Three questions motivate this book’s account of evidence for the existence of God. First, if God’s existence is hidden, why suppose He exists at all? Second, if God exists, why is He hidden, particularly if God seeks to communicate with people? Third, what are the implications of divine hiddenness for philosophy, theology, and religion’s supposed knowledge of God? This book answers these questions on the basis of a new account of evidence and knowledge of divine reality that challenges skepticism about God’s existence. The central thesis is that we should expect evidence of divine reality to be purposively available to humans, that is, available only in a manner suitable to divine purposes in self-revelation. This lesson generates a seismic shift in our understanding of evidence and knowledge of divine reality. The result is a needed reorienting of religious epistemology to accommodate the character and purposes of an authoritative, perfectly loving God.
Review
‘I found The Elusive God to be the most profound and interesting work I have read in the past twenty years at the intersection of philosophy and theology. Instead of beginning with a demand for evidence of the existence of a divine being, the author argues that we should expect any intrusion into our lives of the sort that would convince us that God exists to be authoritative evidence that calls us not only to a cognitive viewpoint but also to a surrendering of our wills. The result of such an investigation is a re-conceptualization of the epistemological landscape relevant to the possibility of the knowledge of God.’ --Jonathan Kvanvig, Baylor University
"The Elusive God ... is clearly a profound and illuminating treatment on as big an issue as issues get." --Nicholas Rescher, University of Pittsburgh
"This is an exciting thesis that merits further study and analysis." --Choice
"...important and challenging book." --John Bishop, of The University oF Auckland
"...remarkable, noteworthy volume. ...Truly, Moser has done philosophy--and natural theology in particular--an immense service by pointing us in a new, exciting direction. Indeed, his book is a must-read for every philosopher and theologian!" --Review Metaphysics
"… a substantial and challenging book on religious epistemology … [It is] courageous, and may take some philosophers of religion by surprise … The book pushes the boundaries, with implications for both philosophy and theology." Milltown Studies
Book Description
This book argues that evidence of God's existence is purposively available to humans.
About the Author
Paul K. Moser is Professor of Philosophy at Loyola University Chicago. He is the author of: The God Relationship (Cambridge University Press, 2017), The Elusive God (Cambridge UP, 2009, winner of a national book award in philosophy from the Jesuit Honor Society), The Evidence for God (Cambridge UP, 2010), The Severity of God (Cambridge UP, 2013), Knowledge and Evidence (Cambridge UP, 1989), and Philosophy after Objectivity (Oxford UP, 1997), co-author of Theory of Knowledge (Oxford UP, 1997), editor of Jesus and Philosophy (Cambridge UP, 2008) and The Oxford Handbook of Epistemology (Oxford UP, 2002), and co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to the Problem of Evil (Cambridge UP, forthcoming 2017) and The Wisdom of the Christian Faith (Cambridge UP, 2013). He is the co-editor of the book series Cambridge Studies in Religion, Philosophy, and Society. His book Understanding Religious Experience will be published by Cambridge University Press in 2019. He is now writing a book titled Testing for God's Reality: A Neglected Spiritual Discipline.
Three questions motivate this book’s account of evidence for the existence of God. First, if God’s existence is hidden, why suppose He exists at all? Second, if God exists, why is He hidden, particularly if God seeks to communicate with people? Third, what are the implications of divine hiddenness for philosophy, theology, and religion’s supposed knowledge of God? This book answers these questions on the basis of a new account of evidence and knowledge of divine reality that challenges skepticism about God’s existence. The central thesis is that we should expect evidence of divine reality to be purposively available to humans, that is, available only in a manner suitable to divine purposes in self-revelation. This lesson generates a seismic shift in our understanding of evidence and knowledge of divine reality. The result is a needed reorienting of religious epistemology to accommodate the character and purposes of an authoritative, perfectly loving God.
Review
‘I found The Elusive God to be the most profound and interesting work I have read in the past twenty years at the intersection of philosophy and theology. Instead of beginning with a demand for evidence of the existence of a divine being, the author argues that we should expect any intrusion into our lives of the sort that would convince us that God exists to be authoritative evidence that calls us not only to a cognitive viewpoint but also to a surrendering of our wills. The result of such an investigation is a re-conceptualization of the epistemological landscape relevant to the possibility of the knowledge of God.’ --Jonathan Kvanvig, Baylor University
"The Elusive God ... is clearly a profound and illuminating treatment on as big an issue as issues get." --Nicholas Rescher, University of Pittsburgh
"This is an exciting thesis that merits further study and analysis." --Choice
"...important and challenging book." --John Bishop, of The University oF Auckland
"...remarkable, noteworthy volume. ...Truly, Moser has done philosophy--and natural theology in particular--an immense service by pointing us in a new, exciting direction. Indeed, his book is a must-read for every philosopher and theologian!" --Review Metaphysics
"… a substantial and challenging book on religious epistemology … [It is] courageous, and may take some philosophers of religion by surprise … The book pushes the boundaries, with implications for both philosophy and theology."
Milltown Studies
Book Description
This book argues that evidence of God's existence is purposively available to humans.
About the Author
Paul K. Moser is Professor of Philosophy at Loyola University Chicago. He is the author of: The God Relationship (Cambridge University Press, 2017), The Elusive God (Cambridge UP, 2009, winner of a national book award in philosophy from the Jesuit Honor Society), The Evidence for God (Cambridge UP, 2010), The Severity of God (Cambridge UP, 2013), Knowledge and Evidence (Cambridge UP, 1989), and Philosophy after Objectivity (Oxford UP, 1997), co-author of Theory of Knowledge (Oxford UP, 1997), editor of Jesus and Philosophy (Cambridge UP, 2008) and The Oxford Handbook of Epistemology (Oxford UP, 2002), and co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to the Problem of Evil (Cambridge UP, forthcoming 2017) and The Wisdom of the Christian Faith (Cambridge UP, 2013). He is the co-editor of the book series Cambridge Studies in Religion, Philosophy, and Society. His book Understanding Religious Experience will be published by Cambridge University Press in 2019. He is now writing a book titled Testing for God's Reality: A Neglected Spiritual Discipline.