The
metaphilosophy of naturalism is about the nature and goals of naturalist
philosophy. A real or hypothetical person who knows the nature, goals and
consequences of naturalist philosophy may be called an “informed
naturalist.” An informed naturalist is justified in drawing certain
conclusions about the current state of naturalism and the research program that
naturalist philosophers ought to undertake. One conclusion is that the great
majority of naturalist philosophers have an unjustified belief that naturalism
is true and an unjustified belief that theism (or supernaturalism) is false. I
explain this epistemic situation in this paper. I also articulate the goals an
informed naturalist would recommend to remedy this situation. These goals, for
the most part, have as their consequence the restoring of naturalism to its
original state (approximately, to a certain degree, given the great difference
in the specific theories), which is the state it possessed in Greco-Roman
philosophy before naturalism was “overwhelmed” in the Middle Ages, beginning
with Augustine (naturalism had critics as far back as Xenophanes, sixth century
B.C.E., but it was not “overwhelmed” until much later). Contemporary
naturalists still accept, unwittingly, the redefinition of naturalism that began
to be constructed by theists in the fifth century C.E. and that underpins our
basic world-view today.