Ateneo - UPO

Philosophy and religion in front of the problem of evil

M.C. Bartolomei, Filosofia della religione. Lineamenti introduttivi, Mimesis, Milano-Udine 2015 A. Aguti, Filosofia della religione, La Scuola, Brescia 2013, pp. 271-334 P. Ricoeur, Il male. Una sfida alla filosofia e alla teologia, Morcelliana, Brescia 2007 P. Ricoeur, Il conflitto delle interpretazioni, Jaca Book, Milano 1995, pp. 285-348 H. Jonas, tr. it. Il concetto di Dio dopo Auschwitz. Una voce ebraica, il melangolo, Genova 1993 L. Pareyson, Ontologia della libertà, Einaudi, Torino 1995, pp. 151-292, 463-478 Texts in Dir

The course aims first of all at introducing students (referring to a basic level and to an advanced level) to the knowledge and understanding of some of the most important themes and authors of the Philosophy of Religion. Then the course aims to present (referring always to a basic level and to an advanced level) the essential points of some important philosophical perspectives of 20th century which have dealt with the radical question of the evil in relationship with different cultural and religious horizons. So the course aims at offering students tools to understand in an autonomous way a text of the Philosophy of Religion and it wants to offer to the students sufficient tools to orient themselves in the contemporary discussion about the problem of evil and to express a reasoned judgment about it.

A basic knowledge of the history of philosophy from ancient to contemporary age is required.

Lectures and seminars

Not attending students must also study the following text: C. Ciancio, Del male e di Dio, Morcelliana, Brescia 2006. Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

During the oral examination the knowledge of the principal aspects of a wide content and its historical context will be tested (40%); then the analytic and synthetic understanding of a more specific content with peculiar attention to the correctness of the exposition will be tested (30%); at the end the commentary of a text explained during the lectures and a critical and autonomous judgment about it will be required (30%). The questions (at least three) will concern the three aspects mentioned before and the final mark will be given with reference to the indicated percentages. To achieve a sufficient mark, the student must show to know and understand the basic aspects of themes and authors of the programme.

After a general introduction about the notion of philosophy of religion and the problem of evil, also by means of reading and expounding texts, the philosophical perspectives about the evil proposed by Pareyson and Ricoeur (which are rooted in different way in a Christian context) and by Jonas (which is related to a Hebraic model) will be presented.

It is expected that students can orientate themselves in an adequate way in knowing and understanding (also applied) of the proposed contents and that they learn how to use some essential critical tools to express in an autonomous and operative way a personal judgment about these contents.