Home / Three Essays on Religion

Three Essays on Religion By John Stuart Mill

Three Essays on Religion

By John Stuart Mill

  • Release Date: 2012-09-03
  • Genre: Philosophy
  • $4.99

Description

This book contains three essays written by Mill at various times during his life: "Nature," "Utility of Religion" and "Theism." True to his radical reputation, the ideas Mill expresses in these essays did not sit well with genteel Victorian audiences. In “Nature,” Mill argues that the belief that one should "follow nature" (either human nature or the natural world) is not the best way to decide which actions are best. In “Utility of Religion,” Mill attempts to demonstrate that the social utility of religion comes solely from its propagation of a moral code, and that the other aspects of religion (such as belief in the divine or supernatural events) are unnecessary and may even be harmful to society. In “Theism,” written more than a decade after the other two essays, Mill concedes that there may be some benefits to religious belief. He goes on to evaluate several traditional arguments for the existence of God.