Rationality of Religious Belief
The rationality of religious belief remains a highly debated topic in contemporary philosophical discourse. Given that a significant proportion of the global population adheres to religious beliefs, while critics argue that such beliefs are inherently irrational, it is both timely and important to discuss this topic. On the one hand, religious beliefs play a guiding role, giving people meaning in life and inspiring good deeds such as charity and progressive politics. On the other hand, religious beliefs have also been associated with extremist and fundamentalist behaviour, such as terrorism. This provides further motivation for addressing this topic. This dissertation seeks to explore the different models of the rationality of religious beliefs in the evidentialist and non-evidentialist camps. It also investigates whether human beings have a responsibility to hold religious beliefs rationally, in one or another sense of rationality. My approach is purely philosophical; it is not apologetic. By analysing the interplay between evidence, belief and rationality, this study aims to provide a comprehensive philosophical evaluation of these important epistemological questions about religious belief, rather than a spiritual or theological one.
Research Concerns
I aim to:
- Understand the intellectual acceptability of religious beliefs in a world where faith plays a crucial role in many people’s lives yet is also implicated in extremist behaviour.
- Thoroughly explore the different meanings and understandings of the concepts of religious belief, rationality and evidence as expressed by various authors within the context of religious epistemology and identify the views that are most relevant to my project.
- Contribute to the ongoing debate about the rationality of religious belief with a balanced and detailed examination of different perspectives and explore the possibility of constructing a holistic view of the rationality of religious belief that bridges the evidentialist and non-evidentialist camps.
Research Questions
- Should religious beliefs be rational? If so, what are the different models of rationality?
- In considering the rationality of religious belief, evidentialism places great importance on evidence. In this context, is evidentialism the only model of rationality, or is there something more to the rationality of religious beliefs? Furthermore, if there are different models of evidentialism, which is the most appropriate?
- Can a holistic or integrated model of religious rationality be developed that takes into account both evidential and non-evidential dimensions of religious belief?
Research Methods
This dissertation employs a combination of philosophical analysis, conceptual clarification, and critical evaluation of various arguments within the field of Religious Epistemology.Then, I intend to synthesise the findings in order to explore the possibility of a nuanced and integrated model of rationality.
Literature
- Benton, Matthew A., John Hawthorne, and Dani Rabinowitz, eds. Knowledge, Belief, and God: New Insights in Religious Epistemology. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
- Plantinga, Alvin. Warranted Christian Belief. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
- Plantinga, Alvin and Nicholas Wolterstorff, eds. Faith and Rationality: Reason and Belief in God. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1991.
- Swinburne, Richard. Epistemic Justification. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2005.
- Swinburne, Richard. Faith and Reason, 2nd Ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Supervisor
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Katherine Nordskog Dormandy
Department of Christian Philosophy
Doctoral Candidate
Arun Abraham
Arun.Abraham@student.uibk.ac.at
