Your Guide to Religious Philosophy
Medieval Times (500-1500)
St. Anselm of Canterbury
St. Anselm was born in Northern Italy, but became Archbishop of Canterbury in 1093. He was a Benedictine monk, who is credited with inventing the ontological argument for God’s existence, which he introduced in his Proslogium. The ontological argument does not rely on evidence from the natural world. It states that if we can conceive of God’s existence, then he must exist.
St. Albertus Magnus
Albertus was a German philosopher and theologian, who became a member of the Dominican order in 1223. Once a teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas, Albertus is best known as the first medieval philosopher to apply Aristotle’s theories to Christian thought. He had a comprehensive knowledge of the physical sciences and a belief that science and religion should coexist peacefully. His major work was a commentary on Peter Lombard’s Book of Sentences.
St. Thomas Aquinas
Born in the Kingdom of Naples around 1227, Thomas Aquinas argued against the validity of Anselm’s ontological argument. Thomas believed that there was a close connection between faith and reason, and he laid out five proofs for God’s existence. His greatest work, Summa Theologica was a presentation of Christian doctrine in three parts – God, Ethics, and Jesus. Considered the most important theologian of his time, Thomas was canonized in 1323.
Early Modern Times (1501-1800)?
In Wittenburg (1517), Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the church. The Theses accused the Church of heresy and expressed Luther’s disapproval of corruption and abuses – particularly the sale of indulgences. This act sparked the Protestant Reformation. Luther believed that Justification of the soul could only come from God’s grace through faith. In his The Sermon on Good Works, Luther states that only faith could benefit the soul.
Though he was born in France in 1509, Calvin spent much of his life in Geneva. Along with Martin Luther, John Calvin was one of the most influential figures of the religious reform movement. The religious system that bears his name can be found all over Europe. He believed in predestination and advocated for the separation of church and state. He did not believe in a secular state, but thought that the government was a Christian state and beholden to God in its own way. His most notable work was The Institutes of the Christian Religion.
Born in 1632, this British philosopher is considered on of the greatest minds of the Enlightenment. He believed that the human mind is a blank slate and the two foundations of knowledge are sense-experience and self-reflection. Locke argued for the existence of God. In his work, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke’s most important goal is to determine the limits of human understanding.
Modern Times (1801-1960)
Pope Leo XIII
Born as Count Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci, Pope Leo XIII became the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in 1878. He understood that the pope is a politician, as well as a religious leader and he was eager to identify the church’s role in the modern world. His Humanum Genus caused many to distrust the Catholic Church, while his later Rerum Novarum was respected for its intellectualism.
“Religion is the opiate of the people” is one of Marx’s most famous quotes. Born and raised in Germany, he is best known for his work, The Communist Manifesto (1848) and the political system it spawned. Marx believed that religion was a tool used by oppressive governments to keep an the poor and working classes submissive.
The Screwtape Letters (1942) and The Chronicles of Narnia (1954) make C.S. Lewis one of the most famous Christian writers of the 20th century. This noted member of the English faculty at Oxford, had left the Catholic Church and become an Atheist at the age of 15. In his 30s, he returned to Christianity and joined the Church of England. Though he chose the Anglican faith later in life, many of the religious elements in his work – purgatory and mortal sin- are more in line with teachings in the Catholic faith. He is considered one of the most influential Christian Apologists. His Mere Christianity (1944) is highly regarded as a skeptic’s approach to religion.
Contemporary Times (1961-present)
Born in 1932, Plantinga is an American philosopher currently on the faculty of Notre Dame University. He is most noted for the argument that some people can know that God exists in the same way that people know that other minds exist. He is also known for his discussion of free will and the existence of evil in his work, The Nature of Necessity.
William Alston’s final academic appointment was with Syracuse University, where he continued his work in the philosophy of religion. In addition to being a founding editor of The Journal of Philosophical Research and Faith and Philosophy, Alston is credited with being one of the main figures in the revival of philosophy of religion studies.
A British biological theorist, Dawkins has gained international notice for his work in memetics. Dawkins coined the term “meme” in his work, The Selfish Gene (1976). He applies evolutionary principals to ideas and argues that religion – particularly Christianity - has survived because it values faith over reason and encourages proselytism. Dawkins argues that there is no need for belief in a divine creator as evolution can explain human origins.