A Short History of Atheism

This monograph examines the genealogy of modern atheism by tracing its emergence through specific historical and intellectual conditions rather than treating it as a perennial philosophical position. Hyman challenges conventional narratives that present atheism as the inevitable result of scientific progress or rational enlightenment, arguing instead that both modern atheism and modern theism are historically contingent phenomena that arose from particular theological and philosophical developments within Christianity itself.

The work's central thesis contends that atheism emerged not in opposition to generic theism but specifically against a historically particular form of God-concept that developed in early modernity. Hyman traces how medieval theological voluntarism and nominalism, combined with the mechanistic worldview of early modern science, produced a conception of God as an external, interventionist deity whose existence could be demonstrated through natural philosophy. This "ontotheological" God, treated as one being among others within a univocal metaphysical framework, became the target of atheistic critique. The author argues that when atheists reject this specific God-concept, they often mistakenly believe they have refuted theism as such, while many theists defend this same problematic conception as if it were identical with authentic religious belief.

Through careful intellectual history, Hyman demonstrates how key figures from Duns Scotus through Descartes to contemporary atheists like Dawkins participate in shared assumptions about what "God" means and how religious claims function. The work engages critically with both theistic and atheistic positions, showing how each side of the debate often operates within the same modern framework that treats God as a hypothesis subject to empirical verification or falsification. This genealogical approach reveals that contemporary debates between theists and atheists frequently talk past one another because they share unexamined presuppositions about the nature of religious discourse.

The monograph's significance lies in its potential to reframe the theism-atheism debate by exposing its historical contingency. By showing how both positions emerged from specific theological and philosophical developments, Hyman opens space for alternative approaches to religious questions that move beyond the sterile opposition between modern theism and modern atheism. His work suggests that recovering pre-modern or non-Western conceptions of divinity might offer resources for transcending current impasses in philosophy of religion.