Jesus on Faith – Part 4
Stig Martinsen made a plausible objection to my argument for the idea that Jesus viewed giving EVIDENCE and ARGUMENTS as compatible with promoting FAITH: ============ I have seen the story of doubting Thomas in John 20 interpreted as an example of Jesus endorsing faith as opposed to belief grounded in evidence. I.e. 20:29: Jesus saith unto him, … Jesus on Faith – Part 4
Jesus on Faith – Part 3
Jesus talks about “faith” in Matthew Chapter 6 and also in Matthew Chapter 16 (Mat. 6:25-33 and 16:5-12). In both of these passages, Jesus tells his followers that they have “little faith”, and then Jesus puts forward an ARGUMENT or REASONS in order to INCREASE the FAITH of his followers. But this makes no sense if … Jesus on Faith – Part 3
Jesus on Faith – Part 2
In my previous post on this subject, I argued that the comments of Jesus in Matthew 6:25-33 concerning faith show that Jesus did NOT think that faith means firmly believing something for which one has no evidence (Bertrand Russell’s def. of “faith”) nor that faith means believing in the face of contrary evidence (A.C. Grayling’s def. of … Jesus on Faith – Part 2
Faith and the End of PoR – Part 2
John Loftus referred me to Chapters 7 and 10 of his book The Outsider Test for Faith (hereafter: OTF), so that I could get a better understanding of what he means by the word “faith” in his blog post arguing for the End of Philosophy of Religion (PoR). Chapter 7 was of no help. The … Faith and the End of PoR – Part 2
Faith and the End of PoR
John Loftus has advocated the End of Philosophy of Religion as a discipline. In his post defending this proposal, Loftus repeatedly talks about “faith”. The word “faith” occurs 23 times in the post, and it occurs in 7 out of the 13 paragraphs that constitute the post. Some paragraphs have multiple references to “faith”: It … Faith and the End of PoR
One Problem with Swinburne’s Case for God – Part 2
In a previous post I pointed out three different problems related to the third argument in Richard Swinburne’s systematic case for the existence of God. The third argument is the final argument of his arguments from the nature of the universe. It is his Teleological Argument from Spatial Order (hereafter: TASO):(e3) There is a complex physical … One Problem with Swinburne’s Case for God – Part 2
The End of PoR – Part 2
John Loftus has begun laying out his views on PoR in greater detail on his website. I’m going to comment on a few key points that he makes in a recent post: What Exactly is My Proposal For Ending the Philosophy Of Religion Discipline in Secular Universities? It will probably take me a few posts … The End of PoR – Part 2
One Problem with Swinburne’s Case for God
In The Existence of God (2nd edition, hereafter: EOG), Richard Swinburne lays out a systematic cumulative case for the claim that it is more likely than not that God exists. I have a specific objection to the third argument in this case, but I believe this objection throws a monkey wrench into the works, and … One Problem with Swinburne’s Case for God
The End of PoR – Part 1
“The End of PoR” is intentionally ambiguous. It could mean the death or cessation of philosophy of religion, or it could mean the purpose of philosophy of religion. But I will not discuss the purpose of PoR in this particular post. I just have one brief point to make. The death of PoR as a … The End of PoR – Part 1
An End to Philosophy of Religion?
John Loftus has issued a call for the end of philosophy of religion (POR) being taught in secular universities. He’s since written a few follow-up posts, but I think there are two main points that Loftus makes: (1) Science has disproven religion, and philosophy ought to follow suit (2) Philosophy of religion is dominated by Christian … An End to Philosophy of Religion?