Philosophy of Religion Series ed. by John Hick, Philosophy of Religion: The Historic Approaches by M. J. Charlesworth, Oppositions of Religious Doctrines by William A. Christian, Contemporary Critiques of Religion by Kai Nielson, Problems of Religious Knowledge by Terence Penelhum (review)

396 BOOK REVIEWS the universal in the particular made the premises of natural sciences into necessary truths that are recognized as such without the need of further test. This is a far cry from the modern experimental method with its twofold characteristics of idealization and contrivance, and its reliance on predictive validation. Some of the instances of" ~txperimental" knowledge given by Fr. Wallace presuppose little more than a vague empiricism that can be found in any writer who thinks he can learn from observing the world around us. Surely very little can be inferred from the information that " Coronel notes as an experimental fact (cognoscimus per experientiam) that we cannot start a fire without destroying something combustible... " ! (p. 133) The author is, of course, perfectly aware of these objections, and it is one of the charms of his rich and scholarly work that he gives enough quotations from the primary sources to allow dissenters to marshall their own arguments and make a case for their own point of view. Fr. Wallace has made an important contribution to our understanding of scientific explanation, and he has written a stimulating and thoughtprovoking chapter in the history of the continuity vs. discontinuity debate over the method of medieval and modern science. Readers of this first volume of Causality and Scientific Explanation will eagerly look forward to the publication of the second one which will continue this study to the twentieth century. University of Ottawa Ottawa, Canada WILLIAM R. SHEA Philosophy of Religion Series. Ed. By JoHN HICK. New York: Herder and Herder. Philosophy of Religion: The Historic Approaches. By M. J. CHARLESwoRTH . 197~. Pp. ~16. $8.95. Oppositions of Religious Doctrines. By WILLIAM A. CHRISTIAN. 197~. Pp. 1~9. $6.95. Contemporary Critiques of Religion. By KA1 NIELSON. 1971. Pp. 163. $6.95. Problems of Religious Knowledge. By TERENCE PENELHUM. 197~. Pp. 186. $7.95. It was not too many years ago that philosphy of religion was, if not dead, in a state of advanced anemia. Theology was robust, even rambunctious. Today, constructive theology is a shadow of its old self. Valuable work is now being done primarily in the historical, social-scientific, and philoso- BOOK R:ElVlEWS S97 phical study of theology. But especially impressive is the continuing flow of books and articles by philosophical analysts of theology in Britain and North America. Two worthwhile series of books m the philosophy of religion have been published recently. The four books here reviewed are contributions to the Philosophy of Religion Series under the general editorship of John Hick. Books by Hick and H. P. Owen were published earlier, and volumes by Ninian Smart, Basil Mitchell, Nelson Pike, Donald Evans, Dennis Nineham, and H. D. Lewis are forthcoming. The editorial design is an interesting and rather unique one in that the series is intended to " consolidate the gains of the past " and yet "to direct attention upon the problems of the future, "-i. e., trying to show the student how a particular problem such as the proofs of the existence of God, concepts of deity, religious knowledge, etc., has developed to the present and what the author sees as the problems and prospects remaining for analysis. Hence each book is meant to be introductory but far more, for " each author will accordingly go beyond the scope of an introduction to formulate his own position in the light of contemporary debates. " The authors, then, do not stop at historical exposition and analysis but make clear their own theses or critical conclusions which, in turn, are meant to stimulate further analysis and dialogue. This is an admirable plan. It helps to define the issues, to give a sense of an acknowledged body of literature or problems defining the field, and a common task. This is a feature of scientific work so often missing in the humanities. Perhaps it was the editor's concern to give a sense of coherence to the issues and tasks that lead him to invite contributions largely from philosophers committed to or strongly influenced by British analytical philosophy. It would have been less orderly but probably more instructive if the series had included contributions from philosophers and theologians representing quite disparate approaches...