Modern Library

Review of The Hidden Face of God (2007) Scott Oser and Niall Shanks   Review: Gerald L. Schroeder. 2001. The Hidden Face of God: How Science Reveals The Ultimate Truth. New York: The Free Press. 224 pp. Introduction (by Scott Oser) Schroeder’s Arguments from Physics and Cosmology (by Scott Oser)      The Argument for a Metaphysical […]

Critique of Josh McDowell’s Non-Messianic Prophecies Steven Carr   Related documents: “Prophecy Subject Index in the Secular Web’s Modern Library [ Index ] Links to various essays which address the argument from prophecy. “Exhaust Fumes (or Carr Repairs)” (Off Site) by James Patrick Holding Holding’s rebuttal to this essay. (Strangely, Holding does not provide a link to […]

Argument from Holy Scripture Divine inspiration is often claimed for features of religious texts, constituting evidence of God’s existence or the truth of a religious doctrine.  In addition to the articles below, see also related Debates, Reviews, and Links. To purchase related reading, go to the Secular Web Book Store. The Bible: Bible Codes [ Index ] […]

Historicity of Jesus Order books on Christianity now Beckwith on Historiography (Review of In Defense of Miracles) (1999, 2005) by Richard Carrier Misunderstandings of historical method are rife in Francis Beckwith’s chapter in the book ‘In Defense of Miracles,’ and these are typical of all modern apologetics. Historian Richard Carrier gives a professional overview of why […]

Argument to Design: Reviews/Critiques Behe’s Empty Box [ Index ] (Off Site) An index of articles, both pro and con, on Michael Behe’s argument from irreducible complexity and his recent book, Darwin’s Black Box. Critiques of Michael Behe [ Index ] A collection of critical reviews of Behe’s Darwin’s Black Box. A Critique of Michael Denton’s Evolution: […]

Book of Mormon The Bible in the Book of Mormon (1999) by Curt van den Heuvel “The Book of Mormon was written by someone who either had a KJV Bible in front of him, or was intimately familiar with its contents. When we add to this phenomenon other Book of Mormon problems, such as the […]

The Other Side of Time (2000) Victor J. Stenger University of Hawaii   In The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Greatest Scientific Discoveries of the Century Reveal God, physicist Hugh Ross gives the following “proof of creation”:     “The universe and everything in it is confined to a single, finite dimension of time. […]

CHAPTER 2: THE STONES CRY OUT (Argumentum Ad Verecundiam) In Chapter 2 of Why I Believe, D. James Kennedy continues with his explanation of why he believes in the Bible, this time using evidence from archaeology rather than prophecy. He stands on more solid ground here. Until the 1970s, a strong alliance existed between the […]

Review of Darwin and Design (2005) Anthony Campbell [This review was originally published on Anthony Campbell’s book reviews page.] Review: Michael Ruse. 2003. Darwin and Design: Does Evolution Have a Purpose? Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. x + 371 pp. Although there are still people today, particularly in the USA, who adhere to the biblical […]

Religion And The U. S. Supreme Court – Cases (1 of 4) by Bill Schultz From the nation’s founding through 1942 Table of Contents Main Text The Law as Things Stand Now Links To Supreme Court Opinions, Etc., Founding-1942 (this page) Links To Supreme Court Opinions, Etc., 1943-1960 Links To Supreme Court Opinions, Etc., 1961-1980 […]

David Chalmers’ Principle of Organizational Invariance and the Personal Soul (2014) Clifford Greenblatt David Chalmers argues that conscious experience is a real but nonphysical feature of nature. However, he also believes that all particular facts about any conscious experience supervene (naturally, but not logically) on physical facts, such that physical facts fully determine any conscious […]

Dr. Hovind (R6): The shape of the curve of the line is based on too few real measurements to be reliable. It’s not clear to me what Dr. Hovind is talking about. If he is referring to the carbon-14 decay curve then he has demonstrated, once again, his ignorance of radiometric dating. The decay curve […]

Young-earth "proof" #30: Many ancient cultures have stories of an original creation in the recent past. This is because the earth really is young. 30. The ultimate origin of things, according to many creation legends, traces back into the mists of time to which no specific date can be affixed. The Australian aborigine, for example, […]

Young-earth "proof" #20: The earth’s rotation is slowing down, meaning that the earth can’t be older than a few million years. 20. Presently, the earth’s rotation is slowing down 0.005 seconds per year per year (Thwaites and Awbrey, 1982, p.19). At least Dr. Hovind doesn’t use the horrendous rate of 1 second per year which […]

On The Issue of Abortion: Abortion remains one of the more divisive moral issues in America today. The controversy over its legal and moral status rages on. Several labels have been invented to define the variety of stances available on the issue. Pro-Life is often synonymous with Anti-Abortion, and related partially to Anti-Choice. Pro-Choice is […]

On The Subject of Artificial Intelligence: Advancements in the field of artificial intelligence continue to rage forward. Skeptics question how successful research in this field will be. Advocates believe the field offers valuable insight into human intelligence and consciousness and will provide useful knowledge. Critics disagree, believing that vary little comparison can be made and […]

On The Subject of Housewives: Housewives, also called domestic engineers, are decreasing in number as more women enter the workforce. Part of the feminist and women’s rights movements see this as evidence of their success in liberating women. Others think simply the choice now afforded women concerning the subject, is the criterion of success. Debate […]

On The Subject of Transhumanism: The philosophy of transhumanism tries to combine the principles of humanism and advanced technology in order to transcend the Human Condition. Many futurists and science fiction authors speculate that humanity is destined to evolve into something far greater then mere flesh and blood. Speculations about this transformation range from cyborgs […]

CHAPTER 3 The New Humanist – Sponsor of the Manifesto The New Humanist was started in 1927, while I was studying in Europe as a Cruft Fellow, an award for graduating seniors. The first issue-volume one, number one-appeared in 1928. Examination of the brief record of this periodical preceding the publication of "A Humanist Manifesto" […]

[Taken from the program handed out at the debate] I.) There are good reasons to affirm the Resurrection. A.) The writings about the Resurrection are too early for legend to prevail over the truth. B.) The tomb was empty. C.) Jesus appeared to many witnesses. D.) The origin of the Christian movement is inexplicable apart […]

Reply to Robert Turkel: Concluding Postscript Farrell Till I must say that I am flattered. After assuring his readers that I was not worth any further comment from him, Turkel has posted a 240K article in reply to my rebuttal of his attempt to reconcile the approval of Jehu’s massacre at Jezreel (2 Kings 10:30) […]

FAQ The Supreme Court and Prayer at Football Games  The U.S. Supreme Court has heard a major case involving school prayer. The legal controversy, Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe, was argued before the high court on March 29, 2000, and a decision is expected by early July. This is an important case that […]

Review of Robin Le Poidevin’s Arguing for Atheism (1997) Finngeir Hiorth   Robin Le Poidevin: Arguing for Atheism, An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion Routledge, 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE, UK and 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001, USA, 1996, 159 pp., glossary, bibliography, index, paperback.   As in so […]

Life Is To Be Lived Now A Vital, Personal Humanism (1986) Frederick Edwords When one hears the word Humanism, one thinks of that philosophy spelled out in documents called “Manifestos,” a philosophy critical of traditional religion and which advocates reason, science, and civil liberties. What one too often does not think of is a philosophy […]

  Old Testament Life and Literature (1968) Gerald A. Larue   Chapter 12 – Solomon Read I Kings 2:13-11:43 UNDER Solomon, national and religious self-consciousness, encouraged by the king and the temple priesthood, resulted in the production of a great body of literature, of which the Davidic record was but a part. Unfortunately, no biographical […]

  Old Testament Life and Literature (1968) Gerald A. Larue   Chapter 27 – The Early Hellenistic Period THE Hellenistic period in Palestine technically begins with the defeat of the Persian empire by Alexander the Great (334-323). Greek influence had entered the Persian world much earlier, for Greek mercenaries fought in Persian armies and Greek […]

  Old Testament Life and Literature (1968) Gerald A. Larue   A Word to the Reader TO get the most from this book, you will need a Bible, preferably in modern translation. Keep the Bible at hand, for few passages are quoted and the writer has assumed that you will read the biblical references. The […]

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 […]

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 […]

Profesor Ilhan Arsel’in Özgeçmisi Prof. Dr. Ilhan Arsel, Cenevre (Isviçre) Üniversitesi Hukuk Fakültesi’nde doktorasini yaptiktan sonra, otuz yildan fazla bir sure boyunca üniversite ögretim üyeliginde bulundu; Ankara Hukuk Fakültesinde “Anayasa Hukuku” dersleri verdi. 1960 Ihtilali’nin ardindan yeni bir anayasa tasarisi hazirlamakla görevli on kisilik Istanbul Komisyonu‘na, ve daha sonra Kurucu Meclis Öntasarisi‘ni olusturan bes kisilik […]