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Chapter 4 - Reiding Hume

Hume, Reid, and Reformed Epistemology

from Part I - Hume’s Dialogues

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 December 2025

Paul Russell
Affiliation:
University of British Columbia, Vancouver
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Summary

I take this chapter as an opportunity to ask what Hume might think of rational religious belief given developments in philosophy of religion, epistemology and contemporary cognitive science of religion (which explores the natural roots of religion). To that end, I will consider some basic findings in the cognitive science of religion concerning the origins of religion in human nature. I will also reflect on some significant developments in twentieth-Century philosophy, including recent developments in religious epistemology, that I think Hume might have found insightful. I will argue that twenty-first-century Hume, perhaps ironically in line with the thought of Alvin Plantinga and Nicholas Wolterstorff (who in turn align themselves with Thomas Reid), would defend rational belief in God.

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  • Reiding Hume
  • Edited by Paul Russell, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
  • Book: Hume's <i>Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion</i>
  • Online publication: 25 December 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009214049.006
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  • Reiding Hume
  • Edited by Paul Russell, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
  • Book: Hume's <i>Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion</i>
  • Online publication: 25 December 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009214049.006
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Reiding Hume
  • Edited by Paul Russell, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
  • Book: Hume's <i>Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion</i>
  • Online publication: 25 December 2025
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009214049.006
Available formats
×