Philip Kitcher (2026): The human project or what difference would God make?
Kitcher P . The human project or what difference would God make? Religious Studies. Published online 2026:1-13. doi: 10.1017/S0034412526101863 ΠΗΓΗ ΕΙΚΟΝΑΣ ABSTRACT Many people believe that, without any God or something similarly ‘ transcendent ’, human life would be meaningless . I oppose this position. In its most popular form, it supposes that meaning accrues because our mundane life is merely a prelude – a time of trial, to decide the character of our life in the hereafter. When probed, this approach involves a number of implausible corollaries. More abstract approaches suggest that meaningfulness results from human contributions to a larger project , the fulfilment of some divine (or transcendent) scheme for the universe. That idea is more promising, but it fails to recognize the possibility of a larger – ‘ human ’ – project to which our lives may also contribute , and that from such contributions can arise significance . This possibility is suggested by John Dewey , and traces...