Reinventing Philosophy of Religion: An Opinionated Introduction

115 Pages·2014·0.461 MB·English

by  Graham Oppy

Reinventing Philosophy of Religion
Also by Graham Oppy:
ONTOLOGICAL ARGUMENTS AND BELIEF IN GOD (1996)
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON INFINITY (2006)
ARGUING ABOUT GODS (2006)
THE HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION (2009, co-edited with Nick
Trakakis)
READING PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION (2010, with Michael Scott)
A COMPANION TO PHILOSOPHY IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND (2010,
co-edited with Nick Trakakis)
THE ANTIPODEAN PHILOSOPHER VOLUME 1: Public Lectures on Philosophy in
Australia and New Zealand (2011, co-edited with Nick Trakakis, and with Lynda Burns, Steve
Gardner and Fiona Leigh)
THE ANTIPODEAN PHILOSOPHER VOLUME 2: Interviews with Australian and New
Zealand Philosophers (2012, co-edited with Nick Trakakis, and with Lynda Burns, Steve Gardner,
Fiona Leigh and Michelle Irving)
THE BEST ARGUMENT AGAINST GOD (2013)
THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND (2014, co-edited
with Nick Trakakis)
DESCRIBING GODS: An Investigation of Divine Attributes (2014)
DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0001
Reinventing
Philosophy of Religion:
An Opinionated
Introduction
Graham Oppy
Professor of Philosophy, School of Philosophical, Historical
and International Studies, Monash University, Australia
DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0001
© Graham Oppy 2014
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this
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in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published 2014 by
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doi: 10.1057/9781137434562
Contents
Preface vi
Acknowledgements vii
Introductory Remarks 1
Part I Epistemology 8
1 Disagreement, Opinion and Expertise 9
2 Belief, Faith and Evidence 17
3 Debate, Reason and Argument 27
Part II Metaphysics 36
4 Science, Nature and Transcendence 37
5 Mind, Body and Spirit 47
6 Cause, Freedom and Responsibility 56
Part III Ethics 64
7 Flourishing, Virtue and Happiness 65
8 Trust, Violence and Power 74
9 Meaning, Understanding and Narrative 83
Postscript 91
References and Further Reading 99
Index 103
DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0001 v
Preface
This book is an introduction to what I think are the central
questions in philosophy of religion. I have labelled it a
‘reinvention’ because it has very different emphases – and
very different views of the subject – from other current
introductions to, and overviews of, this field. In my view,
philosophy of religion is in need of a serious overhaul;
this short work offers a sketch of what I think the main
contours of philosophy of religion would look like under
an appropriate reconfiguration.
The work is conceived as a short introduction to a prop-
erly conceived philosophy of religion: it is not intended to
be an authoritative treatise that comprehensively covers
the field. In this sense, it is genuinely intended to be an
introduction: it should be accessible to newcomers to
philosophy of religion, and it should bring such newcom-
ers to an appreciation of topics that are genuinely worthy
of serious consideration and reflection.
Of course, the details of the discussion of the various
topics reflect my own views and biases: in its details, this
is also an opinionated introduction. But, in this respect,
it is no different from any competing works that operate
according to a more standard conception of the field.
vi DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0002
Acknowledgements
This book was written during my employment at Monash
University, while I was on sabbatical. I am grateful to the
university for granting me the time to work on this book.
I am also grateful for the support of my colleagues in the
Faculty of Arts, in particular in the School of Philosophi-
cal, Historical and International Studies, and, even more
particularly, in the Department of Philosophy. My biggest
debt is to my family: Camille, Gilbert, Calvin and Alfie.
This book is dedicated to them, with love and affection.
I am grateful to The Philosophers’ Magazine for permission
to include reworked material from my article ‘Conflicting
Worldviews’, 4th quarter, 2012, 90–94.
vii

Introductory Remarks
Abstract: We begin with characterizations of philosophy,
philosophy of religion, and religion. Having noted the
weaknesses of standard accounts of religion, we settle
on a modification of the account provided in Atran and
Norenzayan (2004). We conclude with some observations
about worldviews, atheism, and competing conceptions of
philosophy.
Keywords: analysis; apologetics; atheism; definition;
worldview
Oppy, Graham. Reinventing Philosophy of Religion:
An Opinionated Introduction. Basingstoke: Palgrave
Macmillan, 2014. DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0004.
DOI: 10.1057/9781137434562.0004 1