Transcending the universalism-particularism divide

Agadá, Adá

doi:10.4324/9781003172123-4

Cited by 6 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…It follows, then, that this fundamental principle is an event, the mind-matter interface, where the borders distinguishing mind from matter are constantly transgressed, such that it makes more sense to talk about phases of reality rather than wholly independent mind and matter spheres. (Agada (2022), 87)…”

Section: The Categories Of Power and Glory And The Problem Of Evilmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rethinking the concept of God and the problem of evil from the perspective of African thought

Agadá

2022

Rel. Stud.

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In this article, I show that: (1) There is a transcendence strain in African Traditional Religion (ATR) and traditional African thought that agrees perfectly with traditional monotheism and legitimizes the question of the relation of God with evil in the world. (2) There is incontrovertible evidence of the conception of God as a limited deity that subverts the categories of omnipotence and omniscience. (3) African philosophers of religion must show how a transcendent or, conversely, a limited God is related to the evil that exists in the world, since the overwhelming stance of ATR is that God is the creator of the world and wields effective power. I substitute the categories of omnipotence and omniscience with the novel categories of power and glory and argue that while a powerful and glorious God is not the author of evil and cannot eliminate evil in the world, such a God can be conceived as working to reduce the evil in the world through the instrumentality of human moral agency.

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Section: The Categories Of Power and Glory And The Problem Of Evilmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rethinking the concept of God and the problem of evil from the perspective of African thought

Agadá

2022

Rel. Stud.

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“…This topic regarding the question of animal suffering, however, has been recently explored by Cordeiro-Rodrigues, who attempts a solution for it grounded in Afro-communitarianism. (Cordeiro-Rodrigues, 2022a, 2022b. Additionally, if God is imperfect, He also may not be necessary and proponents of the limited God view may need to furnish new arguments for His existence.…”

Section: African Philosophy Of Religion and The Problem(s) Of Evilmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although there is a general belief in African thought that the natural and supernatural are not separate, for an easy flow of the text we use the term to refer to beings that are often considered supernatural in Philosophy of Religion, such as God and ancestors.2 This line of thinking seems to endorse panpsychism, the view that consciousness is a fundamental aspect of the world.Indeed, philosophers likeDukor (1990) andAgada (2022b) have argued that the African universe is describable in panpsychist terms.3 This stance seems to introduce a conflict since proponents of the limited God view invoke the existence of lesser deities to undermine traditional theism. While traditional theists see the existence of the lesser deities as posing no challenge to God's omnipotence, the limited God proponents regard this as problematic.…”

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confidence: 99%

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African Philosophy of Religion: Concepts of God, Ancestors, and the Problem of Evil

Cordeiro‐Rodrigues

Agadá

2022

Philosophy Compass

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There has recently been an increased interest in debates on the nature of God, supernatural entities, and the problem of evil outside the Western tradition and there is a growing realisation that philosophical scholarship should go beyond Western perspectives in order to properly address issues in the philosophy of religion that arise in non-Western cultures.Taking this on board, this article surveys the field of African philosophy of religion and highlights some of the concerns and issues driving debates in the field. In particular, we focus on three important debates. Firstly, we outline the two main schools of thought that divide African philosophers into theistic and non-theistic camps. We label the theistic perspective the 'African theistic view' and the non-theistic perpective the 'limited God view'. Secondly, we explore how commitment to the two views has led to distinct explanations of the problem of evil. Thirdly, we highlight the role of ancestors in African belief-systems and their place in the scheme of things. Adopting the method of philosophical exposition and argument, we show how the two dominant views of God's nature define this emerging field of African philosophy and will determine the future trajectory of the field.

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“…Agada favours the limited God thesis because it promises a more plausible account of why there is a large amount of evil in the world. Drawing from the doctrine of consolationism, his major contribution to African philosophy (see Agada (2022) for a detailed exposition), he rethinks the concept of God and universalizes the African limited God view with the argument from life that purports to establish the rationality of belief in a limited God. Consequently, he argues that a limited God who is not the author of evil but who is sufficiently powerful to create the world is conceivable as working to reduce the amount of evil in the world using the instrument of human moral agency.…”

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confidence: 99%