One topic frequently explored in the philosophy of humor is the relationship of comedy and laughter with other facets of human existence—including theological insight and religious experience. The aim of this essay is to employ the mature thought of John Dewey not only to illuminate the nature of humor, but also to discern the deep source and connection between the spiritually exalting and the funny from a naturalistic perspective. While a number of passages on comedy and humor from Dewey’s later (...) work are addressed, mostly from Art as Experience, they are synthesized with other ideas from this same text along with a few quotes from John Morreall. The focus is then shifted toward the central themes of A Common Faith, Dewey’s proposal for a de-supernaturalized form of the religious life. It is suggested that the humorous and the religious, understood through Dewey’s refined account of experience, disclose a few very important things about our place within the cosmos as a whole—that greatest of contexts in and through which laughter and the spiritual alike acquire their significance. This Deweyan vision is further clarified by way of comparison with Peter Berger’s theological reflections on humor. The controversies over sin and the place of tragedy in Dewey’s religious naturalism are briefly discussed in the conclusion. (shrink)

The mission of this essay is to outline the conditions for a metaphysics of responsibility—an ontology which encourages the morally and politically active form of life. The ecstatic naturalism of Robert Corrington, a contemporary development in American philosophy, is employed as a means of highlighting these conditions. As the work of Corrington integrates numerous influences from classical American thought, along with several Continental and Asian philosophies, a broad variety of figures and traditions are introduced throughout. The essay concludes with a (...) comparison between ecstatic naturalism and process theology over a topic which surfaces repeatedly throughout the discussion: the question of evil. (shrink)

A good part of what makes the seemingly endless ascent up Mount Jihuashan such a powerful experience, for the curious visitor no less than for the earnest pilgrim, is the overwhelming solemnity of its atmosphere. As it is one of the four holy mountains of Chinese Buddhism, throngs of the pious march dutifully over its stone steps, passing temples and nunneries on their way to the summit. Bells ring out from behind open windows of old shrines, as if rushing to (...) compete with the glow of candles and wafts of smoking incense. Every element seems to conspire in inducing a sense of the beyond. All of this is entirely appropriate, for Jihuashan is the abode of Dizang—the bodhisattva or savior being most known for refusing... (shrink)

The purpose of this article is to enlist the work of the American philosopher and psychologist William James in order to investigate the deeper significance of humor. It is neither James’s character nor anything he states directly about humor or laughter that is under discussion here, but the cosmos as grasped through his bold metaphysics and rich phenomenological observations. The thought of James, it is argued, discloses our inherence within a universe rife with ambiguity, complexity, and incongruity. I explore how (...) these features of reality, particularly when illuminated through James’s lush prose, may cause us to laugh. In addition, the insights of James are employed to examine the close relationship between humor and certain forms of religious experience, as well as with horror. (shrink)