Have you noticed how atheists often like to refer to theistic accounts of various aspects of reality as “magic”? It’s an irritating practice, a juvenile case of poisoning the well. And it’s even more irritating when a professional philosopher like Stephen Law engages in the practice. Here’s the summary of my recent twitter exchange on […]
magic
Philosophy and Magic: What’s the difference?
It all started with my Wittgenstein tweet. That prompted a reply from philosopher and atheist, Stephen Law and in a moment we were off discussing philosophy vs. magic. I divided our flurry of tweets into two tracks dealing with the two issues I raised. Blessedly, we ended on some point of agreement. Score one for […]
Is God the same thing as “magic”?
The last decade has seen a noticeable deterioration in the level of public discourse about God. (Thanks a lot, new atheists.) For a great example of this, consider the fact that appealing to God as an explanation is commonly derided as appealing to “magic”. Consider this instance of the charge which comes from the podcast […]