Whitehead and Recent Thought: Frontiers of Process-Relational Metaphysics

Alfred North Whitehead’s bold metaphysical vision continues to shape both the internal development of process philosophy and theology and a wide range of contemporary scientific, philosophical, and theological conversations. In Whitehead and Recent Thought, Andrew M. Davis draws together these internal and external vectors into a carefully curated collection that highlights the frontiers of process-relational metaphysics.

Engaging a variety of recent figures, debates, and concerns, Davis elucidates Whitehead’s metaphysics and philosophical theology as generative resources for addressing pressing “contemporary thematics,” from the meaning crisis and exceptional experiences to enduring questions about the nature and legitimacy of process philosophy and theology. Emphasizing the layered “modalities of value” central to process thought, he extends and defends Whitehead’s “axianoetic” metaphysics in dialogue with ancient and modern voices that affirm the ontological primacy of value and mind.

Of particular significance is Davis’s exploration of the “transplanetary horizons” of process metaphysics, situating Whitehead’s thought—and the broader process tradition—within emerging discussions of other worlds, extraterrestrial life, and the scope of cosmological evolution. A resource for both students and scholars, these chapters showcase the dynamism of process-relational metaphysics as a living tradition with roots in the past and enduring relevance for the present and future.