Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought

Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought

Author: Donald Wiebe

Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 9780773510159

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Donald Wiebe critically examines the pervasive assumption that theology is a form of religious thought that is both compatible with and supportive of religious faith. The irony, he argues, is that theology is in fact detrimental to religion and the religious way of life.


Book Synopsis Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought by : Donald Wiebe

Download or read book Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought written by Donald Wiebe and published by McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. This book was released on 1991 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Donald Wiebe critically examines the pervasive assumption that theology is a form of religious thought that is both compatible with and supportive of religious faith. The irony, he argues, is that theology is in fact detrimental to religion and the religious way of life.


The Learned Practice of Religion in the Modern University

The Learned Practice of Religion in the Modern University

Author: Donald Wiebe

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2019-11-14

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1350103446

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In these essays, Donald Wiebe unveils a significant problem in the academic study of religion in colleges and universities in North America and Europe - that studies almost always exhibit a religious bias. To explore this issue, Wiebe looks at the religious and moral agendas behind the study of religion, showing that the boundaries between the objective study of religion and religious education as a tool for bettering society have become blurred. As a result, he argues, religious studies departments have fostered an environment where religion has become a learned or scholarly practice, rather than the object of academic scrutiny. This book provides a critical history of the failure of 20th- and 21st-century scholars to follow through on the 19th-century ideal of an objective scientific study of religious thought and behaviour. Although emancipated from direct ecclesiastical control and, to some extent, from sectarian theologizing, Wiebe argues that research and scholarship in the academic department of religious studies has failed to break free from religious constraints. He shows that an objective scientific study of religious thought and practice is not only possible, but the only appropriate approach to the study of religious phenomena.


Book Synopsis The Learned Practice of Religion in the Modern University by : Donald Wiebe

Download or read book The Learned Practice of Religion in the Modern University written by Donald Wiebe and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-11-14 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In these essays, Donald Wiebe unveils a significant problem in the academic study of religion in colleges and universities in North America and Europe - that studies almost always exhibit a religious bias. To explore this issue, Wiebe looks at the religious and moral agendas behind the study of religion, showing that the boundaries between the objective study of religion and religious education as a tool for bettering society have become blurred. As a result, he argues, religious studies departments have fostered an environment where religion has become a learned or scholarly practice, rather than the object of academic scrutiny. This book provides a critical history of the failure of 20th- and 21st-century scholars to follow through on the 19th-century ideal of an objective scientific study of religious thought and behaviour. Although emancipated from direct ecclesiastical control and, to some extent, from sectarian theologizing, Wiebe argues that research and scholarship in the academic department of religious studies has failed to break free from religious constraints. He shows that an objective scientific study of religious thought and practice is not only possible, but the only appropriate approach to the study of religious phenomena.


Galileo and the Conflict between Religion and Science

Galileo and the Conflict between Religion and Science

Author: Gregory Dawes

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-01-22

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 1317268881

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For more than 30 years, historians have rejected what they call the ‘warfare thesis’ – the idea that there is an inevitable conflict between religion and science – insisting that scientists and believers can live in harmony. This book disagrees. Taking as its starting point the most famous of all such conflicts, the Galileo affair, it argues that religious and scientific communities exhibit very different attitudes to knowledge. Scripturally based religions not only claim a source of knowledge distinct from human reason. They are also bound by tradition, insist upon the certainty of their beliefs, and are resistant to radical criticism in ways in which the sciences are not. If traditionally minded believers perceive a clash between what their faith tells them and the findings of modern science, they may well do what the Church authorities did in Galileo’s time. They may attempt to close down the science, insisting that the authority of God’s word trumps that of any ‘merely human’ knowledge. Those of us who value science must take care to ensure this does not happen.


Book Synopsis Galileo and the Conflict between Religion and Science by : Gregory Dawes

Download or read book Galileo and the Conflict between Religion and Science written by Gregory Dawes and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-01-22 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For more than 30 years, historians have rejected what they call the ‘warfare thesis’ – the idea that there is an inevitable conflict between religion and science – insisting that scientists and believers can live in harmony. This book disagrees. Taking as its starting point the most famous of all such conflicts, the Galileo affair, it argues that religious and scientific communities exhibit very different attitudes to knowledge. Scripturally based religions not only claim a source of knowledge distinct from human reason. They are also bound by tradition, insist upon the certainty of their beliefs, and are resistant to radical criticism in ways in which the sciences are not. If traditionally minded believers perceive a clash between what their faith tells them and the findings of modern science, they may well do what the Church authorities did in Galileo’s time. They may attempt to close down the science, insisting that the authority of God’s word trumps that of any ‘merely human’ knowledge. Those of us who value science must take care to ensure this does not happen.


Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge

Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge

Author: Andrew Ralls Woodward

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2018-08-14

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 1532660189

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Most comparisons of science and religion are really comparisons of science and Christianity, or science and Islam, and so forth. In Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge, the author aims to get outside typical polarized debates between traditional, a priori theism and radical, scientistic naturalism. Instead, a new science and religion compatibility system—between a scientific study of religion and a religious epistemology—is our new, elusive problem. Moreover, we shall look at a comparison and contrast of modern science with the simple deference of the human mind to the actions of culturally postulated superhuman agents. This book pays critical attention to the contributions of scholars in the philosophy of religion, the philosophy of science, and the scientific study of religion. Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge is useful for readers looking to expand their learning in the philosophies of science and religion as these subjects are taught and analyzed in modern research universities.


Book Synopsis Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge by : Andrew Ralls Woodward

Download or read book Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge written by Andrew Ralls Woodward and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2018-08-14 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most comparisons of science and religion are really comparisons of science and Christianity, or science and Islam, and so forth. In Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge, the author aims to get outside typical polarized debates between traditional, a priori theism and radical, scientistic naturalism. Instead, a new science and religion compatibility system—between a scientific study of religion and a religious epistemology—is our new, elusive problem. Moreover, we shall look at a comparison and contrast of modern science with the simple deference of the human mind to the actions of culturally postulated superhuman agents. This book pays critical attention to the contributions of scholars in the philosophy of religion, the philosophy of science, and the scientific study of religion. Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge is useful for readers looking to expand their learning in the philosophies of science and religion as these subjects are taught and analyzed in modern research universities.


Systematic Theology as a Rationally Justified Public Discourse about God

Systematic Theology as a Rationally Justified Public Discourse about God

Author: Michael Agerbo Mørch

Publisher: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht

Published: 2023-01-23

Total Pages: 416

ISBN-13: 3647568716

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For centuries it has been discussed whether systematic theology is a scientific discipline. But it is not obvious what is meant by either "systematic theology" or "scientific discipline". Michael Agerbo Mørch presents an understanding of systematic theology as a tripartite discipline and science as a rationally justified public discourse about a given topic. Systematic theology is shown to meet the most generally accepted criteria for scientific work, since its theories can be tested and even falsified in an intersubjective setting. This can be done by the most proper tool we have for assessing and comparing scientific theories, which is coherence theory. Therefore, even though systematic theology is a distinct and normative discipline, it is not compromising for its theories because it can present its theses in a transparent way that can be checked and criticized by peers and compared to relevant alternatives. As such, the book shows that systematic theology is a scientifically strong discourse that meets accepted criteria to the same degree as other disciplines.


Book Synopsis Systematic Theology as a Rationally Justified Public Discourse about God by : Michael Agerbo Mørch

Download or read book Systematic Theology as a Rationally Justified Public Discourse about God written by Michael Agerbo Mørch and published by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. This book was released on 2023-01-23 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For centuries it has been discussed whether systematic theology is a scientific discipline. But it is not obvious what is meant by either "systematic theology" or "scientific discipline". Michael Agerbo Mørch presents an understanding of systematic theology as a tripartite discipline and science as a rationally justified public discourse about a given topic. Systematic theology is shown to meet the most generally accepted criteria for scientific work, since its theories can be tested and even falsified in an intersubjective setting. This can be done by the most proper tool we have for assessing and comparing scientific theories, which is coherence theory. Therefore, even though systematic theology is a distinct and normative discipline, it is not compromising for its theories because it can present its theses in a transparent way that can be checked and criticized by peers and compared to relevant alternatives. As such, the book shows that systematic theology is a scientifically strong discourse that meets accepted criteria to the same degree as other disciplines.


Conversations and Controversies in the Scientific Study of Religion

Conversations and Controversies in the Scientific Study of Religion

Author:

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2016-02-15

Total Pages: 361

ISBN-13: 9004310452

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This collection of essays provides scholars in the study of religion occasion to discuss the theoretical and methodological issues raised, to debate and expand upon them, or, in the spirit of scientific inquiry, even to refute the arguments made.


Book Synopsis Conversations and Controversies in the Scientific Study of Religion by :

Download or read book Conversations and Controversies in the Scientific Study of Religion written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2016-02-15 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays provides scholars in the study of religion occasion to discuss the theoretical and methodological issues raised, to debate and expand upon them, or, in the spirit of scientific inquiry, even to refute the arguments made.


Encountering Religion

Encountering Religion

Author: Tyler T. Roberts

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 318

ISBN-13: 023114752X

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Tyler Roberts encourages scholars to abandon rigid conceptual oppositions between "secular" and "religious" to better understand how human beings actively and thoughtfully engage with their worlds and make meaning. The artificial distinction between a self-conscious and critical "academic study of religion" and an ideological and authoritarian "religion," he argues, only obscures the phenomenon. Instead, Roberts calls on intellectuals to approach the field as a site of "encounter" and "response," illuminating the agency, creativity, and critical awareness of religious actors. To respond to religion is to ask what religious behaviors and representations mean to us in our individual worlds, and scholars must confront questions of possibility and becoming that arise from testing their beliefs, imperatives, and practices. Roberts refers to the work of Hent de Vries, Eric Santner, and Stanley Cavell, each of whom exemplifies encounter and response in their writings as they traverse philosophy and religion to expose secular thinking to religious thought and practice. This approach highlights the resources religious discourse can offer to a fundamental reorientation of critical thought. In humanistic criticism after secularism, the lines separating the creative, the pious, and the critical themselves become the subject of question and experimentation.


Book Synopsis Encountering Religion by : Tyler T. Roberts

Download or read book Encountering Religion written by Tyler T. Roberts and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tyler Roberts encourages scholars to abandon rigid conceptual oppositions between "secular" and "religious" to better understand how human beings actively and thoughtfully engage with their worlds and make meaning. The artificial distinction between a self-conscious and critical "academic study of religion" and an ideological and authoritarian "religion," he argues, only obscures the phenomenon. Instead, Roberts calls on intellectuals to approach the field as a site of "encounter" and "response," illuminating the agency, creativity, and critical awareness of religious actors. To respond to religion is to ask what religious behaviors and representations mean to us in our individual worlds, and scholars must confront questions of possibility and becoming that arise from testing their beliefs, imperatives, and practices. Roberts refers to the work of Hent de Vries, Eric Santner, and Stanley Cavell, each of whom exemplifies encounter and response in their writings as they traverse philosophy and religion to expose secular thinking to religious thought and practice. This approach highlights the resources religious discourse can offer to a fundamental reorientation of critical thought. In humanistic criticism after secularism, the lines separating the creative, the pious, and the critical themselves become the subject of question and experimentation.


Theology and Religious Studies in Higher Education

Theology and Religious Studies in Higher Education

Author: Darlene L. Bird

Publisher: A&C Black

Published: 2009-03-22

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 184706311X

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A collection of essays by some of today's leading academics on the sometimes contentious relationship between religious studies and theology.


Book Synopsis Theology and Religious Studies in Higher Education by : Darlene L. Bird

Download or read book Theology and Religious Studies in Higher Education written by Darlene L. Bird and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2009-03-22 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collection of essays by some of today's leading academics on the sometimes contentious relationship between religious studies and theology.


Beyond Legitimation

Beyond Legitimation

Author: Donald Wiebe

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-01-01

Total Pages: 255

ISBN-13: 1349236683

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The early essays in this volume proceed on the assumption that a compatibility system can be fashioned that will not only bring religious knowledge claims into harmony with scientific claims but will also show there to be a fundamental similarity of method in religious and scientific thinking. They are not, however, unambiguously successful. Consequently Professor Wiebe sets out in the succeeding essays to seek an understanding of the religion/science relationship that does not assume they must be compatible. That examination, in the final analysis, reveals a fundamental contradiction in the compatibility system building programme which more than suggests that religious belief (knowledge) is beyond legitimation.


Book Synopsis Beyond Legitimation by : Donald Wiebe

Download or read book Beyond Legitimation written by Donald Wiebe and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-01-01 with total page 255 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The early essays in this volume proceed on the assumption that a compatibility system can be fashioned that will not only bring religious knowledge claims into harmony with scientific claims but will also show there to be a fundamental similarity of method in religious and scientific thinking. They are not, however, unambiguously successful. Consequently Professor Wiebe sets out in the succeeding essays to seek an understanding of the religion/science relationship that does not assume they must be compatible. That examination, in the final analysis, reveals a fundamental contradiction in the compatibility system building programme which more than suggests that religious belief (knowledge) is beyond legitimation.


Naturalism, Theism and the Cognitive Study of Religion

Naturalism, Theism and the Cognitive Study of Religion

Author: Aku Visala

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-04-22

Total Pages: 229

ISBN-13: 1317089626

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This book provides a critical philosophical analysis of the claim that contemporary cognitive approaches to religion undermine theistic beliefs. Recent scientific work into the evolution and cognition of religion has been driven by and interpreted in terms of a certain kind of philosophical and methodological naturalism. The book argues that such naturalism is not necessary for the cognitive study of religion and develops an alternative philosophical and methodological framework. This alternative framework opens the cognitive study of religion to theological and philosophical considerations and clarifies its relationship to other approaches to religious phenomena. This unique contribution to discussions regarding the philosophical and theological implications of the cognitive study of religion summarizes the so far fragmentary discussion, exposes its underlying assumptions, and develops a novel framework for further discussion.


Book Synopsis Naturalism, Theism and the Cognitive Study of Religion by : Aku Visala

Download or read book Naturalism, Theism and the Cognitive Study of Religion written by Aku Visala and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-04-22 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a critical philosophical analysis of the claim that contemporary cognitive approaches to religion undermine theistic beliefs. Recent scientific work into the evolution and cognition of religion has been driven by and interpreted in terms of a certain kind of philosophical and methodological naturalism. The book argues that such naturalism is not necessary for the cognitive study of religion and develops an alternative philosophical and methodological framework. This alternative framework opens the cognitive study of religion to theological and philosophical considerations and clarifies its relationship to other approaches to religious phenomena. This unique contribution to discussions regarding the philosophical and theological implications of the cognitive study of religion summarizes the so far fragmentary discussion, exposes its underlying assumptions, and develops a novel framework for further discussion.