There is now renewed and growing interest in post-Hegelian idealism, which was in its heyday at the end of the nineteenth century. This book is concerned with the religious and socio-ethical aspects in the writings of selected idealists. It addresses the question: was post-Hegelian philosophical idealism, in its friendliest guise, more a help than a hindrance to the expression of Christian convictions and the articulation of Christian doctrines? In pursuit of an answer, the author discusses the writings of seven British idealists who, if not in every case entirely doctrinally orthodox, were by no means unkindly disposed towards the Christian faith: T. H. Green, Edward Caird, J. R. Illingworth, Henry Jones, A. S. Pringle-Pattison, C. C. J. Webb, and A. E. Taylor. The book opens with an account of the formative intellectual influences upon the seven idealists and their consequent philosophical positions. There follow chapters on God, ethics and society, and Christian doctrine. The conclusion passes some positive and negative judgments upon post-Hegelian idealism in so far as it bears upon, or expresses, Christian belief. It also broaches the underlying question of the method of Christian thought vis a vis the general intellectual environment.
About the Author: Alan P. F. Sell, of the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and the University of Chester, is a philosopher-theologian and ecumenist with strong interests in the history of Christian thought in general, and of the Reformed and Dissenting traditions in particular. A minister of The United Reformed Church, he has held rural and urban pastorates, has served from Geneva as Theological Secretary of the World Alliance (now Communion) of Reformed Churches, and has held academic posts in England, Canada, and Wales. He has earned the rarely-awarded senior doctorates, DD and DLitt, is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and of the Royal Historical Society, and holds honorary doctorates from the USA, Hungary, Canada, and Romania. He is the author of more than thirty books, and the editor of others. Ever seeking to hold together what belongs together, he explores the relations between philosophy, theology and apologetics, Christian ethics and moral philosophy, and doctrine in relation to spirituality and the ecumenical quest.