Powerpoint for Philosophy of Religion course at BraxtonHunter.com

2. Philosophy of Religion
Braxton Hunter, Ph.D.

3. In This Course
Elements of worldview evaluation
In depth examination of theistic and
atheistic arguments
Evaluation of worldviews which are
opposed to orthodox Christianity
In depth examination of the resurrection

4. Elements of Worldview
Evaluation
Terms - Managing a worldview - logical fallacies

5. What is a Worldview?
"A worldview is a set of presuppositions (or assumptions) which we hold
(consciously or subconsciously) about the basic makeup of our world." -
James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door (Downers Grove, Ill.:
InterVarsity, 1988), 17.
An individual's worldview should guide how they function
in the world.
A comprehensive worldview should be able to answer the
big questions of life (where did we come from? - why are we
here? - what happens when we die?)

6. The Web of Belief
In his book by this title, W.V.O. Quine describes one's
worldview as a interconnected web of beliefs with the most
deeply held at the center.
Individual beliefs can be revised, but will influence others.
Central beliefs would be things like belief in one's own
existence, the existence of others, and the trustworthiness
of the laws of logic.

7. Terms
Theoretical accommodation
Explanatory scope
Explanatory power
Plausibility
Livability
Coherence
Elegance (balance)

8. Correspondence
Self-referential incoherence
Lack of livability
Falsification
The existential test
Radical ad hoc readjustment
Competitive competence test

9. Managing a Worldview
Locating contradictions within a worldview
Thoughtfully handling difficult new data
(elements one is unsure about)

10. Logical Fallacies
Wishful thinking - It's true because I hope so!
Confirmation bias - Cherry-picking evidence
Middle ground - If there are extremes be moderate
Design fallacy -If it is beautiful then it's true
Anecdotal evidence - Favoring first hand stories over
good evidence
Circular logic - A premise is based on the conclusion
Appeal to tradition - Believing only because of tradition

11. Appeal to popular belief - It's true because lots of people
believe it
Appeal to novelty - It's true because it's new/unusual
Appeal to authority - It's true because someone
respected says so
Appeal to Fear - It's true because if I'm wrong I might be
in danger
Burden of proof - It's true because no one can prove it's
not
Faulty dilemma - Incorrectly only seeing two options.

12. Advanced Theistic
Arguments

13. The Cosmological
Argument
History - Plato's Laws may provide the first written account of a
cosmological argument. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) provides
some variations of CAs in his Summa Theologica. Muslim
philosophers like Al Kindi (who died in 870 ad) and Al Ghazali
(1058-1111) contributed to the CA. John Locke, Renee de Carte
dealt with CAs and currently William Lane Craig, J.P. Moreland,
Norman Geisler, Dinesh D'Souza, and many other Apologists use
CAs in their apologetic endeavors.

14. Explanation - Most CAs will state a
formal argument in the form of a logically
valid syllogism, then argue for the truth of its
premises. Possible syllogism: 1. Everything
that begins to exist must have a cause for its
existence. 2. The universe began to exist,
therefore 3. the universe must have a cause
for its existence.

15. Kalam (CA)

16. Kalam (CA)
Time must have had an ultimate beginning
because of the impossibility of an "infinite
regress of actual events."
If there are an Infiniti of events in the past,
then we would never have arrived at today
because one cannot traverse an actual
infinite number of events.

17. Modern Criticisms
CAs“[Arguments for God's existence from an infinite regress]
make the entirely unwarranted assumption that God
himself is immune to the regress.” -Richard Dawkins, The
God Delusion, 101.
Response: God is a necessary being (and exists in
eternity) while the universe is contingent (and exists in
time).

18. Because gravity shapes space and time, it allows space-time to be
locally stable but globally unstable. On the scale of the entire
universe, the positive energy of the matter can be balance by the
negative gravitational energy, and so there is no restriction on the
creation of whole universes. Because there is a law like gravity, the
universe can and will create itself from nothing in the manner
described in Chapter 6. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is
something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist. It
is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue torch and set the
universe going. - Stephen Hawking - The Grand Design - p. 180.
What Hawking defines as "nothing" is not nothing.

19. The Teleological
Argument
Definition - From the Greek telos, which means, "ends" or "purpose."
History - Earliest philosophical account is in Plato's Laws. Aquinas
5th cosmological argument may count as a design argument. William
Paley's Natural Theology is a well known case for God's existence
from design.

20. Structure of the argument - A teleological argument can be
presented as a syllogism as follows: 1. That which has the earmark of
design requires a designer. 2. The universe has the earmark of design,
therefore, 3. The universe requires a designer.
Specified complexity - Intelligent design advocates will argue that it is
not just that the universe (life and organization) are incredibly
improbable. Rather, they have specified complexity.

21. Modern Criticisms of
(TAs)What about poor design?
The "anthropic principle" assumption.
What about evolution?
No basis for comparison.

22. The Ontological
Argument
History - Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)Argued
that 1. God is something of which nothing greater can be
thought. 2. God may exist in the understanding. 3. To
exist in reality and in the understanding is greater than to
exist in the understanding alone. 4. Therefore, God exists
in reality.

23. A modern OA - 1. God is the greatest conceivable being. 2. The
greatest conceivable being exists necessarily. 3. A necessary being
exists in some "possible world." 4. If a being exists necessarily in some
possible world, then it exists in every possible world. 5. If such a being
exists in all possible worlds then it exists in the actual world, therefore,
6. God exists.
Result - If God is even possible then, on the OA, God exists. If one
wishes to combat this argument they must maintain that it is not
possible that God exists.

24. Criticisms of (OAs)
Anselm was challenged by a 11th century monk named Guanillo who
demanded that Anselm's argument proved too much. Why could not
the same argument be used to demonstrate the existence of an island
of which none greater could be thought?
Defining God into existence.

25. The Moral Argument
History - It is hard to pin-down the first moral argument, but C.S.
Lewis popularized it during the 20th century in his Mere Christianity.
Explanation - The argument attempts to demonstrate God's
existence by showing that the existence of objective moral values
requires an objective moral law giver. A moral argument might be
presented as follows. 1. If God does not exist, then objective moral
values do not exist. 2. Objective moral values do exist, therefore 3.
God exists.

26. Modern Criticisms of
(MAs)
Societal evolution brings about moral
values. They may or may not be objective.
Sam Harris and objective moral values
without God.
Daniel Alvarez and subjective morality even
with God.

27. Atheistic Arguments

28. The Problem of Evil
The logical problem vs. the evidential problem.
Defeaters - Any explanation that would resolve the conflict
Theodicies - Explanations that the apologist believes to be the
actual case.
Gratuitous evil - Evil things that seem to have no positive outcome
for anyone.

29. William Rowe - The faun and the girl.
Stephen Wykstra's CORNEA answer.
Background data - evidence that skews the
probability.

30. Types of Theodicies
The freewill theodicy
The greater good theodicy
Character building theodicy
Reformed theodicy
Reliability of natural laws theodicy

31. The Development of
Theistic Belief
Wish fulfillment - Some claim that theistic beliefs develop as a result
of wish fulfillment.
Superstition - Some claim that theistic beliefs develop because of
superstition.
Environment - some claim that theistic beliefs develop because of
how or where someone was raised.

32. Alternative
Worldviews

33. Islam
The Person of Muhammed, the Quran,
Allah

34. The Person of
Muhammed
The Nature of a Prophet - Impeccable
Character and Basically Sinless.
The Satanic Verses (53:19-23)
Inconsistency in Polygamy laws
Retaliation

35. The Quran
Divinely Unique Literary Style
Scientific Accuracy (errors: 23:14,18:86)
Changed lives

36. Allah
Voluntarism - God does not do what is right, what God does is
right (6:12)
Extreme Determinism - God is the one who leads astray and the
one who guides. He is the "compeller," and "tyrant" and "haughty."
"Hence, Muslim scholars cannot avoid the contradiction that God
has logically opposed characteristics by placing them outside his
essence within the mystery of his will." - Abdule Saleeb, Answering
Islam, p. 147.

37. Mormonism
God's Nature, Texts, Defenses

38. God's Nature
The Father has a physical body - "The Father has a
body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's." -
Doctrines & Covenants, 130:22
Infinite Regression of Fathers - "We shall go back to our
Father and God, who is connected with one who is still
further back; and this Father is connected with one still
further back, and so on. . ." - Heber C. Kimball, Journal
of Discourses (5:19)

39. Texts
The Bible, The Book of Mormon,
Doctrines & Covenants, and Pearls of
Great Price.
The Book of Abraham Problem (found in
the Pearls of Great Price)

40. Defenses
The Burning in the Bosom - James 1:5
All theists must deal with the infinite
regress.
Theories on the Book of Abraham

41. The Kingdom Hall
God's Nature, Texts, Jesus

42. God's Nature
Limited omniscience - "Clearly, Jehovah did not
know beforehand that the first couple would sin." -
(Official JW website)
Limited transcendence - "God being an individual,
a Person with a spirit body, has a place where he resides,
and so he could not be at any other place at the same
time" -(Watchtower, 2/15/81, p. 6)
If God is limited in knowledge and location he is not
infinite, but finite.

43. Texts
The New World Translation (NWT) -
Mistranslates the Greek of the NT and is
of mysterious origin (no one knows who
edited it).
Watchtower & Awake! (periodicals).

44. Jesus
The divine son of God, but not God
incarnate - "If we believe Jesus and understand the
plain teaching of the Bible, we will respect him as the
divine Son of God that he is. We will also worship
Jehovah as 'the only true God.'” (JW official website)
"Thus, when Jesus said, 'I and the Father are one,' he
was speaking, not of a mysterious Trinity, but of a
wonderful unity—the closest bond possible between two
persons." - (JW official website)

45. The Resurrection

46. Gary Habermas'
Minimal Facts
1. Jesus died by crucifixion. 2. He was buried. 3. His death caused
the disciples to despair and lose hope. 4. The tomb was empty. 5.
The disciples had experiences which they believed to be the risen
Jesus. 6. The disciples were transformed from doubters to bold
proclaimers. 7. the resurrection was their central message. 8. They
preached the message of Jesus' resurrection in Jerusalem. 9. The
church was born and grew. 10. Orthodox Jews who believed in
Christ made Sunday their primary day of worship. 11. James was
converted when he saw the risen Jesus (James was the family
skeptic). 12. Paul was converted (Paul was an outsider).

47. These 12 facts are agreed upon by the majority of biblical scholars.
Explanation of the method - Habermas argues that on the basis of
these minimal facts, the resurrection is the most likely hypothesis.
Habermas also uses 1 Corinthians 15 to demonstrate the
resurrection without appealing to the gospels.

48. William Lane Craig's
Case
Craig uses four minimal facts and then argues similarly to Habermas.
His facts are 1. The burial of Jesus 2. The discovery of the empty
tomb by a group of women followers. 3. The post-mortem
appearances of Jesus. 4. The origin of the disciples belief in the
resurrection.
Part of his case is the principle of embarrassment.
Craig also often points out why it is acceptable to use Christian
documents to make the case.

49. N.T. Wright's Case
Wright uses three minimal facts: 1. The empty tomb. 2. The
appearances. 3. Seven changes in Jewish doctrine and practice.
What makes Wright's case unique is his attempt to show that the
change in the doctrines and practices that took place in the lives of
Jewish Christians is unbelievable if they had not witnessed the
resurrection.

50. Arguments Against the Validity of
the Resurrection
The swoon theory - This is the claim that Jesus appearances are
explained by the fact that he never died on the cross.
Mass delusion - This is the claim that the followers of Jesus thought
he appeared to them because they were deluded.
•
Fabricated by the apostles - They made it all up.
•
Development of myth over time - The further away from the event
one gets the more legendary the details get.
•
Gutthold Lessing's "ugly broad ditch" - it is just too far in the past to
be believed.

51. The Jesus Seminar
•
In their book The Five Gospels, the Jesus Seminar names several
pillars for discovering the real teachings of Jesus. Three of them are:
•
Naturalism - Anything that is supernatural in nature is omitted.
•
Primacy of apocryphal gospels
•
Politically correct - If it isn't it will be omitted.
•
Because of this, they concluded that 82 percent of the red letters
are not reliable. Another 16 percent are in doubt. Thus, 98 percent
of what the Bible says Jesus said is considered wrong by them.