Contents
PREFACE -- v
One. What Is Religion? SOME PROBLEMS OF DEFINITION -- 3
The Search for a Common Essence of Religion -- 6
Tillich’s Definition of Religion -- 7
The Search for Family Resemblances of Religion -- 14
Wittgenstein’s Conception of Family Resemblances -- 14
Family Traits of Religion -- 15
General Conclusions of “the Search for Family Resemblances” -- 37
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 39
Notes -- 40
Two. What Is Religion? SOME PERSUASIVE DEFINITIONS -- 42
Stevenson’s Concept of “Persuasive Definition” -- 42
Religion as Morality: Kant -- 45
Religion as Feeling: Schleiermacher -- 55
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 61
Notes -- 62
Three. The Relation of Philosophy and Theology: SOME MODERATE POSITIONS -- 65
Functions of Reason -- 65
1. The Creation and Interpretation of Formal Systems -- 65
2. The Discovery and Prediction of Causal Connections -- 66
1. The Formation of Concepts -- 67
2. The Clarification of Meaning -- 68
3. The Intuition of Self-Evident Truths -- 68
4. Insight -- 69
The Subordination of Philosophy to Theology: St. Thomas Aquinas -- 72
Does Philosophy Ever Contradict Theology? -- 76
What Criteria Distinguish Genuine from Spurious Revelation? -- 78
The Subordination of Theology to Philosophy: Hegel -- 79
What Is the Method of Speculative Philosophy? -- 83
How Can We Translate the Myths of Theology into the Literal Truths of Speculative Philosophy? -- 84
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 86
Notes -- 87
Four. The Relation of Philosophy and Theology: SOME EXTREME POSITIONS -- 90
The Elimination of Theology in Favor of Philosophy: Rationalism -- 90
Theistic Rationalism: Eighteenth-Century Enlightenment -- 91
Atheistic Rationalism: John Dewey -- 95
The Elimination of Philosophy in Favor of Theology: The Crisis Theologians -- 98
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 102
Notes -- 104
Five. The Relation of Philosophy and Theology: SOME MODERN ALTERNATIVES -- 105
The Elimination of “Subject Matter” from Both Philosophy and Theology: Logical Positivism -- 106
Difficulties with Logical Positivism -- 110
The Equating of Philosophy and Theology as Competing Historical, Rational Belief Systems: Berdyaev, Niebuhr, and Others -- 114
Characteristics Common to Philosophy and Theology -- 115
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 127
Notes -- 130
Six. The World Without God: NATURALISM AND HUMANISM -- 131
Family Traits of Naturalism -- 133
The Naturalistic Metaphysics -- 141
What Is a Metaphysical Assertion? -- 142
Humanism, Religion, and God -- 153
The Humanistic Philosophy of Man -- 153
Natural Piety -- 157
Dewey’s Account of Religion and God -- 158
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 162
Notes -- 163
Seven. God and the World: SUPERNATURALISM -- 166
Family Traits of Supernaturalism -- 167
The Attributes of God -- 169
Transcendence -- 169
Creativity -- 171
Omnipresence174
Eternity -- 176
Omnipotence -- 177
Infinity -- 181
Moral Goodness -- 183
Holiness -- 185
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 186
Notes -- 187
Eight. God and the World: PANENTHEISM -- 188
God and the World: A New Conception -- 189
Permanence and Change -- 196
Creator and Created -- 198
Eternal and Temporal -- 202
Activity and Passivity -- 205
Spiritual and Spatial -- 210
Infinite and Finite -- 211
Perfect and Imperfect -- 213
Holiness -- 215
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 215
Notes -- 217
Nine. The Existence of God: THE ONTOLOGICAL ARGUMENT -- 219
Existence and Proof -- 219
The Ontological Argument: St. Anselm -- 224
Ten Objections to the Ontological Argument -- 228
Objection 1 -- 228
Objection 2 -- 230
Objection 3 -- 232
Objection 4 -- 234
Objection 5 -- 236
Objection 6 -- 238
Objection 7 -- 240
Objection 8 -- 243
Objection 9 -- 244
Objection 10 -- 243
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 251
Notes -- 251
Ten. The Existence of God: THE COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENT -- 254
The Thomistic Versions of the Cosmological Argument -- 254
The First and Second Ways -- 258
The Third Way -- 262
Composition and the Cosmological Argument -- 264
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 270
Notes -- 271
Eleven. The Existence of God: THE TELEOLOGICAL ARGUMENT -- 272
Formulations by St. Thomas Aquinas and Paley -- 273
Hume’s Criticisms of the Teleological Argument -- 277
Psychologistic Criticisms of the Teleological Argument: Feuerbach and Freud -- 285
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 287
Notes -- 287
Twelve Religious Language and Experience: MYSTICISM -- 289
Language and Experience -- 290
View 1: A Building-Block Theory -- 291
View 2: A Matrix Theory -- 294
Mystical Language and Mystical Experience -- 302
The Mystical Experience as an Experience -- 304
The Seif That Has the Mystical Experience -- 306
The Conditions and Consequences of Mystical Experience 308 The Object and Vocabulary of Mystical Experience -- 311
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 323
Notes -- 324
Thirteen. Religious Language and Experience: PERSONAL ENCOUNTER -- 326
Pluralistic and Monistic Mysticism -- 327
Knowing Persons or Minds: I and Thou -- 328
Knowledge by Immediate Acquaintance -- 333
Knowledge by Analogical Inference -- 334
Knowledge by Criteria -- 335
Knowledge by Postulate and Intuitive Sense of Presence -- 336
Is the Holy a “Thou”? -- 339
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 342
Notes -- 343
Fourteen. Religious Language and Experience: VERIFICATION AFTER DEATH -- 344
John Hick on the Meaningfulness of Experience After Death -- 345
H. H. Price on Survival After Death -- 351
John Hick on Eschatological Confirmation of Christian Theism -- 358
Suggestions for Further Reading -- 365
Notes -- 366
Fifteen. The Future of Reason and Religion -- 368
The Future of Religion for Men of Reason -- 370
Is Reason Dead? -- 377
INDEX -- 381