In his series of lectures, Sir Henry Jones demonstrates the importance of the rational and scientific investigation of religion. He builds his argument on Lord Gifford’s assertion that religion should be studied both logically and scientifically to prove its validity. Without relying on special revelation or supernatural intervention, this enquiry benefits both adherents and non-adherents, revealing if religious faith is worth pursuing.
Henry Jones was born on 30 November 1852 in Denbigshire, Wales. A Welsh philosopher, he was a dominant force in the speculative life of Scotland and Wales. He became Professor of Philosophy and Political Economy at the New University College of North Wales in 1884, and in 1891, took up the Chair of Logic, Rhetoric, and Metaphysics at St Andrews in 1891. Sir Henry succeeded Edward Caird as Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Glasgow, remaining there until his death in 1922.
Bestowed honorary degrees from the universities of St Andrews and Wales, he was knighted in 1912 and made a Companion of Honour in 1922. A leader in creating the Welsh Intermediate Education Act of 1889, Sir Henry founded the Glasgow Civic Society and supported women getting university educations. Important works include Browning as a Philosophical and Religious Teacher (1891), A Critical Account of the Philosophy of Lotze: The Doctrine of Thought (1895), Social Powers: Three Popular Lectures on the Environment, the Press, and the Pulpit (1913), The Principles of Citizenship (1919), and Old Memories (1922).
