Over the last couple days Mr. Loftus has been providing his reliably ignorant commentary on what he calls “faith” over at his blog. I pointed out that it was ignorant and provided the simple definition of faith that I first explained and defended here: viz. assent to a proposition that is conceivably false. Adam Hazzard […]
Archives for September 2012
Synchronicity in Margaritaville
One of my readers named Mark has commented several times on cases of synchronicity in which I end up blogging about something that links in some intriguing way to a particular issue occurring in his life. I’ve had my own cases of synchronicity and I’ve been sufficiently fascinated by the phenomenon that I’m writing a […]
Is theology baloney? Reflections on the latest Sokal-styled hoax
I an indebted to Ray Ingles for making me aware of this blog post which chronicles a clever Belgian philosopher’s appropriation of Alan Sokal’s modus operandi. (Sokal, you may recall, was a scientist who famously submitted a nonsensical article to the postmodern journal “Social Text” which passed peer review. He did so as a way […]
Pedophilia and other unforgivable sins
Over at Slate Magazine Jennifer Blayer published a really interesting article a few days ago called “How can we stop pedophiles?” I thought to myself “I really should blog about that. […] But not today.” However, when I saw the same article republished in the National Post a day later I decided I would take […]
Medicated shampoos that feed the head lice and evangelical curricula that feed the prejudice
Imagine that you become aware of a medicated shampoo which is being marketed to combat head lice. Given the ubiquity of head lice in the community you take a real interest in the shampoo. If it can deliver on its claims you definitely want to promote its virtues. So you run an investigation. And much to your chagrin […]
We are all apologists
It is an unfortunate fact of history that the term “apologetics” is associated in particular with something that Christians do. The common assumption seems to be that apologetics is this unique Christian pastime as others look on in indignation and fascination from their decidedly non-apologetic perch. Needless to say it is not a noble pastime since […]
It’s not easy being Osteen
There’s an old joke about a chauffeur who drives a quantum physicist to an important speaking engagement. Just before they arrive the physicist says “Listen, I’m exhausted and still jeg-lagged. I simply must get some sleep. Why don’t we change outfits, and you can go up on the dais and read my lecture and I’ll […]
God, miracles, and amazing Kentucky Blue
It is an oft heard complaint against theism: belief in God undermines your ability to say anything else is improbable. Why? This is the way Adam Hazzard put it in response to my essay “The Resurrection of Jesus, 52 Pickup, and Prior Probabilities“: you assume the existence of an omnipotent, invisible, immaterial being who can […]
Great movies and an Inspired Book
Walter asked: “I am curious as to what would a defeater for divine inspiration look like to you?” And I replied: “Provide some reason to think that the problem of miscommunication arising from the sublety of the text could not plausibly be offset by the benefits gained from the subtlety of the text.” It would […]
Cheesemakers, Canaanite dogs and the problem of biblical interpretation
As you may recall, I spent this past weekend attempting to help John Loftus articulate the argument he seemed to hold, but with premises that remained stubbornly hidden from view. When he finally articulated a three-step argument, it seemed to me that the first proposition of the argument was actually conflating two distinct ideas. I […]
The Resurrection of Jesus, 52 Pickup, and Prior Probabilities
In my rebuttal to John Loftus’ essay that the cumulative claims of Christianity are “wildly improbable” I pointed out that this argument has no force for those who already accept the cumulative claims of Christianity. To make the point I gave an illustration which I’ll streamline slightly here. Imagine that you tell me your new […]
Loftus has no argument and what you can learn from that fact
Yesterday I spent an afternoon trying to help John Loftus figure out what his argument is. It was a laborious exercise, to be sure, but it did have a reward. And the reward was that it became clear John didn’t actually have an argument in the first place. So here’s the rundown of what happened […]
An afternoon spent trying to help Loftus figure out what his argument is
On the surface my exchanges with John Loftus might look like abortive attempts at dialogue. But actually if you take the time to pull the pieces together a revealing exchange comes to the surface. I have compiled the back and forth of our conversation on one particular issue here which focused on my attempt to help […]
Which is more wildly improbable: Christianity being true or Loftus coming up with a good argument?
Last year I wrote a critique of John Loftus’ essay “Christianity is Wildly Improbable” from the book The End of Christianity. In the essay John focuses on “ten creedal affirmations” that many (evangelical) Christians accept. He purports to show that it is exceedingly unlikely that all these claims would be true from which it presumably follows that Christianity […]
