[ Author Index | Subject Index ]
The Modern Library contains material written during or after 1970, which tends to be more scholarly than Kiosk material.
Michael Moore False Prophets
On (False) Prophets and Messiahs (2016) Michael Moore The word “prophet” comes from the Greek for “one who predicts.” It served as the accepted translation of the Hebrew “navi”—itself from a Semitic source, which in Akkadian and Arabic indicated “call, announce.” Some Latin sources translated Greek “prophetes” with Latin “vates” (still current in English, and […]
Nicholas Tattersall Evil
The Evidential Argument from Evil (1998) Nicholas Tattersall “Please understand, it is not God I do not accept, but the world he has created.” Feodor Dostoyevsky The Brothers Karamazov Introduction The purpose of this essay is to explain and argue against various common objections to the Argument from Evil (AE). It is necessary to […]
Nontheism Atheism Evidential
Evidential Arguments Evidential arguments for atheism attempt to show that certain known facts that are (at least so far as we can tell) consistent with theism nevertheless provide evidence against it. Typically, such arguments start with a known fact, such as the amount of suffering in the world. The arguments then attempt to show that […]
Nontheism Atheism More Moral
On Average, Are Atheists as Moral as Theists? General An Introduction to Atheism (1997) by mathew This useful introduction to atheism addresses several of our questions, including Are atheists less moral than religious people?, Is there such a thing as atheist morality?, and Isn’t the whole of life completely pointless to an atheist? Atheists Can […]
Paul Carlson Nt Contradictions
New Testament Contradictions (1995) Paul Carlson [Editor’s note: As with all lists of alleged biblical contradictions, there will be disagreement in at least some specific cases as to whether a given “contradiction” is a genuine contradiction. It is therefore up to the reader to decide for him/herself whether to accept that a listed “contradiction” is, […]
Paul Obrien Gentle Atheism7
I am going to invite into our investigation a wise and gentle man named William James. Although he lived a century before us, through his works and the power of his ideas, he will join us to help bring this issue to fruition. James hit upon a new chord in the way people ought to […]
Peter Kirby Tomb Rebuttal2
The Historicity of the Empty Tomb of Jesus The essay quoted is by William Lane Craig, originally published “The Historicity of the Empty Tomb of Jesus.” New Testament Studies 31 (1985): 39-67. It was accessed December 14, 2000 (URL:http://www.origins.org/offices/billcraig/docs/tomb2.html). Until recently the empty tomb has been widely regarded as both an offense to modern intelligence […]
Quentin Smith Natural
A Natural Explanation of the Existence and Laws of Our Universe (1990) Quentin Smith The following article was originally published in AUSTRALASIAN JOURNAL OF PHILOSOPHY in March 1990 (Volume 68, No. 1, pp. 22-43). I. The Possibility of a Natural Explanation of Our Universe The standard view of philosophers is that the existence of particular […]
Richard Carrier Addl19
Isaiah also says this Servant will be “cut off” though “he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth,” then Daniel later says the Messiah will be “cut off” though “there is no legal judgment against him.” These sure sound like the same man. In fact, it sounds like Daniel is alluding […]
Richard Carrier Carrier Oconnell Oconnell1
O’Connell’s Opening Statement (2008) The Meaning of “Resurrection” Whenever the word “resurrection” (anastasis) occurs in Jewish sources within and around the first century A.D., it always denotes a “one-body” notion of resurrection. This fact has been amply demonstrated by N. T. Wright’s thorough examination of the sources.[1] Although there were disagreements over the details […]
Richard Carrier Carrier Wanchick Wanchick3
Wanchick’s Second Rebuttal (2006) Leibnizian Cosmological Argument Carrier says the “only evidence” I offer that the universe is non-necessary is scientific. Not at all; I first noted that “the universe appears obviously contingent”: we can easily conceive of its nonexistence. Carrier never challenges this. Alas, he concedes it, stating that possibly nothing or a […]
Richard Carrier Foster7
Bad Science, Worse Philosophy: the Quackery and Logic-Chopping of David Foster’s The Philosophical Scientists (2000) 7. Why Foster Needs to Take a Basic Thermodynamics Course Richard Carrier The Second Law of Thermodynamics, or ‘The Law of Entropy,’ is a common feature of creationist arguments. More often than not it is totally misunderstood. Even […]
Richard Carrier Improbable Crucified
Was Christianity Too Improbable to be False? (2006) [See Introduction] Richard Carrier 1. Who Would Buy One Crucified? 1.1. Precedents and Distinctions 1.2. How Converts Differed from Critics 1.3. How Things Really Looked 1.4. Many Converts Expected a Humiliated Savior 1.5. Conclusion 1.1. Precedents and Distinctions James Holding asks: “Who on earth would believe a religion centered […]
Richard Carrier Indef 1
Summary Review of In Defense of Miracles (1999, 2005) Richard Carrier [Part 1 of a more comprehensive Review of In Defense of Miracles.] In 1997, InterVaristy Press published In Defense of Miracles: A Comprehensive Case for God’s Action in History (1997), edited by Gary Habermas and R. Douglas Geivett. This is a well-composed defense […]
Richard Carrier Replytomiller
Reply to Glenn Miller on the Burial of Jesus (2002) Richard Carrier This is a brief reply to Glen Miller’s rebuttal (October 2002 edition) to my essay “Jewish Law, the Burial of Jesus, and the Third Day” (May 2002 edition), which he entitles “Good Question: Was the burial of Jesus a temporary one, because […]
Richard Carrier Resurrection 2h
This file has been relocated: it is now Section IX of Probability of Survival vs. Miracle: Assessing the Odds.
Richard Carrier Resurrection 4
Why I Don’t Buy the Resurrection Story (6th ed., 2006) Richard Carrier Rebutting Lesser Arguments Many devout believers will take issue with what I have said so far in the essays listed in the table above. So far, they have yet to give any good reason to actually come to a different conclusion. […]
Richard Carrier Ten
Ten Things Wrong with Cosmological Creationism (2000) Richard Carrier A short series of exchanges on cosmological creationism which largely transpired in our August and October feedback pages touched upon every issue that I have often visited and continue to visit in my discussions with creationists. In this essay, I now present several objections which […]
Richard Petraitis Spirit War
Joseph Kony’s Spirit War (2003) Richard Petraitis The year 2001 saw no cessation in the magic wars fought on the African Continent. The Twenty-First Century’s arrival witnessed yet another tribal revolt, fueled by magical belief, raging in Nigeria’s Oil Delta. In the Delta, members of the Egbesu Cult, (the war god of the Ijaw […]
Robert Price Beyond Born Again
Beyond Born Again: Towards Evangelical Maturity (1993) Robert M. Price Contents Introduction: Testimony Time Price provides a brief overview of his background in the Evangelical Christian scene, as well as an overview of his book’s contents. Introduction To The HTML Version (by Robby Berry) Robby Berry explains the history of the HTML version of Beyond […]
Robert Price Damnable
Damnable Syllogism (1997) Robert M. Price The Essence of Christianity What is Christianity all about? Or, as at least two important books (by Adolf von Harnack and Ludwig Feuerbach) from around the turn of the century put it, what is the "essence of Christianity"? For this is what we want to know, e.g., when we […]
Robert Price Reply To Craig
William Lane Craig’s Critique (2000) Robert M. Price In a public debate on the resurrection in the New Testament, apologist William Lane Craig offered several criticisms of the foregoing article, and it seems worthwhile answering the strongest of them here. I will leave aside a few minor points such as Craig’s refusal to countenance […]
Scott Oser Hojfaq
Historicity Of Jesus FAQ (1994) Scott Oser Disclaimer This "FAQ", often referred to as the "Historicity of Jesus" FAQ, is neither exhaustive, nor does it attempt to answer the question of whether Jesus of Nazareth really lived or not. In fact, in writing it I have purposely tried not to take sides on this issue. […]
Steven Conifer Ac
The Argument from Consciousness Refuted (2001) Steven J. Conifer I. PREFATORY REMARKS Many Christian philosophers (e.g., Richard Swinburne) advocate a theistic argument which has begun of late to garner considerable popularity in the literature. The argument is one from human consciousness, i.e., it appeals to the phenomenon of human consciousness as its main premise. […]
Testimonials Carr
My Post-Christian Testimony Ian J. Carr If I may paraphrase a famous Christian: Free at last, thank God I’m free at last! I am a former Christian, early 40’s, a previous true believer who worshipped mainly in Fundamentalist circles (though never able to tackle hard-line evangelist doctrine with any enthusiasm.) My journey to freethought has […]
Theism Bible Koran
Argument from Holy Scripture: Holy Qur’an Cosmology and the Koran (2001) by Richard Carrier Muslim Fundamentalists are fond of claiming that the Koran miraculously predicted the findings of modern science, and that all of its factual scientific claims are flawless. There are two important objections to this claim that I will make, one pointing to […]
Theism Christianity Plantinga
Alvin Plantinga Alvin Plantinga Can’t Say That, Can He? A Review of Where the Conflict Really Lies (2016) by Richard M. Smith In Where the Conflict Really Lies, Alvin Plantinga maintains that any apparent conflict between science and classical Christian theism is superficial at best, and that the real conflict lies between science and the […]
Theism Divine
Divine Command Theory The divine command theory (DCT) of ethics holds that an act is either moral or immoral solely because God either commands us to do it or prohibits us from doing it, respectively. On DCT the only thing that makes an act morally wrong is that God prohibits doing it, and all that […]
Theism Mormonism Smith
Joseph Smith “Prophet Puzzle” Revisited by Dan Vogel (Off Site) Joseph Smith’s Civil War Prophecy (Off Site) Did Joseph Smith make an accurate prophecy or was his ‘prophecy’ just a product of his environment? Joseph Smith biography by C. Clark Julius (Off Site) Joseph Smith’s various First Vision accounts (Off Site) compiled by W. V. […]
Theodore Drange Drange Interview
Interview with Theodore Drange Atheism Definition of Atheism LOWDER: How do you define atheism? DRANGE: Atheism is the belief that God does not exist. I have put down some arguments in support of that usage in my essay “Atheism, Agnosticism, Noncognitivism.” LOWDER: Under your definition people who are pretty sure that God exists, people […]