•  660
    Disproof of heaven? -- Brain and gods -- The rational stance -- Reason and belief in God -- Against naturalism -- Atheism, inference, and IQ -- Atheism, autism, and intellectual humility -- Googling God -- Inference, intuition, and rationality.
  •  610
    Knowledge and the Objection to Religious Belief from Cognitive Science
    European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 3 (1). 2011.
    A large chorus of voices has grown around the claim that theistic belief is epistemically suspect since, as some cognitive scientists have hypothesized, such beliefs are a byproduct of cognitive mechanisms which evolved for rather different adaptive purposes. This paper begins with an overview of the pertinent cognitive science followed by a short discussion of some relevant epistemic concepts. Working from within a largely Williamsonian framework, we then present two different ways in which thi…Read more
  •  605
    In May 2010, philosophers, family and friends gathered at the University of Notre Dame to celebrate the career and retirement of Alvin Plantinga, widely recognized as one of the world's leading figures in metaphysics, epistemology, and the philosophy of religion. Plantinga has earned particular respect within the community of Christian philosophers for the pivotal role that he played in the recent renewal and development of philosophy of religion and philosophical theology. Each of the essays in…Read more
  •  155
    Reformed Epistemology and the Cognitive Science of Religion
    In Melville Y. Stewart (ed.), Faith and Philosophy, Wiley-blackwell. pp. 500--513. 2010.
    This chapter contains sections titled: * Introduction * The Cognitive Science of Religion * The Internal Witness: The Sensus Divinitatis * Reformed Epistemology * Reformed Epistemology and Cognitive Science * Obstinacy in Belief * The External Witness: The Order of the Cosmos * The External Witness and the Cognitive Science of Religion * Conclusion * Notes * Bibliography
  •  134
    Perils of Pluralism
    Faith and Philosophy 14 (3): 303-320. 1997.
    Two pressures toward religious pluralism are the variety of religious traditions which seem equally successful in the transformation of human lives and that apparently sincere and equally capable truth-seekers reach divergent conclusions about the nature of ultimate reality. I discuss Hick’s Kantian explanation of these phenomena. I argue that his account is: neither the only nor the best account; furthermore that more reasonable accounts allow for the members of competing traditions to affirm t…Read more
  •  115
    Trinity or Tritheism?
    Religious Studies 32 (4). 1996.
    The focus of this paper is the social trinitarian account in Richard Swinburne's "The Christian God." After setting out the route Swinburne follows in reaching his conclusions about the Godhead, I endeavour to show two things: (i) that his account does not avoid the charge of tritheism and thus is not faithful to key elements in the Christian creeds; (ii) the philosophical moves behind his conclusions are not compelling if, as we can, we challenge his assumptions about divine necessity. A better…Read more
  •  110
    Religious epistemology
    Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2004.
  •  90
    Evidence and religious belief (edited book)
    Oxford University Press. 2011.
    Evidence and Religious Belief contains eleven chapters by prominent philosophers which push the discussion in new directions. The volume has three parts.
  •  87
    How Real People Believe: Reason and Belief in God
    In Melville Y. Stewart (ed.), Science and Religion in Dialogue, Wiley-blackwell. pp. 479--499. 2010.
    This chapter contains sections titled: * Introduction * The Demand for Evidence * Belief Begins with Trust * Reid on Human Cognitive Faculties * Reid and Rationality * The God Faculty * Reason and Belief in God * Conclusion * Notes * Bibliography
  •  84
    Atheism and Inferential Bias
    European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 9 (2): 43-56. 2017.
    While the cognitive science of religion is well-trodden ground, atheism has been considerably less scrutinized. Recent psychological studies associate atheism with an intellectual virtue, inferentiality. Theism, on the other hand, is associated with an intellectual “vice”, intuitive thinking. While atheism is allied with the attendant claim that atheism is the result of careful rational assessment of the relevant evidence, theism is considered the result of a lack of reflection on the relevant e…Read more
  •  67
    The explanatory power of theism
    International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 25 (3). 1989.
  •  67
    Explaining God Away?
    In Melville Y. Stewart (ed.), Science and Religion in Dialogue, Wiley-blackwell. pp. 514--526. 2010.
    This chapter contains sections titled: * The Cognitive Psychology of Religion * Evolutionary Explanations of Religious Belief * Explaining God Away * Critique * Conclusion * Notes * Bibliography
  •  51
    I Believe in God the Father, Almighty
    International Philosophical Quarterly 35 (1): 59-69. 1995.
    The theist affirms God's paternal care and his unsurpassable ability. If God is Father, he is obliged to prevent harms in a manner similar to earthly fathers; but he has not. This essay refutes the claim that God has obligations closely analogous to those of earthly parents. The essay is a conceptual analysis of what the father/ child relationship entails with respect to moral obligations and permissions. The dissimilarities between the divine and human parent create differences in obligation so…Read more
  •  49
    Readings in the Philosophy of Religion - Third Edition (edited book)
    Broadview Press. 2017.
    This anthology contains the best of both classical and contemporary sources, offering a balanced historical approach to the philosophy of religion while reflecting the latest developments in the field. The included readings grapple with issues that are existentially compelling and provocative regardless of one’s religious leanings. Topics are covered in a point–counterpoint manner designed to foster deep reflection. This third edition contains an entirely new section on early Chinese religion as…Read more
  •  46
    Joel B. Green and Stuart L. Palmer: In Search of the Soul (review)
    Faith and Philosophy 24 (3): 346-350. 2007.
  •  44
    The gods of Abraham, Isaiah, and Confucius
    Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 5 (1): 109-136. 2005.
  •  42
    Evidence and Religious Belief (edited book)
    Oxford University Press. 2011.
    A fundamental question in philosophy of religion is whether religious belief must be based on evidence in order to be properly held. In recent years two prominent positions on this issue have been staked out: evidentialism, which claims that proper religious belief requires evidence; and Reformed epistemology, which claims that it does not. Evidence and Religious Belief contains eleven chapters by prominent philosophers which push the discussion in new directions. The volume has three parts. The…Read more
  •  33
    Faith and Narrative (review)
    Faith and Philosophy 21 (3): 406-410. 2004.
  •  28
    Evil and Christian Belief
    International Philosophical Quarterly 29 (2): 175-189. 1989.
  •  27
  •  26
  •  21
    Risen Indeed (review)
    Faith and Philosophy 12 (2): 294-298. 1995.
  •  20
    Three kinds of confucian scholarship
    Journal of Chinese Philosophy 33 (s1): 109-134. 2006.
  •  18
    Imaginings
    European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 9 (3): 17-30. 2017.
    In Branden Thornhill-Miller and Peter Millican’s challenging and provocative essay, we hear a considerably longer, more scholarly and less melodic rendition of John Lennon’s catchy tune—without religion, or at least without first-order supernaturalisms, there’d be significantly less intra-group violence. First-order supernaturalist beliefs, as defined by Thornhill-Miller and Peter Millican, are “beliefs that claim unique authority for some particular religious tradition in preference to all othe…Read more
  •  14
    The Blackwell Companion to Naturalism (edited book)
    Wiley-Blackwell. 2015.
    Since the turn of the twenty-first century, naturalism has become one of the most prominent philosophical orthodoxies in the Western academy. Yet naturalism is more often assumed than defended. The Blackwell Companion to Naturalism offers a systematic introduction that defines, discusses and defends philosophical naturalism. Essays tackle naturalism’s role in existing cultural conversations, from Libertarianism to Confucianism, and provide detailed examinations of philosophical concepts like met…Read more
  •  12
    Abrahamic Reflections on Randomness and Providence (edited book)
    Palgrave-Macmillan. 2021.
    This open access book addresses the question of how God can providentially govern apparently ungovernable randomness. Medieval theologians confidently held that God is provident, that is, God is the ultimate cause of or is responsible for everything that happens. However, scientific advances since the 19th century pose serious challenges to traditional views of providence. From Darwinian evolution to quantum mechanics, randomness has become an essential part of the scientific worldview. An inter…Read more
  •  9
    Naturalism admits of no single, simple definition (usually depending on the naturalist's commitment to science). After distinguishing ontological or metaphysic naturalism from methodological naturalism, I discuss the historical development of ontological naturalism, as well as arguments for or against naturalism. I then take moral goodness and badness as a case study of the problems and prospects for ontological naturalism.
  •  8
    Readings in the Philosophy of Religion (edited book)
    Broadview. 2000.
    The collection maintains a balance between the challenging and the accessible. In all, the book includes over 50 selections in seven sections; each section opens with an introduction by the editor."--BOOK JACKET.