Postcolonial philosophy of religion

The issue of leadership is one that spans many organisations. While management literature has examined this topic in depth, little comment has been made regarding the legitimacy of traditional business leadership theories, developed primarily in the United States, for use in a values-based organisation such as the organised church. The unique spiritual nature of Christian organisations is in some ways at odds with the assumptions of traditional leadership models. That said, many churches in the United States and churches outside the United States, but influenced by US institutional structures, are desperately seeking improvement in both pastoral and organisational effectiveness. This research examines traditional treatment of leadership and identifies implications of traditional and more recent theories of leadership for pastoral leaders and Christian laypeople.     

Process philosophy of religion

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

Postmodern ontology,anthropology, and religion

This article analyses some changes produced in the contemporary ‘postmodern’ self and its consequences for the anthropological study of religion. In this regard, these changes influence deeply the way we westerners represent our ontological structure, and approach other religious systems and ontologies, due to the current processes of globalisation and transnationalisation, the notion of Self often fluctuates between an old stable, autonomous, maximiser (condensed) self and a dispersed, multivocal one. It is argued here that traditional anthropological analyses of religion lack this critical and reflexive awareness. For that reason, cultural phenomena such as shamanism, sorcery, and many forms of religious and cosmological syncretisms, are frequently approached from a distant, naturalistic viewpoint In this paper a more existential view of religion is proposed; it approaches the observer to the observed, opening up his/her assumptions about the ‘order of things’. A collection of notions, such as critical hermeneutics, critical intersubjectivity, dialectics, and ontological language is discussed, to build a fresh inquiry into the realms of numinous life.     

The reception of western philosophy in the Lithuanian philosophy of religion

The article examines the reception of Western philosophy in Lithuanian philosophy of religion. The purpose is to show how the discourse of philosophy of religion came about in Lithuania. This branch of philosophy has been not only culturally and socially important in Lithuania, it has been significant as well for the formation and maintenance of national identity. By the same token, it also was the most developed and controversial theoretically. The first part of the article lays out the genesis of the autonomous Lithuanian philosophy of religion, though strongly influenced by the transformations in the broader context of European philosophy. For that reason it will be useful to present the ideas of the most prominent Lithuanian thinkers in the field who have successfully adopted and adapted vital trends in Western philosophy into the Lithuanian cultural and intellectual context. The second part of the article is less historical and more problematic as it deals with specific issues concerning faith, God, anthropological problems as reflected in the works of contemporary Lithuanian philosophers of religion. Only after having explored certain affiliations of Lithuanian philosophy of religion with Western thought can we state that, although the latter was the necessary precondition of the former, Lithuanian philosophy of religion does substantiate its sovereign status while correlating in an original way major cultural transformations with the changes in theoretical context, according to the specific concerns of Lithuanian society. In addition, this historical and philosophical examination aims to look at the formation of Lithuanian identity, mentality, values, their roots in the Christian tradition as well as the capacity to respond at critical historical moments.

Postmodernism in philosophy of religion and theology

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

费希特哲学向宗教的回归

费希特耶拿时期的哲学是从自我的本原行动出发的,主体的绝对能动性是知识学用以说明一切知识的依据,由此确立的最高原则是人的自由原则。然而,费希特对人的主体能动性(尤其是在道德实践领域)的高扬是从"脱离了自然的精神"片面地出发的。在这一时期费希特的思想中,一切存在、客体都不过是意识的对象而由人的认识能力加以规定。费希特哲学思想的致命弱点也恰恰就在于此。在"无神论事件"及外界的批评下,费希特开始反思知识学的基础或本原,进一步探寻自我或本原行动的实在性的根据。这就导致了费希特哲学向宗教的回归。这在当时对德国哲学及宗教的发展产生了深远的影响。     

A new semantics for the philosophy of religion

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

Textbooks for teaching the anthropology of religion: a review

Written from the perspective of those who teach the anthropology of religion, the paper reviews a selection of texts commonly used in teaching. The authors find the texts are generally useful, although those written clearly and with good cross-referencing detail (index, bibliography, overviews) are the most helpful. One major finding is the range of views over what might constitute 'textbook’ - itself a fairly contested term more widely.