Description
Book SynopsisReason and Religious Belief, now in its fifth edition, explores perennial questions in the philosophy of religion. Drawing from the best in both classical and contemporary discussions, the authors examine religious experience, faith and reason, the divine attributes, arguments for and against the existence of God, divine action (in various forms of theism), Reformed epistemology, religious language, religious diversity, and religion and science.Revised and updated to reflect current philosophical discourse, the fifth edition offers new material on neuro-theology, the new Atheism, the intelligent design movement, theistic evolution, and skeptical theism. It also provides more coverage of non-Western religions--particularly Buddhism--and updated discussions of evidentialism, free will, life after death, apophatic theology, and more. A sophisticated yet accessible introduction, Reason and Religious Belief, Fifth Edition, is ideally suited for use with the authors'' companion anthology, Philosophy of Religion: Selected Readings, Fourth Edition (OUP, 2009).
Trade Review"I believe that Reason and Religious Belief is the best text available for an introductory philosophy of religion course. One of the greatest strengths is its fair representation of differing positions and approaches to problems. The level is just right for my purposes--introducing students to philosophy of religion in a way that challenges them."--Gordon Pettit, Western Illinois University "The treatments of opposing viewpoints are fair and well balanced. The writing style is superb: consistently economical, engaging, and clear."--Gary Rosenkrantz, University of North Carolina at Greensboro "This is an excellent book, in my view the best available for use in philosophy of religion survey courses. It covers all the general topics likely to be covered in such courses, and then some."--Clyde P. Ragland, Saint Louis University "I would recommend this book to anyone teaching philosophy of religion."--Kevin Carnahan, Central Methodist University
Table of Contents1. THINKING ABOUT GOD: THE SEARCH FOR THE DIVINE; 2. THE NATURE OF RELIGION: WHAT ARE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS ABOUT?; 3. RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ENCOUNTER THE DIVINE?; 4. FAITH AND REASON: HOW ARE THEY RELATED?; 5. THEISTIC ARGUMENTS: WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE FOR GOD'S EXISTENCE?; 6. KNOWING GOD WITHOUT ARGUMENTS: DOES THEISM NEED A BASIS?; 7. THE DIVINE ATTRIBUTES: WHAT IS GOD LIKE?; 8. DIVINE ACTION: HOW DOES GOD RELATE TO THE WORLD?; 9. THE PROBLEM OF EVIL: WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE AGAINST GOD'S EXISTENCE?; 10. MIRACLES: DOES GOD INTERVENE IN EARTHLY AFFAIRS?; 11. LIFE AFTER DEATH: ARE THERE REASONS FOR HOPE?; 12. RELIGIOUS LANGUAGE: HOW CAN WE SPEAK MEANINGFULLY OF GOD?; 13. RELIGION AND SCIENCE: ARE THEY COMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE?; 14. RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY: HOW CAN WE UNDERSTAND DIFFERENCES AMONG RELIGIONS?; 15. RELIGIOUS ETHICS: HOW IS GOD RELATED TO MORALITY?; 16. THE CONTINUING QUEST: GOD AND THE HUMAN VENTURE
