Relativism, Nihilism, and God (LIBRARY OF RELIGIOUS PHILOSOPHY)

This book presents a defense of the reality of God in the sense in which Nietzsche proclaimed His death. It explores various contemporary versions of Nietzsche's maxim "God is dead" and proposes an alternative to them. Philip E.Devine critically examines three views that, in one way or another, accept the death of God and take it as central to the intellectual life: "pragmatism", which asserts that the only end of the intellectual life is the pursuit of worldly goods other than truth; "relativism', which admits a multiplicity of truths corresponding to the modes of life pursued by human beings; and "nihilism", to which the pursuit of truth is a deception. Devine then defends his own position on the nature of God and religion and argues for a convergence between the concerns of faith and philosophy. The arguments of "Relativism, Nihilism, and God" presuppose the rejection of two common fallacies: the strict fact-value distinction and the confusion of relativism and tolerance. Devine argues that the fact-value distinction is one of degree only. All our cognition is laden with purpose and evaluation; objectivity itself is a moral and spiritual ideal. Consequently, for example, there is no value-neutral language available with which to discuss difficult human problems.