Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. Whether or not these names reference specific philosophers, ancient or otherwise, remains a topic of scholarly dispute. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity.In the Dialogues, Hume's characters debate a number of arguments for the existence of God, and arguments whose proponents believe through which we may come to know the nature of God. Such topics debated include the argument from design-for which Hume uses a house-and whether there is more suffering or good in the world (argument from evil).Hume started writing the Dialogues in 1750 but did not complete them until 1776, shortly before his death. They are based partly on Cicero's De Natura Deorum. The Dialogues were published posthumously in 1779, originally with neither the author's nor the publisher's name

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume, first published in 1779. Through dialogue, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. Whether or not these names reference specific philosophers, ancient or otherwise, remains a topic of scholarly dispute. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity.

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. Whether or not these names reference specific philosophers, ancient or otherwise, remains a topic of scholarly dispute. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity. In the Dialogues, Hume's characters debate a number of arguments for the existence of God, and arguments whose proponents believe through which we may come to know the nature of God. Such topics debated include the argument from design--for which Hume uses a house--and whether there is more suffering or good in the world (argument from evil). Hume started writing the Dialogues in 1750 but did not complete them until 1776, shortly before his death. They are based partly on Cicero's De Natura Deorum. The Dialogues were published posthumously in 1779, originally with neither the author's nor the publisher's name

"Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. Whether or not these names reference specific philosophers, ancient or otherwise, remains a topic of scholarly dispute. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity.In the Dialogues, Hume's characters debate a number of arguments for the existence of God, and arguments whose proponents believe through which we may come to know the nature of God. Such topics debated include the argument from design--for which Hume uses a house--and whether there is more suffering or good in the world (argument from evil).Hume started writing the Dialogues in 1750 but did not complete them until 1776, shortly before his death. They are based partly on Cicero's De Natura Deorum. The Dialogues were published posthumously in 1779, originally with neither the author's nor the publisher's name"

Pamphilus is a young man apprenticed to the philosopher Cleanthes. He's present during a series of debates between his master, Philo, and Demea concerning the existence and nature of God. He relates the discourse to his friend Hermippus. Concerning the existence of God, all three philosophers seem to agree in favor, although they debate at length. Each arrives at their conclusion in favor of the existence of God by different methods, which is the cause for debate. Through their discourse Hume presents several arguments or issues which are often contested among philosophers. These arguments include the natural order of the universe and its consequences, the balance of suffering and goodness in the universe, and the qualifications of the human mind to arrive at conclusions about God.Each of the men presents his point of view. Cleanthes, as an experimental theist, believes in the existence of God based upon the order of the natural universe. In his view, all the complexity of existence points to an intelligent design and an undeniable proponent force throughout all the universe. Philo opposes Cleanthes' teleological approach to theology because he cannot accept the human mind's ability to discern such things. He argues that nothing can truly be known by such an imperfect, biased mind. In order to truly understand the nature of God, Philo believes a person must exist outside of the universe because only then would he or she have an accurate perspective in order to clearly interpret matters. Here Demea, who up to this point had agreed with Philo, accuses Philo of "accepting an extreme form of skepticism." He proposes a division between faith and reason, preferring faith as the more important. To Demea, fidelity to God is paramount even to understanding him. He argues from a priori reasoning, meaning in this context pertaining to the existence of the universe. If we exist, then we must choose loyalty to God above all else.

Pamphilus is a young man apprenticed to the philosopher Cleanthes. He's present during a series of debates between his master, Philo, and Demea concerning the existence and nature of God. He relates the discourse to his friend Hermippus.Concerning the existence of God, all three philosophers seem to agree in favor, although they debate at length. Each arrives at their conclusion in favor of the existence of God by different methods, which is the cause for debate. Through their discourse Hume presents several arguments or issues which are often contested among philosophers. These arguments include the natural order of the universe and its consequences, the balance of suffering and goodness in the universe, and the qualifications of the human mind to arrive at conclusions about God.Each of the men presents his point of view. Cleanthes, as an experimental theist, believes in the existence of God based upon the order of the natural universe. In his view, all the complexity of existence points to an intelligent design and an undeniable proponent force throughout all the universe. Philo opposes Cleanthes' teleological approach to theology because he cannot accept the human mind's ability to discern such things. He argues that nothing can truly be known by such an imperfect, biased mind. In order to truly understand the nature of God, Philo believes a person must exist outside of the universe because only then would he or she have an accurate perspective in order to clearly interpret matters. Here Demea, who up to this point had agreed with Philo, accuses Philo of "accepting an extreme form of skepticism." He proposes a division between faith and reason, preferring faith as the more important. To Demea, fidelity to God is paramount even to understanding him. He argues from a priori reasoning, meaning in this context pertaining to the existence of the universe. If we exist, then we must choose loyalty to God above all else.In the end, Pamphilus seems to think Cleanthes wins the argument. His verdict is somewhat suspect, however, because of his apprenticeship to the man. According to the presentation of the arguments by Hume, it seems far more likely that Philo is the favored one. In Hume's own opinion, Philo comes the closest to winning the debate.

Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work written by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three fictional characters named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence. While all three agree that a god exists, they differ sharply in opinion on God's nature or attributes and how, or if, humankind can come to knowledge of a deity. In the Dialogues, Hume's characters debate a number of arguments for the existence of God, and arguments whose proponents believe through which we may come to know the nature of God. Such topics debated include the argument from design - for which Hume uses a house - and whether there is more suffering or good in the world (Argument from evil)

Presents four works that are central to the 18th-century Scottish philosopher's campaign against organized religion. The three posthumous essays were probably written at the height of his campaign, but he dropped the project on advice from a friend. The spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are modernized and the speakers of each dialogue are identified with bold type. First published in 1980. No index. Paper edition (unseen), $5.95. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR