Philosophy and Revelation: A Contribution to the Debate on Reason and Faith (Ashgate Translations in Philosophy, Theology and Religion)

This encyclical, dealing with faith and reason and their specific universality, may turn out to be the most important document of the modern Church on the subject of faith and reason and on philosophy understood as a mirror of people's cultures.Philosophy and Revelation presents an accessible, critical commentary on the Fides et Ratio encyclical and the topical faith and reason debate, whilst questioning more deeply the nexus between philosophy and Revelation. The historical introduction of the relation between philosophy and theology through the middle ages, early modern period, and the 19th century to the present, forms an invaluable background to understanding the faith/reason debate and the spirit of the Encyclical. With a focus on truth, reason, metaphysics and wisdom, the author explores philosophy per se and its relationship to a faith reaching for its self-understanding.Arguing that the co-operation between human thought and biblical message, which has met various difficulties in modern times, could be a pivot for an open postmodern culture, this book reflects on the responsibility of philosophy in postmodern culture; the importance of metaphysics of being; the problem of nihilism and its determination by Fides et ratio; and the question of whether philosophy can present itself as praeparatio evangelica. Philosophy and Revelation was first published by Città Nuova in 1999 in Italian under the title Filosofia e Rivelazione. This English translation has been completed by Emanuel L. Paparella, University of Central Florida, USA.Vittorio Possenti is the author of 'Philosophy and Revelation: A Contribution to the Debate on Reason and Faith (Ashgate Translations in Philosophy, Theology and Religion)' with ISBN 9780754616757 and ISBN 0754616754.