Loyal Rue
| Religious Naturalism | |
|---|---|
 Loyal Rue, PhD |
|
| Fields | Philosophy of Religion, Religion and Science,Religion and Human Nature, Pragmatism |
| Institutions | Luther College |
| Alma mater |
Ph.D., Hartford Seminary M.Div., Luther Theological Seminary B.A., University of Minnesota |
| Known for | Naturalist Theory of Religion |
| Influences | Paul Tillich |
Dr. Loyal D. Rue is professor of religion and philosophy at Luther College of Decorah, Iowa [1], and focuses on naturalistic theories of religion.
He has been awarded two John Templeton Foundation fellowships.
Two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction, Edward O. Wilson writes about Rue’s Religion is not About God – “This book is an important step towards the naturalistic, hence truly general theory of religion. It harmonizes contemporary scientific understanding of the origin of human nature with a positive view of the centrality of religious culture”[2]
Dr. Rue has in his writings and teaching been a leading proponent of Religious Naturalism and its environmentalism – “Religious Naturalists will be known for their reverence and awe before Nature, their love for Nature and natural forms, their sympathy for all living things, their guilt for enlarging the ecological footprints, their pride in reducing them, their sense of gratitude directed towards the matrix of life, their contempt for those who abstract themselves from natural values, and their solidarity with those who link their self-esteem to sustainable living". [3] The individual perspectives on Religious Naturalism of Donald A. Crosby, Jerome A. Stone, Ursula Goodenough and Rue are discussed by Michael Hogue in his 2010 book The Promise of Religious Naturalism.[4]
In the Epilogue of Everybody’s Story, Rue writes, "There is nothing in the substance of everybody's story to rule out belief in the reality of a personal deity. At the same time, such a belief is not an essential part of everybody's story. There will be theistic versions of the story, and there will be non-theistic versions as well. Those who take the theistic option will have at their disposal a range of images that may be used to arouse motivational systems. But I have confidence that everybody's story, unadorned by theological imagery, has the potential to arouse us to serve its imperatives. Let us see." [5]
He has been for many years a member and lecturer at the Institute on Religion in an age of Science (IRAS)
Contents |
[edit] Major Publications
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- Religion Is Not About God: How Spiritual Traditions Nurture Our Biological Nature And What to Expect When They Fail, Rutgers University Press, 2006, ISBN-10: 0813539552
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- Everybody's Story: Wising Up to the Epic of Evolution, State University of New York Press, 1999, ISBN-10: 0791443922
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- By the Grace of Guile: The Role of Deception in Natural History and Human Affairs, Oxford University Press, USA, 1994), ISBN-10: 0195075080 (A New York Times Notable Book).
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- Amythia: Crisis in the Natural History of Western Culture, University Alabama Press, 2004), ISBN-10: 0817351361
Dr. Rue also served as co-editor of the volume Contemporary Classics in Philosophy of Religion, Open Court Pub Co, 1991, ISBN-10: 0812691687
[edit] References
- ^ Luther College Faculty [1]
- ^ Religion is not About God – Rutgers University Press , 2005, book flap, ISBN 0-8135-3511-5
- ^ Loyal D. Rue - Religion is not About God, Rutgers University Press, 2005, page 367, ISBN 0813535115
- ^ The Promise of Religious Naturalism - Michael Hogue, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., Sept.16, 2010, ISBN 0742562611
- ^ Everybody's Story: Wising Up to the Epic of Evolution, State University of New York Press, 1999, Epilogue, ISBN-10: 0791443922
[edit] Further reading
- 2010 – Michael Hogue – The Promise of Religious Naturalism, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., Sept.16, 2010, ISBN 0742562611
- 2008 – Michael Dowd – Thank God for Evolution:, Viking (June 2008), ISBN 0670020451
- 2008 – Jerome A. Stone - Religious Naturalism Today: The Rebirth of a Forgotten Alternative, State University of New York Press, December 2008
- 2006 – John Haught – Is Nature Enough?, Cambridge University Press (May 31, 2006), ISBN 0521609933
- 2006 – Loyal Rue – Religion Is Not About God, Rutgers University Press, July 24, 2006, ISBN 0813539552
- 2000 – Ursula Goodenough – Sacred Depths of Nature, Oxford University Press, USA; 1 edition June 2000
