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List of contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Taking Leave of Emergence Theory
2. Welcoming Contemporary Panpsychism
3. An Interlude on Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz
4. Indwelling Creation: Panpsychism and Divine Action
5. The Voices of Creation: Panpsychism and Ecology
Conclusion
Bibliography
About the author
Joanna Leidenhag is Lecturer in Theology at the University of St Andrews, UK.
Summary
Are humans the only creatures that can appreciate God’s creation? What if consciousness is spread more widely across all things? This volume examines panpsychism through the lens of Christian doctrine. Minding Creation is the first substantial examination of what a panpsychist theory of consciousness implies for key theological debates concerning God’s presence and action, evolution and the origin of the soul, human uniqueness and the environmental crisis.
Joanna Leidenhag develops a theological panpsychism that is based on an exceptionally wide range of scholarship. Minding Creation draws on the theologies of historical figures such as Augustine of Hippo, Gottfried von Leibniz and others, in order to create a critical and constructive conversation with contemporary analytic philosophers of mind, such as Thomas Nagel, Galen Strawson, and David J. Chalmers. Leidenhag also discusses key concepts and issues, such as emergence theory, divine action, and ecology. She concludes that God created a universe from nothing which is filled with indwelling powers, sacramental value, and intrinsic experience. This is a creation in which the Holy Spirit is internally present at every point, a creation that worships God, and a creation that human beings must protect and lead in praise.
Foreword
A constructive evaluation of contemporary panpsychism for the Christian doctrine of creation.
Additional text
Panpsychism is a novel theory of consciousness which has attracted much attention in recent years, yet very few have considered the theological implications of this view. In Minding Creation, Joanna Leidenhag offers a carefully reasoned, lucid discussion that explores the rationale for incorporating panpsychism into Christianity. This is an exciting and thought-provoking book that should not be missed.
