Humes dialogues concerning natural religion 1 closes with an endorsement of the very position which it has consistently attacked, namely belief in an orderer. Beginning with a treatise of human nature 173940, hume strove to create a naturalistic. Attenuated deism and humes instinctual belief society and politics. An important exponent of the first group of interpreters is j. The site thus covers the main philosophical traditions, from the presocratic to the contemporary philosophers, while trying to bring a philosophical reading to the cultural field in general, such as cinema, literature, politics or music. Dialogues concerning natural religion early modern texts. This is perhaps the best work on humes philosophy of religion to date on account of both its scope and careful analysis. But a com plete treatise on the philosophy of religi would be long and complicated, and space is limited in an introduction. This course will introduce some central aspects of the thought of david hume, the leading 18. Humes scepticism and his ethical depreciation of religion.
Another discussion of the relation of natural beliefs to religious ones is terence penelhum s natural belief and religious belief in hume s philosophy, the philosophical quarterly 33, no. Dialogues argumentative structure, its relation to humes other writings, and its broader historical context. Gaskin, 9780333393468, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. His position is further compared with contemporary expressions of new atheism. The natural history of religion investigates the origins of belief, and follows its development from polytheism to dogmatic. From this perspective, it is not unusual to view hume s views on religion in terms of the skepticism and naturalism that features prominently in his treatise of human nature 173940, his first.
Collections of essays and conference papers are always liable to two. Over the past forty years the most influential study of humes philosophy of religion has been j. The ideas and text of the work are also considered along with humes continuing importance to philosophy today. Bailey and obriens nondogmatic atheist reading provides a strong and powerful challenge to views of this kind hcr, p. Dialogues concerning natural religion david hume pamphilus to hermippus letter from pamphilus to hermippus it has been remarked that though the ancient philosophers mostly taught through dialogues, the dialogue form hasnt been much used in recent times, and has seldom succeeded when people have tried it. David hume on religionfinal connecting repositories. Humes discussion, see john gaskin, humes philosophy of religion, chapter 4. All this illustrates how humes various statements on religion should not be naively taken at face value. The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur in humes writings, but items in the history of ideas, questions of interpretation and biographical details are introduced when they. Hume was just 23 years old when he started this work and it is now regarded as one of the most important in the history of western philosophy.
This is because, i claim, whether or not these arguments do in practice live up to what ive argued in the lecture is their. A s we saw last week, in of miracles, david hume defined a miracle, rightly in my view, as a transgression of a law of nature by a particular. Gaskin, god, hume and natural belief, philosophy 49 1984. Humes thoroughgoing religious scepticism is set within the context of the scottish enlightenment. Hume on religion stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Together, these works constitute the most formidable attack upon religious belief ever mounted by a philosopher. Humes science of man, and of the most representative examples of principles of natural philosophy considered by hume.
Deities not considered as creators or formers of the worl 5. Humes philosophy of religion library of philosophy and. Collections of essays and conference papers are always liable to two defects. From this perspective, it is not unusual to view humes views on religion in terms of the skepticism and naturalism that features prominently in his treatise of human nature 173940, his first. The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur. Mackie makes reference to humes natural history of religion 1757, which is well worth reading as a pioneering attempt to provide such a naturalistic explanation. Gaskin describes humes settled position as an attenuated deism although this might be further qualified by describing it as a tentative attenuated deism gaskin 1978.
In due course, hume tries to establish that religious. References to david humes dialogues concerning natural religion are given first to the kemp smith edition indianapolis, 1947, and second to the tweyman edition above, n. This course will introduce some central aspects of the thought of david hume, the. Kant famously argues that the cosmological argument depends on the ontological argument this isnt really main line, but if you want to see some discussion of kants claim, there is a short article by. I shall be dealing with not only sections x and xi but also part ii of section viii and part iii of section xii. The ideas and text of the work are also considered along with hume s continuing importance to philosophy today. Against some interpreters, it is argued that, although elusive, his attenuated deism gaskin is not wholly dismissive of all forms of religious thought and practice. Routledge philosophy guidebook to hume on religion. Gaskin, 9780333235874, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. The philosophy of david hume alfred weber there are no bodies, the idealists dogmatically declared. The context, aims, and structure of humes first enquiry. Fogelin, humes scepticism in the treatise of human nature. True religion in humes dialogues concerning natural religion. The context, aims, and structure of humes first enquiry, p.
The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur in humes writings, but items in the history of ideas. The scotchman, david hume1 17111776, an acute thinker and classical historian of england,2 opposes to each of these schools. The absence of god and its contextual significance for. The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur in humes writings, but items in the history of ideas, questions of interpretation. Hume on religion introduces his major work on the subject, dialogues concerning natural religion and assesses hume s life and the background to the work. Gaskin s humes philosophy of religion, which defends an attenuated deism reading of hume 19781988. Whether the fact that hume grants that it is possible to doubt our belief in the. In any case, one has to start somewhere what follows is a very heavily revised version of a text published by oxford university press in 1982. Gaskin has argued that humean natural belief has to meet four criteria. Hume was a critical thinker concerning religion, so everyone interested in this subject will profit from gaskins insightful commentary.
As yandell sees their difference, gaskin s book portrays. Dialogues and natural history of religion, edited by j. Routledge philosophy guidebook to hume on religion david. Considerations of other vital aspects of his philosophy are, such as being a man, are often overlooked. Gaskin macmillan london wikipedia citation please see wikipedias template documentation for further citation fields that may be required. Another discussion of the relation of natural beliefs to religious ones is terence penelhums natural belief and religious belief in humes philosophy, the. Hume s philosophy of religion brings together for the first time the whole range of hume s immensely important critique of religion. Humes willingness to oppose arguments supporting a position in which he believes means that, despite mounting severe criticisms, he can consistently support a designer as the optimum hypothesis for order in the world. David hume on the cosmological argument and the argument. Despite hume s protestations, a general consensus exists today that hume s most important arguments and philosophically distinctive doctrines are found in the original form they take in the treatise. David hume is one of the most provocative philosophers to have written in english. It is evident that suicide cases remain prevalent in society today, due to mans misery and experience of anxiety and frustration. Interpretations of hume s philosophy of religion are often made against the background of more general interpretations of his philosophical intentions. Dialogues concerning natural religion and assesses humes life and the background to the work.
The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur in hume s writings, but items in the history of ideas, questions of interpretation and biographical details are introduced when they contribute to an. Just as discussion of hume on induction isnt constrained by the fact that he never used the word induction, so discussion of humes total rejection of the a priori arguments for gods existence gaskin, humes philosophy of religion, p. Natural religion, philosophical dialogue, and skepticism a variety of religious and moral interests motivated the preoccupation with natural religion during humes time. Understandably, given the interpretive challenges posed by the dialogue form, the focus of david humes interest in religion in the dialogues concerning natural religion can be difficult to pinpoint.
Dialogues and natural history of religion oxford worlds. Humes philosophy of belief a work especially about the. Hume on the relation of religion to morality jstor. Jan 26, 2001 volume 27, number 2, november 2001, pp. David hume, a british and empiricist philosopher, wrote essentially the following works. Humes philosophy of religion volume 20 antony flew.
The cambridge companion to hume, second edition edited by david fate. Humes philosophy of religion library of philosophy. References to david hume s dialogues concerning natural religion are given first to the kemp smith edition indianapolis, 1947, and second to the tweyman edition above, n. The scope of humes inexplicable mystery is similar to the second edition of j. In humes thinking, we observe these successive events, but we cannot find the necessary link between them. Recent work on hume a survey of hume literature 19691979.
The natural history of religion investigates the origins of belief, and follows its development from polytheism to dogmatic monotheism. Routledge philosophy guidebook to hume on religion david o. The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of ph. Pdf hume on natural belief and original principles researchgate. Since that was the first whole book to be devoted to this enquiry, and since it seems still to. It is most easily available in the oxford worlds classics edition by j. Principal writings on religion including dialogues concerning natural religion and, the natural history of religion. Gaskin, humes philosophy of religion, chapter 8 cautionary note first, youll have noticed that this week ive left my conclusions hypothetical. Introduction the most perfect philosophy of the natural kind only staves off our ignorance a little longer. Hume s dialogues concerning natural religion 1 closes with an endorsement of the very position which it has consistently attacked, namely belief in an orderer. Humes philosophy of religion brings together for the first time the whole range. That religion has no legitimate consequences for the practicalmoral affairs of man is the controlling consideration in hume s philosophy of religion, and it is one of the controlling considerations in the development of his moral theory. Humes willingness to oppose arguments supporting a position in which he believes means that, despite mounting severe criticisms, he can consistently support a designer as the optimum hypothesis. That religion has no legitimate consequences for the practicalmoral affairs of man is the controlling consideration in humes philosophy of religion, and it is one of the controlling considerations in the development of his moral theory.
Humes philosophy of religion brings together for the first time the whole range of humes immensely important critique of religion. Treatise of human nature 1740 essays concerning human understanding 1748 natural history of religion 1757 in summary, david hume criticized the dogmatic rationalism of the seventeenth century and brought the principle of causality in the subjective opinion. Kant, immanuel, critique of pure reason, a592 to 630. His dialogues ask if a belief in god can be inferred from what is known of the universe, or whether such a belief is even consistent with such knowledge. Edinburgh university press, 1984 defends a similar view.
The major concern is with a clear discussion and presentation of philosophical issues wherever they occur in hume s writings, but items in the history of ideas. The absence of god and its contextual significance for hume. Mar, 2018 over the past forty years the most influential study of humes philosophy of religion has been j. The natural history of religion table of contents introduction 1. Gaskin macmillan london wikipedia citation please see wikipedias template documentation for further citation fields that may be. Humes philosophy of religion royal institute of philosophy. David hume on the cosmological argument and the argument from. Scottish enlightenment philosopher david hume 1711 1779 is famously known through his skeptical approach on epistemology, ethics, and religion. Gaskin s fine study, humes philosophy of religion humanities press, 1988, covering humes natural history of religion, the dialogues, his popular essays on religious topics, and the essay on miracles. Of all this material we have, anywhere in the originally anonymous and later emphatically disowned treatise of human nature, humes first book, nothing more than at most hints. In humes own lifetime his philosophy was widely viewed by scottish, english and continental critics in both scotland and england as being atheistic in character and generally hostile to religion, not only on account of late writings like the dialogues, but also on account of humes early writings, including the treatise. The natural history of religion and dialogues concerning natural religion by david hume edited by a.
Hume s willingness to oppose arguments supporting a position in which he believes means that, despite mounting severe criticisms, he can consistently support a designer as the optimum hypothesis for order in the world. Considerations of other vital aspects of his philosophy are, such as being a man, are often. Interpretations of humes philosophy of religion are often made against. Feb 16, 2009 a s we saw last week, in of miracles, david hume defined a miracle, rightly in my view, as a transgression of a law of nature by a particular volition of the deity, or the interposition of some. One of humes bestknown teachings was that cause and ef fect cannot be proven to be true, in spite of the longheld belief on the part of most men that certain effects follow naturally from certain causes. Interpretations of humes philosophy of religion are often made against the background of more general interpretations of his philosophical intentions. On david hume s philosophy of suicide semantic scholar.
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