PHIL 742
Philosophy of Religion 1
Please note: this is archived course information from 2022 for PHIL 742.
Description
The course will be based on reading and critically discussing Hume’s Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion, in relation to contemporary debate on relevant questions in the Philosophy of Religion, especially the problem of evil.
Given that Hume’s critique is focused on the anthropomorphic conception of deity that became prominent during the Enlightenment, the course’s emphasis will then shift to the question of whether there can be a satisfactory alternative conception.
There will be an opportunity to explore pantheist and panentheist understandings of divinity and also to consider attempts at explaining the phenomenon of religious belief, by comparing Hume’s Natural History of Religion with contemporary explanations of religious belief in evolutionary psychology.
Assessment:
Coursework only
Availability 2022
Not taught in 2022
Lecturer(s)
TBA
Points
PHIL 742: 15 points