God in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Perspectives

3 units

Does God exist? Does God not exist? We will examine the arguments for and against the existence of God. We start with how the concept of a single universal God developed in antiquity in the context of the worship of many gods. Then we explore traditional and contemporary Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives on the nature of God, human freedom and responsibility, miracles, and human suffering. We examine Christian defenses of the Trinity and Jewish and Muslim criticism in the Middle Ages. Then we delve into recent debates for and against the existence of God, plus contemporary viewpoints and questions, such as whether there can be religion without God, and why would anyone want such a thing?