Religions Challenged by Contingency

Theological and Philosophical Approaches to the Problem of Contingency
Erscheinungsjahr 2008
ISBN: 978-90-04-16749-0
Verlag: Brill

Buch, Englisch, Band 12, 248 Seiten, Format (B × H): 160 mm x 240 mm, Gewicht: 558 g

Reihe: Studies in Theology and Religion

In this volume, the relationship between religion and contingency is investigated. Its historical part comprises analyses of important philosophers’ interpretations of this relationship, viz. that of Leibniz, Kant, Lessing, Jaspers, and Heidegger. Its systematic part analyses how this relationship should be currently (re-)interpreted. The upshot of the different interpretations is a re-evaluation of the traditional assumption that accepting contingency is detrimental to the pursuit of religion. It is shown that a number of the philosophers scrutinized are not as critical regarding the acceptance of (certain sorts of) contingency in the religious realm as is often thought, and the systematic contributions show that it may be unavoidable, sometimes even desirable, to accept contingency when dealing with religion.

Contributors include: Lieven Boeve, Wim Drees, Joris Geldhof, Dirk-Martin Grube, Frans Jespers, Peter Jonkers, Donald Loose, Ben Vedder, Henk Vroom.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Grube, Dirk-Martin

Jonkers, Peter

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Geschichte der Westlichen Philosophie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Religionsphilosophie, Philosophische Theologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein Religionsphilosophie, Philosophische Theologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface. vii

Introduction Contingency and Religion—A Philosophical Tour d’Horizon. 1
Dirk-Martin Grube (Utrecht University)

PART I
HISTORICAL CASE-STUDIES IN RELIGION AND CONTINGENCY: CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHY

Chapter One Universal Religion, Contingency, and Truth in Leibniz. 47
Frans P.M. Jespers (Radboud University Nijmegen)
Chapter Two Kant on Contingency in Christian Religion. 67
Donald Loose (Tilburg University)
Chapter Three The Lessing/Schumann Controversy. Lessing’s Stance on Contingency Compared to Kant’s Stance. 89
Dirk-Martin Grube (Utrecht University)

PART II
HISTORICAL CASE-STUDIES IN RELIGION AND CONTINGENCY: MODERN PHILOSOPHY

Chapter Four Contingency and Salvation. A Hermeneutics of Christianity from the Perspective of Heidegger and Thomas Aquinas. 119
Ben Vedder (Radboud University Nijmegen)
Chapter Five Jaspers, Existence, and Contingency. On the Risk of a Loss of Sense for God in Modern Philosophy. 136
Joris Geldhof (Catholic University of Leuven)

PART III
RELIGION AND CONTINGENCY: SYSTEMATIC APPROACHES

Chapter Six Contingent Religions, Contingent Truths? A Philosophical Analysis of the Role of Existential Truth in Religious Ways of Life. 61
Peter Jonkers (Tilburg University)
Chapter Seven Religious Truth, Particularity, and Incarnation. A Theological Proposal for a Philosophical Hermeneutics of Religion. 182
Lieven Boeve (Catholic University of Leuven)
Chapter Eight Can We Be Sure About Contingent Religious Insights?. 205
Henk Vroom (VU - University Amsterdam)
Chapter Nine Our Universe—A Contingent Cosmos?. 221
Willem B. Drees (Leiden University)

Name Index. 244
About the Authors. 247

Über Autor(innen)

Dirk-Martin Grube, Ph.D. (1991) in religion, Temple University, Philadelphia, currently holds the chair in the philosophy of religion and ethics at Utrecht University. He has published on Paul Tillich, Karl Barth, Alvin Plantinga, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, and William James.
Peter Jonkers, Ph.D. (1982) in philosophy, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, currently holds the chair in philosophy at the Faculty of Catholic Theology of Tilburg University. He has published on German idealism, philosophy of religion, metaphysics and philosophy of culture.