Philosophical Hermeneutics and the Priority of Questions in Religions
Philosophical Hermeneutics and the Priority of Questions in Religions

Author: Nathan Eric Dickman

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2022-02-24

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 1350202177

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Buddhas, gods, prophets and oracles are often depicted as asking questions. But what are we to understand when Jesus asks “Who do you say that I am?”, or Mazu, the Classical Zen master asks, “Why do you seek outside?" Is their questioning a power or weakness? Is it something human beings are only capable of due to our finitude? Is there any kind of question that is a power? Focusing on three case studies of questions in divine discourse on the level of story - the god depicted in the Jewish Bible, the master Mazu in his recorded sayings literature, and Jesus as he is depicted in canonized Christian Gospels - Nathan Eric Dickman meditates on human responses to divine questions. He considers the purpose of interreligious dialogue and the provocative kind of questions that seem to purposefully decenter us, drawing on methods from confessionally-oriented hermeneutics and skills from critical thinking. He allows us to see alternative ways of interpreting religious texts through approaches that look beyond reading a text for the improvement of our own religion or for access to some metaphysically transcendent reality. This is the first step in a phenomenology of religions that is inclusive, diverse, relevant and grounded in the world we live in.

Philosophical Hermeneutics and the Priority of Questions in Religions
Philosophical Hermeneutics and the Priority of Questions in Religions

Author: Nathan Eric Dickman

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2022-02-24

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 1350202169

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Buddhas, gods, prophets and oracles are often depicted as asking questions. But what are we to understand when Jesus asks “Who do you say that I am?”, or Mazu, the Classical Zen master asks, “Why do you seek outside?" Is their questioning a power or weakness? Is it something human beings are only capable of due to our finitude? Is there any kind of question that is a power? Focusing on three case studies of questions in divine discourse on the level of story - the god depicted in the Jewish Bible, the master Mazu in his recorded sayings literature, and Jesus as he is depicted in canonized Christian Gospels - Nathan Eric Dickman meditates on human responses to divine questions. He considers the purpose of interreligious dialogue and the provocative kind of questions that seem to purposefully decenter us, drawing on methods from confessionally-oriented hermeneutics and skills from critical thinking. He allows us to see alternative ways of interpreting religious texts through approaches that look beyond reading a text for the improvement of our own religion or for access to some metaphysically transcendent reality. This is the first step in a phenomenology of religions that is inclusive, diverse, relevant and grounded in the world we live in.

Philosophies of Religion
Philosophies of Religion

Author: Timothy Knepper

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2022-11-03

Total Pages: 497

ISBN-13: 1350262986

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In this global introduction to philosophy of religion you begin not with a single tradition, but with religious philosophies from East Asia, South Asia, West Africa, and Native North America, alongside the classical Abrahamic and modern European traditions. Matching this diversity of traditions, chapters are organized around questions that acknowledge there is no single understanding of any god or ultimate reality. Instead you approach six different traditions of philosophizing about religion by asking questions about the journeys of both the self and the cosmos such as “What is my path?” and “Where did the cosmos come from?” Accompanied by introductory materials and an extensive glossary, each chapter includes learning objectives, questions for discussion, and suggested primary and secondary sources. The categories of religion and philosophy are interrogated throughout. Equipped with study tools and universal questions about the self and the cosmos, Philosophies of Religion: A Global and Critical Introduction shows you how to philosophize about religions around the world.

Diversifying Philosophy of Religion
Diversifying Philosophy of Religion

Author: Nathan R. B. Loewen

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2023-06-01

Total Pages: 345

ISBN-13: 1350264016

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Much philosophical thinking about religion in the Anglophone world has been hampered by the constraints of Eurocentrism, colonialism and orientalism. Addressing such limitations head-on, this exciting collection develops models for exploring global diversity in order to bring philosophical studies of religion into the globalized 21st century. Drawing on a wide range of critical theories and methodologies, and incorporating ethnographic, feminist, computational, New Animist and cognitive science approaches, an international team of contributors outline the methods and aims of global philosophy of religion. From considering the importance of orality in African worldviews to interacting with Native American perspectives on the cosmos and investigating contemplative studies in Hinduism, each chapter demonstrates how expertise in different methods can be applied to various geographical regions, building constructive options for philosophical reflections on religion. Diversifying Philosophy of Religion raises important questions regarding who speaks for and represents religious traditions, setting the agenda for a truly inclusive philosophy of religion that facilitates multiple standpoints.

A Hermeneutics of Religious Education
A Hermeneutics of Religious Education

Author: David Aldridge

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2015-10-22

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 1441136568

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What does it mean to understand a religion? How should the concept of truth be addressed in the contemporary classroom? What is the proper subject matter of religious education and how does it relate to other subjects and the school curriculum as a whole? Despite the prevalence of literature on these subjects, these issues are far from resolved and consequently the place and nature of religious education in our schools is precarious and confused. A Hermeneutics of Religious Education argues that although the tradition of philosophical hermeneutics has transformed both educational thought and the academic discipline of religious studies, the literature of religious education pedagogy has paid only limited attention to these developments. To engage with them fully entails a transformation of our understanding of religious education and its importance in a curriculum of the twenty-first century.

Using Questions to Think
Using Questions to Think

Author: Nathan Eric Dickman

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2021-05-06

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1350177695

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Our ability to think, argue and reason is determined by our ability to question. Questions are a vital component of critical thinking, yet we underestimate the role they play. Using Questions to Think puts questioning back in the spotlight. Naming the parts of questions at the same time as we name parts of thought, this one-of-a-kind introduction allows us to see how questions relate to the definitions of propositions, premises, conclusions, and the validity of arguments. Why is this important? Making the role of questions visible in thinking reasoning and dialogue, allows us to: - Ask better questions - Improve our capability to understand an argument - Exercise vigilance in the act of questioning - Make explicit what you already know implicitly - Engage with ideas that contradict our own - See ideas in broader context Breathing new life into our current approach to critical thinking, this practical, much-needed textbook moves us away from the traditional focus on formal argument and fallacy identification, combines the Kantian critique of reason with Hans-Georg Gadamer's hermeneutics and reminds us why thinking can only be understood as an answer to a question.

A Secular Age
A Secular Age

Author: Charles Taylor

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2018-09-17

Total Pages: 889

ISBN-13: 0674986911

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The place of religion in society has changed profoundly in the last few centuries, particularly in the West. In what will be a defining book for our time, Taylor takes up the question of what these changes mean, and what, precisely, happens when a society becomes one in which faith is only one human possibility among others.

Feminist Philosophy of Religion
Feminist Philosophy of Religion

Author: Pamela Sue Anderson

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 9780415257497

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Feminist Philosophy of Religion: Critical Readings brings together key new writings in this growing field.

Using Questions to Think
Using Questions to Think

Author: Nathan Eric Dickman

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2021-07-15

Total Pages: 265

ISBN-13: 1350177717

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Our ability to think, argue and reason is determined by our ability to question. Questions are a vital component of critical thinking, yet we underestimate the role they play. Using Questions to Think puts questioning back in the spotlight. Naming the parts of questions at the same time as we name parts of thought, this one-of-a-kind introduction allows us to see how questions relate to the definitions of propositions, premises, conclusions, and the validity of arguments. Why is this important? Making the role of questions visible in thinking reasoning and dialogue, allows us to: - Ask better questions - Improve our capability to understand an argument - Exercise vigilance in the act of questioning - Make explicit what you already know implicitly - Engage with ideas that contradict our own - See ideas in broader context Breathing new life into our current approach to critical thinking, this practical, much-needed textbook moves us away from the traditional focus on formal argument and fallacy identification, combines the Kantian critique of reason with Hans-Georg Gadamer's hermeneutics and reminds us why thinking can only be understood as an answer to a question.

Gadamer’s Repercussions
Gadamer’s Repercussions

Author: Bruce Krajewski

Publisher: Univ of California Press

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 342

ISBN-13: 9780520231863

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"Gadamer’s Repercussions is a terrific collection of essays. While Gadamer is not the most precise of philosophers, he turns out, in this book at least, to be among the most generative. The essays prove that Gadamer’s idealizing of dialogue can actually be put in practice by careful attention to the frameworks he addresses. I was most impressed by the essays that situate his ethics, his aesthetics, his relation to romanticism, his understanding of the relation of law and morality, his engagements with Fascism, and several aspects of his vexed relationship with postmodern thinking, especially on the possibility of dialogue."—Charles Altieri, author of The Particulars of Rapture "Gadamer is well known for his insistence that every reading is a new reading and every act of understanding a pathway to new understanding. Krajewski’s carefully assembled volume applies these maxims to the understanding of Gadamer himself. By focusing on his intellectual and political background as well as his long-range influence and repercussions, the book opens new vistas for assessing one of the philosophical giants of the twentieth century."—Fred Dallmayr, author of Dialogue Among Civilizations