The Cognitive Science of Religion, Philosophy and Theology: A Survey of the Issues (original) (raw)

Introduction: The Cognitive Science of Religion, Philosophy and Theology: A Survey of the Issues

2018

Cognitive Science of Religion (CSR) is still a rather young discipline. Depending on what one deems to be the first paper or book in the field, the discipline is now almost forty or almost thirty years old. Philosophical and theological discussion on CSR started in the late 2000s. From its onset, the main focus has been the (potential) epistemic consequences of CSR, and this focus is dominant even today. Some of those involved in the debate discussed the relevance of CSR for further issues in philosophy of religion, and other have examined how CSR weighs in on various theological questions. Finally, a small number of philosophers offered criticisms or support for various CSR-theories. In this chapter, we give an overview of the debates so far and provide an outline of the book.

Why Cognitive Science of Religion Matters for Christian Theology and Philosophy: An Overview

Philosophy, Theology, and the Sciences

Cognitive science of religion (CSR) raises a number of issues that are of interest to theologians and philosophers of religion. The latter have focused primarily on the epistemological implications of CSR, that is, whether science shows religious belief to be irrational. Another broad question is whether CSR is compatible with theism and Christian theology. Theological doctrines, such as Calvin's views about sensus divinitatis and the noetic effects of sin, play an important part in these conversations. Less attention has been directed to how CSR can function as a source for theological and philosophical inquiry. So far, CSR has been invoked in discussions on the natural knowledge of God, classical theism, and divine hiddenness, for examples. This article provides an overview of the recent philosophical and theological engagements with CSR.

Theology in the age of cognitive science

International Journal of Philosophy and Theology ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rjpt20, 2020

The cognitive science of religion sets out a naturalistic account of religion, in which religious phenomena are grounded in evolved cognitive and moral intuitions. This has important implications for understanding religious systems and the practice of theology. Religions, it is argued, are moral worldviews; theology, rather than a rational justification/explication of the truth of a religion, is an elaboration and/or defense a particular moral worldview, which itself is a particular construction of evolved cognitive and moral intuitions. The philosophical, social, and moral implications of this, which are far reaching, will be explored.

Religious Concepts and Theological Correctness in Cognitive Science of Religion

Religious Concepts and Theological Correctness in Cognitive Science of Religion, 2022

Over the past 30 years we have seen the growth of the various researches carried out in the field of Cognitive Science of Religion (hereinafter CCR), as well as its impact on other areas of knowledge such as Theology and Religious Thinking in general. Therefore, as a propaedeutic movement, we will make a brief introduction to the main discoveries in this field of studies, and after we will discuss the implications of these discoveries for the so-called "Theological Correctness" (Barrett, 1999), which consists in the use of different religious concepts in different contexts of cognitive demands and its influence on theological thinking as well.