Logic Behind Religion

The entire purpose of this book was to find a new way of looking at the world. As I mentioned in the beginning, no one can claim that he has answers to all the questions. The more answers we find, the more questions are raised. But I think this book offers a new way to look at and understand the problem. It at least brings me a little comfort that not all we are doing is worthless, and that one day, Gd willing, we will find answers to all the questions. If Gd helps us, we can go further, and if He wants, we will find more and more answers. In the beginning of this book, I suggested that the whole reason we believe in Gd is to find the purpose of this world. If we do not believe in Gd, it automatically means that the purpose of the world is not known to us, and even if it is known, it does not make that much of a difference because we do not have any power to change it. Gd is the source of all goodness, and if we get close to Gd, we will improve ourselves. Finally, if there is no Gd, there will be no reward or punishment, and a world without reward and punishment will not last for long. Then we discussed the problem of religion. Again, we do not make religions; we just follow them. If we believe in religion, this is not because we need religions. We follow religions because they exist in the world. As we discussed, it makes sense because if Gd exists, there should be a relationship between Him and humanity. That kind of relationship is religion. Religion is not just something about the past or present that we can make for ourselves; religion mostly deals with the future and that part of the human aspect that is not completely clear to us. We cannot see or touch that aspect of Gd, but we believe in it. That is the reason that humans cannot make religion for themselves. We can make any kind of ideology, but that ideology cannot be called a religion. Religion is simply something that has come from Gd and makes a connection between Gd and humanity.

The cognitive science of religion is a new discipline that looks at the roots of religious belief in the cognitive architecture of the human mind. The Roots of Religion deals with the philosophical and theological implications of the cognitive science of religion which grounds religious belief in human cognitive structures: religious belief is ’natural’, in a way that even scientific thought is not. Does this new discipline support religious belief, undermine it, or is it, despite many claims, perhaps eventually neutral? This subject is of immense importance, particularly given the rise of the ’new atheism’. Philosophers and theologians from North America, UK and Australia, explore the alleged conflict between truth claims and examine the roots of religion in human nature. Is it less ’natural’ to be an atheist than to believe in God, or gods? On the other hand, if we can explain theism psychologically, have we explained it away. Can it still claim any truth? This book debates these and related issues.

When this book was originally published in 1957 there had been lively debates on the air and in the press about the bearing of modern philosophy upon Christianity, but there had been relatively little sustained discussion of the subject. This book of essays was the product of a small group of Oxford philosophers and theologians, who had met and talked informally for some years before writing it. It is an attempt to discuss with care and candour some of the problems raised for Christian belief by contemporary analytical philosophy. In asking the questions raised, this book makes articulate the perplexities of many intelligent people, both believers and unbelievers. The contributors concentrate on the way such concepts as God, Revelation, the Soul, Grace are actually used rather than asserting or denying some very general theory of meaning.

The philosopher and author of Western Creed, Western Identity offers a probing history of important writings on the logic of religion. The Logic of Religion offers a sweeping history of philosophical perspectives on religion from ancient Greek and Roman writings to medieval Christian thought to modern Western philosophy and beyond. Even among those who find no evidence for the existence of God, such as Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud, we encounter discussions of the nature of religion and its function in society. This study begins in antiquity with Socrates, Plato, Cicero, and Seneca. It then moves through Augustine to the Middle Ages as represented by Averroes and Aquinas. By so proceeding, philosopher Jude P. Dougherty gives the reader insight into the logic of religion as conceived before and after the advent of Christianity. Subsequent investigation leads to the works of David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and G. W. F. Hegel, each of whom spoke to the implications of religion in the practical order, and of Sigmund Freud’s negative assessment of religion in The Future of an Illusion. Although the focus of this study is primarily Western religion, attention is also paid to certain Eastern modes of thought such as Buddhism and Confucianism. Throughout, readers will find many interesting philosophical observations of the nature of belief, worship, ritual, sacrifice, doctrine, theology, and community.

Reasoning about God is an introduction to philosophy of religion, meeting college students where they are with their own doubts and questions. Each chapter begins with a passage from a fictional student, who raises intellectual problems against God, which is followed by the author’s informed and easy-to-understand analysis. This debate structure allows student readers to clearly see the clash of ideas, gets them involved in the issues, and encourages their critical thinking (since students are pushed to find flaws in the ideas). It emulates the structure the author followed successfully in his Ethics: A Contemporary Introduction, which is now in its third edition and has been translated five times into other languages. This structure works well in philosophy of religion, even better than in does in ethics. Key Features of Reasoning about God: Written clearly and concisely, making difficult issues easy to understand. Makes a strong case for belief in God, based on various factors – including arguments about fine-tuning, Kalam, and near-death experiences – as well as approaches that are more instinctual or emotional. A major theme of the book is "There are many paths to God." Includes material on both traditional topics of philosophy of religion (like the problem of evil) and other related topics of interest (like whether religion is harmful, life after death, the variety of world religions, and the meaning of life). Explores how science connects to God’s existence, arguing that recent science is friendlier toward religion than older science. Written by a Christian author, whose defense of belief in God works with other theistic traditions as well (like Islam and Judaism).

Does science pose a challenge to religion and religious belief? This question has been a matter of long-standing debate - and it continues to concern not only scholars in philosophy, theology, and the sciences, but also those involved in public educational policy. This volume provides background to the current 'science and religion' debate, yet focuses as well on themes where recent discussion of the relation between science and religion has been particularly concentrated. The first theme deals with the history of the interrelation of science and religion. The second and third themes deal with the implications of recent work in cosmology, biology and so-called intelligent design for religion and religious belief. The fourth theme is concerned with 'conceptual issues' underlying, or implied, in the current debates, such as: Are scientific naturalism and religion compatible? Are science and religion bodies of knowledge or practices or both? Do religion and science offer conflicting truth claims? By illuminating contemporary discussion in the science-religion debate and by outlining the options available in describing the relation between the two, this volume will be of interest to scholars and to members of the educated public alike.