Methodological Naturalism and Philosophical Naturalism: Clarifying the Connection

Abstract

In response to the charge that methodological naturalism in sci- ence logically requires the a priori adoption of a naturalistic metaphysics, I examine the question whether methodological naturalism entails philo- sophical (ontological or metaphysical) naturalism. I conclude that the rela- tionship between methodological and philosophical naturalism, while not one of logical entailment, is the only reasonable metaphysical conclusion given (1) the demonstrated success of methodological naturalism, com- bined with (2) the massive amount of knowledge gained by it, (3) the lack of a method or epistemology for knowing the supernatural, and (4) the subsequent lack of evidence for the supernatural. The above factors together provide solid grounding for philosophical naturalism, while supernaturalism remains little more than a logical possibility. An