tailieunhanh - Kant, Religion, and Politics

In Kant’s writings, the topic of religion occupies a strategic space at the confluence of epistemology, ethics, and politics. Inquiries into the validity of religious truth claims and the possible meanings of religious writings and images form a vital part of Kant’s ethical and political project. This project focuses on advancing human autonomy, both individually and in terms of political concerns with shared worldviews, laws, and rights. In its mature form, this line of inquiry begins with the Critique of Pure Reason, is further developed in Kant’s ethical writings and the Critique of the Power of Judgment, and reaches fruition in Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason. This. | KANT RELIGION AND POLITICS This page intentionally left blank KANT RELIGION AND POLITICS This book offers a systematic examination of the place of religion within Kant s major writings. Kant is often thought to be highly reductionistic with regard to religion as though religion simply provides the unsophisticated with colorful representations of moral lessons that reason alone could grasp. James DiCenso s rich and innovative discussion shows how Kant s theory of religion in fact emerges directly from his epistemology ethics and political theory and how it serves his larger political and ethical projects of restructuring institutions and modifying political attitudes toward greater autonomy. It also illustrates the continuing relevance of Kant s ideas for addressing issues of religion and politics that remain pressing in the contemporary world such as just laws transparency in the public sphere and other ethical and political concerns. The book will be valuable for a wide range of readers who are interested in Kant s thought. JAMES J. DICENSO is Professor in the Philosophy of Religion at the University of Toronto. He is the author of two previous books Hermeneutics and the Disclosure of Truth 1990 and The Other Freud Religion Culture and Psychoanalysis 1999 and has published numerous scholarly articles in international .