Perspectives in Contemporary Catholic Philosophy: Ethics, Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, and Metaphysics

Dear Colleagues,

Catholic philosophy has an extensive history, dating back to the Middle Ages and beyond, and there are hundreds of Catholic philosophers operating as teachers and researchers in the world today. Catholic philosophy has proven to be capable of engaging in debate with and enriching contemporary philosophical and theological discourse, even if at times it is underappreciated. Thus, the aim of this Special Issue is to provide a glimpse of the state of the art in Catholic philosophy in terms of the key issues, movements, and figures active today, as well as further the dialogue of the Catholic intellectual tradition with theology and secular philosophy.

We welcome you to contribute to this endeavor by submitting an abstract for approval on a topic at the forefront of Catholic philosophical thought today.

This Special Issue aims to show the vivacity and importance of contemporary Catholic thought. Where is Catholic thought unique and able to make contributions to contemporary philosophical debates? The Special Issue will examine key Catholic contributes in the areas of logic and epistemology, ethics, metaphysics, and elsewhere. In particular attempts to dialogue with contemporary non-Catholic philosophy, clarify and introduce key ideas into contemporary debates, and show the relevance of Catholic thought today will be stressed.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• The relevance of medieval and Contemporary Catholic logicians and epistemologists for defining the importance and limits of clarity of thought and logic, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of different logical systems.
• The nature and justification of knowledge and the ongoing importance of epistemological realism, its concordance with the activities of the intellect, and its defense.
• The significance of intention in ethics and how it can best be defined.
• Defenses of the objectivity and knowability of ethical principles.
• The importance of love in ethical philosophy.
• Application and defense of key Catholic ethical principles, including the idea of intrinsically evil acts and critiques of consequentialism and ethical subjectivism.
• The relevance of Catholic thought to issues of human rights, political philosophy, environmental conservation, and Just War Theory.
• The nature of the human will, its response to desires and passions, and yet its freedom of choice in enacting human acts.
• Recent Catholic thought on issues of metaphysics, including the nature of objects, beings, change, and time.
• The most important approaches to natural theology today and critiques of secular thought.
• The importance of Thomism today.
• The value of phenomenology, hermeneutics, and other Continental approaches to philosophical erudition.
• Areas where Catholic philosophical thought can be taken up and profitably used in theology.

The hope is that this Special Issue will result in an appreciation of the importance of Catholic philosophical thought today, how it can enrich contemporary philosophy and theology, and how it is an important resource for anyone interested in these philosophical and theological discussions.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200-300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor, Dr. Alan Vincelette (avincelette@stjohnsem.edu), and CC the Assistant Editor of Religions, Ms. Joyce Xi (joyce.xi@mdpi.com). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editor for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review and will also be reviewed by the Guest Editor before acceptance for publication.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Alan Vincelette
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Catholic philosophy
• realism in epistemology
• moral realism
• natural theology
• theology
• religion and philosophy