1st Edition

Introducing Philosophy of Religion

By Chad Meister Copyright 2009
256 Pages
by Routledge

256 Pages
by Routledge

256 Pages
by Routledge

Does God exist? What about evil and suffering? How does faith relate to science? Is there life after death? These questions fascinate everyone and lie at the heart of philosophy of religion. Chad Meister offers an up-to-date introduction to the field, focussing not only on traditional debates but also on contemporary concepts such as the intelligent creator. Key topics, such as divine reality and... Read more

Part One: Religion and the Philosophy of Religion  1. Religion and the World Religions  2. Philosophy and the Philosophy of Religion  3. Philosophy of Religion Timeline  4. Religious Beliefs and Practices  Summary  Part Two: Religious Diversity and Pluralism  5. The Diversity of Religions  6. Religious Inclusivism and Exclusivism  7. Religious Pluralism  8. Religious Relativism  9. Evaluating Religious Systems  10. Religious Tolerance  Summary  Part Three: Conceptions of Ultimate Reality  11. Ultimate Reality: The Absolute and the Void  12. Ultimate Reality: A Personal God  Summary  Part Four: Arguments for God's Existence: Cosmological  13. The Argument from Contingency  14. The Sufficient Reason Argument  15. The Kalam Argument  16. A Cosmological Argument for Atheism  Summary  Part Five: Arguments for God's Existence: Teleological  17. Paley's Design Argument  18. A Fine-Tuning Argument  19. An Intelligent Design Argument  Summary  Part Six: Arguments for God's Existence: Ontological  20. Anselm's Ontological Argument  21. Plantinga's Modal Ontological Argument  Summary  Part Seven: Problems of Evil  22. Sketching the Terrain  23. Theoretical Problems of Evil  24. The Existential Problem of Evil  25. Three Theodicies  Summary  Part Eight: Science, Faith and Reason  26. Religion and Science  27. Religious Belief and Justification  Summary  Part Nine: Religious Experience  28. The Nature and Diversity of Religious Experience  29. Religious Experience and Justification  30. Scientific Explanations of Religious Experience  Summary  Part Ten: The Self, Death and the Afterlife  31. Conceptions of the Self  32. Reincarnation and Karma  33. Arguments for Immortality  34. Arguments against Immortality 

Biography

Chad Meister is Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Philosophy Program at Bethel College, Indiana. He has substantial experience of teaching in USA philosophy departments, and has a good knowledge of student needs.

'…I’ve never seen anything as good as this: pitch perfect, well-structured, coherent, cross-cultural.' - Chris Fleming, University of Western Sydney, Australia

'A clear, systematic, engaging introduction to philosophy of religion. There is no better single volume that covers the contemporary and classical themes and arguments with greater skill, fairness, comprehensiveness and efficiency. This is a brilliant book for newcomers as well as advanced scholars who want to take a fresh look at philosophy of religion today.' – Charles Taliaferro, St. Olaf College, USA