Love of a God of Love Towards a Transformation of the Philosophy of Religion [Paperback]

Traditionally, religious belief has in the philosophy of religion been understood along more orless epistemological lines. Love of a God of Love develops another understanding of belief, where the moralconcept of love is central. In this context, what isdistinctive about the concept of love is that it is both the what and the how of belief: forthe one who loves a God of love, the concept of love characterizes both the content side andthe act side of the belief. In that respect, this understanding of religious belief makes itpossible to avoid certain formalist difficulties, arising when the what and the how ofbelief are sharply distinguished.

Religious belief concerns a relation of love and this love is a love of a God of love. Through the theme of love Strandberg works out a philosophy of religion which does not understand religious belief hypothetically and evidentially. Faith is a relation and an existential endeavor primarily involving oneself. Strandberg is an original and serious thinker. His book presents an important alternative in the ongoing reflection upon what belief is and even more so, how to believe. I recommend this book to all those who appreciate perceptive and engaging thinking. Catharina Stenqvist, Professor of Religion and Philosophy, Lund University, Sweden

Rejecting the 'formalist' distinction between the 'what' and the 'how' of believing, Hugo Strandberg offers a lucid and pathbreaking account of belief in God as love of a God of love. If, as Strandberg argues, the task of philosophy is to bring its audience into a new relationship with its subject matter--a relation of understanding, in which moral and religious demands cannot be evaded--it is a mark of his success that his study has the effect of rendering its subject not merely intelligible but compelling. Love of a God of Love is a major achievement of philosophical thinking. Richard Amesbury, Associate Professor of Ethics, Claremont School of Theologl��