Atheism & Philosophy

by Nielsen, Kai

• ISBN13: 9781591022985
• ISBN10: 1591022983
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2005-07-05
• Publisher: Prometheus Books

Summary

The indeterminacy of the modern concept of God has made the distinction between belief and unbelief increasingly problematic. Both the complexity of the religious response and the variety of sceptical philosophies preclude simplistic definitions of what constitutes belief in God. Making the discussion even more difficult are assertions by fundamentalists who dismiss the philosophical perplexities of religious claims as unreal pseudo-problems. 'Atheism and Philosophy' is a detailed study of these and other issues vital to our understanding of atheism, agnosticism, and religious belief. Philosopher Kai Nielsen develops a coherent and integrated approach to the discussion of what it means to be an atheist. In chapters such as: How is Atheism to be Characterised?; Does God Exist?; Agnosticism; Religion and Commitment; and The Primacy of Philosophical Theology; Nielsen defends atheism in a way that answers to contemporary concerns. This paperback edition features a new preface in which Nielsen, showing the increasing influence of the later Ludwig Wittgenstein, Donald Davidson, the classical pragmatists, and such neo-pragmatists as Richard Rorty and Hilary Putnam, defends his account against some persistent and plausible criticisms, particularly against his sceptical arguments concerning the coherence and intelligibility of belief in God.

Author Biography

Kai Nielsen is professor emeritus in the department of philosophy at the University of Calgary and adjunct professor of philosophy at Concordia University in Montreal.

Table of Contents

Preface	7	(2)
Preface to the Paperback Edition	9	(38)
Introduction: How Is Atheism to Be Characterized?	47	(24)
The Making of an Atheist	71	(8)
Does God Exist?: Reflections on Disbelief	79	(14)
Agnosticism	93	(22)
In Defense of Atheism	115	(30)
Religion and Commitment	145	(22)
The Burden of Proof and The Presumpion of Atheism	167	(16)
The Primacy of Philosophical Theology	183	(14)
Religious Ethics Versus Humanistic Ethics	197	(30)
Religion and Rationality	227	(22)
The Embeddedness of Atheism	249