Yujin Nagasawa (, born 23 June 1975) is a Japanese-born philosopher specialising in the philosophy of religion, the philosophy of mind and applied philosophy.
Nagasawa is Kingfisher College Chair of the Philosophy of Religion and Ethics at the University of Oklahoma. He is also former president of the British Society for the Philosophy of Religion, and co-director of the John Hick Centre for Philosophy of Religion. He is best known for his work on the nature and existence of God and the problem of consciousness.
Early life and education
Nagasawa was born in Tokyo, Japan. He studied philosophy and applied mathematics at Stony Brook University in the United States and received his PhD from the Australian National University (ANU) in 2004.
Career
From 2004 to 2005 he was Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Alberta, Canada and Research Fellow at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics at ANU. He taught at the University of Birmingham, where he held the H. G. Wood Professorship of the Philosophy of Religion and served as the Co-Director of the Birmingham Centre for Philosophy of Religion, from 2006 to 2023. He was awarded the Philosophical Quarterly Essay Prize in 2007, the John Templeton Award for Theological Promise by the John Templeton Foundation and the University of Heidelberg in 2008, and the Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize by the University of St. Thomas in 2010.
In 2018 he was appointed as the editor of Religious Studies published by Cambridge University Press. He is also currently Philosophy of Religion Editor of the Cambridge Elements series and Philosophy Compass, and a member of the editorial board of the International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, the European Journal for Philosophy of Religion and Ashgate's the British Society for the Philosophy of Religion Book Series.
Research
Nagasawa's research interests include philosophy of religion (the existence of God, divine attributes, the problem of evil, science and religion), philosophy of mind (phenomenal consciousness, the mind-body problem, semantic externalism) and applied philosophy (medical ethics, the meaning of life, death and immortality).
Publications
Source:
Books (Monographs)
- (2024) The Problem of Evil for Atheists, Oxford University Press, 2024, .
- (2017) Miracles: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2017.
- (2017) Maximal God: A New Defence of Perfect Being Theism, Oxford University Press, 2017.
- (2011) The Existence of God: A Philosophical Introduction, Routledge, 2011.
- (2008) God and Phenomenal Consciousness: A Novel Approach to Knowledge Arguments, Cambridge University Press, 2008. Winner of the 2008 John Templeton Award for Theological Promise.
Books (Edited Collections)
- (2017) Palgrave Handbooks of the Afterlife (Edited with Benjamin Matheson), Palgrave Macmillan, 2017.
- (2015) Alternative Concepts of God: Essays on the Metaphysics of the Divine (Edited with Andrei Buckareff), Oxford University Press, 2015.
- (2015) Consciousness in the Physical World: Perspectives on Russelliam Monism (Edited with Torin Alter), Oxford University Press, 2015.
- (2012) Special Issue on Nonphysicalist Monism, Journal of Consciousness Studies (Edited with Max Velmans), 2012 19, No. 9-10.
- (2012) Scientific Approaches to the Philosophy of Religion, Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.
- (2011) Special Issue on Anselmian theism, International Journal for Philosoph of Religion 69, Issue 2, 2011.
- (2008) New Waves in Philosophy of Religion (Edited with Erik Wielenberg), Palgrave Macmillan (New Waves in Philosophy Series), 2008.
- (2004) There's Something About Mary: Essays on Phenomenal Consciousness and Frank Jackson's Knowledge Argument (Edited with Peter Ludlow and Daniel Stoljar), MIT Press, 2004.
Papers
- (2019) âÂÂPanpsychism versus Pantheism, Polytheism, and CosmopsychismâÂÂ, in William Seager (ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Panpsychism, Routledge, pp. 259-268.
- (2018) âÂÂThe Problem of Evil for AtheistsâÂÂ, in Nick Trakakis (ed.), The Problem of Evil: Eight Views in Dialogue, Oxford University Press, pp. 151-175.
- (2017) âÂÂGlobal Philosophy of Religion and its ChallengesâÂÂ, in Paul Draper and J. L. Schellenberg (eds.), Renewing Philosophy of Religion: Exploratory Essays, Oxford University Press, pp. 33-47.
- (2017) âÂÂWhere does Consciousness Come From?âÂÂ, BBC Focus magazine, August, pp. 64âÂÂ69, 2017.
- (2017) âÂÂPanpsychism and Priority Cosmopsychismâ (with Khai Wager) in Godehard Gruentrup and Ludwig Jaskolla (eds.), Panpsychism: Contemporary Perspectives, Oxford University Press, pp. 113-129, 2017.
- (2016) âÂÂModal PanentheismâÂÂ, Andrei Buckareff and Yujin Nagasawa (eds.), Alternative Concepts of God: Essays on the Metaphysics of the Divine, Oxford University Press, pp. 91âÂÂ105, 2016.
- (2016) âÂÂSilence, Evil, and Shusaku EndoâÂÂ, in Adam Green and Eleonore Stump (eds.), Hidden Divinity and Religious Belief: New Perspectives, Cambridge University Press, pp. 246-259, 2016.
- (2015) âÂÂMultiverse PantheismâÂÂ, Klaas Kraay (ed.), God and the Multiverse: Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Perspectives, Routledge, pp. 177âÂÂ191, 2015.
- (2014) âÂÂThe Paradox of Eden and Black-and-White MaryâÂÂ, in Andrew Moore (ed.), God, Mind and Knowledge, Ashgate, pp. 135-143, 2014.
- (2013) âÂÂMaximal God and the Problem of EvilâÂÂ, Jeanine Diller and Asa Kasher (eds.), Models of God and Other Ultimate Realities, Springer, pp. 233âÂÂ243, 2013.
- (2013) âÂÂModels of Anselmian TheismâÂÂ, Faith and Philosophy 30, pp. 3-25, 2013.
- (2012) âÂÂIntroduction to Nonphysicalist Monismâ (with Max Velmans), Journal of Consciousness Studies 19, pp. 7âÂÂ18, 2012.
- (2012) âÂÂWhat is Russellian Monism?â (with Torin Alter), Journal of Consciousness Studies 19, pp. 67-95, 2012. Reprinted in Torin Alter and Yujin Nagasawa (eds.), Consciousness in the Physical World: Perspectives on Russellian Monism, Oxford University Press.
- (2012) âÂÂInfinite Decomposability and the Mind-Body ProblemâÂÂ, American Philosophical Quarterly 49, pp. 357âÂÂ367, 2012.
- (2012) âÂÂIs There a Shallow Logical Refutation of the Ontological Argument?âÂÂ, a special issue on the ontological argument, European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 4, pp. 87-99, 2012.
- (2012) âÂÂJohn HickâÂÂs Pan(en)theistic MonismâÂÂ, Religious Pluralism and the Modern World: An Ongoing Engagement with John Hick, Sharada Sugirtharajah (ed.), Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 176âÂÂ189, 2012.
- (2011) âÂÂAnselmian TheismâÂÂ, Philosophy Compass 6, pp. 564-571, 2011.
- (2010) âÂÂThe Knowledge Argument and EpiphenomenalismâÂÂ, Erkenntnis 72, pp. 37âÂÂ56, 2010.
- (2010) âÂÂThe Ontological Argument and the DevilâÂÂ, Philosophical Quarterly 60, pp. 72-91. Winner of the 2010 Excellence in Philosophy of Religion Prize, 2010.
- (2010) âÂÂAustralasian DualismâÂÂ, Graham Oppy, Nick Trakakis, et al. (eds.), A Companion to Australasian Philosophy, Monash University Publishing, 2010.
- (2009) âÂÂImmortality without Boredomâ (with Lisa Bortolotti), Ratio 22, pp. 261-277, 2009.
- (2009) âÂÂThe Knowledge ArgumentâÂÂ, Tim Bayne, Axel Cleeremans and Patrick Wilken (eds.), The Oxford Companion to Consciousness, Oxford University Press, pp. 395âÂÂ397, 2009.
- (2009) âÂÂForewordâ to John Hick and Arthur McGill (eds.), The Many-Faced Argument: Recent Studies on the Ontological Argument for the Existence of God (new reprint), Eugene, Oregon, Wipf and Stock, 2009.
- (2008) âÂÂA New Defence of Anselmian TheismâÂÂ, Philosophical Quarterly 58, pp. 577âÂÂ596. Winner of the 2007 Philosophical Quarterly Essay Prize, 2008.
- (2007) âÂÂMillican on the Ontological ArgumentâÂÂ, Mind 116, pp. 1027-1040, 2007.
- (2007) âÂÂA Further Reply to Beyer on OmniscienceâÂÂ, Sophia 46, pp. 65âÂÂ67, 2007.
- (2007) âÂÂThe Grounds of Worship Again: A Reply to Croweâ (with Tim Bayne), Religious Studies 43, pp. 475-40, 2007.
- (2007) âÂÂFormulating the Explanatory GapâÂÂ, The American Philosophical Association Newsletter on Philosophy and Computers, 2007.
- (2007) âÂÂProxy Consent and CounterfactualsâÂÂ, Bioethics 22, pp. 16-24, 2007.
- (2007) âÂÂSurgeon Report Cards and the Concept of Defensive MedicineâÂÂ, Steve Clarke and Justin Oakley (eds.), Informed Consent and Clinical Accountability: The Ethics of Auditing and Reporting Surgeon Performance, Cambridge University Press, pp. 255âÂÂ265, 2007.
- (2006) âÂÂA Place for Protoconsciousness?âÂÂ, Psyche, Symposium on Gregg RosenbergâÂÂs A Place for Consciousness, 2006.
- (2006) âÂÂThe Grounds of Worshipâ (with Tim Bayne), Religious Studies 42, pp. 299âÂÂ313, 2006.
- (2005) âÂÂOmniscience and Physicalism: A Reply to BeyerâÂÂ, Sophia 44, pp. 55-58, 2005.
- (2005) âÂÂI CanâÂÂt Make You Worship Meâ (with Campbell Brown), Ratio 18, pp. 138âÂÂ144, 2005.
- (2005) âÂÂAnything You Can Do God Can Do Betterâ (with Campbell Brown), American Philosophical Quarterly 42, pp. 221-227, 2005.
- (2005) âÂÂThe Best of All Possible Worldsâ (with Campbell Brown), Synthese 143, pp. 309âÂÂ320, 2005.
- (2005) âÂÂChappell on the Consistency of Criticisms of ChristianityâÂÂ, Ratio 18, pp. 104-106, 2005.
- (2004) âÂÂIntroductionâ (with Daniel Stoljar), in There is Something About Mary: Essays on Phenomenal Consciousness and Frank JacksonâÂÂs Knowledge Argument, MIT Press, pp. 1âÂÂ36, 2004.
- (2004) âÂÂSkeptical Theism and Moral Skepticism: A Reply to Almeida and Oppyâ (with Nick Trakakis), Ars Disputandi 4, 2004.
- (2004) âÂÂSubjective Characters of Experience in Medical Ethics: A Reply to AtkinsâÂÂ, Journal of Applied Philosophy 21, pp. 219âÂÂ223, 2004.
- (2004) âÂÂSalvation in Heaven?â (with Graham Oppy and Nick Trakakis), Philosophical Papers, 33, pp. 95-117. Reprinted in Graham Oppy (2006) Arguing About Gods, Cambridge University Press, 2004.
- (2003) âÂÂThomas vs. Thomas: A New Approach to NagelâÂÂs Bat ArgumentâÂÂ, Inquiry 46, pp. 377âÂÂ394, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂI Trust You, YouâÂÂre a DoctorâÂÂ, Australian Journal of Professional and Applied Ethics 5, pp. 70-73, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂMoral Evil and Human Freedom: A Reply to TiernoâÂÂ, Sophia 42, pp. 107âÂÂ11, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂSARS and Health Care Workersâ DutyâÂÂ, Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics 13, p. 208, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂDivine Omniscience and Experience: A Reply to AlterâÂÂ, Ars Disputandi 3, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂDivine Omniscience and Knowledge De SeâÂÂ, International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 53, pp. 73-82, 2003.
- (2003) âÂÂGodâÂÂs Point of View: A Reply to ManderâÂÂ, The Heythrop Journal 44, pp. 60âÂÂ63, 2003.
- (2002) âÂÂExternalism and the Memory ArgumentâÂÂ, Dialectica 56, pp. 335-346, 2002.
- (2002) âÂÂThe Knowledge Argument Against DualismâÂÂ, Theoria LXVIII, pp. 205âÂÂ223, 2002.
- (2000) âÂÂâÂÂVery-Slow-Switchingâ and Memory: A Critical Note on LudlowâÂÂs PaperâÂÂ, Acta Analytica 15, pp. 173âÂÂ175, 2000.
References
External links