Short History of Atheism

Gavin Hyman is Lecturer in Religious Studies at Lancaster University. He is the author of 'The Predicament of Postmodern Theology' (2002) and contributed to 'The Cambridge Companion to Atheism' (2006).

• ForewordIntroduction1.The ‘Appearance’ of Atheism in Modern History2.The Development of Atheism in Modern Thought3.The God that Modern Atheism Rejects4.The Theological Origins of Modern Atheism5.Atheism and the Rise of Biblical Criticism6.Atheism and the Rise of Science7.Atheism, Evil and Suffering8.The End of Modernity - the End of Atheism?BibliographyIndex

'Gavin Hyman offers a much needed analysis and evaluation of the atheism that arose during the Enlightenment and extended itself into the modern and contemporary periods. He does so with a fairness and balance that illumines the subject rather than obfuscates it. Avoiding the supercilious polemic which has recently and regrettably marked the subject, Hyman's introductory history of atheism is honest in its assessment of the evidence and careful in its argumentation, taking up an issue that has preoccupied Western civilization since the ancient Greeks. The integrity of his inquiry and of his discourse have left us very much in his debt.' - Michael J Buckley, SJ, Augustin Cardinal Bea, SJ, Professor of Theology, Santa Clara University, and author of At the Origins of Modern Atheism; 'In this meticulous anatomy of modern atheism, Gavin Hyman pursues the idea that we get the atheism we deserve: that modern atheism is a function of the modern idea of God, and nothing more. Accordingly, as the author shows, the very idea of the post-modernA" spells trouble for the atheism that is built into modernity. The alternatives that post-modernity presents, Hyman argues, are whether to retrieve the pre-modern traditions of Augustine and Aquinas or to press on toward a thinking that moves beyond and displaces the distinction between theism and atheism. This is a lucid, engaging and astute work of historical and philosophical analysis.' - John D Caputo, Thomas J Watson Professor of Religion and Humanities and Professor of Philosophy, Syracuse University