Very many contemporary thinkers would agree that Wittgenstein was "the first philosopher of the age" and no one could deny that his work has had a most profound effect upon the development of philosophical thinking in the twentieth century. He was interested in religious belief throughout his life, though not himself subscribing to any recognised creed. In this book a very clear account is given of his leading ideas, and their bearing upon religious beliefs is carefully discussed. In particular, three conceptions are explained and critically assessed: Wittgenstein's notion that "the mystical" cannot be put into words but nevertheless shows itself; his verificationism and its relevance to religion; and his account of religious belief as "using a picture". An acquintance with Wittgenstein's philosophy in general and his thoughts about religion in particular, such as this book provides, will shed light on such questions of perennial concern to those interested in religion as these: what kind of meaning do expressions of religious belief have? Can religious claims be established in the way that scientific ones can and if not dos this disprove them? How does a believer in God differ essentially from an unbeliever, in his view of life and of the world?

W. Donald Hudson is Reader in Moral Philosophy at the University of Exeter. He is the author of Ludwig Wittgenstein, Ethical Intuitionism, Rason and Right, Modern Moral Philosophy and A Philosophical Approach to Religion; and the editor of three important philosophical series, New Studies in Ethics, New Studies in the Philosophy of Religion and New Studies in Practical Philosophy.

He has contributed to the main philosophical and theological journals and to many collections of philosophical papers including The Is-Ought Question, of which he is the editor. Of late he has been concerned with the development of postgraduate studies in moral philosophy and the philosophy of religion at Exeter University.