Bridge 8 and animator James Hutson have created six two-minute animations on various aspects of critical thinking. The videos are designed for kids ages 8 to 10 but are also useful for grown-ups who might want an introduction to the basics of logic and the scientific method, as well as to psychological missteps like confirmation bias and the Gambler’s Fallacy.
Read more »By: Bnonn|08 February, 2012|Categories: Epistemology|Tags: burden of proof . Miracles . skeptical hypocrisy . Skepticism . skeptics . standards of evidence
We had a spirited debate on miracles in a previous thread. And during that debate, I noted how even in cases where all the evidence is against naturalistic explanations, skeptics simply cannot entertain a supernatural explanation instead. They just have to hold that there is a naturalistic one, despite the evidence. The very definition of blind faith. In reply, “Tom…
Read more »By: Jason|18 November, 2011|Categories: Philosophy|Tags: argument from consciousness . consciousness . emergent chemical properties . Graham Oppy . J P Moreland . theism
In this video, Christian philosopher J. P. Moreland responds to Graham Oppy’s criticisms of the argument for God’s existence from consciousness. Moreland discusses challenges to three forms of the argument and interacts with Oppy’s claims about theism, consciousness and emergent chemical properties. The talk was delivered at the recent 63rd Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society. For reference, AC=…
Read more »By: Jason|23 October, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: atheism . debate . new atheism . public discourse . richard dawkins
Daniel Came: James Barham: HT: Uncommon Descent
Read more »By: Jason|22 October, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: Edward Feser . evil-god challenge . goodness of God . Stephen Law . theism
In his debate with William Lane Craig, Stephen Law raised the challenge of an evil-god: if we dismiss the existence of an evil-god because of the amount of good in the world, why shouldn’t we dismiss the existence of an all-good god based on the amount of evil in the world? Edward Feser has written a good discussion of the…
Read more »By: Stuart|20 October, 2011|Categories: Philosophy|Tags: atheism . debate . goodness of God . problem of evil . Stephen Law . theism . william lane craig
Stuart examines Law’s line of argument in the recent debate.
Read more »By: Jason|09 September, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: atheism . christopher hitchens . douglas wilson . evil . objective morality
Douglas Wilson, writing at The Gospel Coalition, discusses Christopher Hitchen’s recent Slate article on 9/11: And his conclusion: Read the whole thing here.
Read more »By: Jason|31 August, 2011|Categories: Audio . Philosophy|Tags: Events . faith and reason . Naturalism . problem of evil . Trent Dougherty
Last month, we had the privilege of hosting Christian Philosopher Trent Dougherty in Tauranga for two events on the problem of evil. Here is the audio from those talks: Does faith make sense given the horrendous evil we see in the world around us? In this lecture, Trent offers guidelines for the integration of faith and reason and how to…
Read more »By: Jason|10 August, 2011|Categories: Philosophy|Tags: interview . life of the mind . Paul Helm . philosophical theology . Theology
Credo Magazine has a helpful interview with Paul Helm on the nature of philosophical theology and its purpose in the life of the church. Here’s an excerpt: Read the whole thing here. Source: Paul Manata and Patrick Chan
Read more »By: Jason|06 August, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: God . metaethics . morality
Uncommon Descent has posted a great response to Jerry Coyne’s recent opinion piece at USA Today, defending the supernatural foundations of morality. [HT: MandM]
Read more »By: Jason|03 August, 2011|Categories: Philosophical Theology|Tags: immutability . incarnation . James Anderson . Jesus Christ . nature of God
James Anderson: Read his answer here.
Read more »By: Jason|21 July, 2011|Categories: Philosophy|Tags: causality . cosmological argument . Edward Feser . existence of God . first cause . science
Edward Feser: 1. The argument does NOT rest on the premise that “Everything has a cause.” 2. “What caused God?” is not a serious objection to the argument. 3. “Why assume that the universe had a beginning?” is not a serious objection to the argument. 4. “No one has given any reason to think that the First Cause is all-powerful,…
Read more »By: Jason|15 July, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: blind faith . Faith . Paul Helm . problem of evil . Reasonable Faith
Paul Helm: Faith cannot be totally blind, a gamble in the face of infinite odds. Whatever doubts and risks may be associated with trust, faith, in order for it to be intelligible and defensible, must have some evidence going for it. And the point of Christianity (at least) is to hold that enough of the purposes of God can be…
Read more »By: Bnonn|29 June, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Religion|Tags: Epistemology . Faith . John Loftus . new atheism . OTF . Outsider Test for Faith . Paul Manata
Paul Manata puts John Loftus’s Outsider Test for Faith in the ground once and for all.
Read more »By: Bnonn|22 March, 2011|Categories: Metaphysics . Philosophy|Tags: argument from reason . determinism . free will . physical determinism
D Bnonn Tennant looks critically at a New York Times article that discusses the tension between the idea that all the events in the universe are caused deterministically by physical laws, and our deep-seated intuitive belief that this cannot be so because we have free will.
Read more »By: Jason|22 March, 2011|Categories: Philosophy of Science|Tags: intelligent design . multiverse . Naturalism . science . william Dembski
A new book brings together essays from influential scientists, scholars, and public intellectuals to examine the role of naturalism in science.
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