Pantheologies

October 15, 2018

Rubenstein (religion & feminist, gender & sexuality studies, Wesleyan Univ.; Worlds Without End) sets out to investigate why pantheism is viewed by theists and atheists alike as a monstrous amalgam of mind and matter. While theists typically interpret mind or spirit as supernatural, atheists tend to ignore mind altogether. Although the author often refers back to Greek philosophy and the myth of Pan, Rubenstein's trajectory starts with Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza. She is also indebted to philosopher/psychologist William James, who makes a distinction between the pantheism found in Spinoza that is distributed and pluralistic. Rubenstein uses the latter to address issues she finds plaguing most theologies and atheologies, such as the problem of evil or freewill. However, she does not explore James's idea of neutral monism. VERDICT Rubenstein's examination of pantheism renders a comprehensive and pluralistic view of the cosmos that will interest readers curious about the intersection of religion and philosophy.--James Wetherbee, Wingate Univ. Libs., NC

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 10, 2018
This nuanced history from Wesleyan religion professor Rubenstein exposes how scientists and philosophers have, for centuries, used pantheism as an outer limit of the thinkable. Her key argument centers on how pantheism uncomfortably blurs spiritual distinctions as a kind of queerness. In particular, it calls into question the ostensibly rational, masculine superiority of intellect over matter—and God over the world. She opens with a close reading of Spinoza and his critics, explaining that his perspectival monism views nature as expressions of God. She next considers the role matter plays in pantheist claims and how medieval and contemporary scholars challenged notions of inert, blank substance—including recent philosophical work on vibrant and interconnected matter. Returning to Spinoza’s assumptions, she meticulously deconstructs arguments about a single, gridlike world in favor of a world dominated by a creative multiplicity, then closes with debates over Einstein’s invoking of Spinoza’s God to show how conservative theological aversion to pantheism has continued well past the 19th century. Scholars of the philosophy of science and religion will find complex analyses that reshape the assumptions within both fields in this impressive work.