Philosophy of religion

 Philosophy of religion  

                                                                                                                             By: Rachid Nfinif

         In this title, two opposing concepts take place in the same context, philosophy as a rational activity distinguished by reason, relativity, skepticism, and criticism. On the other side, religion represents certainty, conviction, and absolutism. But philosophy is an intellectual adventure which attempts to understand the world and the man who lives in it , because the task of philosophy is especially to contemplate the human condition. According to Hegel, religion is a manifestation of spirit, exactly like arts and philosophy; no doubt, there is a strong connection between philosophy and religion, throughout history since the middle age. The aim of this article is not to determine the relation between philosophy and religion, but rather to try to answer the following question:  what is a philosophy of religion?

         It is difficult to distinguish the philosophy of religion. Generally, it is philosophizing about religion; therefore, it is now a very flourishing branch of philosophy, which makes intelligibility to religious concepts, like God, eternity, evil, miracle, and death and so on. Philosophy of religion clarifies the relationship between these concepts and real life and tries to understand the manner which affects the individual and collective thinking. Philosophy of religion is not a comparative study; it is distinguished from many disciplines related to religion, such as sociology of religion, comparative history of religion, neuroethology, and theology. Subsequently, the philosophy of religion is a critic of religious discourse, and a task to understand the religious return in the contemporary world today.

      Philosophy of religion first appeared at the end of the eighteenth century, with Kant’s disciple Von Storchenan 1731 – 1798, who wrote a book of seven volumes entitled: "Philosophy of Religion" in 1772; a new branch of philosophy studying all religions as one, and examinating theological evidence.  The true beginning of philosophy of religion was the complicated question of Enlightenment, as formed in the famous article of Kant: "What is Enlightenment?" It is simply an exposition of the confrontation of reasoning and belief that exists among followers of different religions; it is also an attempt to get out of church tutelage. This proclamation of emancipation is a reason for standing against all forms of conviction and superstition.

    All modern times was interested in religion, but many philosophers return to think about it, in the contemporary time, then the philosophy of religion come to light with famous names, like Michel Foucault, Jacque Derrida, Paul Ricoeur, Emmanuel Lévinas, Richard rorty, Gianni Vattimo, and after this, William James, Bertrand Russell, and others. Intel now, we can find voices like Michel Maffesoli, in France, and Charles Taylor in Canada. Standing behind This kind of philosophy a question about the rationality of religious beliefs, and the assumption that these beliefs can be discussed on an intellectual level; it is not a justification of religious concepts at the bar of reason. Philosophy of religion in contemporary thought represents an interruption with the Enlightenment tradition because of it interested in religion as a substantial element in human being stricture; a French philosopher and sociologist René Girard, for example, confirm the impossibility of the existence of society without religion; man would believe in something, he invented his convictions. The contemporary philosophers achieved reconciliation with religion, and accept to think about it.

  Every speech about the philosophy of religion refers to hermeneutics, because of all intellectual effort of the contemporary philosophers are reduced in the debate on the interpretation of religious texts, and researching meaningful lectures of the religious presence in the postmodern societies, in the post secularized world. Michel Maffesoli takes about a secular religion, as such it is manifested in the football club fan's behavior, submitting to the same mechanism guiding the believer's behavior; the same collective ritual act, same holiness, and intolerance, although they happen in different domains. According to René Girard, the modernity is an extension of Christianity, it announces the death of god crucified, but it keeps the same logic of victim; which take a new form, focused on the weakness of woman, children, minorities, and animals, rather then the weakness of Christ; against the Nietzschean idiom about the death of God, jean luck Marion formed a new idiom about the death of death of God, therefore many philosophers confirm the separation of religion and modernity, as Hans Blumenberg. But many others clutch to the connection relationship between religion and modernity, like the German philosopher, Carl Schmitt, who confirms that modernity is just the secularization of a religious concept. Anyway, religion keeps its place in our world, and we would think about it.

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