Le Poidevin, Arguing for Atheism. An introduction to the philosophy of religion (1996).pdf

Arguing for Atheism

‘Le Poidevin’s Arguing for Atheism is the best recent introduction to

the philosophy of religion. Le Poidevin writes in a clear and engaging

manner, without sacrifice of conceptual precision or argumentative

depth. One way his book is distinguished from standard introductions

to the philosophy of religion is the inclusion of some recent

developments…. Le Poidevin gives a fair evaluation of both atheism

and theism and his book is eminently suitable for courses on

philosophy of religion…He does not merely recapitulate familiar ideas

but introduces original and plausible arguments of his own. I would

highly recommend this book to students and professors alike.’

Quentin Smith, Western Michigan University

In Arguing for Atheism, Robin Le Poidevin addressses the question of

whether theism—the view that there is a personal, transcendent creator

of the universe—solves the deepest mysteries of existence. Philosophical

defences of theism have often been based on the the idea that it explains

things which atheistic approaches cannot: for example, why the universe

exists, and how there can be objective moral values.

The main contention of Arguing for Atheism is that the reverse is

true: that in fact theism fails to explain many things it claims to, while

atheism can explain some of the things it supposedly leaves mysterious.

It is also argued that religion need not depend on belief in God.

Designed as a text for university courses in the philosophy of religion

and metaphysics, this book’s accessible style and numerous explanations

of important philosophical concepts and positions will also make it

attractive to the general reader.

Robin Le Poidevin is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of

Leeds. He is the author of Change, Cause and Contradiction: A Defence

of the Tenseless Theory of Time (1991) and co-editor, with Murray

MacBeath, of The Philosophy of Time (1993).

Arguing for Atheism

An introduction to the philosophy of

religion

Robin Le Poidevin

London and New York

First published 1996

by Routledge

11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group

This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004.

reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,

mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter

invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any

information storage or retrieval system, without permission in

writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British

Library

Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data

Le Poidevin, Robin, 1962–

Arguing for atheism: an introduction to the philosophy of

religion/Robin Le Poidevin.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Religion—Philosophy. 2. Atheism. I. Title.

BL51.L355 1996

211'.8–dc20 96–3431

CIP

ISBN 0-203-42206-6 Master e-book ISBN

ISBN 0-203-73030-5 (Adobe eReader Format)

ISBN 0-415-09337-6 (hbk)

ISBN 0-415-09338-4 (pbk)

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