About this Book

Stout asserts that to understand the messages of, say a Jerry Falwell, Ellie Wiesel or Mario Cuomo, we first have to understand the moral language in which they frame them. Stout's "modest pragmatism" throws down a gauntlet to nihilists and skeptics who are cowed by the sheer diversity of modern society. As he reflects on the role of institutions and beliefs in shoring up the moral framework of the republic, he drives home his central message: religious ethics are the litmus test of any secular philosophy. Finding academic theology bankrupt, Stout engages instead in a debate with moral philosophers. His own pragmatism offers scant metaphysical comfort, yet it points the way to a better society. ISBN 0-8070-1402-8: $29.50.