E-Book Overview
Charles Taliaferro, a leading philosopher of religion, presents several fictional dialogues among characters with contrasting views on the existence of God, including theism, atheism, skepticism, and other nuanced arguments about the nature of God. In a series of five inspired, original debates, Taliaferro taps into several famous exchanges, including those among Antony Flew, Basil Mitchell and R. M. Hare; between Frederick Copleston and Bertrand Russell; and between Copleston and A. J. Ayer.
E-Book Content
DIALOGUES ABOUT GOD
A series in dialogue form, explicating foundational problems in the philosophy of existence, knowledge, and value
Series Editor Professor Dale Jacquette Senior Professorial Chair in Theoretical Philosophy University of Bern, Switzerland In the tradition of Plato, Berkeley, Hume, and other great philosophical dramatists, Rowman & Littlefield presents an exciting new series of philosophical dialogues. This innovative series has been conceived to encourage a deeper understanding of philosophy through the literary device of lively argument in scripted dialogues, a pedagogic method that is proven effective in helping students to understand challenging concepts while demonstrating the merits and shortcomings of philosophical positions displaying a wide variety of structure and content. Each volume is compact and affordable, written by a respected scholar whose expertise informs each dialogue, and presents a range of positions through its characters’ voices that will resonate with students’ interests while encouraging them to engage in philosophical dialogue themselves.
Titles J. Kellenberger, Moral Relativism: A Dialogue (2008) Michael Ruse, Evolution and Religion: A Dialogue (2008) Charles Taliaferro, Dialogues about God (2008)
Forthcoming Titles Bradley Dowden, The Metaphysics of Time: A Dialogue Dale Jacquette, Dialogues on the Ethics of Capital Punishment Michael Krausz, Relativism: A Dialogue Dan Lloyd, Ghosts in the Machine: A Dialogue Brian Orend, On War: A Dialogue
DIALOGUES ABOUT GOD CHARLES TALIAFERRO
ROW M A N & L I T T L E F I E L D P U B L I S H E R S, I N C. Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowmanlittlefield.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Copyright © 2009 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Taliaferro, Charles. Dialogues about God / Charles Taliaferro. p. cm.—(New dialogues in philosophy) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN-13: 978-0-7425-5962-2 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-7425-5962-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-7425-6398-8 (electronic) ISBN-10: 0-7425-6398-7 (electronic) 1. God. I. Title. BL205.T35 2009 211—dc22 2008019237 Printed in the United States of America
⬁ ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
In gratitude for the life and work of Roderick Chisholm (1916–1999), an ideal philosopher who combined independent, original thought with humility and a passion for dialogue. Often covered with chalk stemming from what can only be described as exercising with a blackboard during lon