Dictionary of Philosophy of Religion

PLURALISM

180

Leibniz rather than of Spinoza. Immate-
rial souls are mirrors of the transcendent
plenitude of the One and salvation is the
return of the soul to its immaterial source.
The whole of the physical universe
reflects its transcendent immaterial cause
and the cosmos is governed by Provi-
dence. The return of the soul to the One
culminates in a communion of love and
knowledge, not mere assimilation of the
soul to the totality of being or, indeed,
its annihilation. Plotinus’ doctrine of the
return to a transcendent source or princi-
ple made Platonism more congenial to
later theists than Stoicism.

PLURALISM. The term is sometimes
used descriptively to designate the pres-
ence of variety (e.g., the U.S. is a pluralis-
tic society) and sometimes normatively
(e.g., salvation or enlightenment may be
found in multiple religions).

PLUTARCH (c. 48 CE–c. 122 CE). A
Greek biographer who used his accounts
of great historical figures to teach lessons
of humility and integrity. His works
include Lives and Moralia.

POLITICS. See GOVERNMENT.

POLYTHEISM. Belief in multiple gods.
Sometimes polytheism is subordinate to
an overriding monism or monotheism by
which the multiple gods are seen as dif-
ferent manifestations of a Higher God.

PONS ASINORUM. From the Latin,

meaning “the asses’ bridge.” The term’s

origin is obscure but it probably refers to

a challenge that troubles or impedes

someone of little intelligence, e.g., the

fifth proposition in the first book of

Euclid’s Elements. A pluralist in today’s

philosophy of religion may claim that

there is no current pons asinorum, viz.,

there are multiple options in philosophy

of religion from feminism to Kantianism,

no one of which is so prestigious and

powerful that only an ass would fail to

embrace it.

POSITIVISM. See LOGICAL

POSITIVISM.

POSSIBILITY. Metaphysically, X is pos-

sible if it is not impossible. If X is possible

it may be either contingent or necessary,

but not both. Epistemic possibility is dif-

ferent and refers to what seems to be the

case. Something metaphysically impossi-

ble (time-travel) may seem epistemically

possible.

POSSIBLE WORLDS. A maximum

possible state of affairs. In philosophical

discussions of whether ours is the best

possible world, the debate is over whether

there could not be an alternative, maxi-

mum possible state of affairs. Our world

is both possible and actual, but (arguably)

there are other possible worlds that may

have been actualized.