Category: Intermediate
Philosophical Notes on the Underground: Two
I closed Note One by calling Underground Man “grouchy.”[1] That is an understatement. The man admits to being spiteful. He hates his neighbors, practices cruelty, and delights in the misfortune of others. He even claims to take pleasure in his own pain and bitterness, some of which is self-induced. For example: “I reached a point … Continue reading Philosophical Notes on the Underground: Two
Philosophical Notes on the Underground: One
“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2) In Part 1 of Notes from Underground, Dostoyevsky’s Underground Man claims that consciousness is a disease.[1] In a loose sense, given certain assumptions, Underground Man makes a significant point. In a strict sense, however, he is wrong. Let me explain. First, we … Continue reading Philosophical Notes on the Underground: One
Does God Know & Not Know Simultaneously?
Question: Dear Tim, On the framework of Molinism God possesses knowledge in different “logical moments” (natural, middle, and free knowledge) prior to creation. These logical moments are not to me confused with chronological moments. However, if there are multiple “logical moments” of God’s knowledge, then would this not imply that God knows and does not … Continue reading Does God Know & Not Know Simultaneously?
A Debate with Andy Regarding the “Ring of Truth”
Regarding my Ring of Truth blog: Andy said, //You’ve not shown that Christianity being true would make [murdering homosexuals] objectively wrong, bad or evil.// I did write the following (you must have missed it): “Is atheism any better? Not really. According to logically consistent atheism, since God does not exist, then humanity was not created … Continue reading A Debate with Andy Regarding the “Ring of Truth”
Capital Punishment & Christian Theology
Capital Punishment is a very controversial topic and navigating this tricky subject can be difficult. Because of this difficulty we must be humble when speaking on this subject. As I am studying ethics I have quickly come to find that there are very few simple and straightforward answers to many of the ethical problems we … Continue reading Capital Punishment & Christian Theology
Lydia McGrew on Minimalism & the Resurrection
Since I have turned my research attention to the argument in favour of the resurrection of Jesus (simply called the Resurrection Argument), I face the question as to which is the best (or at least a good) approach to take in arguing for the resurrection. The debate about the different approaches to the argument is … Continue reading Lydia McGrew on Minimalism & the Resurrection
3 Circles & ALL the Problems of Evil
Why would God allow moral evil? For example, why would God allow Hitler to torture and murder millions of Jews in the horrors of Nazi concentration camps? Why would God allow natural evil? For example, why would God allow hurricanes, tornadoes, and tsunamis that kill and cause so much suffering? Why would God allow what … Continue reading 3 Circles & ALL the Problems of Evil
The Philosophy of Dr. King
Note: Originally, I wrote this as a sister article to a piece I put out on MLK last year entitled, “Dr. King: Freedom & Free Thinking”; however, it ended up not being released at that time. So, I figured I would dust this article off and put it out there. Enjoy! When I was a … Continue reading The Philosophy of Dr. King
Lowder’s Comments to My Assessment of His Debate with Turek
In 2016, Jeffery Jay Lowder1 debated Frank Turek on the topic Naturalism vs theism (see https://youtu.be/ENZYEPpR2Jc). In early 2017, I wrote two articles in which I assess Lowder’s opening statement (see here and here). It was brought to my attention that Lowder recently made some comments to my assessment (see the comment section here). I … Continue reading Lowder’s Comments to My Assessment of His Debate with Turek
Maximal Greatness & Middle Knowledge
Why think that Mere Molinism is true? If this view corresponds to reality, then two other propositions must also be true: (i) Logically prior to God’s decision to create the world, God knew everything that would happen in any possible scenario He could create (entails God’s middle knowledge). (ii) As beings created in God’s image, humans, like God, possess the categorical … Continue reading Maximal Greatness & Middle Knowledge