Divine Faith

Dr John R.T. Lamont is Gifford Research Fellow at the University of St Andrews, UK.

• Contents: Fundamental assumptions; The existence of divine speaking; History of Christian views on the basis of belief I: patristic themes; History of Christian views on the basis of belief II: medieval and modern options; Knowledge as the product of intellectual virtue; Knowledge from testimony; The nature of divine speaking; The nature of divine faith; Appendix I: content externalism and the development of doctrine; Appendix II: Newman on the development of doctrine; Select bibliography; Index.

'Such is the current state of intellectual diversity that there are no commonly shared ideas about the nature of possible knowledge of God and of the role of 'revelation' in providing the form and content of such putative knowledge. John Lamont's book Divine Faith provides a deeply studied account of these matters drawing upon patristic, medieval, modern and contemporary writers. Unusually he is able to weave together scriptural, theological and philosophical approaches so as to provide an answer to the questions of on what grounds and what brings about religious belief. The book is a rich and accessible resource which is bound to reward study.' John Haldane, Professor of Philosophy, University of St Andrews 'This is an important book on the topic of the rational grounding of Christian faith, that everyone involved in the field should read. It opens new pathways in the history of its topic, and in the consideration of the philosophical and theological questions that are crucial to it.' Romanus Cessario, O.P. Professor of Theology, Saint John's Seminary, Brighton, Massachusetts 'John Lamont's Divine Faith is a sterling account of a sectarian account of faith: indeed, it is the best account I have read in this vein.... Lamont's account of "the nature of Christian faith" is distinguished both by historical scholarship and analytical rigour. ... What are we to make of this piece of philosophical theology? First, it is apparent that Lamont is a serious and skilled scholar. A review cannot adequately convey the detail and precision of this book....His erudition is considerable; his arguments are detailed, nuanced, exact; and his analyses of concepts such as knowledge as an intellectual virtue and knowledge by testimony are worth considering at length...' Religious Studies ’... this book is a rigorously argued and extremely lucid exposition of the Thomist conception of faith... Philosophically as well as theologically of great interest, Divine Faith deserves to b