Morality without God: Reality or Illusion?
A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444). This special issue belongs to the section "Religions and Humanities/Philosophies".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 September 2023) | Viewed by 12138
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue of Religions will focus on morality without God—a highly relevant topic in light of the recent interest in realist conceptions of morality—as well as ongoing debates in metaethics and the philosophy of religion. I am pleased to invite you to submit a proposal for this volume.
The aim of this Special Issue is to advance the discussion on the possibility of morality (not necessarily limited to a realist conception of morality) without God. Philosophers throughout the ages have discussed whether (and to what extent) morality can be, must be, does not have to be, or cannot be grounded in theism. Such discussions relate to a variety of debates in metaethics, moral psychology, normative moral theory, and applied ethics. While the literature on God and morality often engages with Christian traditions and conceptions of God, this Special Issue welcomes both contributions that engage with a Christian perspective and those that engage with other philosophical or religious conceptions of God.
Suggested themes include (but are not limited to):
Is God necessary for moral realism? Or is moral realism best explained by reference to God? Do various aspects of morality, such as moral obligations, human value, normativity, accountability, or moral knowledge, fit better with theism than atheism? Are there viable historical or contemporary formulations of a moral argument for the existence of God? Can the potential tension between morality and prudence be solved by appealing to God and a heavenly afterlife?
Is morality best construed without God? Is a moral theory without God more ontologically simple, more parsimonious, than one with God? Are there metaphysical problems facing theistic ethics, such as Euthyphro-related problems? Are there epistemological problems for theistic ethics? For instance, do evolution and cognitive science of religion undermine a religious moral epistemology?
How might a robust moral theory without God be construed? Are there viable naturalist or non-naturalist conceptions of moral realism that work well without God? Does atheism entail a non-realist or quasi-realist conception of morality?
I look forward to reading your proposals.
Sincerely,
Dr. Martin Jakobsen
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- God
- atheism
- morality
- ethics
- moral realism
- moral argument
- metaethics
- moral epistemology
- moral ontology
- normativity
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