Description

Book Synopsis

This anthology offers a comprehensive historical introduction to the central questions of philosophy of religion. Approximately two-thirds of the selections are from ancient, medieval, and modern sources, helping students to understand and engage the rich traditions of reflection on these timeless questions. The remaining contemporary readings introduce students to the more recent developments in the field. Each of the thematically arranged sections begins with an editor''s introduction to clarify the central issues and positions presented in the readings that follow.

Topics include:

  • traditional theistic arguments
  • religious experience and revelation
  • fideism
  • naturalistic approaches to religious belief
  • the divine attributes
  • fate, freedom, and foreknowledge
  • the connection between religion and morality
  • the problem of evil
  • death and immortality
  • religious diversity
  • faith, reason,

    Trade Review
    "What distinguishes this anthology from others is editors trained in modern philosophy and adept at its strategies, who have come to learn from classical traditions as well, to reflect that breadth and depth in their selections. Their ability to range from "ancient to contemporary" will enlighten current students, as will their adroit way of introducing the various topics in philosophical inquiry into questions of faith." - David Burrell, C.S.C, University of Notre Dame "A well-crafted collection that admirably represents the central issues in Philosophy of religion. Miller and Zagzebski provide a deep, persuasive yet readable treatment of the subject. I enthusiastically recommend it." - J.P. Moreland, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University

    Table of Contents

    Acknowledgments xi

    General Introduction 1

    I The Philosophical Treatment of Religion 3

    Introduction 5

    1 The Nature of the Gods, Book 1 7
    Cicero

    II Classical Arguments for Theism 19

    Introduction 21

    A Teleological Arguments 23

    1 The Design Argument 25
    Cicero

    2 The Fifth Way 27
    Thomas Aquinas

    3 The Watch and the Watchmaker 28
    William Paley

    4 Critique of the Design Argument 31
    David Hume

    5 The Teleological Argument 39
    Robin Collins

    6 The Argument from the Appearance of Design 51
    J. J. C. Smart

    B Cosmological Arguments 55

    1 Plato’s Cosmological Argument 57
    Plato

    2 The Eternality of Motion and the Unmoved Mover 62
    Aristotle

    3 The Kalam Cosmological Argument 66
    Al-GhazAli

    4 The Existence and Oneness of God 68
    Moses Maimonides

    5 The First Three Ways 71
    Thomas Aquinas

    6 The Argument from Dependent Beings 73
    Samuel Clarke

    7 Critique of the Cosmological Argument 76
    David Hume

    C Ontological Arguments 79

    1 Anselm’s Ontological Argument 81
    Anselm

    2 Descartes’s Ontological Argument 84
    René Descartes

    3 Kant’s Critique of the Three Traditional Proofs 90
    Immanuel Kant

    4 The Ontological Argument 98
    Alvin Plantinga

    III Other Approaches to Religious Belief 113

    Introduction 115

    A Experience and Revelation as Grounds for Religious Belief 117

    1 The Numinous 119
    Rudolf Otto

    2 Mysticism and Religious Experience 123
    William J. Wainwright

    3 The Existence of God and the Existence of Homer: Rethinking Theism and Revelatory Claims 137
    Sandra Menssen and Thomas D. Sullivan

    B Fideism 151

    1 Truth is Subjectivity 153
    Søren Kierkegaard

    2 Kierkegaard’s Arguments against Objective Reasoning in Religion 157
    Robert M. Adams

    3 Lectures on Religious Belief 168
    Ludwig Wittgenstein

    C Naturalistic Re-interpretations of Religious Belief 175

    1 Origin of Religion 177
    David Hume

    2 The Essence of Religion in General 183
    Ludwig Feuerbach

    3 The Future of an Illusion 187
    Sigmund Freud

    IV Who or What is God? 191

    Introduction 193

    1 On Being 195
    Melissus of Samos

    2 The Final Cause 198
    Aristotle

    3 The Divine Darkness 201
    Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite

    4 Perfect Being 206
    Anselm

    5 On the Trinity 210
    Richard of St Victor

    6 Omnipotence 213
    Peter Geach

    7 Omniscience and Immutability 223
    Norman Kretzmann

    8 Atemporal Personhood 231
    William L. Craig

    V Fate, Freedom, and Foreknowledge 237

    Introduction 239

    1 The Sea Battle Argument 241
    Aristotle

    2 On Fate and On Divination 244
    Cicero

    3 God’s Timeless Knowing 246
    Boethius

    4 Ockham on God’s Foreknowledge, and Future Contingents 251
    Marilyn Adams

    5 Middle Knowledge 260
    William Hasker

    VI Religion and Morality 265

    Introduction 267

    A Is Religion Needed for Morality? 269

    1 God is the Measure of All Things 271
    Plato

    2 The Moral Argument for the Existence of God 272
    Immanuel Kant

    B Divine Command Theory and Divine Motivation Theory 277

    1 The Euthyphro Dilemma 279
    Plato

    2 Questions on the Books of the Sentences 283
    Pierre d’Ailly

    3 Lectures on Romans 286
    Martin Luther

    4 Divine Commands 288
    Robert M. Adams

    5 The Virtues of God and the Foundations of Ethics 299
    Linda Zagzebski

    C Natural Law 311

    1 Selections from Treatise on Law 313
    Thomas Aquinas

    VII The Problem of Evil 319

    Introduction 321

    1 God is Not the Author of Evil 323
    Plato

    2 On the Anger of God 325
    Lactantius

    3 That Which Is, Is Good 327
    Augustine

    4 On the Free Choice of the Will 329
    Augustine

    5 Formal Summary of the Theodicy 332
    Gottfried Leibniz

    6 Myth of the Goddess Pallas 339
    Gottfried Leibniz

    7 Evil and Omnipotence 342
    J. L. Mackie

    8 The Free Will Defense 350
    Alvin Plantinga

    9 Soul-making Theodicy 369
    John Hick

    10 Friendly Atheism, Skeptical Theism, and the Problem of Evil 380
    William L. Rowe

    11 Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God 389
    Marilyn Adams

    VIII Death and Immortality 399

    Introduction 401

    A Is Death Bad? 403

    1 Death is Nothing to Us 405
    Epicurus

    2 Death 407
    Thomas Nagel

    B Life after Death 413

    1 The Separation of the Soul from the Body 415
    Plato

    2 The Future Life 417
    Averroes (Ibn Rushd)

    3 The Possibility of Immortality 420
    René Descartes

    4 Personal Identity and Consciousness 422
    John Locke

    5 Do We Survive Death? 427
    Bertrand Russell

    6 Religious and Near-death Experience in Relation to Belief in a Future Life 430
    Paul Badham

    IX The Diversity of Religions 441

    Introduction 443

    1 Religious Pluralism and Salvation 445
    John Hick

    2 The Bodhgaya Interview (1981) 455
    The Dalai Lama

    3 Christianity and the Non-Christian Religions 459
    Karl Rahner

    4 Self-trust and the Diversity of Religions 465
    Linda Zagzebski

    X Faith, Reason, and the Ethics of Belief 475

    Introduction 477

    A Faith and Reason 479

    1 How Justin Found Philosophy 481
    Justin Martyr

    2 Prescriptions against the Heretics 487
    Tertullian

    3 In What Respect Philosophy Contributes to the Comprehension of Divine Truth 490
    Clement of Alexandria

    4 The Decisive Treatise, Determining the Nature of the Connection between Religion and Philosophy 492
    Averroes (Ibn Rushd)

    5 Faith and Reason 496
    Thomas Aquinas

    6 Belief in God is Natural 501
    John Calvin

    7 Faith, Reason, and Enthusiasm 504
    John Locke

    8 Return to Reason: The Irrationality of Evidentialism 515
    Kelly James Clark

    B Pragmatism and the Ethics of Belief 533

    1 The Wager 535
    Blaise Pascal

    2 Pascalian Wagering 538
    Thomas V. Morris

    3 The Ethics of Belief 544
    W. K. Clifford

    4 The Will to Believe 549
    William James

    XI Science, Religion, and Naturalism 559

    Introduction 561

    A Miracles 563

    1 Miracles 565
    Thomas Aquinas

    2 A Discourse of Miracles 567
    John Locke

    3 Of Miracles 572
    David Hume

    4 David Hume and the Probability of Miracles 583
    George I. Mavrodes

    B Science, Religion, and Naturalism 595

    1 Letter to Castelli 597
    Galileo Galilei

    2 Signs of Intelligence 602
    William A. Dembski

    3 Atheism and Evolution 614
    Daniel C. Dennett

    4 Darwin, Design, and Divine Providence 624
    John F. Haught

    5 How Naturalism Implies Skepticism 636
    Alvin Plantinga

    6 A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand: Plantinga on the Self-defeat of Evolutionary Naturalism 648
    Timothy O’Connor

Readings in Philosophy of Religion

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    A Paperback / softback by Linda Zagzebski, Timothy D. Miller

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      View other formats and editions of Readings in Philosophy of Religion by Linda Zagzebski

      Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd
      Publication Date: 06/03/2009
      ISBN13: 9781405180917, 978-1405180917
      ISBN10: 1405180919
      Also in:
      Philosophy

      Description

      Book Synopsis

      This anthology offers a comprehensive historical introduction to the central questions of philosophy of religion. Approximately two-thirds of the selections are from ancient, medieval, and modern sources, helping students to understand and engage the rich traditions of reflection on these timeless questions. The remaining contemporary readings introduce students to the more recent developments in the field. Each of the thematically arranged sections begins with an editor''s introduction to clarify the central issues and positions presented in the readings that follow.

      Topics include:

      • traditional theistic arguments
      • religious experience and revelation
      • fideism
      • naturalistic approaches to religious belief
      • the divine attributes
      • fate, freedom, and foreknowledge
      • the connection between religion and morality
      • the problem of evil
      • death and immortality
      • religious diversity
      • faith, reason,

        Trade Review
        "What distinguishes this anthology from others is editors trained in modern philosophy and adept at its strategies, who have come to learn from classical traditions as well, to reflect that breadth and depth in their selections. Their ability to range from "ancient to contemporary" will enlighten current students, as will their adroit way of introducing the various topics in philosophical inquiry into questions of faith." - David Burrell, C.S.C, University of Notre Dame "A well-crafted collection that admirably represents the central issues in Philosophy of religion. Miller and Zagzebski provide a deep, persuasive yet readable treatment of the subject. I enthusiastically recommend it." - J.P. Moreland, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University

        Table of Contents

        Acknowledgments xi

        General Introduction 1

        I The Philosophical Treatment of Religion 3

        Introduction 5

        1 The Nature of the Gods, Book 1 7
        Cicero

        II Classical Arguments for Theism 19

        Introduction 21

        A Teleological Arguments 23

        1 The Design Argument 25
        Cicero

        2 The Fifth Way 27
        Thomas Aquinas

        3 The Watch and the Watchmaker 28
        William Paley

        4 Critique of the Design Argument 31
        David Hume

        5 The Teleological Argument 39
        Robin Collins

        6 The Argument from the Appearance of Design 51
        J. J. C. Smart

        B Cosmological Arguments 55

        1 Plato’s Cosmological Argument 57
        Plato

        2 The Eternality of Motion and the Unmoved Mover 62
        Aristotle

        3 The Kalam Cosmological Argument 66
        Al-GhazAli

        4 The Existence and Oneness of God 68
        Moses Maimonides

        5 The First Three Ways 71
        Thomas Aquinas

        6 The Argument from Dependent Beings 73
        Samuel Clarke

        7 Critique of the Cosmological Argument 76
        David Hume

        C Ontological Arguments 79

        1 Anselm’s Ontological Argument 81
        Anselm

        2 Descartes’s Ontological Argument 84
        René Descartes

        3 Kant’s Critique of the Three Traditional Proofs 90
        Immanuel Kant

        4 The Ontological Argument 98
        Alvin Plantinga

        III Other Approaches to Religious Belief 113

        Introduction 115

        A Experience and Revelation as Grounds for Religious Belief 117

        1 The Numinous 119
        Rudolf Otto

        2 Mysticism and Religious Experience 123
        William J. Wainwright

        3 The Existence of God and the Existence of Homer: Rethinking Theism and Revelatory Claims 137
        Sandra Menssen and Thomas D. Sullivan

        B Fideism 151

        1 Truth is Subjectivity 153
        Søren Kierkegaard

        2 Kierkegaard’s Arguments against Objective Reasoning in Religion 157
        Robert M. Adams

        3 Lectures on Religious Belief 168
        Ludwig Wittgenstein

        C Naturalistic Re-interpretations of Religious Belief 175

        1 Origin of Religion 177
        David Hume

        2 The Essence of Religion in General 183
        Ludwig Feuerbach

        3 The Future of an Illusion 187
        Sigmund Freud

        IV Who or What is God? 191

        Introduction 193

        1 On Being 195
        Melissus of Samos

        2 The Final Cause 198
        Aristotle

        3 The Divine Darkness 201
        Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite

        4 Perfect Being 206
        Anselm

        5 On the Trinity 210
        Richard of St Victor

        6 Omnipotence 213
        Peter Geach

        7 Omniscience and Immutability 223
        Norman Kretzmann

        8 Atemporal Personhood 231
        William L. Craig

        V Fate, Freedom, and Foreknowledge 237

        Introduction 239

        1 The Sea Battle Argument 241
        Aristotle

        2 On Fate and On Divination 244
        Cicero

        3 God’s Timeless Knowing 246
        Boethius

        4 Ockham on God’s Foreknowledge, and Future Contingents 251
        Marilyn Adams

        5 Middle Knowledge 260
        William Hasker

        VI Religion and Morality 265

        Introduction 267

        A Is Religion Needed for Morality? 269

        1 God is the Measure of All Things 271
        Plato

        2 The Moral Argument for the Existence of God 272
        Immanuel Kant

        B Divine Command Theory and Divine Motivation Theory 277

        1 The Euthyphro Dilemma 279
        Plato

        2 Questions on the Books of the Sentences 283
        Pierre d’Ailly

        3 Lectures on Romans 286
        Martin Luther

        4 Divine Commands 288
        Robert M. Adams

        5 The Virtues of God and the Foundations of Ethics 299
        Linda Zagzebski

        C Natural Law 311

        1 Selections from Treatise on Law 313
        Thomas Aquinas

        VII The Problem of Evil 319

        Introduction 321

        1 God is Not the Author of Evil 323
        Plato

        2 On the Anger of God 325
        Lactantius

        3 That Which Is, Is Good 327
        Augustine

        4 On the Free Choice of the Will 329
        Augustine

        5 Formal Summary of the Theodicy 332
        Gottfried Leibniz

        6 Myth of the Goddess Pallas 339
        Gottfried Leibniz

        7 Evil and Omnipotence 342
        J. L. Mackie

        8 The Free Will Defense 350
        Alvin Plantinga

        9 Soul-making Theodicy 369
        John Hick

        10 Friendly Atheism, Skeptical Theism, and the Problem of Evil 380
        William L. Rowe

        11 Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God 389
        Marilyn Adams

        VIII Death and Immortality 399

        Introduction 401

        A Is Death Bad? 403

        1 Death is Nothing to Us 405
        Epicurus

        2 Death 407
        Thomas Nagel

        B Life after Death 413

        1 The Separation of the Soul from the Body 415
        Plato

        2 The Future Life 417
        Averroes (Ibn Rushd)

        3 The Possibility of Immortality 420
        René Descartes

        4 Personal Identity and Consciousness 422
        John Locke

        5 Do We Survive Death? 427
        Bertrand Russell

        6 Religious and Near-death Experience in Relation to Belief in a Future Life 430
        Paul Badham

        IX The Diversity of Religions 441

        Introduction 443

        1 Religious Pluralism and Salvation 445
        John Hick

        2 The Bodhgaya Interview (1981) 455
        The Dalai Lama

        3 Christianity and the Non-Christian Religions 459
        Karl Rahner

        4 Self-trust and the Diversity of Religions 465
        Linda Zagzebski

        X Faith, Reason, and the Ethics of Belief 475

        Introduction 477

        A Faith and Reason 479

        1 How Justin Found Philosophy 481
        Justin Martyr

        2 Prescriptions against the Heretics 487
        Tertullian

        3 In What Respect Philosophy Contributes to the Comprehension of Divine Truth 490
        Clement of Alexandria

        4 The Decisive Treatise, Determining the Nature of the Connection between Religion and Philosophy 492
        Averroes (Ibn Rushd)

        5 Faith and Reason 496
        Thomas Aquinas

        6 Belief in God is Natural 501
        John Calvin

        7 Faith, Reason, and Enthusiasm 504
        John Locke

        8 Return to Reason: The Irrationality of Evidentialism 515
        Kelly James Clark

        B Pragmatism and the Ethics of Belief 533

        1 The Wager 535
        Blaise Pascal

        2 Pascalian Wagering 538
        Thomas V. Morris

        3 The Ethics of Belief 544
        W. K. Clifford

        4 The Will to Believe 549
        William James

        XI Science, Religion, and Naturalism 559

        Introduction 561

        A Miracles 563

        1 Miracles 565
        Thomas Aquinas

        2 A Discourse of Miracles 567
        John Locke

        3 Of Miracles 572
        David Hume

        4 David Hume and the Probability of Miracles 583
        George I. Mavrodes

        B Science, Religion, and Naturalism 595

        1 Letter to Castelli 597
        Galileo Galilei

        2 Signs of Intelligence 602
        William A. Dembski

        3 Atheism and Evolution 614
        Daniel C. Dennett

        4 Darwin, Design, and Divine Providence 624
        John F. Haught

        5 How Naturalism Implies Skepticism 636
        Alvin Plantinga

        6 A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand: Plantinga on the Self-defeat of Evolutionary Naturalism 648
        Timothy O’Connor

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