ACONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA of the PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION other books in the same series A Concise Encyclopedia of Judaism, Dan Cohn-Serbok, ISBN 1–85168–176–0 A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Klaus K. Klostermaier, ISBN 1–85168–175–2 A Concise Encyclopedia of Christianity, Geoffrey Parrinder, ISBN 1–85168–174–4 A Concise Encyclopedia of Buddhism, John Powers, ISBN 1–85168–233–3 A Concise Encyclopedia of the Baha´’ı´ Faith, Peter Smith, ISBN 1–85168–184–1 A Concise Encyclopedia of Islam, Gordon D. Newby, ISBN 1–85168–295–3 related titles published by oneworld Ethics in the World Religions, Edited by Joseph Runzo and Nancy M. Martin, ISBN 1–85168–247–3 The Fifth Dimension, John Hick, ISBN 1–85168–191–4 Global Philosophy of Religion: A Short Introduction, Joseph Runzo, ISBN 1–85168–235–X God: A Guide for the Perplexed, Keith Ward, ISBN 1–85168–284–8 God, Faith and the New Millennium, Keith Ward, ISBN 1–85168–155–8 Love, Sex and Gender in the World Religions, Edited by Joseph Runzo and Nancy M. Martin, ISBN 1–85168–223–6 The Meaning of Life in the World Religions, Edited by Joseph Runzo and Nancy M. Martin, ISBN 1–85168–200–7 The Phenomenon of Religion, Moojan Momen, ISBN 1–85168–161–2 ACONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA of the PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION ANTHONY C. THISELTON A CONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION Oneworld Publications (Sales and Editorial) 185 Banbury Road Oxford OX2 7AR England www.oneworld-publications.com # Anthony C. Thiselton 2002 All rights reserved. Copyright under Berne Convention A CIP record for this title is available from the British Library ISBN 1–85168–301–1 Cover design by Design Deluxe Typeset by LaserScript, Mitcham, UK Printed and bound in the United Kingdom by Bell & Bain Ltd, Glasgow NL08 Contents Preface and acknowledgements vi A Concise Encyclopedia of the Philosophy of Religion 1 Chronology 329 Index of names 337 Preface and acknowledgements Aims, scope and target readership he following selection of subject entries has been shaped in the light of Tmany years of feedback from my own students. I have asked them what themes, thinkers and problems in philosophy of religion they have found most stimulating or rewarding, and also where they have needed most help, clarification and explanation. Their answers have been both formal and anonymous, and informal and personal. In addition to the criterion of ‘professional competency’ in philosophy of religion, I have explored issues where pressing problems arise from arguments for or against belief in God, and from differences between diverse religious traditions. For many, this subject combines academic rigour with personal and practical issues about religious belief. I have aimed to set out the arguments of major religious traditions and the counter- arguments of their critics with fairness and integrity, even if I myself find nothing irrational about belief in God, to express this as a bare minimum. It is my hope, therefore, that this volume will not only fill a needed gap as a student textbook, but that it will also provide a ready work of reference and explanation for those readers who wish to explore issues of belief for their own sake. To this extent, I admit to writing for the general enquirer as well as for students who seek a clear, useful textbook for essays and examinations. At what level is this aimed? Most of my own classes in philosophy of religion have been for second-year degree students. However, they have included also first years and final years. Most have been honours students in theology and/or in philosophy, but many have majored in other subjects. I have been sufficiently impressed by the standards of incoming students who have taken philosophy of religion at ‘A’ level to have no vii Preface and acknowledgments doubt that the following pages will also provide them with a readable textbook. I point out below that the regular use of cross-references will explain virtually every unfamiliar technical term, and will introduce unfamiliar thinkers. Style, structure and more on level I have made a particular point of keeping to short paragraphs, and as far as possible to short sentences. Normally all entries except those of less than three hundred words have been divided by the use of sub-headings, so that no reader need feel intimidated by long, unbroken, pages of argument. The sub- headings also provide easy maps of where arguments lead. This is the first of my eight books (written to date) without substantial footnotes. This is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity. However, those reference books that fail to identify significant sources for major quotations or arguments lack, to my mind, a resource that may prove to be helpful. Where precise sources are appropriate, authors, titles, publishers and page numbers are cited in brackets in the text. This both relieves the reader of having to take everything on trust, and allows the student to follow up important issues independently. The system of cross-references and of dates of thinkers or other sources is a key feature. These cross-references assist those readers who need instant explanations of terms, or quick information about the further consequences of arguments under consideration. Dates provide appropriate historical contexts for the accurate understanding of thought in the light of the times. Theologians and philosophers often place different weight respectively upon these: they are more frequently emphasized in theology, but their inclusion prejudices no argument. A further chronological chart is added, without any pre-judgements about the importance of what names may feature in it. Acknowledgements and thanks Mrs Carol Dakin has typed this manuscript onto disks throughout. I am deeply grateful to her for this magnificent and excellent work. I regularly gave her unclear handwritten material, which she returned promptly, efficiently and with constant good judgement where guesses must have been inevitable. My former secretaries observed that over the years two qualifications for my Professorship and Headship of Department at Nottingham were required for this post: first, to have taught previously in the University of Durham; and second, to have illegible writing. I was duly appointed. A Concise Encyclopedia of the Philosophy of Religion viii My weakest points of expertise, I concede, relate to the articles on Islamic philosophy, on Hindu philosophy, and on Buddhist philosophy. I am deeply indebted to Dr Hugh Goddard, Reader in Islamic Theology in the University of Nottingham, for advice on the entry on Islamic Philosophy, and related Islamic thinkers. Likewise, I am very grateful to Dr Philip Goodchild, Senior Lecturer in this Department, for advice and correction on Buddhist philosophy. Dr Brian Carr, Reader in the Department of Philosophy at Nottingham, has given me valuable help, for which I thank him warmly, on Hindu philosophy and Hindu thinkers. He is also co-editor of the Encyclopaedia of Asian Philosophy. During the final month before the submission of the manuscript, I was Scholar in Residence for 2002 in Union University, Jackson, Tennessee. I should like to thank Union University, Dr Randall Bush, and his colleagues for giving me every possible facility to complete the manuscript on time, including my sending quantities of faxed handwriting to Mrs Dakin, and edited e-mails to my wife at home. My time at Union University was a very happy one. Home life often suffers during these undertakings, and my wife Rosemary continued to put up with my working every day into the late evening even though my previous book of some 1,500 pages had made the same relentless demands for several years without any interval between these books. She went the second mile of reading typescripts for errors, checking through disks, typing revisions, and undertaking related tasks. I am so grateful for this forbearance and for her work. As before, Mrs Sheila Rees also undertook some proof-reading at a period of high pressure, and I thank her most warmly. Finally, I value immensely the encouragement received from colleagues, from one or two close friends, and from some former students, to persevere with yet another book which they generously encouraged me to think was worthwhile, in spite of other wide-ranging professional and church commitments. Their encouragement has been a special and needed gift. Ms Victoria Warner of Oneworld Publications has also been among these encouragers, and I thank her for her patient advice and support. Anthony C. Thiselton, Department of Theology, University of Nottingham Good Friday, 2002 A a fortiori Clearly what is true merely by defini- The term denotes an argument that applies tion, or what is entailed entirely by logical ‘all the more’, or ‘with greater force’. In reasoning, belongs to the realm of a priori logic, if a given consequence follows argument; while inferences drawn from from a case that is actually weaker, a empirical observations of the everyday fortiori that consequence will follow ‘from world (including the natural sciences) a stronger’ (Latin, a fortiori) argument. belong to the realm of a posteriori argu- analytic statements; This logical notion has been used since ment. (See also God, arguments for the existence of; ancient times. Traditionally it features in Kant empiricism Rabbi Hillel’s seven ‘rules of interpreta- ; .) tion’ concerning what may be inferred from a biblical text. apriori The term (Latin) denotes that which is a posteriori prior to, or independent of, human experi- Beliefs or truths that are established by a ence or observation. It therefore stands in posteriori arguments or knowledge are contrast to what is argued a posteriori, derived from evidence, experience, or i.e. from what is confirmed or discon- observation of the world. The term stands firmed from subsequent experience or in contrast to a priori, which denotes that observation.