--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Philip Kitcher has composed the most…" description: "\"Philip Kitcher has composed the most formidable defense of the secular view of life since Dewey. Unlike almost all of contemporary atheism, Life After ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/leon-wieseltier-27120_admire_philip-kitcher-has-composed-the-most-for_2994665.jpg" --- # Philip Kitcher has composed the most formidable defense of… ![“Philip Kitcher has composed the most formidable defense of the secular view of life since Dewey. Unlike almost all of contemporary atheism, Life After Faith is utterly devoid of cartoons and caricatures of religion. It is, instead, a sober and soulful book, an exemplary practice of philosophical…” quote by Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/leon-wieseltier-27120_admire_philip-kitcher-has-composed-the-most-for_2994665.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/leon-wieseltier-27120_admire_philip-kitcher-has-composed-the-most-for_2994665.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/leon-wieseltier-27120_admire_philip-kitcher-has-composed-the-most-for_2994665.jpg) > “Philip Kitcher has composed the most formidable defense of the secular view of life since Dewey. Unlike almost all of contemporary atheism, Life After Faith is utterly devoid of cartoons and caricatures of religion. It is, instead, a sober and soulful book, an exemplary practice of philosophical reflection. Scrupulous in its argument, elegant in its style, humane in its spirit, it is animated by a stirring aspiration to wisdom. Even as I quarrel with it I admire it.” [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A rigorous, respectful defense of secularism that avoids caricature and seeks deep philosophical insight. **In simple terms:** A serious, thoughtful secular argument. Key Takeaway Consider secular ideas with nuance. Themes philosophy secularism religion dialogue Mood thoughtful respectful Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - academic discussion - public debate - personal belief formation Key Concepts ethical reflection intellectual honesty wisdom seeking Questions to Reflect On - How can secular perspectives engage religious audiences productively? - What role does humility play in philosophical critique? A Different Perspective Secular arguments may still be perceived as dismissive by believers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Admire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admire/) [Analysis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/analysis/) [Animated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animated/) [Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) [Aspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aspiration/) [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Caricatures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caricatures/) [Cartoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartoon/) [Contemporary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemporary/) [Contemporary Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemporary-atheism-4479116/) [Defense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defense/) [Elegant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegant/) [Exemplary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exemplary/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Formidable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/formidable/) [Humane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humane/) [Humane Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humane-spirit-4723701/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Philip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philip/) [Philosophical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophical/) [Philosophical Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophical-reflection-3682162/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Quarrels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quarrels/) [Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflection/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Secular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secular/) [Secular View](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secular-view-1126067/) [Sober](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sober/) [Soulful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soulful/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Stirring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stirring/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [View of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/view-of-life/) [Views](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/views/) ## Related quotes > [As a young adult, I began to read widely in history, philosophy, and religion - including the Bible. I began to feel that a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-berenstain/as-a-young-adult-i-began-to-read-widely-in-history-philosophy-and/) [Mike Berenstain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-berenstain/) > [Absolute atheism starts in an act of faith in reverse gear and is a full-blown religious commitment. Here we have the first internal inconsistency…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-maritain/absolute-atheism-starts-in-an-act-of-faith-in-reverse-gear-and-is-a-2/) [Jacques Maritain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-maritain/) > [The elemental fact, present in our consciousness every moment of our existence, is: I am life that wills to live, in the midst of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/the-elemental-fact-present-in-our-consciousness-every-moment-of-our/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“Better is it', she thought, 'to be clothed with poverty and ignorance, which are the dark garments of the female sex; better be quit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/better-is-it-she-thought-to-be-clothed-with-poverty-and-ignorance/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [In the secular view, suffering is never seen as a meaningful part of life but only as an interruption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/in-the-secular-view-suffering-is-never-seen-as-a-meaningful-part-of/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Almost all arguments for skepticism make reference to seemingly ridiculous possibilities—we are being deceived by an evil demon, life is just a dream, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-feldman/almost-all-arguments-for-skepticism-make-reference-to-seemingly/) [Richard Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-feldman/) > [Philosophical reflection could not leave the relation of mind and spirit in the obscurity which had satisfied the needs of the naive consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/philosophical-reflection-could-not-leave-the-relation-of-mind-and/) [Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/) > [My high school did not offer courses in philosophy, so the books that initially stimulated philosophical reflection in me were novels by Charles Dickens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-nussbaum/my-high-school-did-not-offer-courses-in-philosophy-so-the-books-that/) [Martha Nussbaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-nussbaum/) > [But let there be no misunderstanding: it is not that a real man, the object of knowledge, philosophical reflection or technological intervention, has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/but-let-there-be-no-misunderstanding-it-is-not-that-a-real-man-the/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [Closely allied to the assumption that Democrats can't win because they're too secular is the view that they can't win if they're too liberal.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-weisberg/closely-allied-to-the-assumption-that-democrats-can-t-win-because/) [Jacob Weisberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-weisberg/) > [I am convinced that all our attempts to change the letter of the law and to reeducate people have been, and are, merely band-aid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/i-am-convinced-that-all-our-attempts-to-change-the-letter-of-the-law/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [There was really interesting work going on, for example, in the Mississippi bayou, where there were some really exemplary health centers that also became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/there-was-really-interesting-work-going-on-for-example-in-the/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [The exemplary vanguard role of the Communists is of vital importance. Communists in the Eighth Route and New Fourth Armies should set an example…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/the-exemplary-vanguard-role-of-the-communists-is-of-vital-importance/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [Many women have made the mistake of changing their beliefs to accommodate their work; it must be the other way around. No circumstance is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-kay-ash/many-women-have-made-the-mistake-of-changing-their-beliefs-to/) [Mary Kay Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-kay-ash/) > [Truth be told, there are lots of companies that provide exemplary phone support. DirecTV, Virgin America and Apple are a few that regularly exceed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hamel/truth-be-told-there-are-lots-of-companies-that-provide-exemplary/) [Gary Hamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hamel/) ## More by Leon Wieseltier > [What matters to me is that one identifies one's genuine obsessions, one's genuine commitments, one's genuine appetites, one pursues them seriously and far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/what-matters-to-me-is-that-one-identifies-one-s-genuine-obsessions/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [But even now, with the crates piled high in the hall, what I see most plainly about the books is that they are beautiful.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/but-even-now-with-the-crates-piled-high-in-the-hall-what-i-see-most/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [“The doctrine of "exit strategy" fundamentally misunderstands the nature of war and, more generally, the nature of historical action. for the knowledge of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/the-doctrine-of-exit-strategy-fundamentally-misunderstands-the-nature/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [American Jews, like Americans, have a very consumerist attitude toward their identity: they pick and choose the bits of this and that they like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/american-jews-like-americans-have-a-very-consumerist-attitude-toward/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [Incorruptibility by money is the old story... Now it's incorruptibility by media.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/incorruptibility-by-money-is-the-old-story-now-it-s-incorruptibility/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [The velocity and volume on the Web are so great that nothing is forgotten and nothing is remembered,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/the-velocity-and-volume-on-the-web-are-so-great-that-nothing-is/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [“A wall of books is a wall of windows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/a-wall-of-books-is-a-wall-of-windows/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [I do not value religion chiefly for its morality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/i-do-not-value-religion-chiefly-for-its-morality/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [Here is a humanist proposition for the age of Google: The processing of information is not the highest aim to which the human spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/here-is-a-humanist-proposition-for-the-age-of-google-the-processing/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [Dilettantism is the sort of thing one must avoid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/dilettantism-is-the-sort-of-thing-one-must-avoid/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [The Internet is like closing time at a blue-collar bar in Boston. Everyone’s drunk and ugly and they’re going to pass out in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/the-internet-is-like-closing-time-at-a-blue-collar-bar-in-boston/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [A thoughtless citizen of a democracy is a delinquent citizen of a democracy,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/a-thoughtless-citizen-of-a-democracy-is-a-delinquent-citizen-of-a/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [I was not interested in spending 10 years in the culture wars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/i-was-not-interested-in-spending-10-years-in-the-culture-wars/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [I hear it said of somebody that he is leading a double life. I think to myself: Just two?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/i-hear-it-said-of-somebody-that-he-is-leading-a-double-life-i-think/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) > [There are moral religious people and moral secular people, immoral religious people and immoral secular people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-wieseltier/there-are-moral-religious-people-and-moral-secular-people-immoral/) [Leon Wieseltier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) [Explore all 21 Leon Wieseltier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-wieseltier/) ## More Admire quotes > [Everyone will admire you when you do well. What a horrible thing to do to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-will-admire-you-when-you-do-well-what-a-horrible-thing-to-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I admire Serena Williams, because, I mean, who doesn't admire Serena Williams?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-konta/i-admire-serena-williams-because-i-mean-who-doesn-t-admire-serena/) [Johanna Konta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johanna-konta/) > [How proud I am to be compared to Oprah. I really admire her. She's a minority woman and she's done all this by herself...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-saralegui/how-proud-i-am-to-be-compared-to-oprah-i-really-admire-her-she-s-a/) [Cristina Saralegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-saralegui/) > [I admire President Obama's ability to trust strangers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/i-admire-president-obama-s-ability-to-trust-strangers/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [I really admire people's interactions with technology that aren't tech-centric but use it as a tool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-polachek/i-really-admire-people-s-interactions-with-technology-that-aren-t/) [Caroline Polachek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-polachek/) > [During my first years in the Sierra, I was ever calling on everybody within reach to admire them, but I found no one half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/during-my-first-years-in-the-sierra-i-was-ever-calling-on-everybody/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Shaw's works make me admire the magnificent tolerance and broadmindedness of the english.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/shaw-s-works-make-me-admire-the-magnificent-tolerance-and/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. There are moments that I admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-believe-in-a-world-where-there-are-no-heroes-and-i-ve-read-and-know/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I admire machinery as much is any man, and am as thankful to it as any man can be for what it does for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-admire-machinery-as-much-is-any-man-and-am-as-thankful-to-it-as-any/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I think it's really good and helpful to have the people you most admire in some other discipline than what you work in. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-it-s-really-good-and-helpful-to-have-the-people-you-most/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [Part of what we admire about a painting or a piece of music is the order which the artist has imposed upon what would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/part-of-what-we-admire-about-a-painting-or-a-piece-of-music-is-the/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) > [I respect and admire the Premier League.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-koeman/i-respect-and-admire-the-premier-league/) [Ronald Koeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-koeman/) > [“Admire and appreciate your man and he will be happy on your side”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-alfiori/admire-and-appreciate-your-man-and-he-will-be-happy-on-your-side/) [Linda Alfiori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-alfiori/) > [“The thing I admire most about you is no matter how hard, or how much the world has tried to beat you, break you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-gill/the-thing-i-admire-most-about-you-is-no-matter-how-hard-or-how-much/) [Nikita Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-gill/) [Browse all 2,369 Admire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Philip Kitcher has composed the most formidable defense of the secular view of life since Dewey. 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