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Eschatology and the Technological Future
The rapid advancement of technology has led to an explosion of speculative theories about what the future of humankind may look like. These "technological futurisms" have arisen from significant advances in the fields of nanotechnology, biotechnology and information technology and are drawing growing scrutiny from the philosophical and theological communities. This text seeks to contextualize the growing literature on the cultural, philosophical and religious implications of technological growth by considering technological futurisms such as transhumanism in the context of the long historical tradition of technological dreaming. Michael Burdett traces the latent religious sources of our cont...
Religion and Transhumanism
Should technology be used to improve human faculties such as cognition and longevity? This thought-provoking dialogue between "transhumanism" and religion examines enhancement technologies that could radically alter the human species. "Transhumanism" or "human enhancement" is an intellectual and cultural movement that advocates the use of emerging technologies to change human traits. Although they may sound like science fiction, the possibilities suggested by transhumanism are very real, and the questions they raise have no easy answers. If these enhancements—especially major ones like the indefinite extension of healthy human life—become widely available, they would arguably have a more...
Transhumanism and Transcendence
The timeless human desire to be more beautiful, intelligent, healthy, athletic, or young has given rise in our time to technologies of human enhancement. Athletes use drugs to increase their strength or stamina; cosmetic surgery is widely used to improve physical appearance; millions of men take drugs like Viagra to enhance sexual performance. And today researchers are exploring technologies such as cell regeneration and implantable devices that interact directly with the brain. Some condemn these developments as a new kind of cheating—not just in sports but in life itself—promising rewards without effort and depriving us most of all of what it means to be authentic human beings. “Tran...
How the Light Gets In
How the Light Gets In: Ethical Life I presents a systematic account of the teachings of the Christian faith to offer a vision, from a human, created, and limited perspective, of the ways all things might be understood from the divine perspective. It explores how Christian doctrine is lived, and the way in which beliefs are not simply cognitive sets of ideas but embodied cultural practices. Christians learn how to understand the contents of their faith, learn the language of the faith, through engagements that are simultaneously somatic, affective, imaginative, and intellectual. In the first of four volumes, Graham Ward examines the complex levels of these engagements through three historical...
David's Jerusalem
The history of David’s Jerusalem remains one of the most contentious topics of the ancient world. This study engages with debates about the nature of this location by examining the most recent archaeological data from the site and by exploring the relationship of these remains to claims made about David’s royal center in biblical narrative. Daniel Pioske provides a detailed reconstruction of the landscape and lifeways of early 10th century BCE Jerusalem, connected in biblical tradition to the figure of David. He further explores how late Iron Age (the Book of Samuel-Kings) and late Persian/early Hellenistic (the Book of Chronicles) Hebrew literary cultures remembered David’s Jerusalem within their texts, and how the remains and ruins of this site influenced the memories of those later inhabitants who depicted David’s Jerusalem within the biblical narrative. By drawing on both archaeological data and biblical writings, Pioske calls attention to the breaks and ruptures between a remembered past and a historical one, and invites the reader to understand David’s Jerusalem as more than a physical location, but also as a place of memory.
Islam and Evolution
This book attempts to equip the reader with a holistic and accessible account of Islam and evolution. It guides the reader through the different variables that have played a part in the ongoing dialogue between Muslim creationists and evolutionists. This work views the discussion through the lens of al-Ghazālī (1058-1111), a widely-known and well-respected Islamic intellectual from the medieval period. By understanding al-Ghazālī as an Ash’arite theologian, a particular strand of Sunni theology, his metaphysical and hermeneutic ideas are taken to explore if and how much Neo-Darwinian evolution can be accepted. It is shown that his ideas can be used to reach an alignment between Islam and Neo-Darwinian evolution. This book offers a detailed examination that seeks to offer clarity if not agreement in the midst of an intense intellectual conflict and polarity amongst Muslims. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars of Science and Religion, Theology, Philosophy of Religion, Islamic Studies, and Religious Studies more generally. *Winner of the International Society for Science & Religion (ISSR) book prize 2022 (academic category)*
Theologies of Failure
What does failure mean for theology? In the Bible, we find some unsettling answers to this question. We find lastness usurping firstness, and foolishness undoing wisdom. We discover, too, a weakness more potent than strength, and a loss of life that is essential to finding life. Jesus himself offers an array of paradoxes and puzzles through his life and teachings. He even submits himself to humiliation and death to show the cosmos the true meaning of victory. As David Bentley Hart observes, “most of us would find Christians truly cast in the New Testament mold fairly obnoxious: civically reprobate, ideologically unsound, economically destructive, politically irresponsible, socially discred...
Design Discourse in Abrahamic Traditions
Design Discourse in Abrahamic Traditions reconnects discussion of design arguments to its Jewish, Christian, and Muslim history. The ancient idea that there is evidence of purpose in nature remains one of the most debated topics in science and religion, but also one with great potential for inter-religious and interdisciplinary dialogue. This volume revitalizes current discussion by retrieving perspectives from the Abrahamic history of design arguments and engaging them with contemporary ideas. Beginning with the encounter ancient philosophy and creation beliefs, the book proceeds to delve deep into issues ranging from the nature of theological and teleological language to the implications of evolution and evil. This rich exploration showcases how, far from being irrelevant in a post-Humean, post-Darwinian world, design arguments continue to merit both popular-level and academic attention. The volume will be of particular interest to scholars working at the intersection of science and religion, philosophers of religion, and theologians.
Against Methodology in Science and Religion
Since its development as a field over the last part of the twentieth century, scholars in science and religion have been heavily concerned with methodological issues. Following the lead of Thomas Kuhn, many scholars in this interdisciplinary field have offered proposals that purport to show how theology and science are compatible by appropriating theories of scientific methodology or rationality. Arguing against this strategy, this book shows why much of this methodological work is at odds with recent developments in the history and philosophy of science and should be reconsidered. Firstly, three influential methodological proposals are critiqued: Lakatosian research programs, Alister McGrat...
Perspectives on Spiritual Intelligence
The topic of intelligence involves questions that cut deep into ultimate concerns and human identity, and the study of intelligence is an ideal ground for dialogue between science and religion. This volume investigates the notion of spiritual intelligence from a variety of perspectives, bringing together contributions from theology, computer science, linguistics, psychology, biology, and cognitive science. It defines spiritual intelligence as “processing things differently, not processing different things” and aims to describe it in naturalistic terms. Spiritual intelligence is not regarded as a separate mental module or a magical ability to interact with the supernatural but rather as a specific, more spiritual way of engagement with reality, which has observable cognitive, phenomenal, and linguistic characteristics. The book is valuable reading for those working at the interface between science and spirituality.
