Physico-theology

Physico-theology
Author: Ann Blair
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 287
Release: 2020-08-25
Genre: Science
ISBN: 142143847X

This first book-length study of physico-theology questions the widespread notion of a steadily advancing early modern separation of religion and science. Beginning around 1650, the emergence of a number of new scientific concepts, methods, and instruments challenged existing syntheses of science and religion. Physico-theology, which embraced the values of personal, empirical observation, was an international movement of the early Enlightenment that focused on the new science to make arguments about divine creation and providence. By reconciling the new science with Christianity across many denominations, physico-theology played a crucial role in diffusing new scientific ideas, assumptions, and interest in the study of nature to a broad public. In this book, sixteen leading scholars contribute a rich array of essays on the terms and scope of the movement, its scientific and religious arguments, and its aesthetic sensibilities. Contributors: Ann Blair, Simona Boscani Leoni, John Hedley Brooke, Nicolas Brucker, Katherine Calloway, Kathleen Crowther, Brendan Dooley, Peter Harrison, Barbara Hunfeld, Eric Jorink, Scott Mandelbrote, Brian W. Ogilvie, Martine Pécharman, Jonathan Sheehan, Anne-Charlott Trepp, Rienk Vermij, Kaspar von Greyerz

European Physico-Theology (1650-C. 1760) in Context

European Physico-Theology (1650-C. 1760) in Context
Author: Kaspar von Greyerz
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 313
Release: 2022-05-05
Genre: Creation
ISBN: 019286436X

Physico-theology celebrated the observation of nature as a way toward recognising God as Creator, demonstrating the compatibility of the biblical record with new science. This is an English-language monograph which studies the impact of physico-theology on the intellectual and socio-cultural establishment in Europe from the mid-17th century.--

The Philosophy of the Young Kant

The Philosophy of the Young Kant
Author: Martin Schonfeld
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 378
Release: 2000-10-12
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9780198030287

This intellectual biography of Immanuel Kant's early years-- from 1746 when he wrote his first book, to 1766 when he lost his faith in metaphysics --makes an outstanding contribution to Kant scholarship. Schönfeld meticulously examines most of Kant's early works, summarizes their content, and exhibits their shortcomings and strengths. He places the early theories in their historical context and describes the scientific discoveries and philosophical innovations that distinguish Kant's pre-critical works. Schönfeld argues that these works were all aspects of a single project carried out by Kant to reconcile metaphysical and scientific perspectives and combine them into a coherent model of nature.

Anima Mundi: The Rise of the World Soul Theory in Modern German Philosophy

Anima Mundi: The Rise of the World Soul Theory in Modern German Philosophy
Author: Miklós Vassányi
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 438
Release: 2010-11-16
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9048187966

This work presents and philosophically analyzes the early modern and modern history of the theory concerning the soul of the world, anima mundi. The initial question of the investigation is why there was a revival of this theory in the time of the early German Romanticism, whereas the concept of the anima mundi had been rejected in the earlier, classical period of European philosophy (early and mature Enlightenment). The presentation and analysis starts from the Leibnizian-Wolffian school, generally hostile to the theory, and covers classical eighteenth-century physico-theology, also reluctant to accept an anima mundi. Next, it discusses early modern and modern Christian philosophical Cabbala (Böhme and Ötinger), an intellectual tradition which to some extent tolerated the idea of a soul of the world. The philosophical relationship between Spinoza and Spinozism on the one hand, and the anima mundi theory on the other is also examined. An analysis of Giordano Bruno’s utilization of the concept anima del mondo is the last step before we give an account of how and why German Romanticism, especially Baader and Schelling asserted and applied the theory of the Weltseele. The purpose of the work is to prove that the philosophical insufficiency of a concept of God as an ens extramundanum instigated the Romantics to think an anima mundi that can act as a divine and quasi-infinite intermediary between God and Nature, as a locum tenens of God in physical reality.

Kant on Freedom and Human Nature

Kant on Freedom and Human Nature
Author: Luigi Filieri
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 275
Release: 2023-08-25
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1000936023

The essays in this volume provide new readings of Kant’s account of human nature. Despite the relevance of human nature to Kant’s philosophy, little attention has been paid to the fact that the question about human nature originally pertains to pure reason. The chapters in this volume show that Kant’s point is not to state once and for all what the human being actually is, but to unite pure reason’s efforts within a unitary teleological perspective. The question about human nature is the cornerstone of reason’s unity in its different activities and domains. Kant’s question about human nature goes beyond our empirical inquiries to show that the notion of humanity represents the point of convergence and unity of pure reason’s most fundamental interests. Kant on Freedom and Human Nature will appeal to scholars and advanced students working on Kant’s philosophy.

Natural Philosophy

Natural Philosophy
Author: Alister McGrath
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2023-02-02
Genre:
ISBN: 0192865730

Recovering the forgotten discipline of Natural Philosophy for the modern world This book argues for the retrieval of 'natural philosophy', a concept that faded into comparative obscurity as individual scientific disciplines became established and institutionalized. Natural philosophy was understood in the early modern period as a way of exploring the human relationship with the natural world, encompassing what would now be seen as the distinct disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, music, philosophy, and theology. The first part of the work represents a critical conversation with the tradition, identifying the essential characteristics of natural philosophy, particularly its emphasis on both learning about and learning from nature. After noting the factors which led to the disintegration of natural philosophy during the nineteenth century, the second part of the work sets out the reasons why natural philosophy should be retrieved, and a creative and innovative proposal for how this might be done. This draws on Karl Popper's 'Three Worlds' and Mary Midgley's notion of using multiple maps in bringing together the many aspects of the human encounter with the natural world. Such a retrieved or 're-imagined' natural philosophy is able to encourage both human attentiveness and respectfulness towards Nature, while enfolding both the desire to understand the natural world, and the need to preserve the affective, imaginative, and aesthetic aspects of the human response to nature.

Legacies of David Cranz's 'Historie von Grönland' (1765)

Legacies of David Cranz's 'Historie von Grönland' (1765)
Author: Felicity Jensz
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2021-02-17
Genre: History
ISBN: 3030639983

This book brings together interdisciplinary scholars from history, theology, folklore, ethnology and meteorology to examine how David Cranz’s Historie von Grönland (1765) resonated in various disciplines, periods and countries. Collectively the contributors demonstrate the reach of the book beyond its initial purpose as a record of missionary work, and into secular and political fields beyond Greenland and Germany. The chapters also reveal how the book contributed to broader discussions and conceptualizations of Greenland as part of the Atlantic world. The interdisciplinary scope of the volume allows for a layered reading of Cranz’s book that demonstrates how different meanings could be drawn from the book in different contexts and how the book resonated throughout time and space. It also makes the broader argument that the construction of the Artic in the eighteenth century broadened our understanding of the Atlantic.