Hellfire and Lightning Rods: Liberating Science, Technology, and Religion

Renowned philosopher Frederick Ferré invites us to contemplate a new world to be constructed out of the debris of modernity. Hellfire and Lightning Rods displays a vision in which the dichotomies between religion, philosophy, science, and technology can be seen as too-narrow construals of a single, but polyvalent, organic world.

Ferré wisely notes that the conceptual worlds of premodern animism, modern “scientism,” and biblical orthodoxy have major internal flaws and create immense practical problems. Yet, while they are largely unconvincing to persons who see the need for “postmodern” approaches, a successor to these views is nowhere near universally accepted. In that context, Ferré suggests that an important interim worldview that he calls “multi-mythic organicism” will help humanity recover spiritual dimensions now lacking.

Frederick Ferre (1933-2013) was Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at The University of Georgia, editor of Research in Philosophy & Technology, and author of many books and articles, including the classic Language, Logic, and God. He was also a past president of the Metaphysical Society of America.