Questions About God: Today's Philosophers Ponder the DivineSteven M. Cahn, David Shatz From young children, with their guileless, searching questions, to the recently bereaved, trying to make sense of tragic loss, humans wrestle with our relationship to God--and with God's essence, motivations, and power--throughout our lives: Why does God permit catastrophe and senseless tragedy, again and again? Is God's power limited in any way? Can He change the past? Does He know the future? Why does God require prayer? Why does He not provide stronger evidence of His presence? Whom does God consign to hell, and why? Does God change? Suffer? What can we make of the conflicting diversity within world religions, of the many gods of different religious traditions?Such questions engage, confront, and perplex us on a daily basis. In this rich, concise volume, leading philosophers who have long pondered God's nature and ways take on these core problems and present their findings in a manner likely to engage believer and non-believer, general reader and specialist alike. |
Contents
Is God Omnipotent? | 9 |
Why Does God Allow Evil? | 19 |
Is God Obliged To Make Us Happy? | 37 |
Why Does God Hide His Existence? | 47 |
Is God Vain? | 63 |
Why Does God Require Prayer? | 79 |
Other editions - View all
Questions About God: Today's Philosophers Ponder the Divine Steven M. Cahn,David Shatz Limited preview - 2002 |
Questions About God: Today's Philosophers Ponder the Divine Steven M. Cahn,David Shatz Limited preview - 2002 |
Questions about God: Today's Philosophers Ponder the Divine Steven M. Cahn,David Shatz Limited preview - 2002 |
Common terms and phrases
absolute omnipotence actions agents allow argue argument asked Augustine Augustine's bare particular believe benevolence biblical Buddhism cause child choose Christian claim compulsion create creation death degree of desirability delight Divine Command Theory divine reality divine timelessness earth emotions eternal everything example existence experience fact faith feat feel free-will Gersonides give God's love grief grieving happiness heaven hell Hinduism human humility James Rachels Jesus John Hick knowledge live Lord's Prayer means morally significant natural evil Nicholas Wolterstorff objection occur omnipotence omniscient one's pain passions perfect person petitionary prayer philosopher pray pride problem of evil question reason religion religious response revelation Richard Swinburne salvation Scriptures seems sense separationist simply so-and-so sorrow sort Stoic suffering suggest suppose Testament theists theodicy theology things Thou threat imminence threat strength tion tradition true truth universalists University Press vanity W. H. Auden worship