bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Buddhaghosa
Authors: Heim Maria
Published: November 2021

Buddhaghosa, who lived in the first half of the fifth century
ce
, was the preeminent commentator in the Theravāda Buddhist tradition as well as the author of an independent treatise called the
Path of Purification
(
Visuddhimagga
). Buddhaghosa's
Path of Purification
developed doctrine into a highly systematic path of moral, contemplative, and soteriological practice for monastics. He was also the head translator, editor, and systematizer of a large body of commentary that shaped the Pāli tradition's understanding of Buddhist scripture. After the Buddha himself, Buddhaghosa is regarded as the most influential scholar in the Theravāda tradition until modern times.
Cappadocians (Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa)
Authors: Jacobs Nathan A.
Published: November 2021

The Cappadocians are three fathers of the early Christian church named for the region of Cappadocia, namely Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Gregory of Nyssa. In what follows, we will look at three themes that are central to the Cappadocian philosophy of religion: (i) God calls beings out of nonbeing; (ii) the enemy of creatures is corruption; and (iii) God gives to others that which belongs to him alone. As we will see, these three points, taken together, bring to light the metaphysical foundations of the Cappadocian understanding of Christianity specifically and of the cosmos generally.
Christianity
Authors: Meister Chad
Published: November 2021

Christianity has had a complex and enigmatic relationship with philosophy over the centuries, with the latter being perceived as theological handmaiden in some contexts and serious critic in others. Philosophy has influenced Christian concepts and doctrines, and Christian theism has influenced Western philosophy; philosophers have challenged and attacked Christian theism, and Christian theologians and apologists have themselves been philosophers. This historically ambivalent relationship between philosophy and Christianity continues today.
Clifford, William Kingdon
Authors: Oliveira Luis R.G.
Published: November 2021

W.K. Clifford's (1845–1879) famous 1876 essay “The Ethics of Belief” contains one of the most memorable lines in the history of philosophy: “it is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.” The challenge to religious belief stemming from this moralized version of evidentialism is still widely discussed today.
Cognitive Science and the Soul
Authors: Baker Mark C.
Published: November 2021

Although cognitive science has often been presented as offering a purely materialist theory of intelligence, in fact it is compatible with a dualist picture that includes souls as well. First, cognitive science is neutral as to what kind of thing is doing its computations, material or not. Second, cognitive science is incomplete as a theory of the mind: it works well for automatic subconscious information processing, but has no account of abductive reasoning, free will, intentionality, or conscious experience. Finally, cognitive scientific accounts of why people all over the world believe in some kind of soul are technically incomplete and neutral as to whether those beliefs are in fact true or not.
Contemporary Continental Thought: 1850–Present
Authors: Goodchild Philip
Published: November 2021

Contemporary continental thought is concerned with evaluating perspectives – ways of thinking and acting in the world. It generally treats religion as a way of being, living, and thinking rather than as a collection of expressed beliefs; it also treats reason itself as an object of rational critique. In doing so, it draws upon the heritage of the critical thinking of Immanuel Kant, Georg Hegel, Friedrich Nietzsche, Edmund Husserl, and Martin Heidegger. Such thinking is deployed primarily to advance, develop, and overcome its own perspectives. Contemporary continental thought therefore pursues divergent and fresh lines of exploration in its engagement with religion. Some of these draw upon religious ideas to critique modern reason; others seek to liberate perspectives which have been suppressed by the quest for a universal form of thought.
Creation and Conservation
Authors: Gorham Geoffrey
Published: November 2021

Philosophers within Western theism have generally aimed to avoid the view that God merely creates the world “in the beginning” (deism). The most influential alternative is that God subsequently conserves the world by creating it continuously (continuous creation). However, this threatens to leave nothing for created beings to do (occasionalism). Although some philosophers have embraced occasionalism, others have devised models of continuous creation that allow a “division of powers” between God and creation (concurrentism). These efforts involve a number of perennial issues in philosophical theology: the meaning of “creation”; the eternity of the world; God's relation to space, time and body, etc. Although continuous creation remains of interest to philosophers of religion the focus of this entry is the historical development of the doctrine. For it was in the medieval era that continuous creation was devised and refined; and it was in the early modern era that it was mostly fruitfully applied.
Daodejing and Laozi
Authors: LaFargue Michael
Published: November 2021

The Daodejing is an originally anonymous work later ascribed to Laozi. Its two main topics are (i) self‐cultivation (how to cultivate a state of mind, called “getting
dao
”), and (ii) managerial style. In both cases its leading ideal is that of organic harmony, working with those kinds of naturally occurring forces that are conducive to balanced and harmonious functioning within a person or in a human community.
Descartes, René
Authors: Cottingham John
Published: November 2021

This entry examines the central place of God in René Descartes' (1596–1650) thought, and discusses the religious elements in his metaphysical reflections, the role of God in his scientific system, and the theistic background to his moral philosophy.
Dewey, John
Authors: Bleazby Jennifer
Published: November 2021

John Dewey (1859–1952) was a well‐known American philosopher and public figure. Although Dewey initially adopted an idealist philosophy, which he integrated with Christian religious beliefs, he later became one of the founders of pragmatism. Dewey's pragmatism led him to abandon organized religion and, instead, develop a naturalistic and humanistic account of religious experience and faith.
Dharma
: Buddhist
Authors: Dessein Bart
Published: November 2021

Developing from the etymological meaning of the word,
dharma
is outlined in its Buddhist meanings. The entry explains how the word
dharma
in a Buddhist context is, on the one hand, interpreted from within the traditional Indian philosophical and religious spheres, and how, on the other hand, new meanings were given to the word which are exclusively Buddhist. These new meanings are the outcome of the fundamentally different approach Buddhism had to the nature of a person and a person's relation to the world, as well as of the particular Buddhist interpretation of this world as such. These new meanings of the word
dharma
are intrinsically related to the person of the historical Buddha.
Divine Freedom
Authors: Sennett James F.
Published: November 2021

Orthodox theism holds that God is necessarily omniscient, omnipotent, and morally perfect. However, these properties appear to entail that God chooses only the best option in every moral decision in every possible world. Therefore, it is not possible for God to choose alternative actions in moral decisions. Therefore, God cannot be morally free. But moral freedom is a great‐making property; hence, God must bear it. Call this “The Dilemma of Divine Freedom” (DDF). Leibniz argued in favor of divine freedom from a compatibilist position while Clarke argued from a libertarian position. Both arguments fall short of resolving the dilemma. More recent attempts to preserve divine freedom through the doctrine of eternal causation also fail. The dilemma remains.
Dōgen
Authors: Raud Rein
Published: November 2021

Dōgen (1200–1251) was a Japanese Zen Buddhist thinker, known primarily for his idiosyncratic use of language, his theory of momentary being, according to which past and future were not real, and his assertion that there is no gap between Buddhist praxis and enlightenment. Praxis, in his view, required a state of mind most easily attained by seated meditation, but once this state had been reached, any act could be turned into praxis.
Eckhart, Meister
Authors: Wojtulewicz Christopher M.
Published: November 2021

Meister Eckhart's (c. 1250–1328) Latin and German works show how his unique approach to questions concerning God's nature, existence, and relation to the world are enriched and complicated by the relationship between the two languages and their endogenous genres. Distinctive in his preaching style, and bold in his dialectical play on metaphysical themes, the Dominican Friar endures as a controversial and widely read fourteenth‐century philosopher, theologian, and spiritual author.
Eriugena, John Scotus
Authors: Carabine Deirdre
Published: November 2021

The Irish scholar known as John Scotus Eriugena (c. 815–877), who worked at the court of Charles the Bald in the ninth century, was a key figure in the history of Christian philosophy and theology. He was a translator, exegete, and poet. His seminal work, the
Periphyseon
, demonstrates a strikingly original use of Eastern and Western philosophical and theological writings, all the time keeping a close eye on reason and the scriptures. Although his work was condemned in 1225, his ideas did influence later thinkers in the apophatic tradition, notably Meister Eckhart.
Evidentialism
Authors: Wainwright† William J.
Published: November 2021

Evidentialists think that beliefs are rationally held if and only if they are based on evidence. This is true of all beliefs and therefore of religious beliefs. Evidentialism's critics point out that some beliefs are “properly basic” – they aren't based on other beliefs yet are nonetheless rational. Examples are simple arithmetical beliefs, many memory beliefs and ordinary perceptual beliefs. Alvin Plantinga has argued that religious beliefs, too, can be properly basic. While many objections to his position can be met, one cannot – the fact that the religious beliefs of many devout theists are based on evidence and, in particular, on good philosophical and theological arguments. A good argument must not only be valid and have true premises, it must also succeed in achieving its purpose. The purposes of arguments vary, however. Arguments are thus “person‐relative” – they can be probative for one person and not for another. Other sources of person‐relativity include differences in information, cognitive skills, and more controversially, in temperaments, needs, passions, and one's deepest intuitions. The entry concludes with a brief discussion of the epistemic role testimony plays in the formation of rational religious beliefs.
Existentialism and Existential Theology
Authors: Thalos Mariam
Published: November 2021

This entry focuses on major cross‐fertilization events between Christian thought and philosophical thought, especially existential thought, from Augustine to the present. Special attention is given to the influence of Augustine, Descartes, Kierkegaard, and Tillich, around questions of philosophical anthropology, human origins, and the status of the doctrine of theism. The entry concludes with comparisons between existential theology and nontheistic strands of the Chinese traditions of Buddhism and Confucianism.
Fine‐Tuning Argument
Authors: Collins Robin
Published: November 2021

In the last 50 years, physicists have discovered that the structure of the universe must be precisely structured in order for there to exist embodied conscious beings that can meaningfully interact with each other. Here I present a basic version of the argument that these discoveries strongly support theism over naturalism, an argument that has come to be known as the “fine‐tuning argument.” I then respond to various objections to the argument.
Gadamer, Hans‐Georg
Authors: Vessey David
Published: November 2021

Hans‐Georg Gadamer's (1900–2002) views on religion are those of a philosopher who sees religion as providing practical insights for coping with life's essential ignorance. His own views of philosophical hermeneutics provide important insights into how religious texts can allow for multiple interpretations and still reveal truths specifically to believers. His views have also influenced conceptions of interreligious dialogue and the practical import of religious interpretation.
Gorampa Sonam Senge
Authors: Kassor Constance
Published: November 2021

Gorampa Sonam Senge (Go rams pa bSod nams Seng ge, 1429–1489) is one of the most influential scholars in the Sakya (
sa skya
) school of Tibetan Buddhism. A prolific author and an accomplished meditation practitioner, Gorampa is renowned for his detailed systematization and robust defense of what has come to be regarded as the mainstream Sakya view; according to this, the Middle Way theory of emptiness is to be understood in terms of “freedom from conceptual proliferations.” Together with his critiques of rival thinkers, Gorampa's philosophical view led to the eventual suppression of his works, many of which were only recovered in the early twentieth century.
Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich
Authors: di Giovanni George , Green Garth W.
Published: November 2021

This entry depicts the character and development of Hegel's (1770–1831) philosophy of religion in the thematic context of Lessing's distinction between truths of reason and truths of history, and across three principal periods – those of the pre‐1800 early theological writings, the Jena‐period
Phenomenology of Spirit
, and the Berlin‐period
Lectures on the Philosophy of Religion
.
Ibn ʿArabī
Authors: Winter Tim
Published: November 2021

Muḥammad ibn ʿArabī (or ibn al‐ʿArabī) al‐Ṭāʾī al‐Ḥātimī (1165–1240) was a Muslim mystic and theologian whose soubriquet
al‐Shaykh al‐Akbar
(the Greatest Elder) reflects his reputation as one of the most influential thinkers in Islamic history. Born in the Andalusian city of Murcia, he received his early education in Seville, where he learned the traditional religious subjects of Qurʾānic interpretation, Prophetic traditions, Islamic law, and formal systematic theology. He was also touched by the complex currents of Muslim mysticism which had evolved in Muslim Spain in his time, and by aspects of the Islamized Hellenic legacy, including local evolutions of Platonism, Pythagoreanism, and alchemy. His system comprises a vast commentary on the Qurʾānic names of God, in which he details the centrality of the saint, as Perfect Human, in the Circle of Existence by which differentia emerge from God and are resolved into unity again.
Immanence and Transcendence
Authors: Flannery Kevin
Published: November 2021

Immanence and transcendence were issues in classical Greek philosophy, both Plato and Aristotle regarding the two ways of conceiving of the divine as not wholly incompatible. Among the Stoics, however, there can be discerned a certain emphasis on immanence, even to the point of excluding transcendence. The two medieval theologians, Aquinas and Duns Scotus, recognize both transcendence and immanence. The concept of analogy helps Aquinas to maintain God's transcendence; to the same purpose, Scotus emphasizes God's infinite perfection. Much later, Spinoza insists on divine immanence to the deliberate exclusion of transcendence; Hegel follows Spinoza in this regard, arguing also that such an approach does not amount to pantheism.
Ineffability
Authors: Casey Patrick J.
Published: November 2021

Ineffability, the notion that something is inexpressible or indescribable in language, has long been a subject of interest for philosophers who want to understand religious language and experience. Yet ineffability remains a topic of contentious debate. First, the classic problem for ineffability is outlined, namely, that ascriptions of ineffability are paradoxical and self‐defeating. Second, the debate around whether there are any plausible candidates for ineffability is characterized. Several possible candidates are considered – objects, experience, and knowledge – along with brief rejoinders.
Iranian Thought: Islamic Era
Authors: Aminrazavi Mehdi
Published: November 2021

The entry opens with a survey of the different schools of theology and philosophy such as Khurāsān, Āzarbāyjan, Shirāz, Iṣfahān, and Tehran and their major figures. The Ismā‘īlī intellectual tradition, its salient features, and the major figures belonging to this school of thought are presented next. Philosophical gnosticism and its main figures as well as Ibn ‘Arabī and his followers in Iran are commented upon. Some of the eighteenth‐ and nineteenth‐century messianic movements and their central themes in modern Iran are presented, followed by contemporary philosophical discussions in Iran.
Jayarāśi
Authors: Mills Ethan
Published: November 2021

Jayarāśi (c. 770–830
ce
) was a philosophical skeptic who was possibly affiliated with the irreligious Cārvāka school of classical Indian philosophy. In this entry, the scholarly debate concerning his affiliation is considered, as are his critique of the means of knowledge (
pramāṇas
), his argumentative methods, and questions concerning the interpretation of his overall purpose.
Julian of Norwich
Authors: Dutton Elisabeth
Published: November 2021

Julian of Norwich is significant as one of the first known women writers in English, and one of the first theologians to write in the vernacular. Her writing, inspired by her visions of Christ's suffering on the cross, grapples with the questions raised by sin and suffering, as well as the hermeneutic process and the limits of human knowledge.
Daya Krishna
Authors: Raveh Daniel
Published: November 2021

Daya Krishna (1924–2007) was one of the most creative philosophers of the second half of the twentieth century. His thought and philosophical energy dominated academic Indian philosophy, and determined the nature of the engagement of Indian philosophy with Western philosophy during that period. His numerous writings reveal his broad spectrum of interest. Besides philosophical plowing in the fields of logic, ethics, and epistemology, he was deeply committed to the social dimension of human life and concerned by the question of freedom; freedom not (just) in the classic metaphysical sense (
mokṣa
), but here and now, in the social and political realms. Daya Krishna refused to accept the prevalent “myth” that equates Indian philosophy with the spiritual quest for
mokṣa
, or “ultimate freedom,” hence as subordinated to religious agendas, and emphasized the argumentativeness embedded in Indian thinking from the very beginning. He initiated and participated in several meetings between traditional pandits, thinking and writing in Sanskrit, and scholars trained in the Western tradition of philosophizing. He believed that these
saṃvāda
‐meetings are crucial for maintaining Indian philosophy as a “breathing philosophy,” relevant and constantly renewed.
Liberation in Buddhism
Authors: Reasoner Paul
Published: November 2021

Liberation is the central teaching and end in Buddhism. Awakening, realization, enlightenment, andnirvāṇaare all terms used in Anglophone discourse to refer to Buddhist liberation and are often used interchangeably. However, early Buddhism distinguished four stages in liberation. Buddha parts ways with some of the surrounding Indian philosophical/religious schools primarily with his teaching about the nature of the self, namely no‐self. Liberation is fromsaṃsāra, the world of birth, life, death, and rebirth, characterized by suffering. The path to liberation is what is taught and modeled by the Buddha. What can be said about the state of liberation/nirvāṇais explored, as well as the development of multiple paths to liberation.
Luther, Martin
Authors: Dieter Theodor
Published: November 2021

The entry describes Martin Luther's (1483–1546) theological development in both its receptive and its critical relation to medieval strands of theology, scholasticism, monasticism, mysticism, and humanism, and it analyzes the center point of Luther's conflict with scholastics on grace and free will in a new way. His basic insight was into the relation between God and human beings through the performative character of the divine word (
promissio
), spoken by the priest, and of the person's faith as trusting in this promise. This understanding of the sacramental character of the word shapes Luther's doctrine of the justification of the human being before God, his theology of the sacraments, and his activities towards the reform of the church, putting the concept of gift – God's self‐giving – and the human reception of this gift in the center.
Maimonides, Moses
Authors: Pessin Sarah
Published: November 2021

Moses Maimonides (1138–1204) was a Jewish medieval philosopher who brings Greek and Islamic philosophy into productive conversation with Judaism and Jewish texts. Animated by a joint emphasis on reason and its limits, and operating within a Neoplatonized Aristotelian frame, Maimonides balances questions of what we can know theoretically and how we must act ethically, as he approaches religious writings and ideas with a complicated array of Jewish, Islamic, and Greek strategies for text interpretation. His Greco‐Islamic analyses of God, being, and human being also give rise to a number of apophatic, existential, epistemological, and political insights on the nature and role of metaphysics, religion, and language as well as the nature and ends of human being.
Manichaeism
Authors: BeDuhn Jason David
Published: November 2021

Manichaeism is an extinct dualist religion with a more than thousand‐year history extending from North Africa to China (third to seventeenth centuriesce). Its rich literary, artistic, and hymnic culture survives only in fragmentary remains. But an extensive body of anti‐Manichaean polemic from other religions attests the challenge it posed and the lasting impact it had on rival traditions still in existence today.
Masham, Damaris Cudworth
Authors: Lascano Marcy P.
Published: November 2021

Damaris Cudworth Masham (1659–1708) engaged in debates with Mary Astell and John Norris concerning the love of God and causation. She argued against their claim that creatures should not be loved in the same way as God. In addition, she argued against the Malebranchean view of occasionalism that Norris defends in the correspondence. In her correspondence with G.W. Leibniz, she stated that Leibniz's views have similar problems to those of Malebranche and argued that soul or spirits are extended in space. In her own works, she maintained that we come to the knowledge of God's existence through the knowledge of his works, that God provided us with desires for pleasure and happiness, which shows that he loves us and that we are immortal, and she advocated for women's education on religious grounds.
Matilal, Bimal Krishna
Authors: Bilimoria Purushottama
Published: November 2021

It is a truism that Bimal Krishna Matilal (1935–1991) was the twentieth century's leading exponent of Indian logic and epistemology while also being an analytical visionary on the role of philosophy in classical Indian society. What is less known is that Bimal Matilal, a one‐time occupier of the Spalding Chair in Eastern Religion and Ethics at All Souls College, University of Oxford, also held strong views on topics within the philosophy of religion, which he understood to be the proper philosophical and rational study of Indian religions. This study would not be merely confined to the three cradle traditions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, but also involve the other religions that continue to have a significant presence in the subcontinent, namely, Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and certain tribal or aboriginal religions. This entry explores Matilal's iconoclastic ideas on a possible Indian philosophy of religion.
Medieval Philosophy, Islamic Contribution
Authors: Aminrazavi Mehdi
Published: November 2021

The entry begins by exploring whether Islamic philosophy should be calledfalsafah(philosophy) orḥikmah, a form of wisdom that includes discursive thought. Some of the early Peripatetic philosophers including al‐Fārābī, ʿAmirī, Sijistānī, and Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna) are discussed, along with the Hermetico‐Pythagorean philosophy of the Ismāʿīlīs. Suhrawardī and his school of illumination (ishrāq) in the twelfth century, the revival of Peripatetic philosophy by Naṣīr al‐Dīn al‐Ṭūsī, and the rise of the school of Shirāz are treated next.

During the sixteenth to seventeenth century, the school of Iṣfahān appeared in Persia; major figures of this school including Mīr Dāmād, Mīr Findiriskī, and Mullā Ṣadrā's “transcendent philosophy” (al‐ḥikmat al‐muta‘āliyah) are discussed. Islamic philosophy in Islamic Spain (al‐Andalus) and notable figures such as Ibn Rushd (Averroes), Ibn Maṣarrāh, Ibn Bājah, and Ibn Ṭufayl are mentioned. Central themes in philosophy of religion, the rise of philosophical mysticism, and schools of philosophy in Persia are then discussed.
Mendelssohn, Moses
Authors: Mendes‐Flohr Paul
Published: November 2021

This entry adumbrates Moses Mendelssohn's (1729–1786) philosophy of religion as refracted through his explication of Judaism as a religion of reason.
Mill, John Stuart
Authors: Turner Piers Norris
Published: November 2021

John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) is widely regarded as the leading English‐speaking philosopher of the nineteenth century. He is recognized as the principal expositor and defender of the utilitarian theory of morality and as a core figure of the liberal political tradition. A proponent of philosophical naturalism, he held a compatibilist theory of free will. Perhaps his most distinctive claim in the philosophy of religion is that although
belief
in God is not rationally supported, one might yet entertain ideas of God as a matter of
hope
or
imagination
.
Molina and Molinism
Authors: Perszyk Ken
Published: November 2021

Luis de Molina's (1535–1600) doctrine of divine middle knowledge, which gave rise to intense controversy in the late sixteenth century and was “rediscovered” in the 1970s by Alvin Plantinga in his Free Will Defense, has received a great deal of attention among contemporary analytical philosophers of religion. Its defenders claim it can solve a host of thorny problems. Its critics typically argue that it is either logically incoherent or an overall liability for a satisfying account of providence.
Omnibenevolence
Authors: Hoffman Joshua , Rosenkrantz Gary S.
Published: November 2021

This entry briefly explains the idea of divine omnibenevolence and its relationship to other divine attributes. It then presents four moral views that attempt to account for God's omnibenevolence.
Original Sin
Authors: Taliaferro Charles
Published: November 2021

Christian teaching about original sin is largely grounded, historically, in Pauline theology. This entry highlights different accounts of the first sin and different models about how the effects of the first sin are transmitted to descendants of Adam and Eve.
Otto, Rudolf, and the Numinous
Authors: Rosenhagen Ulrich
Published: November 2021

The Protestant theologian Rudolf Otto (1869–1937) is recognized as one of the most important contributors to the study of religions in the early twentieth century.
Panentheism
Authors: Clayton Philip
Published: November 2021

Panentheism does not identify the world with God, yet affirms a family of views that assert the world is contained in the divine and the divine is in all things. Almost all panentheists affirm that God is both the infinite Ground of all things and, through relationships with others, a personal (or “not less than personal”) being. For panentheists, a goal of spiritual practice is to become more aware of the all‐encompassing presence of God.
Panpsychism
Authors: Skrbina David
Published: November 2021

Panpsychism is the view that all things have a mind or a mind‐like quality. It is an unusual but surprisingly well‐justified philosophical position, one that has been advocated by many major philosophers throughout history, including the Presocratics, Plato, Aristotle, Bruno, Spinoza, Leibniz, Diderot, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, James, and Whitehead, among many others. The counterpoint to panpsychism – emergentism – claims that mind emerged suddenly at some point in evolutionary history, but this stance is remarkably difficult to defend. Emergentism appears to be an unexplainable mystery, and thus panpsychism seems the more naturalistic and plausible view. If mind, soul, or consciousness are pervasive in the world, then this has clear implications for our religious outlook.
Pantheism
Authors: Levine Michael Philip
Published: November 2021

This entry examines the meaning and nature of pantheism considered as the primary religious alternative to theism. Among the issues addressed are the following: What is pantheism and who are some prominent pantheists? Is pantheism disguised atheism? Does evil present a fundamental difficulty for pantheism as it does for theism? What form, if any, do traditional religious practices such as prayer and worship take in pantheism? Can salvation and the notion of immortality have a place in pantheism? Is there a distinctive ethics or set of values associated with pantheism? Why are pantheists often regarded as environmentalists and ecologists? Is urban life, technology and/or the contemporary social and political order inimical to basic tenets of pantheism and to its practice?
Philosophical Anthropology
Authors: Louden Robert B.
Published: November 2021

In this entry “philosophical anthropology” is defined broadly as philosophical reflection about the nature of human beings (rather than narrowly as a particular school of thought within twentieth‐century German philosophy), and the topic is treated historically. I begin by discussing several important historical roots of philosophical anthropology in ancient Greek and Renaissance thought. Special attention is then given to Enlightenment contributions – above all Kant, but also Hume, Herder, and others. Comte, Feuerbach, Marx, and Nietzsche are focal points in the section on nineteenth‐century philosophical anthropology. In the section on twentieth‐century contributions, primary attention is devoted to the triumvirate of German philosophical anthropology: Max Scheler, Helmuth Plessner, and Arnold Gehlen. In the concluding section, I respond to several popular arguments against philosophical anthropology and discuss its future prospects in light of current intellectual trends.
Positivism and Logical Positivism
Authors: Psillos Stathis
Published: November 2021

In this entry the major tenets of positivism and logical positivism are presented and discussed. The entry starts with the positivism of Auguste Comte, it moves on to present the “positivistic” spirit among philosophers and scientists at the beginning of the twentieth century and concludes with a discussion of the culmination of positivist philosophy in the work of the members of the Vienna Circle.
Pramāṇa
Authors: Keating Malcolm
Published: November 2021

In Indian philosophy, a
pramāṇa
is an epistemic instrument or doxastic practice that results in a veridical cognition (in an event of
knowing
). For just about all Indian thinkers, perception (
pratyakṣa
) and inference (
anumāna
) are the foundational
pramāṇa
s, although they debated energetically over how to characterize the content of the resultant cognitions and how to explain the basis for the authority of these
pramāṇa
s. Debate also includes the relationship of knowledge to religious liberation, the role of scripture in knowing, and the possibility of omniscience.
Presocratics
Authors: Tor Shaul
Published: November 2021

The Presocratics, a group of sixth‐ and fifth‐century‐
bce
Greek thinkers, pioneered radical and consequential developments in theology and the philosophy of religion. Concerning the gods and religion (as in other areas), we encounter in the Presocratics a great diversity of views, methods, and preoccupations, even if there are also some typically recurrent features, such as a departure from anthropomorphism and an emphasis on intelligence and wisdom as (the) essential characteristics of the divine. Presocratic philosophy of religion is subject to fundamental scholarly debate. According to some commentators, the Presocratics relate themselves to traditional and popular Greek religious attitudes in a more or less systematically polemical and hostile way. Others find in the Presocratics more varied mixtures of criticism, innovation, appropriation, and accommodation.
Principle of Sufficient Reason
Authors: Oderberg David S.
Published: November 2021

After giving some historical background to the Principle of Sufficient Reason, I discuss its formulation and general defense. I then show its employment in three areas. First, there is its explicit use in Leibniz's famous argument for God from contingency. Then I examine its implicit use in Aquinas's First and Second Ways. Finally, I look at its recent deployment in defense of one of the premises of the
Kalām
Cosmological Argument.
Process Theology
Authors: Forrest Peter
Published: November 2021

Process theology is the religious thought inspired by Alfred North Whitehead's
Process and Reality
as developed by a succession of thinkers, notably Charles Hartshorne, John B. Cobb Jr., and David Ray Griffin. As a philosophical program process philosophy anticipated much later twentieth‐century metaphysics, but was largely ignored by the academic establishment, although welcomed by some theologians. In this entry the distinctive character of process thought will be examined, as well as its theological applications. Finally, a justification is given for theologians' reliance upon a speculative, fairly systematic, but often confusing and contestable metaphysics, process philosophy.

Process theology rejects the theses that god is omnipotent, unchanging, unaffected by creatures, and supernatural. Its positive theses include the dipolarity of god, namely that in some respects god is unchanging and unaffected by creatures; and panentheism, the thesis that god includes the universe. The chief characteristic of process theology is not so much these specific theses, but a dipolar and “organic” way of understanding things, which blends efficient and final causation in an original fashion.
Qāḍī Saʿīd Qummī
Authors: Aavani Nariman
Published: November 2021

Qāḍī Saʿīd Qummī, Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad Mufīd (1640–after 1696), was a Shiʿite philosopher, mystic, physician, and jurist of the Safavid period. He was born in the city of Qom (in present‐day Iran) in 1640 and died after 1696. In addition to his views on prayer and divine knowledge, where he criticizes the widely held positions of philosophers and theologians, the most central aspect of his thought is his apophatic theology. He holds an essentialist ontology according to which there are numerous distinct essences in the world that are created by God, who is beyond them in every way. He denies the existence of distinct attributes in the divine essence and interprets attributes as signifying the negation of defects in the divine essence.
Radical Orthodoxy
Authors: Oliver Simon
Published: November 2021

Radical orthodoxy is one of the most influential and controversial sensibilities in anglophone theology of the last 30 years. This entry describes radical orthodoxy's key commitments and concerns with a particular emphasis on the nature and scope of Christian theology, the symbiotic relationship between theology and philosophy, and the metaphysics of participation.
Reid, Thomas
Authors: Buras Todd
Published: November 2021

Thomas Reid (1710–1796) was an eighteenth‐century Scottish philosopher, and the father of the philosophy of common sense. His chief contributions still influence philosophical discussion in a variety of fields. He is known for his commonsense methodology, direct realism about perception, broad foundationalism and externalism in epistemology, and agent‐causal theories of free will. Some contemporary philosophers of religion find in Reid inspiration for the idea that belief in God is immediately justified. The idea is actually quite hard to find in Reid, and what can be found differs significantly from the modern philosophers he inspired.
Royce, Josiah
Authors: Manter Bette J.
Published: November 2021

Until the late nineteenth century, philosophy in America was largely the occupation of divines; from Jonathan Edwards to Ralph Waldo Emerson, philosophy and religion were inseparable. Josiah Royce's (1855–1916) philosophical commitments may be understood as an extension and critique of this long tradition in American thought. For Royce, the religious enthusiasms of his predecessors were too individualistic, systematically unsound, and lacking in moral rigor. The rise of the professional class of philosophers in the academy coincided with Josiah Royce's arrival at Harvard in 1882, where he taught until his death. His wide‐ranging interests reveal Royce to be a helpful resource for thinking about the foundations of religious insight and belief, the individual as inherently relational, and the importance of community for human and humane life.
Sacraments
Authors: Heidgerken Benjamin E.
Published: November 2021

A sacrament is the representation of one thing (the signified) by means of another (the sign). While human language is broadly sacramental, the term usually refers to periodic rituals in Christianity that act to indicate or guarantee divine presence and action (grace) in the community. Christian communities disagree about the way in which the sacraments signify. Sacramental realists hold the ability of the signs to contain and make present the divine realities that they signify, whereas a sacramental nominalist sees the signs as merely external markers or pointers towards a reality that remains fundamentally other than the sign.
Sāṃkhya
Authors: Burley Mikel
Published: November 2021

Sāṃkhya is an ancient system of Indian philosophy whose classical formulation occurs in the
Sāṃkhyakārikā
of Īśvarakṛṣṇa (c. 350–450
ce
). Central to Sāṃkhya's metaphysics is a distinction between
puruṣa
(self) and
prakṛti
(the material source of the experiential world). Consisting in a rigorous analysis of the conditions of experience, philosophical inquiry is for Sāṃkhya a soteriological quest for liberation from suffering by realizing the fundamental difference between the two metaphysical principles. Closely associated with the school of classical Yoga, Sāṃkhya's goal is conceived as a state of pure awareness – the “aloneness” (
kaivalya
) of
puruṣa
.
Scotus, Duns
Authors: Cross Richard
Published: November 2021

John Duns Scotus (c. 1266–1308) was one of the most significant medieval philosopher‐theologians. This entry presents Scotus's proof for God's existence (on the basis of a division of reality into what is actual and what can be made actual), his derivation of the divine attributes (on the basis of divine perfection), his account of divine infinity, and his view on God's knowledge of contingent truths. It also summarizes his view that the Trinity can be known by natural reason, his claim that the divine essence is self‐individuating, and his theory that religious language is univocal, not analogous.
Seneca
Authors: Torre Chiara
Published: November 2021

Theological and religious issues are found throughout the writings of the philosopher Seneca (between 4 and 1bceto 65ce), and might be considered the core of his thought and teaching. These issues include the main questions in Stoic theology, such as proof of God's existence, definition of God's nature, God's relationship with the universe, divine care for the world and human beings, and the relationship between God and the human soul. Seneca not only debates theology in an abstract manner, but also communicates his own religious experiences and needs. Some traces of Seneca's statements about divine Providence, as well as critique of superstition, are found in ancient Latin Christian writers.
Somānanda
Authors: Nemec John
Published: November 2021

Somānanda was a Brahmin of the Kashmir Valley who flourished c. 900–950
ce
. He is the founding author of the Śaiva philosophical school known as the Pratyabijñā and is the author of the Śivadṛṣṭi.
Antisite Defects Stabilized by Antiphase Boundaries in YFeO3 Thin Films
Authors: Kumar Abinash , Klyukin Konstantin , Ning Shuai , Ozsoy‐Keskinbora Cigdem , Ovsyanko Mikhail , van Uden Felix , Krijnen Ruud , Yildiz Bilge , Ross Caroline A. , LeBeau James M.
Published: November 2021

YFeO3 thin films are a recent addition to the family of multiferroic orthoferrites where YFe antisite defects and strain have been shown to introduce polar displacements while retaining magnetic properties. Complete control of the multiferroic properties, however, necessitates knowledge of the defects present and their potential role in modifying behavior. Here, the structure and chemistry of antiphase boundaries in Y‐rich multiferroic YFeO3 thin films are reported using aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy combined with atomic resolution energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. It is found that FeY antisites, which are not stable in the Y‐rich film bulk, periodically arrange along antiphase boundaries due to changes in the local structural environment. Using density functional theory, it is shown that the antiphase boundaries are polar and bi‐stable, where the presence of FeY antisites significantly decreases the switching barrier. These results highlight how planar defects, such as antiphase boundaries, can stabilize point defects that would otherwise not be expected to form within the structure.
Ultrabright and Highly Polarity‐Sensitive NIR‐I/NIR‐II Fluorophores for the Tracking of Lipid Droplets and Staging of Fatty Liver Disease
Authors: Zhou Xiaobo , Zhang Ke , Yang Chaojie , Pei Yuetian , Zhao Lingfeng , Kang Xiaoxia , Li Zhenhua , Li Fuyou , Qin Yuling , Wu Li
Published: November 2021

Visualizing the progression of fatty liver disease in vivo is of great significance in biomedical research of fatty liver, but hindered by the lack of suitable approaches with deep penetration, high specificity, and real‐time observability for fatty liver imaging. Herein, two bright NIR‐I/NIR‐II fluorophores with D–π–A–π–D structures are designed and synthesized for fatty liver tracking in vivo. Such fluorophores show an ultrahigh quantum yield of 49.2% and 17.3% at the emission maximum of 930 and 975 nm, respectively. Most interestingly, these two fluorophores display ultrasensitive fluorescence response (over 100‐fold enhancement) toward the variations of environment polarity. Accordingly, further doping of these fluorophores into amphiphilic organic matrix allows the formation of ultrabright NIR‐I/NIR‐II fluorescent nanoprobes for high‐resolution fluorescence imaging of the vessels. Additionally, with the assistance of such nanoprobes and NIR‐II fluorescence imaging, real‐time monitoring of heartbeat rate and the respiratory rate, accurate identification, and imaging‐guided surgery of the submillimeter scale lymph nodes are successfully realized. Moreover, the as‐designed fluorophores show superior performance for indicating lipid droplets (LDs) in living cells. Ultimately, precise monitoring of fatty liver with NIR‐I/NIR‐II fluorescent LDs probe is first confirmed, demonstrating the possibility for staging fatty liver disease with a contact‐free method.
The Pitfalls and Opportunities of Impedance Spectroscopy of Lithium Sulfur Batteries
Authors: Drvarič Talian Sara , Moškon Jože , Dominko Robert , Gaberšček Miran
Published: November 2021

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a valuable tool, which is frequently applied to study lithium‐sulfur (Li‐S) batteries. However, as shown in this perspective article, there are several pitfalls associated with the measurement parameters, impedance response interpretation, and spectra fitting, which can result in dubious or erroneous conclusions. In the first part, the available information on Li‐S battery impedance response is summarized and it is critically evaluated. The authors also touch on the methodology of measurements and fitting of impedance spectra, and later on systematically overview the impedance features in sections according to characteristic peak frequencies of processes, going from the highest to lowest. Finally, specific test instructions that ensure the use of EIS's full potential are listed and promising future directions are discussed. These range from an increase in the use of model experiments, replacement of arbitrary equivalent circuit fitting with physics‐based impedance models, and coupling of the technique with other analytical tools.
Reusable Nanocomposite Membranes for Highly Efficient Arsenite and Arsenate Dual Removal from Water
Authors: Salazar Hugo , Martins Pedro Manuel , Valverde Ainara , Fernández de Luis Roberto , Vilas‐Vilela José Luis , Ferdov Stanislav , Botelho Gabriela , Lanceros‐Mendez Senentxu
Published: November 2021

Nanocomposite membranes (NCMs) of poly(vinylidene fluoride‐hexafluoropropylene), PVDF‐HFP, with different yttrium carbonate and magnetite loadings, are prepared, and their dual adsorption capacity over neutral arsenite and anionic arsenate species is evaluated. The nanoparticles (NPs) and the corresponding NCMs are fully characterized in morphology, microstructure, thermal, and surface properties. The nanocomposite membranes present a micrometric porous structure with a homogeneous distribution of the active nanoparticles. Chemical, thermal, and water‐contact angle characteristics of the NCMs point out that they maintain the chemical and thermal stability of the polymer while improving the wettability. Arsenic removal depends on NP loading and pH of the media. For instance, efficiencies close to 100% are achieved for arsenate species under acidic conditions, while adsorption capacity over arsenite is also incremented above 80%. Fe3O4/PVDF‐HFP nanocomposite shows a dual affinity for the adsorption of As(III) and As(V) species, with the maximum adsorption capacities of 92.82 and 137.08 mg g−1, respectively. In addition, both NCMs are easily activated and reused without significant efficiency loss. Consequently, the nanocomposite membranes represent low‐cost, reusable, and efficient water remediation systems suitable for the long‐term removal of As(III) and As(V) under conditions mimicking real polluted surface and groundwater.
Flexible and Wearable Ultrasound Device for Medical Applications: A Review on Materials, Structural Designs, and Current Challenges
Authors: La Thanh‐Giang , Le Lawrence H.
Published: November 2021

Flexible and miniaturized devices inspired by the advances in electronic materials, fabrication technologies, and wireless communication have emerged as the next‐generation smart devices for medicine and healthcare. One of the most promising applications is the flexible devices and systems for medical ultrasound imaging such as ultrasound transducers. Herein, the recent progress in flexible and wearable devices for medical ultrasound imaging is broadly reviewed, focusing on technologies and potential applications in diagnosis and medical care. First, the progressive prospect of wearable devices is briefed, followed by an introduction of the state‐of‐art advances in material development and fabrication technologies. Second, the emerging technologies of flexible, thin‐film ultrasound transducers is focused in comparison to conventional rigid ultrasound devices. Third, this review highlights recent biomedical applications of the flexible ultrasound transducer. Last but not the least, current challenges and future developments are also discussed from the perspectives of medical ultrasound imaging. The flexible ultrasound transducers with capabilities of mass‐fabrication, versatile integration, and on‐skin conformability can add unprecedented abilities such as medical imaging and diagnosis to the flexible, skin‐wearable devices that are promising to improve the quality of personalized care.