Hugh Rice
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198250289
- eISBN:
- 9780191598302
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198250282.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
Proposes an abstract conception of God, which identifies the will of God with the basic facts about good and bad. I argue that this conception does justice both to the nature of goodness and to the ...
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Proposes an abstract conception of God, which identifies the will of God with the basic facts about good and bad. I argue that this conception does justice both to the nature of goodness and to the sovereignty of God. And, while it is does not represent God as a person, it allows for the attribution to him of properties that form the key elements of many people's conception of God. I argue that a belief in God, so conceived, is a natural extension of ordinary scientific outlook and a belief in objective value. I defend this belief in objective value and claim that it is reasonable to explain the existence of the world in terms of such value. In the latter part of the book, I discuss the problem of evil, and the question of whether there are good reasons for believing in miracles. Finally, I discuss the value of rational belief in God.Less
Proposes an abstract conception of God, which identifies the will of God with the basic facts about good and bad. I argue that this conception does justice both to the nature of goodness and to the sovereignty of God. And, while it is does not represent God as a person, it allows for the attribution to him of properties that form the key elements of many people's conception of God. I argue that a belief in God, so conceived, is a natural extension of ordinary scientific outlook and a belief in objective value. I defend this belief in objective value and claim that it is reasonable to explain the existence of the world in terms of such value. In the latter part of the book, I discuss the problem of evil, and the question of whether there are good reasons for believing in miracles. Finally, I discuss the value of rational belief in God.
Arthur Krystal
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300092165
- eISBN:
- 9780300145601
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300092165.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
This chapter looks at smart people's belief in God. It highlights the abundance of books on the subject of God, from the simple-minded tracts that posit His existence on the basis of our existence to ...
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This chapter looks at smart people's belief in God. It highlights the abundance of books on the subject of God, from the simple-minded tracts that posit His existence on the basis of our existence to the searching arguments put forward by learned theologians. It discusses the positive outlook of the religious publishing industry. This chapter also mentions the fact that intellectually sophisticated people experience God as deeply as do ecstatic snake-handling Pentecostals.Less
This chapter looks at smart people's belief in God. It highlights the abundance of books on the subject of God, from the simple-minded tracts that posit His existence on the basis of our existence to the searching arguments put forward by learned theologians. It discusses the positive outlook of the religious publishing industry. This chapter also mentions the fact that intellectually sophisticated people experience God as deeply as do ecstatic snake-handling Pentecostals.
Detlef Pollack and Gergely Rosta
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- December 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198801665
- eISBN:
- 9780191840302
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198801665.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
In recantation of his earlier approach, Peter L. Berger now claims: ‘The world today, with some exceptions […], is as furiously religious as it ever was, and in some places more so than ever.’ The ...
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In recantation of his earlier approach, Peter L. Berger now claims: ‘The world today, with some exceptions […], is as furiously religious as it ever was, and in some places more so than ever.’ The most important exception that Berger refers to is Western Europe. The introduction to Part II provides an overview of the religious landscape in Western Europe. The data show that the current religious situation in the countries of Western Europe is in fact subject to considerable variation. It would therefore be erroneous to describe Western Europe as secularized. At the same time, the data reveal that there have been clear secularization tendencies over the last few decades. To grasp the diversity of religious tendencies, Part II deals with three cases: West Germany with moderate downward tendencies, Italy with a considerably high degree of stability, and the Netherlands displaying disproportionately strong secularizing tendencies.Less
In recantation of his earlier approach, Peter L. Berger now claims: ‘The world today, with some exceptions […], is as furiously religious as it ever was, and in some places more so than ever.’ The most important exception that Berger refers to is Western Europe. The introduction to Part II provides an overview of the religious landscape in Western Europe. The data show that the current religious situation in the countries of Western Europe is in fact subject to considerable variation. It would therefore be erroneous to describe Western Europe as secularized. At the same time, the data reveal that there have been clear secularization tendencies over the last few decades. To grasp the diversity of religious tendencies, Part II deals with three cases: West Germany with moderate downward tendencies, Italy with a considerably high degree of stability, and the Netherlands displaying disproportionately strong secularizing tendencies.
