Stoa Nova: Should We Believe in a Stoic God? (Online)

The ancient Stoics were pantheists, they believed that the cosmos is a living organism endowed with reason, which they called God. Some modern Stoics insist that if we abandon that sort of belief, then the Stoic ethical system will irremediably suffer. In particular, the Stoic notion of Providence will become untenable, and with it the idea that we should not just endure, but embrace our fate. What do you think?

Suggested readings: https://thesideview.co/articles/the-stoic-god-is-untenable-in-the-light-of-modern-science/

https://thesideview.co/articles/again-modern-science-does-not-support-the-stoic-god-and-thats-okay/

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Hosted by philosopher Massimo Pigliucci, Stoa Nova is inspired (with a bit of immodesty) to the ancient Greco-Roman schools of philosophy. Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Epictetus and many others simply gave lectures about their favorite topics and engaged in Socratic discussions with people interested in what they had to say. In our case, we will examine the theory and practice of Stoicism as a modern applied philosophy that aids us in navigating a world in some ways just as confusing and uncertain as that of ancient Athens and Rome. For more on Stoicism, click here (http://tinyurl.com/m7hzr4x)!