just one hurdle to maximum appreciation for this work...

books:


	• Who Knows?: A Study of Religious Consciousness Raymond M. Smullyan Indiana University Press, 2003 - 142 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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just one hurdle to maximum appreciation for this work...

i find myself on page 75 with a sneaking suspicion that at some point RS decided to pick the subject of eternal damnation not because it is a serious subject for those wanting to come to terms with the fine line between faith and reason, but more for the fact that it's an easy subject to show off his mastery of logic. His logical debate with Calvinism, Jonathan Edwards, and what he colors as Hard-to-Ultrahard Christians, although lively, seem less than relevant in light of other possibilities (in the ever-lasting-life-or-not specifics) via more liberal, universal, interpretations of the New Testament message of God's infinite love and forgiveness.
So I will give RS the benefit of the doubt and finish his game because I love the question "Who Knows?" and I'm sure if I saw RS making oatmeal I would find something inspiring or thought-provoking.
And, and, and...In my next life I will have a front row seat at the debate between Raymond Smullyan and Robert Farrar Capon (one of my favorite writers on the "faith" side).

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Inquiring Minds Want to Start At "Who Knows?"

Here is a book that manages, in relatively few pages and in a style that is consistently readable, to address provacatively and intelligently some of the central questions that men and women throughout time have pondered. Three basic areas are covered: (1) The existence of God, and more important, the "type" of God in whom one believes, (2) The question of whether God is unable or unwilling to grant eternal salvation to all and, (3) Whether we are evolving toward a higher level of consciousness -- a state of being "better described than defined." Smullyan, apparently, has led a colorful life, a significant fraction of which has been spent outside the halls of academia. Still,he is best known for his puzzles, particularly his wonderful puzzles concerning Knights (who always speak the truth) and Knaves (who never do). So, we are most fortunate that this magician/logician should turn his attention to the greatest puzzles of all: Does God exist, what are God's attributes and can we, or at least some people, know God? Countless volumes have been written on these questions. I have sampled not even an insignificant fraction of such work, but I'd bet good money that you could travel a long way in those jungles before finding a book as lucid and as accessible as "Who Knows?" One doesn't have to agree with Smullyan to go on the tour with him. Having read the library's copy, I purchased my own copy from Amazon and plan to take the trip again shortly.

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Lucid Philosophical Discussion

Philosophy as it should be done. Smullyan's writing and thinking in this book is witty, engaging, and subtle without being pretentious, dogmatic, and overly technical. He offers some refreshing analysis and independent options in the philosophy of religion.