Dialogues between Faith and Reason: The Death and Return of God in Modern German Thought
John H. Smith
Abstract
This book traces a major line in the history of theology and the philosophy of religion down the “slippery slope” of secularization. At the same time, it points to the persistence of a tradition that grew out of the Reformation and continues in the mostly Protestant philosophical reflection on whether and how faith can be justified by reason. The book posits that faith and reason have long been locked in mutual engagement in which they productively challenge each other as partners in an ongoing dialogue. Although in the secularized West the death of God is said to be fundamental to the modern ... More
This book traces a major line in the history of theology and the philosophy of religion down the “slippery slope” of secularization. At the same time, it points to the persistence of a tradition that grew out of the Reformation and continues in the mostly Protestant philosophical reflection on whether and how faith can be justified by reason. The book posits that faith and reason have long been locked in mutual engagement in which they productively challenge each other as partners in an ongoing dialogue. Although in the secularized West the death of God is said to be fundamental to the modern condition, our current post-modernity is often characterized as a “postsecular” time. This means not only that we are experiencing a broad-based “return of religion” but also, and more important for his argument, that we are now able to recognize the role of religion within the history of modernity. Emphasizing that, thanks to the logos located “in the beginning,” the death of God is part of the inner logic of the Christian tradition, the book argues that this same strand of reasoning also ensures that God will always “return” (often in new forms). Neither a defense of atheism nor a call to belief, the book explores the long history of their interaction in modern religious and philosophical thought.
Keywords:
history of theology,
philosophy of religion,
secularization,
Reformation,
faith,
secularized West,
God,
post-modernity,
Christian tradition,
atheism
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2011 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780801449277 |
| Published to Cornell Scholarship Online: August 2016 |
DOI:10.7591/cornell/9780801449277.001.0001 |
