Hume's project in ‘The natural history of religion’

There are good reasons to think that at least a part of Hume's project in the ‘The natural history of religion’ was to buttress a philosophical critique of the reasonableness of religious belief undertaken in other works, and to attack a fundamentalist account of the history of religion and the foundations of morality. But there are also problems with supposing that Hume intended to achieve either of these goals. I argue that two problems in particular – accounting for Hume's neglect of revelation, and accounting for his remarks on the ‘invincibility’ of the reasons for ‘genuine theism’ – can only be resolved by recognizing that Hume's purposes in ‘The natural history’ were not fundamentally critical. If I am right, Hume's purpose was mainly to explain why ‘false’ or ‘adulterate’ forms of religious belief are so widespread and so influential.

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Hume and the Implanted Knowledge of God

Journal of Scottish Philosophy ◽

10.3366/jsp.2015.0079 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

pp. 17-35

Author(s):

Nathan Sasser

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Religious Belief ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Knowledge Of God ◽

Belief In God ◽

Theistic Proofs ◽

History Of

Hume is justly famous for his criticisms of theistic proofs. However, what is less well-known is that Hume also criticized the claim that belief in God, simply because it is natural, is justified without supporting argument. Hume certainly encountered this claim in his own Protestant milieu, as various textual clues throughout his corpus indicate. His own endorsement of natural beliefs raises the possibility that religious belief might be justified without argument. One of Hume's chief aims in The Natural History of Religion was to show that religious belief is not natural in a way that makes it justified without argument.

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Another look at Hume's treatment of the argument from design in the Natural History of Religion

Religious Studies ◽

10.1017/s0034412516000068 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 52 (4) ◽

pp. 461-474 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

EMILY KELAHAN

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Religious Belief ◽

Belief Formation ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Epistemic Evaluation ◽

Psychological Analysis ◽

Rational Acceptability ◽

History Of ◽

Argument From Design

AbstractThis article argues that Hume's seemingly peculiar treatment of the argument from design in his Natural History of Religion is not indicative of a radical, or even modest, shift in his overall epistemic evaluation of it. His focus is on the argument's impact on the psychology of religious believers, and not its rational acceptability. Hume never strays far from his stated intention for the work, to engage in a socio-psychological analysis of the nature of religious belief, including a thorough assessment of the role of the argument from design. Hume concludes that the argument is inconsequential to religious belief formation.

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Hume’s Natural History of Religion

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199742844.013.27 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Keith E. Yandell

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Human Nature ◽

Religious Belief ◽

Natural Order ◽

Human Intelligence ◽

Human Reason ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Natural Religion ◽

The Core ◽

History Of

Hume’s Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion, Dialogues 1–11 discuss religion’s foundation in human reason. Dialogue 12, in which Philo. the relentless opponent of pro-theistic arguments, makes his “confession” that he embraces natural religion; namely, the view that the cause or causes of order in nature bear some remote analogy to human intelligence. Hume’s Natural History of Religion, although published earlier than the posthumous Dialogues, is, in effect, a second volume to them. It presents a complex naturalistic explanation of religion’s origin in human nature, providing a sophisticated (and controversial) account of religion’s origin that is also a critique of religious belief. The core of this critique is an argument that theistic belief cannot be rendered so as to significantly differ from an atheism that grants that natural order has some cause or other.

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The role of the 'Natural history of religion' in Hume's critique of religious belief

Belgrade Philosophical Annual ◽

10.5937/bpa2134139g ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (34) ◽

pp. 139-157

Author(s):

Liz Goodnick

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Religious Belief ◽

History Plays ◽

Philosophical Argument ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Natural Religion ◽

Genetic Explanation ◽

Belief In God ◽

History Of

I argue that Hume's naturalistic explanation of religious belief in the Natural History of Religion has significant epistemic consequences. While he argues in the Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (and in other works) that belief in God is not justified on the basis of testimony or philosophical argument, this is not enough to show that religious belief is not warranted. In the Natural History, Hume provides a genetic explanation for religious belief. I contend that the explanation of religious belief in the Natural History, given Hume's conclusions in his other works, provides grounds to reject religious belief. Thus, I conclude that the Natural History plays an important role in Hume's overall critique of religion insofar as it is a necessary component in Hume's arsenal against the warrant of religious belief.

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The natural history of religion.

10.1037/11713-004 ◽

2009 ◽

pp. 401-469

Author(s):

David Hume

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

History Of Religion ◽

History Of

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4. Religion

10.1093/actrade/9780198849780.003.0005 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 81-103

Author(s):

James A. Harris

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Human Nature ◽

Human Beings ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Natural Religion ◽

Treatise Of Human Nature ◽

The Future ◽

History Of

‘Religion' discusses Hume’s various treatments of religion, particularly in the essay ‘Of Miracles’, Dialogues concerning Natural Religion, and ‘The Natural History of Religion’. Hume's earlier writings show some interesting implications for religion, including A Treatise of Human Nature and the essay ‘Of National Characters’. Looking at ‘Of Miracles’ shows that Hume’s theme was not the possibility of miracles as such, but rather the rational grounds of belief in reports of miracles. Considering the Dialogues emphasizes the distinction between scepticism and atheism. Meanwhile, ‘Natural History’ emphasizes Hume’s interest in the dangerous moral consequences of monotheism. What is the future for religion? Perhaps Hume was unlikely to have supposed that his writings would do anything to reduce religion’s hold on the vast majority of human beings.

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History of Religion as Critique of Religion?

The Power of the Sacred ◽

10.1093/oso/9780190933272.003.0002 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 10-30

Author(s):

Hans Joas

Keyword(s):

Eighteenth Century ◽

Natural History ◽

David Hume ◽

Religious Texts ◽

History Of Religion ◽

Universal History ◽

The Bible ◽

Literary Character ◽

History Of

The Scottish eighteenth-century philosopher and historian David Hume can be considered a pioneer of the “natural history of religion” in the sense of a universal history of religion that is not based on theological presuppositions. This chapter offers a characterization of his methodological achievements and a reevaluation of his empirical claims concerning monotheism, polytheism, religion and tolerance. It also interprets the German reception of Hume in Herder and other eighteenth-century thinkers as a serious critical continuation that is free from Hume’s anti-Christian motives. This continuation opens the perspective of a serious study of the literary character of religious texts, in this case of the Bible. All simple contrasts between Enlightenment and religion are overcome as soon as we take this interaction of thinkers into account.

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