Anselm defined god as a being than which no greater can be conceived, and which exists 2, and argued that this being must exist in the mind, even in the mind of the person who denies the existence of god. Knowledge of god great debates in philosophy series by alvin plantinga. A study of the rational justification of belief in god plantinga alvin. Plantinga gelooft zonder bewijs stichting voor christelijke filosofie. According to plantinga s version of the freewill argument fwa, the existence of free beings in the world who, on the whole, do more good than evil is the greater moral good that cannot be secured by even an omnipotent god without allowing some evil and thereby shows the logical compatibility of god with evil.
The reformed objection to natural theology by alvin plantinga suppose we think of natural theology as the attempt to prove or demonstrate the existence of god. The first fifteen years of the twentieth century may some day be remembered in america as the age of crusades. His goal is to create a consistent model to counter the logical problem of evil which claims that god s omnipotence, omniscience and benevolence and the existence of evil are contradictory. For a critical account of verificationism see plantinga, god and other minds, chap. The author concludes that while the argument is probably formally valid, it is ultimately unsound.
Professor malcolm believes that in anselms proslogion and. Read download god and other minds pdf pdf download. The god delusion is an extended diatribe against religion in general and belief in god in particular. But good arguments, on each side, enriche appreciation of issues and understanding of alternatives. If 62 percent of philosophers are atheists, then the proportion of atheists among philosophers is much greater than indeed, is nearly twice as great as the proportion of atheists among academics generally. Plantinga evaluates the issue of whether we are rationally justified in believing in god. A study of theological responses to alvin plantingas aquinas. Alvin plantinga s freewill defense is a logical argument developed by the american analytic philosopher alvin plantinga and published in its final version in his 1977 book god, freedom, and evil. Natural theology and atheology god and analogy the free will defense the ontonlogical argument is naturalism irrational. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read.
Two dozen or so theistic arguments 205 exist have some but much less than maximal intuitive support. This book contains the major ideas of his philosophy of religion on god, faith, historical criticism, pluralism, and many other key topics. In the first half on natural atheology, he addresses the socalled problem of evil, while part 2 addresses very briefly aquinas cosmological argument and paleys teleological argument, followed by a more indepth look at anselms ontological argument. Alvin carl plantinga ann arbor michigan 15 november 1932 is een amerikaanse. Alvin plantinga, gods philosopher 3 he resolved to become a philosopher. Obrien professor of philosophy and former director of the center for philosophy of religion at the university of notre dame. God, freedom, and evil alvin plantinga details trove. Both have argued that there is a profound connection between what and how we know and what there is, such that one cannot do good epistemology without delving deeply into ontology. Alvin plantinga thus god s existence is either impossible or necessary. If the pluralist had been born in morocco he probably wouldnt be a pluralist. Rbg plantingas essay with the title reason and belief in god. Het analytischfilosofische debat over het bestaan van god rik peels. There is no other debatestyle book in the philosophy of religion that packs the intellectual punches thrown by heavyweights plantinga and tooley. Alvin plantingas new book on god and science the new york.
Plantinga s argument is a defense against the logical problem of evil as formulated by the philosopher j. This need not be plantinga s personal view of god and evil. T his is a collection of philosophical papers by alvin plantinga. He is the author of several books, including where the conflict really lies. This leads to trouble with the previous explanation of goodness for an argument. Charting a middle way between the extremes represented by alvin plantinga and richard swinburne, garth hallett explores the thesis that if belief in other minds is rational and true as it surely is, so too is belief in god. Alvin plantinga and michael tooley here debate the question whether god s existence is known or, at least, justifiably believed.
You have free access to this content knowledge of god blackwell great debates in philosophy. Alvin carl plantinga born 1932 is an american analytic philosopher who works primarily in the. Plantinga, who has delivered the prestigious gifford 1987 and wilde lectures 1988, and who has served as president of the american philosophical association and the society of christian philosophers, is best known for a variety of astonishing epistemic claims. In doing so, he considers the natural theologians arsenal, the atheologians response, and whether belief in god can be salvaged from the analogy of other minds. The god of the old testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all of fiction. Contrary to stereotypes, this did not make young alvin a bookish nerd indeed, he was an enthusiastic participant in high school football, basketball and tennis. Firstly, plantinga very skilfully defined god s attributes in terms of. This essay critically examines plantinga s modal version. Knowledge and christian belief kindle edition by plantinga, alvin. Everyone interested in christian apologetics and how knowledge of god works should read plantinga, and this book is the best place to start. Yet many people seem to have a hard time understanding it. The persuasiveness of plantinga s argument rests on two key factors. Reason and belief in god alvin plantinga belief in god is the heart and center of the christian religion as it is of judaism and islam.
Nonetheless, plantinga s version has generated much interest and discussion. The analytic theist is a book of essays written by alvin plantinga. Alvin plantinga and michael tooley here debate the question whether god s existence is knownor, at least, justifiably believed. I take atheism to be the belief that there is no such person as the god of the theistic religions. I wish to discuss professor malcolms absorbingly powerful defense of a version of anselms ontological proof for the existence of god. Plantingas ontological argument restated analogies aside, what is specifically wrong with plantinga s modal argument for the existence of god. He is also editor with matthew davidson of essays in the metaphysics of modality 2003 michael tooley is distinguished college professor of philosophy at. Adams, flavors, colors, and god cpre steven cahn, the irrelevance to religion of philosophic proofs for the existence of god cpre week 4. Biola university center for christian thought presents guest speaker dr.
Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. American catholic philosophical quarterly, summer 2010alvin plantinga and michael tooley here debate the question whether gods existence is known. Gods presence within henrys phenomenology of life mdpi. Articles 2016 law, cause, and occasionalism, in reason and faith. If knowledge then god james anderson 2 necessity and historical success of natural theology. Themes from richard swinburne, bergmann and brower, eds. God, freedom, and evil alvin plantinga free download as pdf file. The first ontological argument in the western christian tradition 1 was proposed by anselm of canterbury in his 1078 work proslogion.
Although plantinga cannot remember ever not having been convinced. Rationality and religious belief alvin plantinga, is belief in god properly basic. Over the years alvin plantinga has undercut conventional prejudices and defended theistic beliefs. He is widely known for his work in epistemology and philosophy of religion, and is the author of warranted christian belief 2000. When searching for god, majority opinion counts for little. Thats the question at the heart of this volume in the great debates in philosophy series, with alvin plantinga and michael tooley each addressing this fundamental question with. Obrien professor of philosophy at the university of notre dame. Suppose we concede that if i had been born of muslim parents in morocco rather than christian parents in michigan, my beliefs would be quite different. Alvin plantingas freewill defense is a logical argument developed by the american analytic philosopher alvin plantinga and published in its final version in his 1977 book god. How does plantinga s defense of free will align with omniscience. Knowledge of god blackwell great debates in philosophy. Dawkins and daniel dennett whose recent breaking the spell is his contribution to this genre are the touchdown twins of current academic atheism.
Alvin plantinga is held by many to be the greatest living christian philosopher, and has made immense contributions to various areas of. The sciences are mans effort at explaining all that god has created. Alvin plantinga, who has led a movement of unapologetically christian philosophers, argues that theism is compatible with science in his new. The ontological argument for the existence of god has enjoyed a recent renaissance among philosophers of religion. Alvin plantinga s modal ontologicals argument is a irrefutable logical argument for the existence of god. Alvin carl plantinga born 1932 is an american analytic philosopher who works primarily in the fields of philosophy of religion, epistemology particularly on issues involving epistemic justification, and logic. On that account as it stands, a good argument could take as premises propositions that have some but less than maximal intuitive support, and take as.
There were a superabundance of zeal, a sufficiency of causes, unusual moral idealism. Some of plantingas most influential works including god and other minds 1967, the. Knowledge of god, by alvin plantinga and michael tooley. What can be known about god is plain vrije universiteit amsterdam. Reason and belief in god alvin plantinga belief in god is the heart and center of the christian religionas it is. Plantinga defends the argument against a formidable array of criticisms. In his widely praised warranted christian belief oxford 2000 alvin plantinga discussed in great depth the question of the rationality or sensibility of christian belief. Alvin plantinga quotes author of god, freedom, and evil. What distinguishes this book is the clarity with which plantinga presents and develops his arguments. Thats the question at the heart of this volume in the great debates in philosophy series, with alvin plantinga and michael tooley each addressing this fundamental question with distinctive arguments from opposing perspectives. Pdf epub download written by alvin plantinga, title. Kcb plantingas book with the title knowledge and christian belief. A brief study of calvins biblicaltheological teaching.