philosophy of religion from a Christian perspective. Over the years the philosophical landscape has changed, and in this new edition Zach Manis joins Evans in a thorough revamping of arguments and information, while maintaining the qualities of clarity and brevity that made the first edition so appreciated. New material on divine foreknowledge and human freedom has been added as well as on Reformed epistemology. The discussions on science now cover new developments from cognitive psychology and naturalism as well as on the fine-tuning of the cosmos. The chapter on faith and reason has been expanded to include consideration of evidentialism. The problem of evil now forms its own new chapter and adds a discussion of the problem of hell. The standard features remain: a survey of the field, an examination of classical arguments for God's existence, and an exploration of contemporary challenges to theism from the social sciences and philosophy as well as the natural sciences. The meaning and significance of personal religious experience, revelation and miracles--all within the realm of contemporary religious pluralism--are likewise investigated. A classic introduction thoroughly updated and refreshed for today's student.

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Book SynopsisWritten by Gregory A. Barker and Richard Gray, this innovative Revision Guide provides students with an effective way to recall and revise the comprehensive content of their Religious Studies A Level Year 1 and AS course. / It reinforces the knowledge and skills provided by the officially endorsed and popular Student Book, and takes students to the next level in preparation for their exams. / Successful revision through an innovative and proven 'Trigger' approach / Essential AO1 information is provided in easy to understand bullet points, and key AO2 issues are clearly and fully explained / Students will develop the skills required to manage the essential information from the course, and transfer everything they have learned into the exam / Revision activities help students unpack their knowledge and prepare for the exam / Sample answers for AO1 and AO2 exam-style questions, with expert insight and advice on creating an effective answer / Synoptic Links show how other areas of the specification can enhance or support answers.

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Book SynopsisA Monumental Figure of Western Thought Wrestles with the Question of GodImmanuel Kant (1724-1804) is one of the most influential philosophers in the history of Western philosophy. His contributions have had a profound impact on almost every philosophical movement that followed him.Kant''s teachings on religion were unorthodox in that they were based on rationality rather than revelation. Though logically proving God''s existence might be impossible, it is morally reasonable to act as if there be a God. His strictly rational approach was considered so scandalous that the King of Prussia forbid him to teach or write further on religious subjects, which Kant obeyed until the king''s death.A work of major importance in the history of Western religious thought, Religion Within the Limits of Reason Alone represents a great philosopher''s attempt to spell out the form and content of a type of religion grounded in moral reason

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Book SynopsisOne of the foremost experts on magic, religion, and the occult in the ancient world provides an unparalleled exploration of magic in the Greco-Roman world, giving insight into the shifting ideas of religion and the divine in the ancient past and in the later Western tradition.Trade Review"[An] ambitious and enthusiastic study of magic in classical antiquity."---Marina Warner, New York Review of Books"An insightful and approachable survey of magical (or non-normative) practices and the beliefs thereto attached in Greco-Roman antiquity. The reasonable price and the attractive design of the volume, with high-quality pictures, make it particularly useful to students and general readers."---Leonardo Constantini, Classical Review"[Edmonds] does a terrific job of covering a vast amount of ground, adducing a phenomenal amount of evidence, and providing a synoptic but detailed overview of the most significant magical phenomena. . . . [Drawing Down the Moon] should, from now on, be the first port of call for anyone who wants to be introduced to the field."---Andrej Petrovic, Greece and Rome"Drawing Down the Moon can be recommended as an updated gateway into ancient 'magic' for English-speaking academic and public readers. Edmonds offers a rich overview of the present state of knowledge in the field announced by the subtitle: Magic in the Ancient Greco-Roman World."---Bryn Mawr Classical Review, Thomas Galoppin"In Drawing Down the Moon, Edmonds has produced an extensive, engaging and, crucially, accessible overview which is likely to establish itself quickly as essential reading for anyone seeking to learn more about the vast array of topics that fall under the sweeping category of magic. . . . Ultimately, this work should be considered a resounding success and Edmonds is to be congratulated for providing an extensive and accessible introduction to such a wide-ranging and complex subject."---Jack Lennon, Bryn Mawr Classical Review"[A] careful scholarly study of ancient Mediterranean ‘magical’ practices and discourses of alterity—a significant advance in conceptualizing these historical subjects."---David Frankfurter, Review of Biblical Literature"Not only is Drawing Down the Moon for readers interested in magic, it is also one for readers interested in social history. An unmissable one, at that."---Owain Williams, Ancient History"Wide-ranging and meticulously researched."---Andrew Teverson, Folklore"A fresh approach and welcome comprehensive account. . . . [Drawing Down the Moon] will undoubtedly become a benchmark in the field of ancient magic scholarship.—David B. Levy, Classical World"

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Winner of the Catholic Media Book Award, History Category""An excellent demonstration of what is possible when one marshals the skills of a historian of religion to 'make room for the creative apperception of sickness and disability beyond the measure of the norm'."---Mark Brians, Reading Religion

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe discussions are balanced and clearly presented, if occasionally simplistic, and each chapter ends with a list of accessible readings for further study. There is a useful index. * Choice *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Preface 1. Plato's Euthyphro: What is Piety? 1.1. The setting 1.2. First attempt: examples of piety 1.3. Second attempt: what is dear to the gods 1.4. Third attempt: what all the gods love 1.5. Fourth attempt: piety is the part of justice that concerns the gods 1.6. Fifth attempt: the pious is what is dear to the gods 2. Augustine's On Free Choice of the Will: Where Does Evil Come From? 2.1. The setting 2.2. What is the cause of evil? 2.3. The well-ordered person 2.4. Sin and ignorance 2.5. An objection and two conclusions 2.7. Freedom and determinism 3. Augustine's On Free Choice of the Will: Why Do We Have Free Will? 3.1. Set up and structure 3.2. How is it manifest that God exists? 3.3. Do all things, insofar as they are good, come from God? 3.4. Should free will be counted as a good thing that comes from God? 3.5. Happiness and immortality 4. Augustine's On Free Choice of Will: Why Do We Sin? 4.1. Why do we sin, and who is to blame? 4.2. Is libertarian freedom consistent with divine foreknowledge? 4.3. Can't God be blamed for creating beings that he knows will sin? 4.4. Is it the case that some of us must sin? 4.5. Three views on divine foreknowledge 5. Anselm's Proslogion: Does Reason Prove that God Exists? 5.1. The setting 5.2. Anselm's ontological argument 5.3. A Perfect Island? 5.4. Two Objections 6. Ibn Sina's The Book of Salvation: What is the Nature of the Soul? 6.1. The setting 6.2. What does the intellect do? 6.3. Is the soul immaterial? 6.4. Is the soul immortal? 6.5. What am I? 7. Al-Ghazali's The Rescuer from Error: Is Religious Belief Founded in Reason? 7.1. The setting 7.2. Three views on faith and reason 7.3. The quest for certainty 7.4. Three false foundations 7.5. Is God hidden? 8. Al-Ghazali's The Rescuer from Error: Is Religious Belief Founded in Experience? 8.1. Al-Ghazali's turn to mysticism 8.2. Three accounts of religious experience 8.3. Is religious experience a good reason for belief? 9. Aquinas's Summa Theologica: Does Experience Prove that God Exists? 9.1. The setting 9.2. Is the existence of God self-evident? 9.3. Can we prove that God exists? 9.4. The argument from motion, the first step 9.5. The argument from motion, the second step 9.6. The argument from motion, the conclusion 9.7. The argument from providence 10. Aquinas's Summa Theologica: What is the Impersonal Nature of God? 10.1. Is God simple? 10.2. Is God perfect? 10.3. Is God infinite? 10.4. Is God one? 10.5. Analogical predication 11. Aquinas's Summa Theologica: What is the Personal Nature of God? 11.1. The big picture 11.2. Divine knowledge 11.3. Divine will 11.4. Divine love 11.5. Is God masculine? 12. Porete's The Mirror of Simple Souls: What is Salvation? 12.1. The setting 12.2. Assent and annihilation 12.3. Heaven 12.4. Hell 12.5. Life after Death? 13. Pascal's The Wager: Should We Bet on God? 13.1. The setting 13.2. A wager 13.3. Pascal's wager 13.4. Background assumptions 13.5. Objections and replies 14. Spinoza's Ethics: Is God Nature? 14.1. The setting 14.2. Substance monism 14.3. The Master Argument 14.4. "Deus sive Natura" (God or Nature)? 15. Spinoza's Ethics: Are We Modes of God? 15.1. Substance, attributes, modes 15.2. Human beings 15.3. Against libertarian freedom 15.4. For compatibilist freedom 15.5 Moderating the passions 16. Spinoza's Ethics: Good without God? 16.1. Two accounts of goodness 16.2. Beyond egoism 16.3. Good without God? 17. Hume's Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion: Is the Universe Designed? 17.1. The setting 17.2. The limits of reason 17.3. Cleanthes's first design argument 17.4. Cleanthes's second design argument 17.5. Is the universe fine-tuned? 18. Hume's Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion: Design without a Designer? 18.1. The regress objection 18.2. The design argument and traditional theism 18.3. An immanent designer? 18.4. No designer at all? 18.5. Contemporary criticisms 19. Hume's Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion: True Religion? 19.1. The "causal" argument 19.2. The problem of evil 19.3. Consistency, evidence and evil 19.4. "True religion" 19.5. Two contemporary views on the problem of evil 20. Shepherd's The Credibility of Miracles: May we believe in miracles? 20.1. The setting 20.2. Against miracles 20.3. What is a miracle? 20.4. Believing in miracles? 21. Mills' Essays on Religion: Is Religion Useful? 21.1. The setting 21.2. On Nature 21.3. Raising the question 21.4. Is religion publicly useful? 21.5. Is religion privately useful? 21.6. What is secular humanism? 22. Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morality: What do Good, Bad and Evil mean? 22.1. The setting 22.2. Three big ideas 22.3. Genealogy of values 22.4. Inversion of values 22.5. Evaluation of values 22.6. Debunking morality and religion? 23. Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morality: Whence Conscience, Bad Conscience and Guilt? 23.1. The origin of conscience 23.2. The origin of bad conscience 23.3. The origin of moral guilt 23.4. Should we obey our conscience? 24. Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morality: No Alternative? 24.1. What do ascetic ideals mean? 24.2. The puzzle of ascetic ideals 24.3. The "vale of tears" 24.4. "pointless suffering" 24.5. "the ascetic priest" 24.6. No alternative? 25. William James's Will to Believe: The Right to Believe? 25.1. The setting 25.2. The ethics of belief 25.3. The varieties of belief 25.4. A first argument 25.5. A second argument 25.6. Returning to Plato

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Book SynopsisHe argues that religionis a construction of European modernity, a construction that authorizes-for Westerners and non-Westerners alike-particular forms of history making.Trade ReviewThis eloquent, lucid, and complex work is the product of remarkable intelligence and erudition; it is a profound contribution to the understanding of the cultural hegemony of the West. -- Ralph M. Coury Religious Studies Review All articles are extremely well written, exhibit impressive scholarship, and are thoughtful and are thoughtful and stimulating. Asad's criticisms are neither judgmental nor self-righteous but are generally driven by the will to understand. -- James R. Wood Contemporary SociologyTable of ContentsPart 1 Genealogies: the construction of religion as an anthropological category; toward a genealogy of the concept of ritual. Part 2 Archaisms: pain and truth in medieval Christian ritual; on discipline and humility in medieval Christian monasticism. Part 3 Translations: the concept of cultural translation in British social anthropology; the limits of religious criticism in the Middle East. Part 4 Polemics: multiculturalism and British identity in the wake of the Rushdie affair; ethnography, literature and politics - some readings and uses of Salmon Rushdie's "Satanic Verses".

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Book SynopsisUnderstanding Liberal Democracy presents notable work by Nicholas Wolterstorff at the intersection between political philosophy and religion. Alongside his influential earlier essays, it includes nine new essays in which Wolterstorff develops original lines of argument and stakes out novel positions regarding the nature of liberal democracy, human rights, and political authority. Taken together, these positions are an attractive alternative to the so-called public reason liberalism defended by thinkers such as John Rawls. The volume will be of interest to philosophers, political theorists, and theologians, engaging a wide audience of those interested in how best to understand the nature of liberal democracy and its relation to religion.Table of ContentsPART ONE: PUBLIC REASON LIBERALISM; PART TWO: RE-THINKING LIBERAL DEMOCRACY; PART THREE: PERSPECTIVES ON RIGHTS; PART FOUR: LIBERAL DEMOCRACY AND RELIGION

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Book SynopsisOxford History of Modern German Theology, Vol. I: 1781-1848 offers a multi-author overview of the development of modern German theology from 1781 to 1848. Across 36 chapters, Kaplan and Vander Schel underline important movements in German theology during this period and highlight unresolved questions which have shaped subsequent discussion.Table of ContentsPart 1: Background 1: Robert Kolb: The Reformation and the Emergence of Protestant Orthodoxy 2: Thomas Wallnig: Early Modern Catholic Theology in German-speaking Lands 3: Douglas Shantz: German Pietism 4: Eric Carlsson: The Protestant Enlightenment 5: John R. Betz: The Counter-Enlightenment and Erweckungsbewegung: From J. G. Hamann to the Münster Circle 6: Michael C. Legaspi: Beginnings of Historical Criticism 7: Paul Franks: Translation, Bildung, and Dialogue: Central Concepts of German-Jewish Religious Thought 1783-1848 Part 2: 1781-1806 8: Andreas Holzem: Historical Introduction: Political, Social, and Legal Changes (1781-1806) 9: Ian Hunter: The Early Theological Reception of Kant's Religious Philosophy 10: Myriam Bienenstock: The Pantheism Controversy in the 1780s 11: Daniel Whistler: Early German Romanticism and the Characteristics of Religion 12: Werner Busch (translated by Grant Kaplan and Kevin M. Vander Schel): Romantic Art and Theology 13: Rainald Becker: The Changing Place of Religious Orders, and its Role in Theological Development Part 3: 1806-1815 14: Ruth Jackson Ravenscroft: Historical Introduction: Theological Justifications of Nationalism and the Beginnings of 'German Christianity' (1806-15) 15: Benjamin Dahlke: Debates about the Academic Status of Theology and the Foundation of the University of Berlin 16: Liisa Steinby: Approaches to Myth and Mythology 17: Johannes Zachhuber: Theology and Early Historicism Part 4: 1815-1830 18: Richard Schaefer: Historical Introduction: Political Restoration and Its Effects on Theology 1815-30 19: Todd H. Weir: Confession, Secularism, and Dissent in the German Vormärz 20: Grant Kaplan: The Catholic Tübingen School in its First Generation 21: Paul Michael Kurtz: Rationalism and Biblical Interpretation: H.E.G. Paulus, K.G. Bretschneider, and W.M.L. de Wette 22: Andrew Dole: Schleiermacher's Glaubenslehre and its Immediate Reception 23: Kevin M. Vander Schel: Anti-Rationalist Developments: Supernaturalism and the German Religious Awakening 24: Justin Shaun Coyle: Catholic Rationalism: Georg Hermes and Anton Günther Part 5: 1830-1848 25: Jeffrey T. Zalar: Historical Introduction: The German-Speaking Lands in Restoration and Vormärz, 1815-48 26: Christian Danz: Hegel's Philosophy of Religion, Schelling's Philosophy of Revelation, and their Immediate Theological Reception 27: David Lincicum: Ferdinand Christian Baur and the Tübingen School 28: Annette G. Aubert: Mediating Theology 29: Klaus Unterburger: Church History and History of Doctrine 1830-1848 30: Michael Ledger-Lomas: Strauss and the Life of Jesus Controversy

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Book SynopsisRichard Swinburne offers an original treatment of a question at the heart of epistemology: what makes a belief a rational one, or one which the believer is justified in holding? He maps the various totally different and purportedly rival accounts that philosophers give of epistemic justification (''internalist'' and ''externalist''), and argues that they are really accounts of different concepts. He distinguishes (as most epistemologists do not) between synchronic justification (justification at a time) and diachronic justification (synchronic justification resulting from adequate investigation) -- both internalist and externalist. He argus that most kinds of justification are worth having because (for different reasons) indicative of truth. However, it is only justification of intermalist kinds that can guide a believer''s actions. Swinburne goes on to show the usefulness of the probability calculus in elucidating how empirical evidence makes beliefs probably true: every proposition hTrade ReviewReaders of Swinburne's rewarding book will get a glimpse from the inside of how a sophisticated doxastic foundationalist understands epistemic justification ... careful and meticulous exposition. * The Philosophical Quarterly *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Theory of Synchronic Justification ; 2. Belief ; 3. Probability ; 4. The Criteria of Logical Probability ; 5. Basicality ; 6. The Value of Synchronic Justification ; 7. The Value of Diachronic Justification ; 8. Knowledge ; Appendix: Predictivism, Additional Notes, Index

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Book SynopsisA landmark study of Rousseau's theological and religious thought. John T. Scott offers a comprehensive interpretation of Rousseau's theological and religious thought, both in its own right and in relation to Rousseau's broader oeuvre. In chapters focused on different key writings, Scott reveals recurrent themes in Rousseau's views on the subject and traces their evolution over time. He shows that two conceptstruth and utilityare integral to Rousseau's writings on religion. Doing so helps to explain some of Rousseau's disagreements with his contemporaries: their different views on religion and theology stem from different understandings of human nature and the proper role of science in human life. Rousseau emphasizes not just what is true, but also what is usefulpsychologically, morally, and politicallyfor human beings. Comprehensive and nuanced, Rousseau's God is vital to understanding key categories of Rousseau's thought.Trade Review"There is much more that could be said on this subject, of course, as on the many other aspects of Rousseau’s philosophy upon which Scott advances deeply insightful and thought-provoking interpretations. One of the many successes of Rousseau’s God is that it shifts the burden of proof onto those who think that the Vicar does represent Rousseau’s own views. Anyone wishing to defend that interpretation henceforth should either respond to Scott’s forceful challenges or conclude that Rousseau was inconsistent on topics of central importance to his thought." * Review of Politics *"Rousseau’s God considers an important question in the manner it deserves: thoroughly. Scott succeeds in reconstructing the entire complex edifice of Rousseau’s theology and relating it to the broader and even more complex context of Rousseau’s thought as a whole. This is a remarkable achievement and a major contribution to understanding Rousseau." -- Clifford Orwin | University of Toronto"Rousseau’s God is an original and wide-ranging examination of Rousseau’s theological and religious writings. John Scott draws fertile connections to other key concepts in Rousseau’s broader project and pulls together multiple analytical threads into an exceptionally lucid and comprehensive interpretation that shows just how deeply the distinction between truth and utility permeates Rousseau’s treatment of religion (both doctrine and practice) throughout his works." -- Denise Schaeffer | College of the Holy CrossTable of ContentsList of Abbreviations Introduction Chapter 1: Truth and Utility Chapter 2: The Theodicy of the Discourse on Inequality Chapter 3: Pride and Providence in the Letter to Voltaire Chapter 4: Psychic Unity and Disunity and the Need for Religion Chapter 5: Introduction to the “Profession of Faith” Chapter 6: The Theological Teaching of the “Profession of Faith” Chapter 7: The Critique—and Revival—of Religion in the “Profession of Faith” Chapter 8: On Civil Religion Conclusion Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisAn original and profound exploration of contemplation from philosopher, theologian, and poet Kevin Hart. In Lands of Likeness, Kevin Hart develops a new hermeneutics of contemplation through a meditation on Christian thought and secular philosophy. Drawing on Kant, Schopenhauer, Coleridge, and Husserl, Hart first charts the emergence of contemplation in and beyond the Romantic era. Next, Hart shows this hermeneutic at work in poetry by Gerard Manley Hopkins, Marianne Moore, Wallace Stevens, and others. Delivered in its original form as the prestigious Gifford Lectures, Lands of Likeness is a revelatory meditation on contemplation for the modern world.Trade Review“Lands of Likeness is one of the deepest accounts of poetry’s cognitive dimensions ever written. What Hart does in the book is explore models of poetic reflection that conform to the models of neither discursive philosophical argumentation nor full-fledged religious contemplation, yet inhabit a meditative domain that is both conceptual and spiritual. I know of no other book that explores this terrain as thoroughly as this one does." -- John Koethe, University of Wisconsin–Madison“In this learned and comprehensive book on the poetic legacy of contemplation, Hart guides us from the early church fathers to the Romantics, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and many major twentieth-century poets who looked on nature in light of its likeness to spirit. A distinguished poet himself, Hart has much to say to readers and writers of poetry. Indeed, this book will interest anyone who has felt the power of leaving some things unsaid as well as the elation of those ‘hovering thoughts’ that are the book’s focus.” -- Susan Stewart, Princeton UniversityTable of ContentsNote on Citations and Conventions Introduction 1: From Templum to Contemplation 2: The Sabbath of the Idea 3: Hermeneutic of Contemplation 4: Contemplation with Kestrel 5: Fascination 6: Consideration 7: From Supreme Being to Supreme Fiction 8: Contemplation with Noisy Birds 9: Contemplating "the True Mystery" 10: "On Course but Destinationless" 11: Mystère and Mystique 12: "To Contemplate the Radical Soul" Afterword: Poem as Templum Acknowledgments Glossary Notes Index

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Book SynopsisInsights on death and judgement from one of the great modern Orthodox theologiansTrade Review'A fascinating collection of brilliant essays-most previously untranslated-by this most remarkable and original of twentieth-century theologians, getting to the heart of the relationship between the created and the uncreated, between death and life. It is an indispensable resource, complementing the reading of Bulgakov's major works.' - John Behr, University of Aberdeen and Vrije University 'In this judicious selection of Bulgakov's eschatological essays, which traverse the speculative, political, pastoral, dogmatic, and personal, Roberto De La Noval offers Anglophone readers a true gift. His graceful translation retains throughout the urgency, force, and bright delicacy of Bulgakov's singular voice as the volume extends an invitation - even an imperative summons - to contemplate together the griefs and consolations of endings in history, time, and death.' - Jennifer Newsome Martin, University of Notre Dame 'A master of multiple sources - philosophical, theological, liturgical, scriptural, and patristic - which he synthesizes in order to leave no theological stone unturned without a response, Sergius Bulgakov is the Aquinas of our time. Roberto J. De La Noval's masterful translation of these essays further reinforces Bulgakov's genius and ongoing relevance for our contemporary questions.' - Aristotle Papanikolaou, Fordham University 'Bulgakov's essays on the Apocatastasis in this volume are not only gorgeous, learned, and stimulating, but very probably, and importantly, correct. His homily on the Dormition, while probably mistaken, is nonetheless essential reading for anyone who wants to think seriously about Mary. It is a delight to have the works collected here available in English: Roberto De La Noval deserves gratitude for his fine work in translating them; and Bulgakov deserves something approaching homage for having written them.' - Paul J. Griffiths, author of Regret: A Theology and Why Read Pascal? Perhaps no twentieth-century theologian is quite as much in the ascent as Sergei Bulgakov. Not only does he represent a fundamental option for Eastern Orthodox theology, but he represents more broadly a model for a form of theological speculation, disciplined by the theological tradition, marked by a deep reading of Scripture, and with due recognition of the human fragility and failure, a theology grounded in the resurrection of Christ who will be all in all. This new volume of essays, beautifully translated by Roberto De La Noval, will only add to Bulgakov's high reputation. It will also remind readers that eschatology is not simply a theme in Bulgakov's writings, but at once its central energy and milieu. The collection shows once again the marvelous conjunction of theological imagination and fidelity to the tradition in the thought of Bulgakov, while sounding an indelible note of existential pathos without ever calling attention to the I.' - Cyril O'Regan, Huisking University of Notre Dame 'There are authors who are not bound to their time. They speak from heart to heart, even from beyond the threshold of death. Father Sergius Bulgakov belongs to these witnesses of divine wisdom. For all those who discover with him the mystery of death, new perspectives of life as 'fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God' (Eph 2:19) will open up.' - Barbara Hallensleben, University of FribourgTable of ContentsForeword by David Bentley Hart ix Translator's Preface and Bibliographic Information xiii Acknowledgements xvii Introduction xix 1. The Foundational Antimony of the Christian Philosophy of History 1 2. On the Kingdom of God 9 3. The Soul of Socialism (Part II) 29 4. The Problem of "Conditional Immortality" 40 5. On the Question of the Apocatastasis of the Fallen Spirits (in Connection with the Teaching of Gregory of Nyssa) 76 6. Apocatastasis and Theodicy 92 7. The Redemption and Apocatastasis 99 8. Augustinianism and Predestination 104 9. The Sophiology of Death 117 10. "Even so, Come" 161 11. Homily on the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God 188 12. Concerning My Funeral 192 Bibliography 195 Index 197

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Book SynopsisIn The Postsecular Sacred: Jung, Soul and Meaning in an Age of Change, David Tacey presents a unique psychological study of the postsecular, adding a Jungian perspective to a debate shaped by sociology, philosophy and religious studies. In this interdisciplinary exploration, Tacey looks at the unexpected return of the sacred in Western societies, and how the sacred is changing our understanding of humanity and culture. Beginning with Jung's belief that the psyche has never been secular, Tacey examines the new desire for spiritual experience and presents a logic of the unconscious to explain it. Tacey argues that what has fuelled the postsecular momentum is the awareness that something is missing, and the idea that this could be buried in the unconscious is dawning on sociologists and philosophers. While the instinct to connect to something greater is returning, Tacey shows that this need not imply that we are regressing to superstitions that science has rejectedTrade Review"The issues with which this book deals have been attracting increased interest for several decades, and this seems set to continue for the foreseeable future. The question of the place of the sacred in predominantly secular cultures is unlikely to be resolved one way or the other anytime soon." – Roderick Main, University of Essex, UK; author, The Rupture of TimeTable of ContentsIntroduction; The Postsecular Condition; Chapter 1: The Postsecular Landscape; Chapter 2: The Mystical Turn; Secularism Under Pressure; Chapter 3: A Secular Country; Chapter 4: The Aboriginal Gift We Will Not Accept; Reanimation of the World; Chapter 5: Ecopsychology and Indigenous Cosmology; Chapter 6: Physics and Reanimation; Postsecular Religion and Atheism; Chapter 7: God After God; Chapter 8: Derrida: Emissary of the Postsecular; Violence and the Sacred; Chapter 8: Return of the Sacred in an Age of Terror; Chapter 10: Epilogue: Sacrifice and the Future; Index

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Book SynopsisIn this book, Stephen Cave and John Martin Fischer debate whether or not we should choose to live forever. This ancient question is as topical as ever: while billions of people believe they will live forever in an otherworldly realm, billions of dollars are currently being poured into anti-ageing research in the hope that we will be able to radically extend our lives on earth. But are we wise to wish for immortality? What would it mean for each of us as individuals, for society, and for the planet?In this lively and accessible debate, the authors introduce the main arguments for and against living forever, along with some new ones. They draw on examples from myth and literature as well as new thought experiments in order to bring the arguments to life. Cave contends that the aspiring immortalist is stuck on the horns of a series of dilemmas, such as boredom and meaninglessness, or overpopulation and social injustice. Fischer argues that there is a vision of radically longer lTrade Review“Scientists may eventually be able to extend some people’s lives for many hundreds or even thousands of years. This book is a friendly argument between two eminent philosophers about whether this would be good or bad for those people. Even if none of us now will be fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to be around to experience radical life extension, we can still benefit enormously from this debate’s illuminating exchanges, conducted with wit and verve, about death, the meaning and value of life, the nature of well-being, the metaphysics of personal identity, and many other fascinating and fundamentally important topics.” -- Jeff McMahan, University of Oxford"This book will reward anyone interested in the question of whether there's reason to live forever. And let's be honest, that's all of us. Cave and Fischer offer up a timely debate on a timeless issue." -- Benjamin Mitchell-Yellin, Sam Houston State UniversityTable of ContentsForeword Part 1: Opening Statements 1. Why You Should Not Choose to Live Forever (Stephen Cave) 2. Why You Should Choose to Live Forever (John Martin Fischer) Part 2: First Round of Replies 3. Reply to John Martin Fischer (Steven Cave) 4. Reply to Stephen Cave (John Martin Fischer) Part 3: Second Round of Replies 5. Reply to John Martin Fischer's Reply (Stephen Cave) 6. Reply to Steven Cave's Second Essay (John Martin Fischer) Further Readings Glossary References Index

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Book SynopsisThis volume offers the most comprehensive survey available of the philosophical background to the works of early Christian writers and the development of early Christian doctrine.Trade Review"For a modern intellectual culture that distrusts trust and prefers analysis to exegesis, the very notion of early Christian philosophy is apt to be an uncomfortable stretch. But Mark Edwards and company do not retreat to the safe, if vacuous, conjunction: early Christianity and philosophy, as if one were a prosthesis for the other. This volume’s concise forays into a still surprisingly unfamiliar intellectual landscape bring ancient philosophy into the heart of early Christian exegesis. The introduction by Edwards brilliantly articulates the stakes of following along." - James Wetzel, Villanova University, USA"This well-conceived collection of studies makes a powerful case that ancient Christians took philosophy seriously and historians of ancient philosophy need to take Christians seriously." – George Boys-Stones, University of Toronto, Canada"The Routledge Handbook of Early Christian Philosophy is a much welcome tool for students and researchers alike. Thanks to the excellent work of an international scholarly team of the highest calibre, the volume rightly moves away from the simplistic dualism of 'reason versus faith' that still hinders a sophisticated understanding of Early Christianity’s complex ties to pagan philosophy, and it showcases, in a truly comprehensive fashion, their substantial areas of intersection in the first centuries of our era. The contributors demonstrate that the Christians’ engagement with the tools, tropes, and themes of pagan philosophy was not just considerably more constructive and dynamic than is often recognized, but that this very engagement was also a necessary enterprise for Christians." - Alberto Rigolio, University of Durham, UK"This handbook is an important contribution to scholarship on early Christian thought. But that is only half its contribution. It is in equal measure a formidable argument for situating what is usually called ‘early Christian theology’ within the larger domain of ‘ancient philosophy’, most broadly conceived... Edwards is to be commended for bringing together such a substantial collection (in both size and importance) and for producing an edited handbook that sustains a particular (and much needed) thesis about Christianity and ancient philosophy across the whole of the volume." - The Classical ReviewTable of Contents1. Introduction Section 1: Themes 2. Sources of Divine Knowledge 3. Nature 4. Time and Eternity 5. Creation in Early Christianity 6. Providence and Evil 7. Logic and Religious Language 8. Ethics 9. The Mystical Element Section 2: Doctrines 10. The Trinity 11. The Philosophy of the Incarnation 12. The Philosophy of the Resurrection in Early Christianity 13. Biblical Hermeneutics Section 3. Schools 14. The Presocratics 15. Socrates and Plato 16. Aristotle and his School 17. Stoics and Christians 18. Epicureans 19. Cynics and Christians 20. Sceptics 21. Philo of Alexandria 22. Orpheus, Mithras, Hermes 23. Middle Platonists and Pythagoreans 24. Pagan and Christian Philosophy: Plotinus, Iamblichus and Christian Philosophical Practice 25. The Philosophy of the Later Neoplatonists: An Interaction with Christian Thought Section 4. Individuals 26. Justin and Athenagoras 27. Tatian, Theophilus and Irenaeus of Lyon 28. Clement of Alexandria 29. Tertullian and Cyprian 30. "Hippolytus" and Epiphanius of Salamis 31. Origen and Philosophy 32. The Sethians and the Gnostics of Plotinus 33. Arnobius and Lactantius 34. Philosophy in Eusebius and Marcellus 35. Arius and Athanasius 36. Marius Victorinus 37. Philosophy in Hilary of Poitiers and Ambrose of Milan 38. Eunomius of Cyzicus and Gregory of Nyssa 39. Didymus the Blind and Evagrius of Pontus 40. Synesius of Cyrene: Philosophy and Poetry "Sharing the same Temple" 41. Augustine of Hippo 42. Cyril of Alexandria 42. Theodoret of Cyrrhus 43. Boethius: The First Christian Philosopher in the Latin West? 44. John Philoponus 45. Dionysius the Areopagite 46. Christian Philosophynin Severus of Antioch and Leontius of Byzantium

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Book SynopsisSøren Kierkegaard is one of the key figures of nineteenth century thought, whose influence on subsequent philosophy, theology and literature is both extensive and profound. Fear and Trembling, which investigates the nature of faith through an exploration of the story of Abraham and Isaac, is one of Kierkegaard's most compelling and widely read works. It combines an arresting narrative, an unorthodox literary structure and a fascinating account of faith and its relation to the ethical'.The Routledge Guidebook to Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling introduces and assesses: Kierkegaard's life and the background to Fear and Trembling, including aspects of its philosophical and theological context The text and key ideas of Fear and Trembling, including the details of its account of faith and its connection to trust and hope The book's reception history, the diversity of interpretations it hasTrade Review‘Lippitt’s text is exceptionally clear in explaining the background, central ideas, and major secondary literature on Fear and Trembling.’Michael Strawser, University of Central Florida, USA ‘This is an excellent text. Lippitt gives due consideration to all parts of Fear and Trembling, including the early sections that are often neglected, and provides an insightful account and critical evaluation of the various ways in which Kierkegaard’s notorious book has been interpreted.’Rick Anthony Furtak, Colorado College, USA 'A first-rate Kierkegaard scholar, Lippitt has a gift for conveying complex and difficult ideas in a clear, accessible way, which makes this book an ideal guide for undergraduate students and for other readers coming to Kierkegaard for the first time.'David Law, University of Manchester, UK ‘John Lippitt is one of the top experts on Fear and Trembling in the English-speaking world. The many insights of his work are distilled here in a form that is accessible to undergraduates, yet also thought-provoking for more advanced scholars. This book is essential for any serious reader of Kierkegaard!’John Davenport, Fordham University, USA Table of Contents1. Introduction 2. Tuning up: ‘Preface’, ‘Attunement’ and ‘Speech in Praise of Abraham’ 3. Resignation and faith: the ‘Preamble from the Heart’ 4. Suspending the ethical: Problemata I and II 5. The sound of silence: Problema III 6. What is Fear and Trembling really about? 7. How reliable is Johannes de silentio?

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