ABSTRACT

This book is the first systematic treatment of the strengths and limitations of personal and a-personal conceptions of the divine. It features contributions from Jewish, Islamic, Chinese, Indian and naturalistic backgrounds in addition to those working within a decidedly Christian framework.

This book discusses whether the concept of God in classical theism is coherent at all and whether the traditional understanding of some of the divine attributes need to be modified. The contributors explore what the proposed spiritual and practical merits and demerits of personal and a-personal conceptions of God might be. Additionally, their diverse perspectives reflect a broader trend within the analytic philosophy of religion to incorporate various non-Western religious traditions. Tackling these issues carefully is needed to do justice to the strengths and limitations of personal and a-personal accounts to the divine.

The Divine Nature: Personal and A-Personal Perspectives will be of interest to scholars and advanced students working in philosophy of religion and philosophical theology.

chapter 1|20 pages

Introduction

Thinking about Personal and A-Personal Aspects of the Divine

part Section I|116 pages

A-Personal Aspects of the Divine: Theoretical Virtues and Limits

chapter 3|20 pages

Life and Finite Individuality

Revisiting a Debate in British Idealism

chapter 6|14 pages

On Timelessness and Mystery

chapter 7|17 pages

Classical Islamic Conceptions of God and Revelation

God Is Not a Person but Can Speak

part Section II|96 pages

Personal Aspects of the Divine

chapter 9|18 pages

What We Cannot Know about God

chapter 10|19 pages

Against Synchronic Free Will

Or, Why a Personal, Free God Must Be Temporal

part Section III|111 pages

Practical Implications of Personal and A-Personal Aspects of the Divine