Nick Trakakis - Böcker

William Rowe is one of the leading thinkers in contemporary philosophy of religion. Although he is best known for his contributions to the problem of evil, he has produced innovative and influential work across a wide array of subjects at the interface between philosophy and religion. He has, for example, written extensively on the existentialist theologian, Paul Tillich, on the challenging problem of divine freedom, and on the traditional arguments in support of the existence of God. His work in these areas is distinguished by its clarity, rigour, originality, and sensitivity towards the claims of his theistic opponents. Indeed, Rowe's work has played a pivotal role in the remarkable revival of analytic philosophy of religion since the 1970s. The present collection brings together for the first time Rowe's most significant contributions to the philosophy of religion. This diverse but representative selection of Rowe's writings will provide students, professional scholars as well as general readers with stimulating and accessible discussions on such topics as the philosophical theology of Paul Tillich, the problem of evil, divine freedom, arguments for the existence of God, religious experience, life after death, and religious pluralism.

William Rowe is one of the leading thinkers in contemporary philosophy of religion. Although he is best known for his contributions to the problem of evil, he has produced innovative and influential work across a wide array of subjects at the interface between philosophy and religion. He has, for example, written extensively on the existentialist theologian, Paul Tillich, on the challenging problem of divine freedom, and on the traditional arguments in support of the existence of God. His work in these areas is distinguished by its clarity, rigour, originality, and sensitivity towards the claims of his theistic opponents. Indeed, Rowe's work has played a pivotal role in the remarkable revival of analytic philosophy of religion since the 1970s. The present collection brings together for the first time Rowe's most significant contributions to the philosophy of religion. This diverse but representative selection of Rowe's writings will provide students, professional scholars as well as general readers with stimulating and accessible discussions on such topics as the philosophical theology of Paul Tillich, the problem of evil, divine freedom, arguments for the existence of God, religious experience, life after death, and religious pluralism.

For quite some time I have corresponded with Nick Trakakis, a very t- ented young philosopher at Monash University in Australia. He was c- pleting a manuscript on the problem of evil. Although we’ve never met, I’ve come to greatly admire his philosophical ability, even, or I hope particularly, when he notes weaknesses, if not outright mistakes, in my own writings on this topic. His knowledge of the relevant literature is nothing short of extraordinary. I am deeply impressed by the clarity and quality of his wr- ing, his measured judgments, as well as his philosophical ability. In this volume Trakakis begins with my 1979 paper, “The Problem of Evil and Some Varieties of Atheism,” sets forth the evidential argument from evil, and considers the large body of literature developed in response to that argument. He examines and evaluates with great care the objections raised by Wykstra, Howard-Snyder, Durston,Alston, and others, along with my responses to those forceful objections. Noting the importance of the assumption that if there are God-justifying goods for horrendous human and animal suffering then it is likely that humans would have some awareness of what those justifying goods might be, Trakakis carefully evaluates the lit- ature bearing on this crucial issue, including, of course, the significance of what is commonly known as the problem of divine hiddenness, and the line of response proposed by the sceptical theists – philosophers who are theists but sceptical of arguments against theism.

The End of Philosophy of Religion explores the hitherto unchartered waters of the 'meta-philosophy of religion', that is, the methods and assumptions underlying the divergent ways of writing and studying the philosophy of religion that have emerged over the last century. It is also a first-class study of the weaknesses of the analytic approach in philosophy, particularly when it is applied to religious and aesthetic experience. Nick Trakakis' main line of argument is twofold. Firstly, the Anglo-American analytic tradition of philosophy, by virtue of its attachment to scientific norms of rationality and truth, inevitably struggles to come to terms with the mysterious and transcendent reality that is disclosed in religious practice. Secondly, and more positively, alternatives to analytic philosophy of religion are available, not only within the various schools of so-called Continental philosophy, but also in explicitly narrative and literary approaches.

This is an expert examination of the 'meta-philosophy of religion', exposing the limitations of the analytic method and the need to embrace a new continental approach. "The End of Philosophy of Religion" explores the hitherto un-chartered waters of the 'meta-philosophy of religion', that is, the methods and assumptions underlying the divergent ways of writing and studying the philosophy of religion that have emerged over the last century. It is also a first-class study of the weaknesses of the analytic approach in philosophy, particularly when it is applied to religious and aesthetic experience.Nick Trakakis' main line of argument is twofold. Firstly, the Anglo-American analytic tradition of philosophy, by virtue of its attachment to scientific norms of rationality and truth, inevitably struggles to come to terms with the mysterious and transcendent reality that is disclosed in religious practice. Secondly, and more positively, alternatives to analytic philosophy of religion are available, not only within the various schools of so-called Continental philosophy, but also in explicitly narrative and literary approaches.He argues that literature (using examples from Dostoyevsky and Kazantzakis) can often promise greater philosophical insight than what is usually offered in the purely academic and highly professionalized settings of contemporary philosophy.Trakakis expertly shows that continental philosophers do not surrender 'clarity' to analytic philosophy; emphasising instead that one has to distinguish clarity from rigor, (being faithful to the phenomena). When things are ambiguous it distorts them to treat them as if they were clear, but it is rigorous to respect their ambiguity and to attempt to express them in words, like a master poet or novelist. "The End of Philosophy of Religion" proposes that the pervasive analytic approach to the philosophic study of religion is fraught with limitations, and that a new continental approach must be embraced if advances are to be made.