2013 Archive

December 2013

31: The ethics of the bank error (5)
31: Rage against the dying of the light: A New Year’s Wish (4)
29: RD Miksa on the evidentiary value of eye-witness testimony (106)
27: A taste worth acquiring: A review of “Inside Llewyn Davis” (19)
27: Why “The Wolf of Wall Street” is an evil, despicable film (30)
25: What is the point of counterfeit covers? Bah, humbug. (8)
24: These are a few of my favorite things (where “things” = Christmas songs) (4)
23: Miracles and the old “testimony is unreliable so we can ignore miracle claims” chestnut (119)
23: 29. Craig Keener on miracles (25)
22: Twelve (or more) Reasons to Listen to The Tentative Apologist Podcast (11)
21: Don’t confuse moral courage with irrational dogmatism (131)
20: If God wants to damn your children, should you agree? (68)
19: What’s so Calvinistic about John Piper’s “The Calvinist”? (30)
17: People who ride scooters aren’t all wusses (1)
16: Randal talks on The Bob Dutko Show (0)
15: 28. Robin Parry on demons (33)
13: God or Godless-The Other Cover (4)
13: God was in Christ reconciling the world … but how exactly? (23)
11: My interview on The Debbie Chavez Show is available (8)
11: Stephen and Steven both review “God or Godless” (40)
11: My heaven interview on The Debbie Chavez Show (0)
10: 27. Yoram Hazony on the Bible as philosophy (19)
08: Liar, Liar, soul on fire! (48)
07: Blessed are the unreflective? (112)
06: The Cool Pastor (7)
05: A theologian muses on “Avatar” (4)
04: 26. Peter Enns on faith, the Bible, and evolution (144)
03: Jesus was a conservative, wasn’t he? (30)
02: Snapshots from Baltimore (Part 5): Inactive activists for environmental justice (13)
01: How (not) to make Jesus in your image: A review of “Imaginary Jesus” (10)

November 2013

30: My debate with John Loftus on YouTube (8)
30: Randal on The Storymen Podcast (5)
29: The right to die? You don’t know Jack. A review (4)
26: 25. Do the gospels have errors? Michael Licona’s new insights on ancient history (25)
24: Snapshots from Baltimore (Part 4): The Gideons Bible (28)
23: Snapshots from Baltimore (Part 3): The evolution of theology (8)
22: Snapshots from Baltimore (Part 2): The perpetually missing thirteenth floor (2)
22: Snapshots from Baltimore (Part 1) (15)
19: 24. Travis Dumsday on evil and divine hiddenness (32)
17: Straw men and straw characters (31)
15: Reading the Bible informed by conscience (39)
14: Toronto Mayor Rob Ford charged with hating Christmas and heading drug cartel (22)
14: Materialist epiphanies, reductive delusions (36)
13: A review of “God or Godless”, inerrancy, and begging the question (44)
10: Theism, naturalism, and strawmen (43)
09: Smith, Jones, and wandering into “Wandering in the Darkness” (2)
07: Still more evangelistic tracts so bad that they’re good (24)
06: 23. In Search of the Gospel: A Reformation Day Talk by Randal (3)
06: More evangelistic tracts so bad that they’re good (22)
05: Is it time to reestablish state-based beheading? (20)
04: Are the orthodox better off than the heretical? (20)
04: Randal talking Heaven on Amplify with Father Ron (2)
03: Two hours on heaven (0)
02: A Review of William Alston, “A Sensible Metaphysical Realism” (2)

October 2013

September 2013

August 2013

July 2013

June 2013

29: Randal Rauser is not someone who it’s possible to have any sort of rational discussion about religion with (72)
29: Are Top Scientists Overwhelmingly Atheists? (64)
28: 5. The Loftus Rauser Road Trip: Conversations on God (Part 2) (0)
28: God and Owl (67)
27: Nate suggests that “God” is a theoretical term. Is he correct? (24)
26: Ignosticism? A response to Advocatus Atheist (63)
25: Pastor, tell us what you really think! (13)
25: How much freedom would you surrender to live comfortably? (21)
25: Near-Death Experiences Ripe for Philosophical Reflection (by Steve Miller) (82)
25: Is Edward Snowden a traitor? (40)
24: A link back to my review of Stephen Law, “Believing Bullshit” (10)
24: A Word from Justin Schieber (35)
24: Why they don’t believe: Tristan Vick (Advocatus Atheist) (4)
24: The Tentative Apologist Podcast is now available on iTunes (8)
24: Can Reasonable Doubts demonstrate which Christian beliefs are clearly false? (50)
24: Here’s how atheism works? On the presumption of atheists who speak for other atheists (7)
23: The abuse of reason (or, why rationality requires a context) (29)
23: Is Christianity a big ship of fools? Another response to Reasonable Doubts (12)
23: Why John Loftus and Reasonable Doubts shouldn’t be laughing (80)
23: The Great Plains Skeptic reviews “God or Godless” (1)
22: Near-Death Experiences: A Review (83)
20: Like two ships passing in the night … Jonathan Pearce’s abortive rebuttal (684)
19: Holy War in the Bible: A Review (46)
19: Intelligent Design: A response to the A-Unicornist (25)
18: Mocking Christians who believe in talking snakes? A response to The Atheist Missionary (32)
17: 4. The Loftus Rauser Road Trip: Conversations on God (Part 1) (10)
17: 3. God or Godless? The Loftus/Rauser Edmonton Debate (0)
17: 2. God or Godless? The Loftus/Rauser Calgary Debate (0)
17: Chris Hallquist, fundamentalism, and prejudice against Christian apologists (77)
16: Why they don’t believe: Chris Hallquist (The Uncredible Hallq) (104)
15: Randal and John Loftus debate the Outsider Test and Miracles on Unbelievable (6)
14: Living artwork over the plains of Texas (5)
14: Randal talks with the Counter Apologist (35)
14: Violence and the Canonical Bible: A Response to Reasonable Doubts (73)
13: Do naturalists have more to lose? If not, why are they crucifying Thomas Nagel? (85)
13: Chris Hallquist reviews “God or Godless” (14)
12: Do atheists simply want to know the truth? Does anybody? (23)
12: Can there be reasonable nonbelief if God exists? (45)
11: The audio for the God or Godless Edmonton Debate is Here! (9)
11: The Anti-Apologist: Conversations with Myron Penner (22)
10: Keith Parsons. Need I say more? (155)
10: Randal talks Crazy belief with Craig Roberts (0)
10: Mock beliefs, not people? (23)
10: Laughing at fundamentalists? Lessons from John Loftus and Keith Parsons (78)
10: Why they don’t believe: James Lindsay (15)
09: How to confound Christians with bad arguments: #6 Which God?; #7 Things we’ve heard before (31)
08: God or Godless-The Audio Debate is Here (3)
08: Why they don’t believe: Jeffery Jay Lowder (126)
07: John Loftus blogs about the “God or Godless Tour” (0)
07: Big Questions … No Easy Answers: A Discussion Series (4)
06: Counter Apologist reviews “God or Godless” … and Randal responds (62)
06: God or Godless in Edmonton (26)
05: Born an atheist (13)
05: God or Godless in Red Deer (55)
04: Check out God or Godless in the Edmonton Journal (2)
04: The views of one Christian who was at the God or Godless debate (20)
04: Debating Loftus: An Update (40)
03: Why they don’t believe: Jonathan MS Pearce (A Tippling Philosopher) (132)
02: The fall of Tim Lambesis (15)
02: Debating God on The Drew Marshall Show (5)
01: Why they don’t believe: Mike D (The A-Unicornist) (69)

May 2013

31: Why did William Lane Craig violate the first rule of hosting? (33)
31: Heaven and the Value in Achievement Thesis (30)
31: Do Christians and atheists really have to be at war? (24)
30: Heaven and the suffering of infants now (29)
30: Why were we created here and not just directly into heaven? (35)
30: Why they don’t believe: Edward Babinski (54)
29: William Alston on naturalism (34)
29: The problem of evil as discussed by three Christian philosophers (3)
29: Naturalism, Christianity, and my Reasonable Doubts about Justin Schieber (69)
29: Justin Schieber responds … and then some! (14)
28: Why they don’t believe: Counter Apologist (75)
27: Why they don’t believe: Justin Schieber (124)
26: Gödel the magic genie? (19)
26: The A-Unicornist Replies. But is scientism still in the picture? (25)
25: A conversation doomed from the start? Exchanges with The A-Unicornist (54)
24: A Theologian, An Atheist and A Schmuck walk into a radio show… (1)
24: God and the arbitrary attribute charge: A response to Jason Thibodeau (20)
23: How to confound Christians with bad arguments: #5 Call them Liars for Jesus (50)
22: Adam offers answers for the Swedish Atheist (0)
22: Robert Price and winning the debate by fiat (115)
22: Half-baked evidentialist epistemology (41)
21: The Tenative Apologist Podcast has launched! (8)
21: Wildly improbable? Some background reading (45)
21: How to confound Christians with bad arguments: #4 Believe what is probable, not merely possible (42)
21: The latest “God or Godless” review (0)
20: Should Christians hedge their bets? (36)
20: How can Christianity be the only true religion? (8)
20: The kalam cosmological argument and libertarian free will (Part 2) (27)
19: The kalam cosmological argument and libertarian free will (60)
19: Debating John Loftus on the Janet Parshall Show (22)
18: The outhouse, evil and eternity (27)
18: 33,000 denominations. And the problem is…? (52)
17: Randal speaks at Urban Bridge Church (4)
17: Abortion to save the life of the mother (13)
17: A tippling-too-much philosopher? A response to Jonathan Pearce (6)
16: God or Godless Tour Poster and Banner (2)
16: 33,000 denominations, Oy vey! (50)
16: God’s existence: where does the burden of proof lie? (27)
16: God or Godless and a Tippling Philosopher (Part 2) (61)
16: 1. Denis Lamoureux on Evolution and Creation (10)
16: The God or Godless Alberta Tour 2013 (2)
15: God or Godless and a tippling philosopher (Part 1) (80)
15: The case of the miraculous eclipse (37)
14: Miracles and context (78)
14: My interview with Bill Maier on “God or Godless” (2)
14: Should miracles be defined as events that persuade skeptics? (41)
14: Responding to comments from “Are self-described skeptics reliable to evaluate miracle claims?” (37)
13: Don’t get a PhD in the humanities … unless you want to be the smartest barista at Starbucks (5)
13: Is universalism compatible with human freedom? (7)
13: When it comes to the question of universal salvation: An interview with Eric Reitan (6)
12: Randal appears on Author Talks with Shaun Tabatt (0)
10: The Journal of Analytic Theology Launches! (3)
08: David Hershey’s review of “God or Godless”: Let’s call it a draw (16)
08: Off to the Logos Conference (0)
08: Are self-described skeptics reliable to evaluate miracle claims? (20)
08: Common misunderstandings of the concept of a miracle (49)
07: The signs of ideologically driven atheism (61)
06: Blogger Nathaniel Claiborne reviews “God or Godless” … and then Randal reviews Nathaniel (22)
06: The Dubious Disciple reviews “God or Godless” (0)
06: Extraordinary claims, extraordinary evidence, and what is required to persuade a rational person (160)
05: Why knowledge must begin in faith rather than evidence (139)
04: Dumb lies (11)
03: Living forever is not necessarily meaningful (7)
03: Testimony as properly basic (87)
02: John Loftus faces off against Randal in person! (10)
02: Knowledge, scientific and otherwise (7)
02: Endorsements for “What on Earth do we Know About Heaven?” (12)
01: God or Godless: 1, 3 or 5 stars? (7)
01: A new radio interview on “Swedish Atheist” (1)
01: “God or Godless” is reviewed by Jr. Forasteros (8)
01: Check out my Beliefnet article on evil (14)

April 2013

30: Erroll questions Randal’s academic integrity and freedom. Randal replies. (22)
30: Jesus and the curse of one’s enemies (1)
30: Pray for those Calvinists who persecute you (6)
29: Philosopher Adam Omelianchuk reviews “God or Godless” (10)
29: One more thing I’m really good at (4)
29: An Unbelievably good apologetics conference (0)
29: Can a non-physical agent interact in a physical world? (78)
27: In their heart of hearts, do atheists really believe in God? (59)
27: My latest cases of synchronicity (17)
26: In a New York minute everything can change (2)
24: God or Godless in review (13)
23: Off to New York (3)
21: Inclusivism again: how we can be saved apart from hearing the gospel, and why the gospel still matters (35)
20: Why was Tsarnaev not read his Miranda rights? And how amazing that anybody should care to ask. (8)
20: Dancing on the edge of the hermeneutical abyss (20)
19: The spiritual discipline of reading your unfair critics (10)
19: Check out Regent College’s summer school this year (1)
18: e-reading: a reflection (16)
17: A wake-up call to the speed of change (5)
16: The Swedish Atheist, the Scuba Diver and the Straw Man (6)
16: Hugh Ross and apologetic evidence on demand (14)
16: Three sentences into Lewis Wolpert’s book, and already bogged down (59)
15: Randal interviewed on Apologetics 315 (10)
15: If inclusivism is true does believing in Jesus still matter? (7)
15: How to agree with a creed (1)
13: Do atheists receive a ‘get out of hell free’ card because they don’t believe in God? (30)
13: Are the missionaries bringing bad news? A misbegotten objection to inclusivism (15)
12: Substance dualism as atheistic heresy (33)
12: Why inclusivism makes sense (52)
11: Reflections on my interview with Bob Dutko (14)
10: Atheistic heretics (53)
10: Returning to the social roots of evangelicalism (without becoming liberal) (3)
09: Essential beliefs (23)
08: Attention bloggers: review copies available (2)
08: Heresy hunting and the Church (8)
07: Can free will solve the problem of hell? (13)
06: Two thumbs up, Mr. Ebert (12)
05: Doug Groothuis on “The Origin of Species” (4)
05: A footnote on guilt imputation and parental liability (4)
05: A vacuous defense of penal substitution (33)
04: Tradition is like dog fur (5)
03: An eye for an eye, a paralysis for a paralysis (19)
03: The Reason for Hell: A critical engagement with Timothy Keller (Part 4) (4)
03: The Reason for Hell: A critical engagement with Timothy Keller (Part 3) (6)
03: Hollywood on God’s side (16)
01: The Reason for Hell: A critical engagement with Timothy Keller (Part 2) (9)
01: God or Godless: The Interview (4)

March 2013

30: The Reason for Hell: a critical engagement with Timothy Keller (Part 1) (12)
28: Nike says “Winning takes care of everything.” Stalin agrees (6)
28: God is responsible for the legally insane. Therefore, God exists (42)
27: Does the US Postal Service discriminate against atheists? (14)
27: A tale of three kitties (10)
26: Come on, stomp on Jesus! Do it! (37)
25: God and Evil: The case for God in a world filled with pain: A Review (13)
24: A hell of one’s own making (18)
23: Abusing the Argumentum ad populum (54)
22: The chief end of Man in Reformed perspective (11)
22: On Halo Publishers (8)
22: On the dying of Christopher Hitchens (25)
20: Is the loss of the autographa an argument against biblical inspiration? (Part 1) (30)
19: On John Loftus contradicting himself (42)
19: The (somewhat) Godly speaks with the proudly Godless: Randal’s interview with John W. Loftus (83)
18: Atheists who get religion (while remaining atheists) (3)
17: Randal talks with Ralph the Atheist (Part 5): Ralph gets the last word (for now) (64)
16: What would complementarians do with a hermaphrodite pastor? (27)
15: Randal talks with Ralph the Atheist (Part 4): Randal rebuffs Ralph (73)
15: Could Jesus perform moral atrocities? (18)
14: If it’s okay for God to do something, then is it okay for him to command it? (16)
13: Two minutes of Evangelicalise (5)
13: Homo religiosus: human beings are all religious and why it matters (22)
12: On methods of evangelism (9)
11: Could God again command the killing of infants and children for a greater good? A critique of William Lane Craig (54)
11: William Lane Craig on genocide as a sign of purity (11)
10: Reflections on the business of worship (2)
09: How Johnny Cash helped me appreciate Immanuel Kant (33)
08: The creepiest birthday wish ever (9)
08: Randal talks with Ralph the Atheist (Part 3): Ralph replies, Randal parries (16)
07: On name-calling (16)
07: Randal launches The Tentative Apologist Podcast … soon (9)
06: Randal talks with Ralph the Atheist (Part 2): Randal responds with fightin’ words (63)
05: The Canaanite genocide as cruel and unusual punishment in extremis (25)
05: Randal talks with Ralph the Atheist (Part 1) (24)
04: William Lane Craig thinks the Canaanites should’ve run! (And too bad if they didn’t.) (11)
04: William Lane Craig on killing the Canaanite infants (19)
02: Could the punishment for legalized abortion be a national abortion? (54)
02: William Lane Craig’s defense of genocide based on a reprobate culture (15)
01: On William Lane Craig’s defense of the Canaanite genocide (Part 5) (17)

February 2013

January 2013

31: A review of “Swedish Atheist” and the unique autonomy of literary characters (6)
31: David Haitel’s testimony (11)
30: Is Christian-atheist dialogue worthwhile? A commentary on the Dawkins-Kenny-Williams Debate (Part 2) (42)
29: Does theology make progress? A response to Jerry Coyne (15)
29: Is Christian-atheist dialogue worthwhile? A commentary on the Dawkins-Kenny-Williams debate (Part 1) (6)
28: Reformed Rap comes of Age: Shai Linne on The Hypostatic Union (2)
28: What is a cheat? Lance Armstrong vs. Travis Tygart (0)
27: Mystery, magic, divinity: The miracle of human gestation (1)
26: The ethics of playing Subway Surfers (18)
26: William Lane Craig, God and Evolution (19)
25: Does Jesus’ vision of a good person make sense? (3)
24: The most sinful man in the room (7)
24: The Oprah Gospel tastes sweet, but is it lethal? (13)
24: If homosexuals are “sodomites” what does that make the rest of us? (32)
23: On killing homosexuals in God’s name (3)
23: How societies improve: the simple example of Morocco (27)
22: On finally getting the Bible right (14)
22: Sodomy and the Kingdom of God (35)
22: Jesus believed in ghosts (so maybe you should too) (18)
21: Violence and the Good Book: My interview with Eric Seibert (30)
20: Why do conservative Christians think everything is getting worse? (38)
19: Encountering the Other: An exercise in moral perception finely-tuned (15)
18: Death as whole body amputation (4)
18: Facing Generation Agnostic (22)
17: John Allister, the Amalekites, and the Principle of Inherited Culpability (25)
17: The latest review of “Swedish Atheist” (7)
16: An Unbelievable defense of the Amalekite Genocide (61)
15: Perfect Divine Being, Perfect Divine Commands (43)
15: It sucks to be Lance (7)
14: A bad objection to divine command theories of ethics (43)
14: Beliefs that are adaptive but false ain’t that unusual (38)
14: Do bad jokes undermine the credibility of the Church? (4)
13: Pot. Kettle. Black. Another response to Chris Hallquist (54)
12: Jesus, execution and divorce (32)
11: Did William Lane Craig smear Sam Harris? A response to Chris Hallquist (52)
11: The Peril of Praying to the Trinity (1)
10: Does Jesus commend the killing of children in Mark 7:10? (24)
10: Would you want an atheist for a neighbor? (27)
09: Is it wrong to stereotype? (5)
09: Why do we talk to our dogs? (2)
08: A quick look at God as a temporal being (33)
08: Alex Jones on Piers Morgan: An amazing bit of television (3)
08: Love, omnibenevolence, and Francis Chan (15)
08: A bit of good news on “Swedish Atheist” (2)
07: Why you shouldn’t clap in church (6)
06: Tell me sweet little lies: evidence that people like being lied to (17)
05: Does the size of the universe support atheism or Christianity? (57)
04: Suicide Bombers in the Bible? (55)
04: Does Jesus go with soldiers into battle? (6)
03: Dare to open a window: On the problem of being called a traitor, liberal or heretic (24)
02: I’ll pray for you (and other Christian baloney) (16)
02: From here to Australopithecus: The puzzle of human value in an evolutionary world (5)
01: Pragmatists, Prophets, and Punitive Appendage Amputation (28)