There are many different philosophers: philosophers of physics, philosophers of biology, art, language, mind, literature, and more. Yet the philosopher of religion has a formidable task set out before him. How can he guide others on the path of wisdom, reflection and meditation on cultivating an awareness, compassion and dedication to the liberation of all sentient beings while at the same time remaining in touch with those who are grounded in the samsaric world, critically examining every manner of religious belief all the while?
“He who embarks upon a philosophical examination of religion must not only be equipped with the current tools of a philosopher; he must have the extreme openness of mind that is proper to the authentic philosopher of every age and that by no means all professional philosophers have attained. Yet no less must he be capable of appreciating the nature and the value of religious discourses when they cross his path… The greatest difficulty the authentic philosopher of religion must face (so great in fact that he is sometimes psychologically incapable of facing it) is the difficulty of grasping the profound nature of the overwhelming conviction of the believer and of truly doing justice to the immensity of the believer’s truth-claim, while at the same time honestly inspecting that religious truth-claim, and all religious problems, on ground other than the one the believer stands on. In short, the philosopher of religion, far from being the over-timid skeptic and the emasculated believer of Dumery’s epigram, ought to be in fact at least as religious as the believer and at the same time as incisively critical as the most hostile skeptic. Only such a philosopher of religion can hope to step beyond both the believer’s profound and special insight and the unbelieving critic’s penetrating yet sometimes barren thought. To put the matter another way, he must excel the skeptic in skepticism and outdo the believer in openness to belief.”
- Geddes MacGregor, 1973, Philosophical Issues in Religious Thought
Buddhism sound like a good fit for a philosopher of Religion.
Hi Greg, haven’t seen you for a while. Coincidentally I bought a book called The Philosophy of Religion: A Buddhist Perspective by Arvind Sharma today.
Ray,
I know I’ve been absent, I took a blogging break for a little while to focus on my practice and some other priorities I was putting off. But, I’m back at it again,
That sounds like an interesting book, I’m going to check it out.
gassho,
Greg
I have never quite understood what a philosopher of religion does–and why.
It always seemed so much simpler to simply “be” within one’s path of choice while allowing others to “be” within their paths of choice.
Malcolm
We always think that our personal beliefs, kept to ourselves, will not affect anyone.
In fact philosophy of religion is an endeavour to try and break through the normal conventions of “belief” and “unbelief”, and examine how to reconcile faith and reason.
At its most basic level it is being honest with oneself.