I’d like to offer some thoughts comparing three different models of divine providence in relation to the problem of evil. The models I want to discuss are (1) theological determinism (hereafter ‘Calvinism’), (2) Molinism, and (3) open theism. [Full disclosure: My sympathies are with (3).] By ‘Calvinism’ I mean the view that God has meticulously… Read More »
This is an example of why theological claims ought to be taken seriously as objective truth claims and not, as the counselor in this scene suggests, as simply matters of perspective (“It’s up to each one of us to interpret what God wants”). Francis Beckwith’s comments on this scene are apt: He is guilty, and… Read More »
This week we’re looking at the problem of evil, so here’s something to think about. Atheist B.C. Johnson in The Atheist Debater’s Handbook argues that it is unlikely that God is all good, and hence unlikely that God exists (b/c theists universally suppose God to be all-good). Johnson begins his case with an illustration. Imagine… Read More »
In class today I described the cosmic fine-tuning version of the design argument and the standard “many universes” counter-hypothesis. I also described how each side can appeal to Ockham’s Razor (don’t complicate explanatory hypotheses more than necessary) as a tie-breaker. The problem with such appeals, I said, is that Ockham’s Razor can be wielded in… Read More »
In the previous post I presented a pair of conflicting arguments by philosopher Immanuel Kant, who presents them to show, among other things, that limit questions like the beginning of time are cannot be theoretically resolved by beings like ourselves. Here’s my take on those two arguments. The first argument, recall, was this: Part I:… Read More »
William Lane Craig argues that the universe (and time with it) began to exist, and he marshals several arguments to that end. Immanuel Kant, however, contends that the question of whether time began or not cannot be answered. He tries to show this by arguing both sides of the question: Part I: Time Has a… Read More »
OK, here’s a version of the cosmological argument to think about: The universe is a contingent thing (i.e., it cannot account for its own existence). Contingent things need an ultimate explanation for their existence. Whatever stands in need of a certain type of explanation cannot be ultimately explained by something that itself stands in need… Read More »
We speak of time and of temporally related things like events, moments, and instants in a ways that reflect different conceptualizations of time. 1. Time as a LineFirst, there is the idea of the “timeline” that we encounter especially in history books. According to this model, all events are equally real and are differentiated by… Read More »
In my last post I made a reference to “Zod” as a possible name for a worst conceivable being based on a DC Comics super-villain. Well, it turns out that General Zod is running for president.
In class today we looked at Anselm’s first version of the ontological argument (from Proslogion 2). We then looked at Gaunilo’s attempt at a “refutation by parody” and showed how Anselm could respond by saying that there can be no “greatest conceivable island” because the qualities that go into that do not have intrinsic maxima… Read More »