Philosophy of Religion: A Guide and Anthology provides a comprehensive, authoritative, and accessible overview of the philosophy of religion. Under the careful editorship of Brian Davies, the book contains a selection of the best classical and contemporary writings on the philosophy of religion together with substantial commentary, introductory material, discussion questions, and detailed guides to further reading. The editorial material sets the extractsin context and guides the reader through them. Taken as a whole, the book offers the ideal, self-contained introduction to the questions which have most preoccupied Western philosophers when thinking about religion. The selection is both very comprehensive and very generous. 65 sizeable extracts map out thefull range of topics most commonly encountered in courses on the philosophy of religion. Part I looks at the relation between philosophy and religious belief; Parts II-IV consider the existence and nature of God; Part V addresses the 'problem of evil'; and Parts VI and VII are devoted to the relationship between morality and religion and to the question of life after death.
Professor Brian Davies is Professor of Philosophy, Fordham University, New York. He is a Catholic Priest and Dominican Friar and General Editor of the series 'Outstanding Christian Thinkers' published by Geoffrey Chapman, London and 'Medieval Minds' published by Oxford University Press. His many articles on Philosophy of Religion and Theology are widely published and he has contributed to several published titles.
Show morePhilosophy of Religion: A Guide and Anthology provides a comprehensive, authoritative, and accessible overview of the philosophy of religion. Under the careful editorship of Brian Davies, the book contains a selection of the best classical and contemporary writings on the philosophy of religion together with substantial commentary, introductory material, discussion questions, and detailed guides to further reading. The editorial material sets the extractsin context and guides the reader through them. Taken as a whole, the book offers the ideal, self-contained introduction to the questions which have most preoccupied Western philosophers when thinking about religion. The selection is both very comprehensive and very generous. 65 sizeable extracts map out thefull range of topics most commonly encountered in courses on the philosophy of religion. Part I looks at the relation between philosophy and religious belief; Parts II-IV consider the existence and nature of God; Part V addresses the 'problem of evil'; and Parts VI and VII are devoted to the relationship between morality and religion and to the question of life after death.
Professor Brian Davies is Professor of Philosophy, Fordham University, New York. He is a Catholic Priest and Dominican Friar and General Editor of the series 'Outstanding Christian Thinkers' published by Geoffrey Chapman, London and 'Medieval Minds' published by Oxford University Press. His many articles on Philosophy of Religion and Theology are widely published and he has contributed to several published titles.
Show morePreface
General Introduction
Advice on Reading
PART I. PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGIOUS BELIEF
Introduction
1: Thomas Aquinas: Faith and Reason in Harmony
2: W.K. Clifford: The Ethics of Belief
3: Antony Flew: The Presumption of Atheism
4: Alvin Plantinga: Religious Belief as 'Properly Basic'
5: Norman Kretzmann: Evidence and Religious Belief
6: D.Z. Phillips: Grammar and Religious Belief
7: Norman Malcolm: The Groundlessness of Religious Belief
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
PART II. THE PROBLEM OF GOD-TALK
Introduction
8: Augustine of Hippo: How Believers Find God-Talk Puzzling
9: A.J. Ayer: God-Talk is Evidently Nonsense
10: Richard Swinburne: God-Talk is Not Evidently Nonsense
11: Antony Flew: 'Death by a Thousand Qualifications'
12: Thomas Aquinas: One Way of Understanding God-Talk
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
PART III. ARGUMENTS FOR GOD'S EXISTENCE
Introduction
Advice on Reading
Cosmological Arguments
Introduction
13: Anselm of Canterbury: A Concise Cosmological Argument from the
Eleventh Century
14: Thomas Aquinas: A Thirteenth Century Cosmological Argument
15: John Duns Scotus: A Fourteenth-Century Cosmological
Argument
16: Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz: A Seventeenth-Century Cosmological
Argument
17: Herbert McCabe: A Modern Cosmological Argument
18: Paul Edwards: Objections to Cosmological Arguments
19: J.L. Mackie: More Objections to Cosmological Arguments
20: David Hume: Why is a Cause Always Necessary?
21: G.E.M. Anscombe: 'Whatever Has a Beginning of Existence Must
Have a Cause'
22: James A. Sadowsky: Can there be an Endless Regress of
Causes?
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
Design Arguments23: Thomas Aquinas: Introduction
Introduction
29: Anselm of Canterbury: Anselm Argues That God Cannot Be Thought
Not To Exist
30: Gaunilo of Marmoutiers: Gaunilo Argues that Anselm is Wrong
31: Anselm of Canterbury: Anselm Replies to Gaunilo
32: René Descartes: Descartes Defends An Ontological Argument
33: Pierre Gassendi, Johannes Caterus, René Descartes: Descartes
Replies to Critics
34: Immanuel Kant: A Classic Repudiation of Ontological
Arguments
35: Alvin Plantinga: A Contemporary Defence of Ontological
Arguments
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
God and Human Experience
Introduction
36: C.B. Martin: Why 'Knowing God by Experience' is a Notion Open
to Question
37: Peter Donovan: Can We Know God by Experience?
38: William P. Alston: Why Should There Not Be Experience of
God?
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
PART IV. WHAT IS GOD?
Introduction
Advice on Further Reading
Omnipotent
Introduction
39: Thomas V. Morris: A Modern Discussion of Divine Omnipotence
40: Thomas Aquinas: Why Think of God as Omnipotent?
41: Richard Swinburne: Miracles and Laws of Nature
42: David Hume: Why We Should Disbelieve in Miracles
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
Knowing
Introduction
43: Thomas Aquinas: Why Ascribe Knowledge to God?
44: Boethius: Omniscience and Human Freedom: a Classic
Discussion
45: Nelson Pike: Problems for the Notion of Divine Omniscience
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
Eternal
Introduction
46: Thomas Aquinas: Why Call God 'Eternal'?
47: Nicholas Wolterstorff: God is 'Everlasting', not 'Eternal'
48: Eleonore Stump and Norman Kretzmann: A Modern Defence of Divine
Eternity
49. A Different Modern Defence of Divine Eternity: Paul Helm:
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
Simple
Introduction
50: Thomas Aquinas: A Classic Defence of Divine Simplicity
51: Thomas V. Morris: Problems with Divine Simplicity
52: Brian Davies: A Modern Defence of Divine Simplicity
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
Part V. THE PROBLEM OF EVIL
Introduction
53: J.L. Mackie: Evil Shows that there is no God
54: Augustine of Hippo: What is Evil?
55: Richard Swinburne: Evil Does Not Show That There Is No God
56: Herbert McCabe: God, Evil, and Divine Responsibility
57: Thomas Aquinas: God and Human Freedom
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Reading
Part VI. MORALITY AND RELIGION
Introduction
58: Immanuel Kant: God as a 'Postulate' of Sound Moral Thinking
59: H.P. Owen: Why Morality Implies the Existence of God
60: Illtyd Trethowan: Moral Thinking as Awareness of God
61: Kai Nielsen: Morality does not Imply the Existence of God
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
Part VII. PEOPLE AND LIFE AFTER DEATH
Introduction
62: Stephen T. Davis: Philosophy and Life After Death: The
Questions and the Options
63: Plato: Life After Death: An Ancient Greek View
64: Bertrand Russell: Belief in Life After Death Comes from
Emotion, not Reason
65: Peter Geach: What Must be True of Me If I Survive My Death?
Questions for Discussion
Advice on Further Reading
Index
TEXTBOOK
Professor Brian Davies is Professor of Philosophy, Fordham University, New York. He is a Catholic Priest and Dominican Friar and General Editor of the series 'Outstanding Christian Thinkers' published by Geoffrey Chapman, London and 'Medieval Minds' published by Oxford University Press. His many articles on Philosophy of Religion and Theology are widely published and he has contributed to several published titles.
"Comprehensive, representative, good guidance and advice", Dr Andrew Dawson, Chester College "The selection of articles is exceptionally good for an introductory course in the subject. The questions are also useful for discussion in class and writing projects", Dr Victoria S Harrison, Birkbeck College
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