Philosophy of Religion (PHIL 330)
Manchester University, Spring 2017 Instructor: Steve Naragon
Course Objectives
General Education Goals. This course satisfies the Core 4PH (philosophy)
This course satisfies the Core 4PH (philosophy) requirement, whose goals for the student are:
1. to discuss the approaches that philosophers take to fundamental human questions, and
2. to acquire the vocabulary and skills necessary to engage in philosophical inquiry, especially through developing your ability to understand and evaluate arguments.
These goals are furthered by (a) your careful reading of the texts, (b) classroom and small group discussion, and (c) writing and responding to Discussion Forum posts on a number of central topics in philosophy. These goals as understood within the context of this course are further elaborated below.
Philosophy is a discipline in the humanities, and so our goals here are rather different from those in the natural and social sciences — although the findings of these other areas of inquiry are often of great importance in philosophy.
Philosophy is concerned less with the accumulation of facts, than with the education of the individual. My primary goal — and the goal of the humanities in general — is to help each individual increase their level of self-understanding. This is not a small matter, and it lies at the heart of any human existence that is worth living.
The philosophy of religion is the critical study of questions raised by our various religious beliefs and practices. It also involves an investigation into when a belief or practice is religious, or concerns the sacred or divine. The philosophy of religion intersects with all the traditional areas of philosophy, and so our explorations this semester will also lead us into logic, metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics.
By the end of this course, you should have improved your ability to:
(1) articulate the basic concepts in the philosophy of religion (such as faith, revelation, the sacred, miracles, belief),
(2) explain various problems that religious belief and practice present to us, and evaluate possible solutions,
(3) critically evaluate arguments and beliefs, as presented in our texts and by each other,
(4) reflect carefully and fairly upon ideas and beliefs that might be quite distant from your own.
Some virtues to bring with you into the philosophy classroom:
humility when comparing your beliefs with those of others;
patience for listening closely to views that seem foolish or misguided to you;
courage to advance in the face of adversity what seems to be the correct view;
endurance for following arguments to their conclusion;
humor for those moments when you feel the utter futility of your efforts.
Manchester University // Registrar // Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies // Last updated: 23 Nov 2016