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What is Apophaticism? Ways of Talking about an Ineffable God

Author(s): Citron, Gabriel

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Abstract: Apophaticism - the view that God is both indescribable and inconceivable - is one of the great medieval traditions of philosophical thought about God, but it is largely overlooked by analytic philosophers of religion. This paper attempts to rehabilitate apophaticism as a serious philosophical option. We provide a clear formulation of the position, examine what could appropriately be said and thought about God if apophaticism is true, and consider ways to address the charge that apophaticism is self-defeating. In so doing we draw on recent work in the philosophy of language, touching on issues such as the nature of negation, category mistakes, fictionalism, and reductionism.
Publication Date: 2016
Citation: Citron, Gabriel. (2016). What is Apophaticism? Ways of Talking about an Ineffable God. European Journal for Philosophy of Religion, 8 (4), 23 - 49. 10.24204/ejpr.v8i4.1716.
DOI: 10.24204/ejpr.v8i4.1716
Pages: 23 - 49
Language: English
Type of Material: Journal Article
Journal/Proceeding Title: European Journal for Philosophy of Religion
Version: Final published version. This is an open access article.



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