Pragmatic Pluralism and the Problem of God

Sami Pihlstrom develops here a pragmatic philosophy of religion enriched by Immanuel Kant’s insight that belief or faith in God is motivated chiefly by ethical considerations. He illumines important connections between Kant’s writing on religion and that of William James and John Dewey, and shows how attention to both can provide resources for a conception and analysis of religion that is pluralistic and takes normativity seriously. Pihlstrom has been a leading interpreter of the pragmatists and it is good to have this important constructive contribution to the philosophy of religion.

“Pihlström does an amazing job of sorting the metaphysical remnants of Kant in James and in the process restores questions of metaphysics to American pragmatism. This excellent work of scholarship calls for a deeper examination of pragmatist metaphysics and its challenge to religion and its reformulation.”

“. . . a solid work of scholarship, well-argued and insightful.”