The Recalcitrant Imago Dei

The Recalcitrant Imago Dei
Author: J.P. Moreland
Publisher: SCM Press
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2013-02-12
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0334049032

The Veritas Series refuses to accept disciplinary isolation: both for theology and for other disciplines. The Recalcitrant Imago Dei offers a critical discussion of naturalism, the idea that all phenomena can be explained by the physical sciences.

The Recalcitrant Imago Dei

The Recalcitrant Imago Dei
Author: J. P. Moreland
Publisher: SCM Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2010-08
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780334053002

The Veritas Series brings to market original volumes all engaging in critical questions of pressing concern to both philosophers, theologians, biologists, economists and more. The series aims to illustrate that without theology, something essential is lost in our account of such categories - not only in an abstract way but in the way in which we inhabit the world. The Veritas Series refuses to accept disciplinary isolation: both for theology and for other disciplines. The Recalcitrant Imago Dei offers a critical discussion of naturalism, the idea that all phenomena can be explained by the physical sciences. 'Moreland;s book is a masterpiece of clear, compelling, accessible arguments against naturalism, and a powerful defense of a Christian understanding of persons. This should be required reading for anyone interested in the philosophy of human nature and the debate between theism and naturalism today.' Charles Taliaferro, St Olaf Collage The Recalcitrant Imago Dei is a wonderful read. Chapter by chapter, Moreland systematically sets forth how naturalism denies what is so obvious about ourselves, which is that we are conscious, rational souls that have the power to make undetermined choices for purposes. The power of the book lies in the way that it makes clear how human beings becomeunrecognizable once naturalism has worked them over. Through page after page of careful argument, Moreland shows all of us how deeply unnatural the naturalist account of ourselves is.' Stewart Goetz, St Ursinus College 'Materialistic naturalism has, for some years, been the received wisdom in philosophy, as well as amongst much of the educated public. Many serious philosophical arguments have been brought against this ideology, but usually in a series of separate controversies. Professor Moreland's great service is to bring all these objections together, whilst adding his own original contributions, in a very effective anti-naturalist polemic. He shows us that the materialist world picture cannot accommodate the most basic phenomena of human life: It has no place for consciousness, free will, rationality, the human subject or any kind of intrinsic value. Materialism does not disprove these human realities, it is simply incapable of accounting for them in any remotely plausible way. I would add to the list of its failures that naturalism lacks even a coherent account of the physical world itself. Professor Moreland makes a very good case for saying that, as a serious world view, naturalism is a non-starter: more traditional, theistic philosophies fare much better in the face both of the phenomena and of argument.' Howard Robinson, University Professor in Philosophy, Central European University, Budapest J.P. Moreland's new book is a tour de force. In six clear, concise and tightly argued chapters, he raises profound objections to the attempts of modern naturalistic philosophers to accommodate human consciousness, free will, rationality, selfhood and morality within a purely physical world-view. He thereby significantly enhances the intellectual appeal of a theistic alternative. All open-minded-metaphysicians, philosophers of mind and philosophical theologians should read this book E. J. Lowe, Professor of Philosophy, Durham University

The Recalcitrant Imago Dei

The Recalcitrant Imago Dei
Author: James Porter Moreland
Publisher: Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2009
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0334042151

The Veritas Series brings to market original volumes all engaging in critical questions of pressing concern to both philosophers, theologians, biologists, economists and more. The Veritas Series refuses to accept disciplinary isolation: both for theology and for other disciplines. The Recalcitrant Imago Dei offers a critical discussion of naturalism, the idea that all phenomena can be explained by the physical sciences.

Consciousness and the Existence of God

Consciousness and the Existence of God
Author: J.P. Moreland
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2010-04-26
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1135896798

In Consciousness and the Existence of God , JP Morelandargues that the existence of finite, irreducible consciousness (or its regular, law-like correlation with physical states) provides evidence for the existence of God. Considering Searle's contingent correlation, O'Connor's emergent necessitation, and Nagel's mysterian "naturalism," Moreland concludes that these versions of naturalism should be rejected in favor of what he calls"the Argument from Consciousness."

Body & Soul

Body & Soul
Author: J. P. Moreland
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2009-09-20
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0830874593

While most people throughout history have believed that we are both physical and spiritual beings, the rise of science has called into question the existence of the soul. Many now argue that neurophysiology demonstrates the radical dependence, indeed, identity, between mind and brain. Advances in genetics and in mapping human DNA, some say, show there is no need for the hypothesis of body-soul dualism. Even many Christian intellectuals have come to view the soul as a false Greek concept that is outdated and unbiblical. Concurrent with the demise of dualism has been the rise of advanced medical technologies that have brought to the fore difficult issues at both edges of life. Central to questions about abortion, fetal research, reproductive techologies, cloning and euthanasia is our understanding of the nature of human personhood, the reality of life after death and the value of ethical or religious knowledge as compared to scientific knowledge. In this careful treatment, J. P. Moreland and Scott B. Rae argue that the rise of these problems alongside the demise of Christian dualism is no coincidence. They therefore employ a theological realism to meet these pressing issues, and to present a reasonable and biblical depiction of human nature as it impinges upon critical ethical concerns. This vigorous philosophical and ethical defense of human nature as body and soul, regardless of whether one agrees or disagrees, will be for all a touchstone for debate and discussion for years to come.

Mind and Cosmos

Mind and Cosmos
Author: Thomas Nagel
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 141
Release: 2012-11-22
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0199919755

The modern materialist approach to life has conspicuously failed to explain such central mind-related features of our world as consciousness, intentionality, meaning, and value. This failure to account for something so integral to nature as mind, argues philosopher Thomas Nagel, is a major problem, threatening to unravel the entire naturalistic world picture, extending to biology, evolutionary theory, and cosmology. Since minds are features of biological systems that have developed through evolution, the standard materialist version of evolutionary biology is fundamentally incomplete. And the cosmological history that led to the origin of life and the coming into existence of the conditions for evolution cannot be a merely materialist history, either. An adequate conception of nature would have to explain the appearance in the universe of materially irreducible conscious minds, as such. Nagel's skepticism is not based on religious belief or on a belief in any definite alternative. In Mind and Cosmos, he does suggest that if the materialist account is wrong, then principles of a different kind may also be at work in the history of nature, principles of the growth of order that are in their logical form teleological rather than mechanistic. In spite of the great achievements of the physical sciences, reductive materialism is a world view ripe for displacement. Nagel shows that to recognize its limits is the first step in looking for alternatives, or at least in being open to their possibility.

ReSourcing Theological Anthropology

ReSourcing Theological Anthropology
Author: Marc Cortez
Publisher: Zondervan Academic
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2018-01-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0310516447

Theologians working in theological anthropology often claim that Jesus reveals what it means to be "truly human," but this often has little impact in their actual account of anthropology. ReSourcing Theological Anthropology addresses that lack by offering an account of why theological anthropology must begin with Christology. Building off his earlier study on how key theologians in church history have understood the relationship between Christology and theological anthropology, Cortez now develops a new proposal for theological anthropology and applies it to the theological situation today. ReSourcing Theological Anthropology is divided into four sections. The first section explores the relevant Christological/anthropological biblical passages and unpacks how they inform our understanding of theological anthropology. The second section discusses the theological issues raised in the course of surveying the biblical texts. The third section lays out a methodological framework for how to construct a uniquely Christological anthropology. The final section builds on the first three sections and demonstrates the significance of Christology for understanding theological anthropology by applying the methodological framework to several pressing anthropological issues: gender and sexuality, race and ethnicity, and death and suffering X

The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism

The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism
Author: Jonathan J. Loose
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 531
Release: 2018-05-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1119375266

A groundbreaking collection of contemporary essays from leading international scholars that provides a balanced and expert account of the resurgent debate about substance dualism and its physicalist alternatives. Substance dualism has for some time been dismissed as an archaic and defeated position in philosophy of mind, but in recent years, the topic has experienced a resurgence of scholarly interest and has been restored to contemporary prominence by a growing minority of philosophers prepared to interrogate the core principles upon which past objections and misunderstandings rest. As the first book of its kind to bring together a collection of contemporary writing from top proponents and critics in a pro-contra format, The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism captures this ongoing dialogue and sets the stage for rigorous and lively discourse around dualist and physicalist accounts of human persons in philosophy. Chapters explore emergent, Thomistic, Cartesian, and other forms of substance dualism—broadly conceived—in dialogue with leading varieties of physicalism, including animalism, non-reductive physicalism, and constitution theory. Loose, Menuge, and Moreland pair essays from dualist advocates with astute criticism from physicalist opponents and vice versa, highlighting points of contrast for readers in thematic sections while showcasing today’s leading minds engaged in direct debate. Taken together, essays provide nuanced paths of introduction for students, and capture the imagination of professional philosophers looking to expand their understanding of the subject. Skillfully curated and in touch with contemporary science as well as analytic theology, The Blackwell Companion to Substance Dualism strikes a measured balanced between advocacy and criticism, and is a first-rate resource for researchers, scholars, and students of philosophy, theology, and neuroscience.

T. F. Torrance’s Christological Anthropology

T. F. Torrance’s Christological Anthropology
Author: Christopher G. Woznicki
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 284
Release: 2022-06-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1000590453

This book demonstrates the promise of Christology for developing Scottish theologian T. F. Torrance’s theological anthropology. T. F. Torrance’s Christological Anthropology: Discerning Humanity in Christ engages with several key themes in Torrance’s theological anthropology and considers how each one of these topics—anthropological method, the metaphysics of human nature, the imago Dei, personhood, vocation, human destiny—can be further developed in light of Christ. Christopher Woznicki argues that Christology not only holds promise for the task of developing Torrance’s insights on humanity but also for developing a constructive account of humanity. The volume is valuable reading for scholars of T. F. Torrance’s theology and for those who are interested in the role of Christology in theological anthropology.

Finding Ourselves after Darwin

Finding Ourselves after Darwin
Author: Stanley P. Rosenberg
Publisher: Baker Academic
Total Pages: 559
Release: 2018-07-17
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1493406582

A multinational team of scholars focuses on the interface between Christian doctrine and evolutionary scientific research, exploring the theological consequences for the doctrines of original sin, the image of God, and the problem of evil. Moving past the misperception that science and faith are irreconcilable, the book compares alternative models to those that have generated faith-science conflict and equips students, pastors, and anyone interested in origins to develop a critical and scientifically informed orthodox faith.