What Is Agnosticism? (1981) H. J. Blackham [This article was originally published in "Free Inquiry," Summer, 1981, pp. 31-33.] Winds of Doctrine As a definition of the limits of knowledge, "agnosticism" needs to be understood historically. Summarily and roughly, philosophy at the time of Plutarch (first century A.D.) offered six positions: on the one hand, […]

Why I Am Not a Christian (2006) Graham Oppy [A somewhat different version of this paper is forthcoming in Theism and Naturalism: New Philosophical Perspectives, edited by Paul Pistone and Quentin Smith, Oxford University Press.] In 1927, Bertrand Russell gave a public lecture with the title “Why I Am Not a Christian.” I regularly use […]

Review of Weisberger, A. (1999) Suffering Belief: Evil and the Anglo-American Defence of Theism, Toronto Studies in Religion 23, New York: Peter Lang, pp.xvi+245   Perhaps almost all non-theists will agree that ‘the problem of evil’ has some role in their reasons for rejecting traditional Western theism. When they consult their intuitions, non-theists typically do […]

Critical Notice: Frank J. Tipler (1995) The Physics of Immortality: Modern Cosmology, God and the Resurrection of the Dead London: Macmillan pp.xxvi+528 Some people have wondered whether this book is an elaborate joke.[1] Others have suggested that it is merely a cynical attempt to cash in on the current craze for pop physics treatments of […]

Inverse Operations With Transfinite Numbers And The Kalam Cosmological Argument (1995) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Inverse Operations With Transfinite Numbers And The Kalam Cosmological Argument” International Philosophical Quarterly, 35, 2, pp.219-221] In “Reply To Smith: On The Finitude Of The Past”[1], Professor William Craig writes:   I reiterate that Smith […]

Review of R. C. Sproul (1994) Not a Chance: The Myth of Chance in Modern Science and Cosmology Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, xiv+235       This truly dreadful book contains ten chapters, with the following titles: 1. The Soft Pillow. 2. The Mask of Ignorance. 3. A Quantum Leap. 4. The Voice of Reason. […]

Book Review: THEISM, ATHEISM, AND BIG BANG COSMOLOGY (1996) Graham Oppy   Recent scientific research into the cosmological origins of the universe has prompted a flood of philosophical speculations about the consequences of that research for views which invoke supernatural causes for the existence of the universe. Much of this speculation has come from people […]

On Some Alleged Consequences Of ‘The Hartle-Hawking Cosmology’ (1997) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Some Questions About ‘The Hartle-Hawking Cosmology'” Sophia, 36 (1997), 1, pp.84-95] In [3], Quentin Smith claims that `the Hartle-Hawking cosmology’ is inconsistent with classical theism in a way which redounds to the discredit of classical theism; and, […]

Review of The Science of God (1998) Graham Oppy   This article was originally published in Philo, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Fall-Winter 1998), pp. 68-77. In addition to some minor editorial changes, some material from the main text in Philo has been moved into endnotes here. Review: Gerald L. Schroeder. 1998. The Science of God: […]

Review of: J. P. Moreland (ed.) The Creation Hypothesis Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press Graham Oppy This book is an interesting addition to the anti-evolution literature. (For a nice survey of this literature up until 1992, see Tom McIver’s Anti-Evolution: A Reader’s Guide to Writings Before and After Darwin Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992.) […]

On Rescher On Pascal’s Wager (1990) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “On Rescher On PascalÕs Wager”, International Journal For Philosophy Of Religion, 30, 1990, pp.159-168] In Pascal’s Wager: A Study Of Practical Reasoning In Philosophical Theology,[1] Nicholas Rescher aims to show that, contrary to received philosophical opinion, Pascal’s Wager argument is […]

Reply To Professor Craig (1995) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Reply To Professor Craig”, Sophia 34, 2, December 1995, pp.15-29] [1] I hold that the considerations adduced in kalam cosmological arguments do not embody reasons for reflective atheists and agnostics to embrace the conclusion of those arguments, viz. that the universe […]

Mereological Ontological Arguments and Pantheism (19??) [1] Graham Oppy   Mereological ontological arguments are–as the name suggests–ontological arguments which draw on the resources of mereology, i.e. the theory of the part-whole relation.[2] An instance of arguments of this kind is the following: 1. I exist. (Premise, contingent a priori) 2. (Hence) Some–i.e. least one–thing exists. […]

Pascal’s Wager Is A Possible Bet (But Not A Very Good One): Reply To Harmon Holcomb III (1996) Graham Oppy   In “To Bet The Impossible Bet”, Harmon Holcomb III argues: (i) that Pascal’s wager is structurally incoherent; (ii) that if it were not thus incoherent, then it would be successful; and (iii) that my […]

Review of Dean L. Overman (1997) A Case Against Accident and Self-Organisation New York: Rowman & Littlefield   To judge from the dust-jacket, this book has received a considerable amount of praise–and not just from the usual suspects. In particular, the publishers seem keen to promulgate the view that there is widespread support for the […]

Curriculum Vitae   Name: Graham Robert Oppy Date of Birth: October 6, 1960 Place of Birth: Benalla, Victoria, Australia Citizenship: Australian Education: Primary:  1966-1972, Wendouree Primary (#1813), Wendouree       1972: Dux, Full Scholarship to Wesley College Secondary:  1973-1978, Wesley College, Prahran, Melbourne       1978 HSC: General Distinction; Special Distinctions: English, Chemistry Tertiary:   1979-1985, Melbourne University, Parkville, Melbourne       1985: B.Sc./B.A. […]

Review of: Craig, William Lane, and Moreland, J. P. (eds) Naturalism: A Critical Analysis London: Routledge, 2000, pp.xv+279, £60.00   The editors claim a threefold purpose for the essays which appear in this collection. First, the essays are intended to establish that naturalism “fails to deal adequately with a number of desiderata”. Second, the essays […]

Modal Theistic Arguments (1993) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Modal Theistic Arguments”, Sophia, 32, 2, July 1993, pp.17-24] A modal theistic argument is a proof of the existence of God which makes use of the premise that God is a being who exists in every possible world. Such arguments have been […]

Book Review: Miller, B., From Existence To God: A Contemporary Philosophical Argument (London and New York: Routledge, 1992) pp. x, 206 (1994) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published in the Australasian Journal Of Philosophy, 72, 2, June 1994, pp.257-258)] This book is a synthesis of much previously published material, the existence of which […]

On “The Ontological Argument”: A Response To Makin (1991) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Makin On The Ontological Argument”, Philosophy, 66, 255, January 1991, pp.106-114] In “The Ontological Argument”, (Philosophy 63, 1988, pp.83-91) Stephen Makin offers a defence of what he calls “Anselm’s Ontological Argument”. I am not much interested in […]

Craig, Mackie, And The Kalam Cosmological Argument (1991) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as Religious Studies 27 (1991): 189-97.] In “Professor Mackie And The Kalam Cosmological Argument” (Religious Studies, 1984, Vol.20, pp.367-375), Professor William Lane Craig undertakes to demonstrate that J. L. Mackie’s analysis of the kalam cosmological argument in The Miracle […]

Some Emendations to Leftow’s Arguments About Time and Eternity (1998)   I am sympathetic to the view that, if God exists, then God is timeless. Consequently, I am (conditionally!) sympathetic to the project which Brian Leftow undertakes in Time and Eternity (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991). However, it seems to me that the case which […]

Godelian Ontological Arguments (1996) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Godelian Ontological Arguments” Analysis 56, 4, October 1996, pp.226-230] There is now a considerable secondary literature on Godel’s ontological arguments; in particular, interested readers should consult Sobel (1987), Anderson (1990) and Adams (1995). In this note, I wish to draw attention to […]

Is God Good By Definition? (1992) Graham Oppy   [This article was originally published as “Is God Good By Definition?”, Religious Studies, 28, 1992, pp.467-474.] As a matter of historical fact, most philosophers and theologians who have defended traditional theistic views have been moral realists. Some “divine command” theorists have held that the good is […]

Time, Successive Addition, and Kalam Cosmological Arguments Graham Oppy   Craig (1981) presents and defends several different kalam cosmological arguments. The core of each of these arguments is the following ur-argument: 1. The universe began to exist. 2. Whatever begins to exist has a cause of its existence. 3. (Hence) The universe has a cause […]

Professor William Craig’s Criticisms of Critiques of Kalam Cosmological Arguments By Paul Davies, Stephen Hawking, And Adolf Grünbaum (1995) Graham Oppy   Kalam cosmological arguments have recently been the subject of criticisms, at least inter alia, by physicists–Paul Davies, Stephen Hawking–and philosophers of science–Adolf Grünbaum. In a series of recent articles, William Craig has attempted […]