author
Joseph Butler
1692–1752
An English bishop and moral philosopher, he became one of the clearest religious thinkers of the eighteenth century. He is still remembered for writing with calm logic about conscience, human nature, and the case for religious belief.
3 Audiobooks
Human Nature, and Other Sermons
by Joseph Butler
Some Remains (hitherto unpublished) of Joseph Butler, LL.D.
by Joseph Butler
About the author
Born in Wantage in 1692, Joseph Butler was educated first in the dissenting tradition and later at Oriel College, Oxford, where he entered the Church of England. He rose through a series of church posts and eventually became Bishop of Bristol and later Bishop of Durham.
Butler is best known for Fifteen Sermons Preached at the Rolls Chapel and The Analogy of Religion, Natural and Revealed, to the Constitution and Course of Nature. In these works, he argued against the idea that people are driven only by self-interest and defended the role of conscience as a real guide in moral life.
His writing is admired for being careful, steady, and persuasive rather than flashy. Even centuries later, readers return to him for his thoughtful discussions of ethics, religion, and what it means to understand human nature honestly.