Knowing God

This title was first published in 2002. Knowing God presents an innovative analysis of one of the most difficult and intractable philosophical questions of the past 350 years: the problem of knowledge, and specifically knowledge of God and the transcendental principles of value. This book situates the problem within the context of current social and political struggles, as well as within the contemporary search for meaning and value. Mansueto revisits ancient debates regarding the agent intellect, intentional being, and connatural knowledge, while drawing on recent discussions in neuropsychology (Luria and Damasio), cognitive development theory (Piaget and Luria), and the sociology of knowledge or 'ideological criticism' (especially Durkheim, Lukacs, and Gramsci). Including a chapter on forms of religious knowledge and concluding with a 'guide for the perplexed' intended to help overcome nihilism and despair, Knowing God reconciles epistemological and metaphysical realism with a recognition of the role of social structure in shaping knowledge.