6 - Perceptual
from Part III - The Hagiological Argument
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 February 2026
Summary
Chapter 6 considers the ‘perceptual’ version presented autobiographically by Peter van Inwagen but supported conceptually by figures such as David Brown and Mark Wynn. Here sainthood is understood in terms of providing an embodied source of religious experience, and evidence is understood in perceptual terms. More specifically, the perception of divine reality is indirect and materially mediated through the saintly source, and examples are provided from Christianity, Judaism, Sufi Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Japanese folk religion, and secular media. Unlike the propositional version presented in Chapter 5, the perceptual version is inter-religious and does not lead to any specific understanding of divinity.
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- Saints as Divine EvidenceThe Hagiological Argument for the Existence of God, pp. 186 - 211Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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