Morality as a Religion

Sullivan, W. R. Washington (William Robert WashingProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.9

Word count: 433K words
Chapters: 44

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Morality as a Religion by W. R. Washington SullivanAuthor: Sullivan, W. R. Washington (William Robert Washington),Language: English, Class: BJ: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Ethics, Social usages, Etiquette, Religion, Release Date: Jul 30, 2007

Editor's review

This book is a work of moral philosophy written in English by W. R. Washington Sullivan, in the intersection of ethics and philosophy of religion, published as a free e-book by Project Gutenberg. The author's central concern is whether morality itself can be understood and practiced as a religious system of belief, rather than merely as a code of conduct. The value of such a text lies in presenting the speculative approach of late 19th- to early 20th-century English-language scholarship on the relationship between moral foundations, moral sentiment, and religious experience, offering reference for understanding the secularizing turn in modern ethics. The argumentation is rather theoretical, requiring some philosophical patience. It is suitable as supplementary reading for ethics courses, or for readers interested in the history of moral philosophy and the debate between religious and secular ethics. As a public-domain e-book, this edition has no modern introduction or notes; it is advisable to use it alongside a philosophical dictionary or relevant introduction.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Ethics or philosophy students needing historical discussions of the relation between morality and religion
Advanced readers interested in secular ethics and the foundations of moral belief
Those needing English public-domain philosophical texts for research or translation practice
Enthusiasts who enjoy speculative reading and can accept theoretical argumentation

Not a good fit for

General readers hoping for light stories or a practical moral guide
Those with weak English reading ability or unfamiliar with philosophical terminology
Beginners needing modern annotations and introductions

Reading tips

Read the table of contents and introduction first to clarify the author's definition of 'morality as a religion' before entering the main text.
Keep a notebook to map the core argument chain, and consult a philosophical dictionary for terminology.
Read alongside an introduction to ethics to lower the threshold of understanding.
After each chapter, restate the argument in your own words to check whether you have truly understood it.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book suitable for readers with zero philosophy background?

Not very suitable. This is a theoretically demanding English work of moral philosophy without modern annotations or an introduction; readers with zero background can easily get lost in terminology and argumentation. It is advisable to read an introduction to ethics first, in Chinese or English, before returning to this book.

How is this different from a manual of religious doctrine?

This book is not a text of religious doctrine or preaching, but a philosophical discussion of whether morality can be understood as a religious belief. It concerns the foundations and meaning of morality and belongs to theoretical ethics, not a code of faith.

What is the reading experience of the public-domain e-book edition?

The Project Gutenberg edition is a free English public-domain e-book; the content is complete but usually lacks a modern editor's introduction, annotations, or index. Readers need to supplement background knowledge themselves; it suits those who can study the original text independently.

Comments

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About the author

Sullivan, W. R. Washington (William Robert Washing Author

W. R. Washington Sullivan (full name William Robert Washington Sullivan) is an author about whom very little public information is available; no reliable records of his life, nationality, or dates of birth and death have been found. What is known is that he wrote the book Morality as a Religion, the only work by him held in this collection. Judging from its title, the book examines the relationship between morality and religion and asks whether morality can stand as an independent system of belief, placing it at the intersection of philosophy of religion and ethics. Writing of this kind is generally aimed at readers interested in the foundations of morality, secular ethics, and religious conviction, and tends to emphasize conceptual analysis and argument rather than narrative or lyric expression. Because biographical material is lacking, it is not possible to say more about his academic background or intellectual development; readers wishing to understand his views must turn to the work itself.