Publications

The articles presented here are (with one exception) publications of mine. A separate part of this website offers chapters from my book The Golden Rule (Oxford University Press, 1996).

  1. In the field of philosophical cosmology, the philosophy of the truths of science, this piece addresses historically the concept of purpose in the universe: "Teleology Past and Present."

  2. The concept of the universal family--the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man--was widespread in the late nineteenth- and early twentieth centuries, but has been criticized since then. This article clarifies the debate to facilitate a renewed embrace of that concept.

  3. In the discipline of phenomenology--the rigorous description of the structures of experience--Edmund Husserl's writings on spiritual experience are little known but very helpful.

  4. How can religions enjoy peace among one another? This article, from 2002, shows how a moderated use of Kantian reason can limit fanaticism and point toward unity.

  5. A Japanese Shin Buddhist philosopher, Tanabe Hajime, challenging his own countrymen during World War II, shared the spirituality he discovered. His path moved from complacent confidence, through the breakdown of reason, to spiritual discovery, philosophical harmony, and living in truth, beauty, and goodness. Find the article in the Buddhist section of the part of this website devoted to world religions.

  6. Facing the problems of inter-religious dialogue opening can lead to remarkable levels of peace.

  7. The problems of our lives and our world sometimes seem overwhelming. How can we work with distinctions to empower courageous willing?

  8. "Pied Beauty" by Gerard Manley Hopkins invites a commentary that highlights layers of experience correlating joy with real value; as a result, truth, beauty, and goodness emerge as divine values and carry us beyond current varieties of aestheticism.

  9. Custom, in religion and in daily life generally, can be deadening or enlivening. How have selected philosophers from ancient Greece, medieval China, and 20th century Europe thought about this problem?

  10. Kant's concept of a world peace as part of the destiny of humankind is debated by Hegel and by Samuel P. Huntington's idea of the "clash of civilizations." Given these differing philosophies of history, what roles can religion play in global progress?