Jim Kanaris

Faculty of Religious Studies

Field(s) of specialization

Philosophy of Religion, methodology, relationship of philosophy and theology, Continental thought, Bernard Lonergan

Introduction

A native of Montreal, Jim Kanaris gained a B.A. in theology and philosophy from Concordia University in 1993. He continued his studies in philosophy of religion at McGill and gained a M.A. in 1995 and Ph.D. (Hon.) in 2000.

Since 2000 he has been a lecturer of Philosophy of Religion at McGill’s Faculty of Religious Studies.

He is also honorary professor of The Presbyterian College, which is part of The Montreal School of Theology affiliated with the Faculty of Religious Studies.

Research Areas

Religious epistemology

Methods in theology and religious studies

Philosophical and theological hermeneutics

Modernity/Postmodernity

Research interests and current work in progress

Dr. Kanaris’s area of specialty is the thought of Canadian philosopher-theologian Bernard Lonergan (1904-84). He has published numerous books and articles on the topic, the most recent of which is a co-edited volume entitled In Deference to the Other: Lonergan and Contemporary Continental Thought (2004).

His research interests center on broaching problematic methodological and epistemological issues that intersect with the study of “religion”. In the area of religious studies per se, this translates into the interface of religion and the sciences, social and natural. In philosophy of religion the topic converges on an analysis of different thinking styles, Analytic and Continental.

Dr. Kanaris mitigates these issues through a differentiated appreciation of knowledge acquisition located in critical self-reflection. While facilitated by protracted study of Lonergan, this programmatic interest has developed in conversation with the works of French philosophers, Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida in particular. A book-length treatment is on the horizon.