The Coherence of Theism by Richard Swinburne

The book is remarkable for the lucidity, patience, and philosophical ability of its author. The object of Swinburne's book is to demonstrate that, whether theism is true or false, it is not incoherent. In the course of this century, philosophers of religion have made or received attacks not only on the truth but also on the coherence of theism, charging that there is a logical incompatibility, for example, between two or more of the attributes traditionally assigned to God or between a state of affairs in the world (the existence of evil) and the existence of God.

Swinburne's The Coherence of Theism is a valuable and very welcome contribution to the philosophy of religion. I can only be pleased to see Levinas acquiring a potentially larger audience, with the reservation already so often expressed regarding this particular work, that I hope this younger Levinas will not be misconstrued as being the philosophical equal of the Levinas of today.

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:īOOK REVIEWS 478 In conclusion let us thank the translator, Alphonso Lingis, for his work in making Levinas available in English-Totality and Infinity in 1969 and Autrement qu'etre and several articles in the near future.

The Coherence of Theism by Richard Swinburne