Overview
Molinism, named after the sixteenth-century Spanish Jesuit Luis de Molina, re-emerged in the 1970s after it was unwittingly assumed in versions of Alvin Plantinga's Free Will Defence against the Logical Argument from Evil. The Molinist notion of middle knowledge--and especially its main objects, so-called counterfactuals of (creaturely) freedom--have been the subject of vigorous debate in analytical philosophy of religion ever since. Is middle knowledge logically coherent? Is it a benefit or a liability overall for a satisfying account of divine providence? The essays in this collection examine the status, defensibility, and application of Molinism. Friends and foes of Molinism are well represented, and there are some lively exchanges between them. The collection provides a snap-shot of the current state of the Molinism Wars, along with some discussion of where we've been and where we might go in the future. More battles surely lie ahead; the essays and ideas in this collection are likely to have a major impact on future directions. The essays are specially written by a line-up of established and respected philosophers of religion, metaphysicians, and logicians. There is a substantive Introduction and an extensive Bibliography to assist both students and professionals.
Full Product Details
Author: Ken Perszyk (Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand)
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Dimensions:
Width: 14.90cm
, Height: 2.50cm
, Length: 22.40cm
Weight: 0.544kg
ISBN: 9780199590629
ISBN 10: 0199590621
Pages: 330
Publication Date: 24 November 2011
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.
Reviews
I was ... pleasantly surprised by the quality and originality shown in this volume. It is, by any reasonable standard, a superb collection of papers ... the collection is required reading for anyone working on Molinism in the future and can also be used effectively to gain a perspective on Molinism itself and the debates surrounding it of the last thirty years or so. Jonathan L. Kvanvig, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews
Author Information
Ken Perszyk is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy and Head of the School of History, Philosophy, Political Science and International Relations at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. His primary research interests are in philosophy of religion and metaphysics. He has published articles on a range of areas, including Molinism, the Argument from Evil, the metaphysics of modality, the history of early analytical philosophy and Wittgenstein. He is the author of Nonexistent Objects: Meinong and Contemporary Philosophy (1993).
