In this course, we’ll consider a range of philosophical questions about western religion and religious belief. Among them are: What are the best arguments that God exists? What are the best arguments that he doesn’t? What is faith? Can it ever be rational to have faith? Lots of religions claim to be authenticated by miracles. Can we rationally believe that any of them really happened? If there is a God, why does he allow so much suffering? And why doesn’t he reveal himself to people who sincerely want to know him? If, however, there is no God, then where did the universe come from? And why does the universe seem fine-tuned to support intelligent life like us (just as we’d expect if God exists and cares for us)? What role (if any) would God play in making our lives meaningful? And given all the disagreement about religion among very smart, well-informed, sincere people, are we really justified in being confident that our own view about religious matters (e.g., theist, atheist, agnostic) is correct?