Essays in Philosophy of Religion (Jostarhaye Falsafeh Din)

Abstract The relation between language and fact in philosophy, generally, and in philosophy of language, particularly, raises issues in semantics and reference theory. Every philosophical approach to the phenomenon of diversity and the plurality of religions should consider these linguistic issues. The reference and semantic theories that are chosen to deal with religious diversity problem shouldn’t undermine the integrity and consistency of the theory. The incompatibility among religious propositions and different language of religions to talk about the transcendental is one of most important philosophical problems of which different approaches try to offer a reasonable explanation, in such a way that they could defend the existence of the transcendental, its unity, and the possibility of different, event incompatible, words on this reality, simultaneously. Analyzing the linguistic presuppositions of the transcendent in the religious diversity problem, we attempt to study Hick’s two mythical narratives and Byrne’s metaphorical narrative of contemporary pluralism, comparatively.

Abstract George Mavrodes, philosopher of religion and revised epistemologist, offers a new interpretation of argument by means of which one can take a new look at the traditional arguments for the existence of God. Adding two conditions of ‘certainty’ and ‘persuasion’ to the two former conditions of ‘validity’ and ‘soundness’, he pictures argument as a two-dimensional or compositional concept that consists of two objective elements (validity and soundness) and two subjective elements (certainty and persuasion). Given this description of the nature of argument, it seems that one can firstly recognize the wide disagreement among proponents and opponents of the arguments for the existence of God, and secondly with regard to the subjective elements of argument, one can defend some firm and cogent narratives of these arguments.

Abstract Against evidentialists’ views, especially Clifford’s, William James has presented his views about the effect of will on belief. According to Clifford, for everyone, always and everywhere, it is wrong to accept a belief without sufficient evidences. William James, in contrast, believes that instead fear of error, which is the Clifford’s way to apply ethics on belief, it is better to think getting to truth. He attempts to show that this view is the justifier of religious beliefs, in the way that people, regardless to evidentialism, consider themselves right in their believing in religious beliefs. James' views in the article ‘will to believe’ is established on pragmatism, ethics and psychology. He believed ‘will’ impacts beliefs both in their creation and in their control. James's psychological point of view is dealt with belief creation and his ethical view is concerned with belief control. There are some criticisms against James’ viewpoint; based on one of them, his attitude relativizes the value of faith. Adding two conditions to James’ approach and turning it into an externalist theory to justify religious beliefs, Bishop tries to solve the problem. Evaluating the James’ approach, this paper aims to study the Bishop’s solution.

Abstract Imam Musa Sadr is one of the most known contemporary Muslim thinkers and reformers that through his theological approach has identified some social problems and has sought to solve them. His presence in the realm of practice and theory simultaneously, necessitates the need to study his thoughts and his methods of action. Considering the existing literature on the subject of social theology, and studying the Sadr’s works, using descriptive-analytic method, this paper analyzes his ideas, and through a comparative approach, tries to analyze and explain his pattern of Islamic social theology. As we will see, anthropological, social, religiological, epistemological and social ethics aspects of Sadr’s thought form the foundations of his social approach to theology.
 His worthy and dignity-oriented attitude to Human, his democratic approach to community, His humanistic interpretation of religion and regarding religion as the rules of life and the base of social system and as a tool to actualize human wishes and to diminish human pains, and finally his comprehensive look at knowledge and considering other knowledge sources alongside religion, leads to a system of thought in virtue of which the establishment of a desired justice system is interpreted. Finally, we will interpret the Sadr’s pattern of Islamic social theology as ‘the pattern of social theology based on unified Ummah ’

Abstract Traditionalism is a new stream of thought that has been raised as a response to the increasing growth of modernity in the world. Studying the anthropological, epistemological and religiological of traditionalism shows that this stream of thought lacks any positive nature and one can understand it merely in a negative relation to the main concepts of modernity like transcendental subject, modern science, and secularism. Traditionalism, rather than being emerged from traditional and religious principles, is a kind of modern ideology that is constituted based on anti-modernism and defines its identity negatively, through the rejection of modernity. This study shows that the approach of traditionalists like Seyyed Hossein Nasr to traditional concepts and principles is often different from traditional attitudes of pre-modern societies’ thinkers and most of the concepts and principles, inspired by modern assumptions and ideas, try to picture a kind of anti-modern thought which its features are not so corresponded with patterns of life of pre-modern societies.

Abstract Explaining the theory of natural religion, this paper has offered a biological explanation of religion, and religion is studied as a natural phenomenon. For Neo-Darwinists, religion even if it is transcendental and belongs to the other world can be considered as a natural phenomenon which is emerged and actualized by human beings. To interpret natural religion approach one can say that Neo-Darwinists like Dennett, don’t want to ‘explain’, but want to express people’s interest in religion evolutionary, i.e., they want to offer a historical and evolutionary narrative of religion, and also believe that religion consistency to community is the cause of its survival in a natural selection. Dennett's argument regarding the persistency of religion is so: ‘religion has been remained due to the fact that it has had the power to regulate community otherwise it was eliminated by nature. Among the theists believing in the theory of evolution, Plantinga has presented some criticisms against Dennett's approach, on the basis of his theory of theism and ‘God-based evolution’. For Plantinga, Dennett major service to evolution and evolutionary religious studies refers to Darwin's dangerous idea. In this article we will show that Darwin's idea is not dangerous necessarily and one can consider evolution as a model of God's creation pattern.