Atheism and Theism

by Smart, J. J. C.; Haldane, J. J.

• ISBN13: 9780631232599
• ISBN10: 0631232591
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-12-13
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

The issue of whether or not there is a God is one of the oldest and most widely disputed philosophical questions. It is a debate that spreads far across the range of philosophical questions about the status of science, the nature of mind, the character of good and evil, the epistemology of experience and testimony, and so on. In this book two philosophers, each committed to unambiguous versions of belief and disbelief, debate the central issues of atheism and theism. Smart opens the debate by arguing that theism is philosophically untenable and seeks to explain metaphysical truth in the light of total science. Haldane continues the discussion by affirming that the existence of the world, and the possibility of our coming to have knowledge of it, depend upon the existence of a creating, sustaining, personal God. This is followed by replies, where each philosopher has the chance to respond and to defend his position. This second edition contains new essays by each philosopher, responding to criticisms and building on their previous work.

Author Biography

J. J. C. Smart is Emeritus Professor at the Australian National University. He is the author of many books, including Philosophy and Scientific Realism, Ethics, Persuasion and Truth and (with Bernard Williams) Utilitarianism: For and Against. J. J. Haldane is Professor of Philosophy in the University of St Andrews and Director of the Centre for Ethics, Philosophy and Public Affairs. He recently held the Royden Davis Chair in Humanities at Georgetown University. He has published widely in metaphysics, philosophy of mind and social philosophy. He is co-editor of several volumes and author of The Intelligent Person's Guide to Religion (2003).

Table of Contents

Preface to the Second Edition

Introduction

Atheism and Theism

Introduction

Theism, Spirituality and Science

The New Teleology and the Old

Pantheism

Fine Tuning and the Anthropic Cosmological Principle

The Argument from the Appearance of Design

God as an Ethical Principle

The Argument from Contingency

The Argument from Religious Experience

Pascal's Wager

Miracles

Higher Criticism of the New Testament

The Problem of Evil

Historical Theism and Metaphysical Theism

Atheism and Theism

Introduction

Theism and Science

Some Varieties of Explanation

'Old' Teleology

'New' Teleology

The Cause of Things

God and the World

God, Good and Evil

Liberty and Providence

Theism - Philosophical and Religious

Reply to Haldane

Methodology

Representation and Intentionality

Consciousness

Chicken and Egg

Eternity and Sempeternity

Theism and the Problem of Evil

Reply to Smart

Methodology

The Existence of God

Metaphysical Matters

Reason, Faith and Revelation

A Religious Conclusion. Afterword

Further Reflections on Atheism for the Second Edition

Further Relections on Theism for the Second Edition

Bibliography

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.