Book Review: Religion, Philosophy and Knowledge, by Gregory W. Dawes

Any religion has a philosophy behind it and a knowledge in it. As one grows in his or her religion, that philosophy and knowledge are going to be engrained in their everyday life and into their being. This book is all about that philosophy and the knowledge behind religion.

Part 1 talks about religious language and thought. This is the lingo of religion and the thought that goes into and behind religion. Part 2 deals with what the essential goals are of any religion: sacred order, personal salvation, knowledge and skill, and an embodied knowledge. Part 3 discusses the different ways we can know things: signs (divination, dreams, and visions), acquaintance (mysticism and self-authentication), reason (ontological, cosmological, and theological arguments), and testimony (possession and prophecy, revelation and faith, and self-authentication). The book concludes by assessing one’s religious beliefs. 

This book is a good book on basic religious philosophy. While not dealing with any one particular religion, it finds basic principles on what makes a religion. For these reasons, I give this book 4 stars out of 5. 

WHERE TO BUY THIS BOOK:

http://www.springer.com/us/book/9783319434995

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THIS BOOK:

Dawes, Gregory W. Religion, Philosophy, and Knowledge. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International, 2016.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL: I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Springer book review program, which requires an honest, though not necessarily positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.