The Last Superstition Edward Feser Archive
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The Last Superstition
"The central contention of the "New Atheism" of Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens is that the centuries-old "war between science and religion" is now over and that religion has lost. But as Edward Feser shows in The Last Superstition, there is not, and never has been, any war between science and religion at all. There has instead been a conflict between two entirely philosophical worldviews: the classical "teleological" vision of Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Aquinas, on which purpose or goal-directedness is as inherent a feature of the material world as mass or electric charge; and the modern "mechanical" vision of Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, and Hume, according to which physical reality is comprised of nothing more than purposeless, meaningless particles in motion." "This modern "mechanical" view of nature has never been proved, and its hold over the contemporary intelligentsia owes more to rhetorical sleight-of-hand and political expediency than to rational argument. For as Feser demonstrates, the existence of God, the immortality of the soul, and the traditional natural-law conception of morality are rationally unavoidable given the classical "teleological" philosophical world-view. Hence modern secularism crucially depends on the false insinuation that the "mechanical" philosophy has somehow been established by science." "Moving beyond what he regards as the pointless and point-missing dispute between "Intelligent Design" advocates and Darwinians, Feser holds that the key to understanding the follies of the "New Atheism" lies not in quibbles over the evolutionary origins of this or that biological organ, but in a rethinking of the philosophical presuppositions of scientific method itself back to first principles. In particular, it involves a recovery of the forgotten truths of classical philosophy. When this is accomplished, religion can be seen to be grounded firmly in reason, not blind faith. And despite its moral and intellectual pretensions, the "New Atheism" is exposed as resting on very old errors, together with an appalling degree of intellectual dishonesty, philosophical shallowness, and historical, theological, and scientific ignorance."--BOOK JACKET.
Disordered Actions
The first two decades of the twenty-first century witnessed a rapid change in Western societal acceptance of homosexual activity. This change, however, remains fundamentally unstable unless founded upon an adequate moral theory. Today many within the Western world assume that any argument against homosexual activity must be founded upon religious premises. This book questions that narrative; for the history of philosophical thought manifests a strong non-religious consensus against such practices. This book bridges the gap within current philosophical scholarship by painstakingly examining the non-religious argument as found within the great philosopher Thomas Aquinas. In the process the author advances a novel claim: the traditional account against homosexual activity also applies to untruthful assertive speech acts. Lying and homosexual activity are both wrong for mutually illuminating reasons.
Disorientation
They’re leaving home - will they leave the faith? Every year, thousands of young Catholics leave their homes for higher education at our nation’s colleges and universities. Very few realize, however, that from orientation day onward, they will be indoctrinated with a vision of reality that is very different from the values their families hold dear. Sadly, many of our young people will fall prey to one or more of the dominant ideologies engrained in their college education, ideologies that can lead them away from the Church and, ultimately, their faith in God. Students who are not taught how to think critically or who lack the tools needed to sift through the logic of these positions are easily swayed by the smooth sophistry of the intellectual elite. For this reason, twelve of the top Catholic writers in America - professors, priests, journalists, philosophers, and theologians - have come together to dissect the trendy ideas that can lead young Catholics away from the Church. Disorientation is intellectual ammunition for every college student and parent, as it breaks down the history, analyzes the appeal, and debunks the empty promises of such wildly popular errors as: Hedonism Relativism Progressivism Modernism Scientism Fundamentalism Radical Feminism Multiculturalism …and more. Edited by John Zmirak (author, The Bad Catholic’s Guide to Good Living and editor of Choosing the Right College), this book is guaranteed to get college students thinking hard about what their professors are telling them - and what they should really believe. Contributors: Fr. George Rutler (Cynicism), Donna Steichen (Feminism), Jimmy Akin (Fundamentalism), Fr. John Zuhlsdorf (Modernism), Peter Kreeft (Progressivism), Robert Spencer (Multiculturalism), Mark Shea (Americanism), Eric Metaxas (Relativism), John Keck (Scientism), Elizabeth Scalia (Sentimentalism), Eric Brende (Consumerism, John Zmirak (Hedonism), Fr. Dwight Longenecker (Utilitarianism)