Saints, Heretics, and Atheists: An Historical Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion

Does God exist? What is the nature of evil and where does it come from? Are humans free? Responsible? Immortal? Does it matter? This course explores foundational questions in the philosophy of western religion through the study of classic works by Plato, Augustine of Hippo, Anselm of Canterbury, Ibn Sina, Al-Ghazali, Thomas Aquinas, Blaise Pascal, Baruch Spinoza, David Hume, John Stuart Mill, Friedrich Nietzsche and William James, as well as discussions by contemporary authors such as Pamala Milne, Marilynne Robinson, and Daniel Dennett.

Students have the opportunity to reexamine their own views and assumptions about religion in dialogue with great thinkers of the past and present.