TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION (Phil 6805)

This course will be an introduction to some of the major questions currently (and for many centuries past) discussed by classical and contemporary western philosophers interested in religious questions.

We shall examine these questions while looking at what some significant thinkers have said about them. And we shall try to evaluate what these thinkers have said.

Questions to be considered will include: (1) What have philosophers meant by the word ‘God’ and to what extent do different understandings of the meaning of the word ‘God’ lead to different conclusions on some fundamental topics in philosophy of religion? (2) What is the role of philosophy/rational inquiry when it comes to religious belief? (2) Are there any good reasons to believe that God exists? (4) What is God? (5) Does the reality of evil undermine belief in God’s existence?

If time allows, we shall turn to some additional questions such as ‘Is there reason to believe that we shall live after we die?’, ‘Is it reasonable to believe in the occurrence of miracles?’, and ‘To what extent does morality have religious significance?’.

In this class, by ‘religious belief’ I am understanding (roughly) the major tenets shared by Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. So this course is not concerned with religious beliefs to be found in, for example, Hinduism or Buddhism.

I should note that in this course I am not going to be recommending that students adopt or refrain from adopting any particular religious beliefs. My concern will be to help them to think for themselves about some major philosophical texts focussing on certain religious beliefs, especially the belief that God exists.

Students registered for this class should be present for all classes. And students will be required to submit an end of term paper.

This class will allow students to satisfy under the heading ‘analytic’.

Brian Davies