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Category Archives: Theorists
Deism is back
Deism is back. This is a very interesting development. There are political ramifications, I suppose. We know that some have pushed the idea that the America’s “founding fathers” were Christians. And by “Christians” they usually mean people who hold the … Continue reading
Posted in Faith versus Reason, James, PHIL 500, PHIL 525, Religious Pluarlism, Theorists
Tagged deism
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The moody deity
Salon.com has an interview with Robert Wright, author of The Evolution of God. This quote reminded me of James’ discussion of medical materialism. Here the point isn’t so much what is going on medically (!) with God, as taking a … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Faith versus Reason, James, PHIL 525, Religion Blog, Religious Belief, Scripture, Theorists
Tagged Robert Wright
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What can I say?
Philosopher Simon Blackburn reviews Karen Armstrong’s book The Case for God. A key question he examines is whether or not we can talk about God or remain silent. Shades of James on mystical experiences, right? There’s even a little Prof. … Continue reading
Posted in Books, James, PHIL 525, Religion Blog, Theorists
Tagged Karen Armstrong, Simon Blackburn
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Sports and Ineffability
We began James’ discussion of Mysticism yesterday. A student emailed me this comment: Do you think Willie Mays is an official Gator now that he an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from SFSU? I thought you would have been … Continue reading
William James and Pragmatism
I encourage you to tune in to Philosophy Talk, a radio show hosted by two really cool Stanford Philosophy professors, John Perry and Ken Taylor. Here’s info about an episode with Prof. John McDermott on Pragmatism.
Gator Totem
As we’ll discuss on Thursday, our totem is the “Gator”. I couldn’t find my “totem” pin to wear this morning. I confess I had a bad feeling about that. I always wear my Gator totem pin on the first day … Continue reading
When leaving and staying is hard
I just finished watching this on the NY Times. The travails of leaving a religious community. I’m still kind of speechless. Bravery writ large. At 21, the age at which she was expected to marry, Ms. Karasik left the Lubavitch … Continue reading
Posted in PHIL 525, Religion Blog, Religious Belief, Theorists
Tagged Judaism, Lubavitch
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Subjectivity and evil
I was thinking that Kierkegaard’s objectivity/subjectivity distinction could help me articulate my views about evil and the “problem of evil”. I gave a first try in class on Thursday. I think one inescapable difficulty is the “public” nature of evil … Continue reading
Posted in Evil, Kierkegaard, PHIL 500, PHIL 525, Religion Blog, Theorists
Tagged Evil, Kierkegaard
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Is Psychiatry A Form Of Religion?
From MindHacks.com: The Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine just published a recent, and, presumably, slightly tongue in cheek article, drawing parallels between psychiatry, clinical psychology and traditional religious practices.
Darwin, Lincoln, and racism
Although not entirely on the theme of religion, this, too, was in the NY Times today. It’s an article on Darwin and the abolitionist movement in Britain and the US. Darwin’s Sacred Cause: How a Hatred of Slavery Shaped Darwin’s … Continue reading