To pray is natural. –Epicurus The plain dismissal of religion as barbaric, as primitive credulity, or as childish superstition—even if at times it exhibits all of the above symptoms, and even if its claims are ridiculous—impedes the acquisition of important insights into its varied nature and uses. Why have most members of our species, for most of our history, been Continue Reading …
Plato and the God of the Gaps
"God of the gaps" is a general name for any theological argument that argues for the necessary existence of God as an explanation for some particular phenomenon that challenges the limits of human understanding. In modern times, it has the distinction of being an approach to apologetics more favored by atheists than theists. An early critic of this form of argument was Henry Continue Reading …
Does Atheism Entail Nihilism? (Or, is God Necessary for Morality?)
An interesting debate. And it continues on Prosblogion. Update: Now that I've listened to the whole thing, I have to say Craig is in over his head and Kagan makes minced meat of him. I wish they had been more evenly matched. Update II: Here's an interesting article by Wes Morriston (who linked to it in the Prosblogion comments) rebutting Craig: God and the ontological Continue Reading …