Reason and Religious Belief An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion

by Peterson, Michael; Hasker, William; Reichenbach, Bruce; Basinger, David

• ISBN13: 9780195113471
• ISBN10: 0195113470
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1997-10-23
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Drawing from both classical and contemporary discussions, the authors examine topics of religious experience, faith and reason, theistic arguments, the problem of evil, religious language, miracles, life after death, and much more. The volume is enhanced by study questions and suggestions for further reading. The book also may serve as a companion to the authors' 1996 anthology, PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Thinking about God: The Search for the Ultimate

Defining Religion

What is Philosophy of Religion?

The God of Theism

The Religious Ambiguity of Life

Our Task

Religious Experience: What Does it Mean to Encounter the Divine?

Types of Religious Experience

Religious Experience as a Feeling

Religious Experience as a Perceptual Experience

Religious Epxerience as Interpretation in Supernatural Terms

Can Religious Experience Justify Religious Belief?

The Principle of Credulity

Diversity of Religious Experiences

Is There a Common Core to Religious Experience?

Faith and Reason: How Are They Related?

Can Reason Be Trusted?

Strong Rationalism

Fideism

Critical Rationalism

The Divine Attributes: What is God Like?

Prefect and Worthy of Worship

Necessary and Self-Existent

Personal and Free Creator

All-Powerful, All-Knowing, and Perfectly Good

God, Providence, and Human Freedom

God Eternal -- Timeless or Everlasting

Theistic Arguments: Is There Evidence for God's Existence?

Theistic Arguments as Proof

The Ontological Argument

Contemporary Versions of the Ontological Argument

The Cosmological Argument

The Kalam Cosmological Argument

An Athestic Argument for the Big Bang

The Atemporal Cosmological Argument

The Analogical Teleological Argument

The Probabilistic Teleological Argument

The Moral Argument

Cummulative Case Arguments and God

The God of Religion and the God of Philosophy

The Problem of Evil: The Case Against God's Existence

The Logical Problem of Evil

The Evidential Problem of Evil

Defense and Theodicy

Themes in Theodicy

Some Important Global Theodicies

Theodicy and the Assessment of Theism

Knowing God Without Arguments: Does Theism Need a Basis?

Evidentialism

Critique of Evidentialism

Plantinga on Properly Basic Beliefs

Alson on Perceiving God

Concluding Observations

Religious Language: How Can We Speak Meaningfully of God?

Human Language and the Infinite

The Classical Theory of Analogy

Verification and Falsification Issues

The Functions of Religious Discourse

Religious Language as Symbolic

Can Talk of God Be Literal?

Miracles: Does God Intervene in Earthly Affairs

Miracles Defined

Miracles as Historical Events

Miracles as Unexplainable Events

Practical Considerations

Life After Death: Are There Reasons for Hope?

Terminology

Concepts of Life After Death

Personal Identity and the Soul

Immortality of the Soul

Criticism of the Soul-Concept

The Self as Psychophysical Unity

Re-creation and Spatio-Temporal Continuity

A Posteriori Arguments for Life After Death

A Priori Arguments for Life After Death

Prospects

Religion and Science: Compatible or Incompatible?

Do Religion and Science Conflict?

Are Religion and Science Independent?

Is Dialogue Possible?

Attempts at Integration?

Summary

Religious Diversity: How Can We Understand Differences Among Religions?

Religious Diversity

Exclusivism

Critique of Exclusivism

Pluralism

Critique of Pluralism

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