Abrahamic Reflections on Randomness and Providence.

• Author: Clark, Kelly James.
• TeilnehmendeR: Koperski, Jeffrey.
• Place / Publishing House: Cham : : Springer International Publishing AG,, 2021.; ©2022.
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (381 pages)

Table of Contents

Abrahamic Reflections on Randomness and Providence -- Contents -- List of Figures -- Notes on Contributors -- Part I: Introduction -- Chapter 1: Randomness and Providence: Is God a Bowler or a Curler? -- 1.1 How Does God Do It? -- 1.2 The Bible Tells Me So -- 1.3 Modern Science -- 1.4 Is God a Bowler or a Curler? -- 1.5 Randomness and Providence -- 1.6 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Part II: The Problem(s) Stated -- Chapter 2: The Many Faces of Randomness -- 2.1 No Single Definition -- 2.2 Purpose -- 2.3 Probability and Statistics -- 2.4 Physics -- 2.4.1 Statistical Mechanics -- 2.4.2 Chaos Theory -- 2.4.3 Instability and Singular Points -- 2.4.4 Norton's Dome -- 2.4.5 Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking -- 2.4.6 Quantum Mechanics -- 2.5 Biology -- Bibliography -- Chapter 3: Randomness and Providence: Defining the Problem(s) -- 3.1 Introduction -- 3.2 Ontological Randomness -- 3.2.1 Randomness as Indeterminism -- 3.2.2 Randomness as Purposelessness -- 3.3 Divine Providence -- 3.3.1 Super Meticulous Providence -- 3.3.2 Meticulous Providence -- 3.3.3 General Providence -- 3.4 The Problems -- 3.4.1 Power -- 3.4.2 Knowledge -- 3.4.3 Goodness -- 3.5 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Part III: Science -- Chapter 4: Randomness in the Cosmos -- 4.1 Introduction -- 4.2 What Is Randomness? -- 4.3 Randomness in the Early Universe -- Galaxy Formation -- 4.4 Randomness and Chaos in the Formation of the Solar System -- 4.5 Stability of the Planetary System -- 4.6 Formation of the Moon -- 4.7 Randomness in the Bombardment of the Earth by Meteoroids -- 4.8 Randomness in the Sun's Activity -- 4.9 Randomness, Order in the World, and Divine Providence -- Bibliography -- Chapter 5: Randomness, Providence, and the Multiverse -- 5.1 The Indifferent Universe of Materialism -- 5.2 General and Special Providence -- 5.3 Is the Universe Fine-Tuned for Life?.

5.4 Debates on Fine-Tuning -- 5.5 The Cost of Each Option -- Bibliography -- Chapter 6: Can a Muslim be an Evolutionist? -- 6.1 Religious Authority -- 6.2 Creation: Processive or Instantaneous Creation? -- 6.3 Creation in Six Stages (Days) -- 6.4 Creation of Man from Clay -- 6.5 Human Dignity, Common Ancestry -- 6.6 Nafsi Wahida: Descent from Adam and Eve? -- 6.7 Theological Agnosticism -- 6.8 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Chapter 7: Chance, Evolution, and the Metaphysical Implications of Paleontological Practice -- 7.1 Evolutionary Metanarratives -- 7.2 Chance and Contingency Versus Convergence and Predictability in the History of Life -- 7.2.1 Contingency -- 7.2.2 Convergence -- 7.2.3 Contemporary Coda -- 7.3 Chance and Selection in the Fossil Record: Successful Paleontological Practices -- 7.4 Potential Implications for Divine Providence? -- 7.5 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Part IV: The Abrahamic Faiths -- Chapter 8: Judaism and Providence -- 8.1 The Basics of Judaism -- 8.2 Providence and Randomness -- 8.3 The Question of Providence and Five Answers -- 8.3.1 Answer 1: Particular Providence Over Everything -- 8.3.2 Answer 2: Particular Providence Over People Only -- 8.3.3 Answer 3: Particular Providence Over Righteous People Only -- 8.3.4 Answer 4: Particular Providence in the Land of Israel Only -- 8.3.5 Answer 5: Philosophical Transcendence -- 8.4 An Idealist Interlude -- 8.5 Radical Reductions -- 8.6 Idealism and Providence -- 8.7 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Chapter 9: Randomness and Providence in Christian Thought -- 9.1 Goals and Orientation -- 9.2 Introduction to Christianity -- 9.2.1 The Person of Jesus -- 9.2.2 Early Christianity -- 9.3 Christian Thinking on Divine Providence -- 9.3.1 Providence in Scripture -- 9.3.2 Fathers of the Church on Divine Providence -- 9.4 What About Randomness? -- 9.4.1 Grappling with Preexisting Thought.

9.4.2 The Augustinian Model of Providence -- 9.4.3 Enter Aristotelianism -- 9.4.4 Modern Science -- 9.5 A Possible Solution -- Bibliography -- Chapter 10: God, Cosmos, and Humanity: Muslim Perspectives on Divine Providence -- 10.1 What Is Islam? Or Inferring Providence from Scripture -- 10.2 Avicenna: Divine Creative Agency and the Mediation of the Prophet -- 10.3 Mullā Ṣadrā on Providence, Evil, and Love -- 10.4 Concluding Remark -- Bibliography -- Part V: Providence and Chance -- Chapter 11: Reconciling Meticulous Divine Providence with Objective Chance -- 11.1 Introduction -- 11.2 Six Failed Reconciliations -- 11.2.1 Determinism -- 11.2.2 Molinism -- 11.2.3 Thomism -- 11.2.4 Divine Luck -- 11.2.5 Multiverse -- 11.2.6 Peter van Inwagen's Model -- 11.3 Pruss's Solution: A Theistic Version of Lewis's Best-Fit Model -- 11.3.1 Lewis's Best-Fit Model -- 11.3.2 The Explanatory Weakness of Lewis's Chance -- 11.3.3 Saving the Principal Principle -- 11.3.4 Pruss's Reconciliation of Providence and Chance -- 11.4 Some Objections to Pruss's Account -- 11.4.1 The Gambler's Fallacy -- 11.4.2 The Credence/Chance Conceptual Gap -- 11.5 A Divine Command Theory of Rational Credence -- 11.5.1 The Model and Its Advantages -- 11.5.2 Objections -- Bibliography -- Chapter 12: Creatio Continua and Quantum Randomness -- 12.1 Introduction -- 12.2 The Christian Traditions -- 12.2.1 Nicolas Malebranche -- 12.2.2 René Descartes -- 12.2.3 Jonathan Edwards -- 12.3 The Islamic Traditions -- 12.3.1 The Ash'arite Worldview -- 12.3.2 Motivation and Justification -- 12.3.3 Implications -- 12.4 The Common View -- 12.4.1 Conservation Without Determinacy -- 12.4.2 The Equivalence Thesis -- 12.4.3 The Edwards-Ash'arite Thesis -- 12.4.4 The Bottom-Up and the Determinacy Theses -- 12.5 Continuous Creation and Quantum Mechanics -- 12.6 Objections and Replies -- 12.7 Conclusion.

Bibliography -- Chapter 13: Causality, Indeterminacy, and Providence: Contemporary Islamic Perspectives from Said Nursi and Basil Altaie -- 13.1 Introduction -- 13.2 Said Nursi: Causality, Laws of Nature, and Indeterminacy as Signs of God -- 13.2.1 Nursi's Approach to Natural Causality in the Context of Contemporary Theories of Causation -- 13.2.2 Nursi on Laws of Nature -- 13.3 Quantum Physics Interpreted: Altaie on Laws of Nature, Indeterminism, and Causality -- 13.3.1 Genuine Indeterminacy in Nature -- 13.3.2 Altaie on Laws of Nature -- 13.3.3 Causality: First and Second Level of Analysis -- 13.3.4 Re-creation: An Interpretation of Indeterminism -- 13.4 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Chapter 14: Divine Action and the Emergence of Four Kinds of Randomness -- 14.1 Modes of Divine Action -- 14.2 The Metaphysics of Emergence -- 14.3 The Emergence of Meaning, Intentionality, and Mathematical Knowledge -- 14.4 The Emergence of Phenomenal Qualia -- 14.5 The Emergence of Life -- 14.6 The Emergence of Thermodynamics and Chemistry -- 14.7 Downward Causation in Modern Quantum Theory -- 14.8 Some Theological Reflections -- Bibliography -- Chapter 15: God et al.- World-Making as Collaborative Improvisation: New Metaphors for Open Theists -- 15.1 Introduction -- 15.2 Classical Theism and Its Metaphors -- 15.2.1 The Bird's-Eye View -- 15.2.2 God as Instantaneous Author -- 15.2.3 God: The Lone World-Artist -- 15.2.4 Problems with the Metaphors -- 15.3 Metaphors for Open Theists -- 15.3.1 The Shrinking Tree -- 15.3.2 More Dynamic Metaphors: 'Books-in-Progress' and the 'Growing Block' -- 15.3.3 God as Collaborative Improvisational Director-Participant -- 15.3.3.1 Example 1: Jazz Band Leader -- 15.3.3.2 Example 2: Improv Troupe Director-Participant-Christopher Guest's Model -- 15.4 Salutary Upshots -- 15.5 Conclusion -- Bibliography.

Chapter 16: Saadia on "what is in the hearts of people when they reach the limits of endurance in a trial" -- Bibliography -- Chapter 17: Randomness, Causation, and Divine Responsibility -- 17.1 Augustinian Approaches to Evil -- 17.2 Zimmerman on Shared Responsibility -- 17.3 Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index.