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Theism Links


Theistic Arguments: Links to Other Resources

Formal debates between theists and nontheists on topics relating to the theistic arguments:

Cosmological

Design

Miracles

Moral

Ontological

Scripture

Transcendental

Wager

Other

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Argument from Holy Scripture:

Biblical Criticism [ Index ]

Selected articles on modern Biblical criticism and scholarship.

Biblical Errancy [ Index ]

Selected articles.

Historicity of Jesus [ Index ]

Selected articles confronting the question of whether Christ was a fiction, the search for an historical Jesus, credibility of the Gospels.

Jesus Seminar [ Index ]

Links to the controversial Jesus Seminar, Westar Institute, and related articles.

Prophecy [ Index ]

Selected articles in Biblical prophecy.

alt.bible.errancy (Off Site) [ News Group ]

Lively Biblical errancy news group, frequented by (among others both pro and con) Farrell Till, editor of The Skeptical Review..

Bible Gateway (Off Site)

Online passage and word lookup for the King James Bible and its variants.

Bible Study Tools (Off Site)

Word/phrase, parallel translation, and interlinear (showing English passage with Greek and Hebrew translation) lookup tools. 

Book of Mormon Research page (Off Site)

Good compendium that includes electronic versions of The 1830 Book of Mormon, and the The 1833 Book of Commandments.

Comprehensive Bibliography on Skeptical Thought in the Ancient World (1998) [ Index ]

A huge bibliography of material pertaining to skeptical thought in the ancient Greek and Roman world. Also included are sections on modern scientific studies of belief and doubt, as well as some medieval and renaissance references, but the bulk of material relates to the ancient period.

Early Christian Writings (Off Site) [ Index ] by Peter Kirby

Kirby’s page of scholarship on Christian origins.

Guide to Controversial Mormon Resources on the Internet (1999) (Off Site) [ Index ] by James David

Comprehensive index of articles relating to Mormon doctrine, the character of Joseph Smith, scriptural errancy, and more.

The Interpreting Ancient Manuscripts Web (Off Site) [ Index ]

Developed at Brown University with the aid of an Educational Computing Grant to the Religious Studies Department, this website focuses “on the process used to study the ancient manuscripts upon which the New Testament is based. While the language discussed is Greek, almost everything is explained with transliterations into English and, where applicable, translations from standard English Bibles.”

Mormon Scripture Studies (Off Site) edited by Brent Metcalfe

Electronic journal of scholarly, skeptical articles.

The Qu’ran (Off Site)

One of the few online English translations. Does not have tafseer commentary.

Skeptical Review [ Index ] edited by Farrell Till

This bimonthly publication is a clearinghouse for errancy articles and debates.

World Scripture: A Comparative Anthology of Sacred Texts (1991) (Off Site) [ Index ] edited by Andrew Wilson

Electronic version of an anthology containing over 4000 scriptural passages from 268 sacred texts and 55 oral traditions, organized in terms of 164 different themes common to all traditions. 

Argument from Miracles:

Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) (Off Site)

CSICOP is a nonprofit scientific and educational organization dedicated to encouraging “the critical investigation of paranormal and fringe-science claims from a responsible, scientific point of view” and disseminating the results of these inquiries to the public. Its official journal is Skeptical Inquirer; founding members include such notables as Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Philip Klass, Paul Kurtz, Ray Hyman, James Randi, Martin Gardner, Sidney Hook, and others.

International Network of Skeptical Organizations (Off Site)

A directory of international organizations promoting rationalism and skeptical inquiry.

The Skeptical Shroud of Turin Website (Off Site)

Presenting “the historical, artistic, scientific, and microscopic evidence that demonstrates that the Shroud of Turin is a medieval artifact and forgery,” this site aims to counter the “journalistic trend” of pandering to public credulity with links to skeptical resources about the Shroud, news stories related to the Shroud, as well as links to the major pro-authenticity websites.

Argument to Design:

Boston Review: Articles on Evolution (Off Site) [ Index ]

Critiques, responses to critiques, and responses to responses, from Dennett to Behe to Orr.

Design in God’s Creation (Off Site)

This online creationist resource from the U.K. features items such as “Creation by Design vs. Evolution by Chance,”  “Darwin’s Black Box,” all with the suspected dosage of selective quote-mongering such as ” ” . Site sponsored by the Biblical Creation Society, a “Christian society that advances and defends the Biblical teaching on creation.”

A Designer Universe? (Off Site) by Steven Weinberg

“There do not seem to be any exceptions to [the] natural order, any miracles … but the great monotheistic faiths are founded on miracle stories–the burning bush, the empty tomb, an angel dictating the Koran to Mohammed–and some of these faiths teach that miracles continue at the present day. The evidence for all these miracles seems to me to be considerably weaker than the evidence for cold fusion, and I don’t believe in cold fusion. Above all, today we understand that even human beings are the result of natural selection acting over millions of years of breeding and eating.”

Discovery Institute (Off Site)

Promoters of “intelligent design” and champions of the movement to teach creationism in the science classroom. The “intelligent design” movement is spearheaded by Discovery’s Center for [the Renewal of] Science and Culture (CRSC). Fellows of the CRSC include Behe, Dembski, et. al.; CRSC’s “Wedge Strategy” outlines the lofty scheme to “overthrow materialism and its cultural legacies.”

Evolution and Chance FAQ (Off Site)

“Two matters that critics of evolutionary theory can be relied upon to misunderstand are the notions of chance or randomness in evolution. These essays address them.” From Talk.Origins, the Usenet newsgroup devoted to debate on biological and physical origins.

Fossil Hominids (Off Site) [ Index ]

From Talk.Origins, an excellent index of pages “intended to refute creationist claims that there is no evidence for human evolution”. Current thinking about human evolution and the fossil evidence is summarized here, as well as rebuttals to traditional creationist arguments.

Intelligent Design (Off Site)

A collection of “scholarly and popular” resources advocating the Argument to Design. This site is published by “Leadership U” and is part of the Telling the Truth Project, an Internet-based  strategy of the Christian Leadership Ministries designed to aggregate the “best of Christian scholarship” and “propel it to a global audience.”  Features “Mere Creation,” the site for the 1996 conference at Biola University which heralded the union of “scientists and scholars who reject naturalism as an adequate framework for doing science, and who advocate a common vision of creation whose unifying idea is intelligent design.”

Molecular Machines and Irreducible Complexity (Off Site)

A collection of Michael Behe resources, brought to you by the Access Research Network. ARN, a nonprofit organization “dedicated to providing accessible information on science, technology and society,” showcases articles by “prominent authors of the Intelligent Design Movement” such as Behe, Johnson, Hartwig, and Denton. For a good chuckle, see Dembski’s An Analysis of Homer Simpson and Stephen Jay Gould.

Phillip E. Johnson page (Off Site)

Features the works of the prominent anti-Darwinist, law professor (U. California, Berkeley), and author of Darwin on Trial. 

Religion in the Public Schools: A Joint Statement of Current Law (Off Site)

Drafted by a wide range of religious groups in an effort to “find common ground.”

Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences (Off Site)

The Academy’s official view on the teaching of creationism alongside evolution in the science classroom: “The tenets of ‘creation science’ are not supported by scientific evidence. . . . Creationism has no place in a science curriculum at any level. . . . ” This is an essential tool for “anyone with an interest in the quality of science education.” Booklet is an updated reissue of the 1984 edition.

Teaching About Evolution and the Nature of Science (Off Site)

A National Academy of Sciences booklet published in 1998 in an effort to “counter widespread misunderstandings about evolution and the conviction that creationism should be taught in science classes.” An excellent guide for teachers as well as parents. See the Appendices for relevant court decisions regarding evolution and creationism issues.

The World of Richard Dawkins: Evolution, Science, and Reason (Off Site)

An unofficial website devoted to Dawkins’ work. Also an excellent resource for the latest in scientific research and new discoveries, “with a focus on evolution and biology.”

Victor J. Stenger page (Off Site)

Home page of Victor J. Stenger, Professor of Physics, U. Hawaii at Manoa. Articles on the anthropic coincidences as well as essays and reviews on cosmology, the undesigned origin of the universe, and more.

Cosmological Arguments:

Atheistic Cosmological Argument [ Index ]

An atheological (i.e. argument for the nonexistence of a God) from the Atheism section of II’s Modern Library. According to this argument, Big Bang cosmology is evidence that God does not exist.

Craig, William Lane [ Index ]

An index of articles confronting the arguments of the well-known Christian apologist.

Evolution and Chance FAQ (Off Site)

“Two matters that critics of evolutionary theory can be relied upon to misunderstand are the notions of chance or randomness in evolution. These essays address them.” From Talk.Origins, the Usenet newsgroup devoted to debate on biological and physical origins.

Origins.org: Theism (Off Site)

A collection of “scholarly and popular” resources advocating Divine Cause for the existence of the universe. This site is published by “Leadership U” and is part of the Telling the Truth Project, an Internet-based  strategy of the Christian Leadership Ministries designed to aggregate the “best of Christian scholarship” and “propel it to a global audience.”

Halos.com (Off Site)

Polonium halos, or microspheres of coloration produced by the radioactive decay of primordial polonium in the Earth’s foundation granites, or claimed as “unrefuted evidence that the Big Bang theory is wrong, and the Earth was created instantly as per Genesis. 

The “Many-Worlds” FAQ (Off Site)

Many leading cosmologists and quantum field theorists accept the “many-worlds” interpretation of quantum mechanics stating that “all possible outcomes of a quantum interaction are realized.”

Victor J. Stenger page (Off Site)

Home page of Victor J. Stenger, Professor of Physics, U. Hawaii at Manoa. Excellent source of information on quantum phenomena, as well as articles, essays and reviews on cosmology, the uncaused origin of the universe, and more.

Virtual Office of William Lane Craig (Off Site)

His official site, brought to you by the Christian Leadership Ministries and “Leadership University” (see above).

Moral Argument/Divine Command Theory:

Argument from Evil [ Index ]

An atheological (i.e. argument for the nonexistence of a God) from the Atheism section of II’s Modern Library. Evil is evidence for the nonexistence of God.

The American Humanist Association (Off Site)

A national organization founded in 1941 to promote humanism in the United States, the AHA represents both secular and religious naturalistic humanism and promotes, among other things, that the derivation of “the goals of life from human need and interest rather than from theological or ideological abstractions.”

An atheological (i.e. argument for the nonexistence of a God) from the Atheism section of II’s Modern Library.  According to this family of arguments, some claim about morality (the impossibility of a being worthy of worship, the nonexistence of objective moral values, etc.) is evidence for the nonexistence of God.

Christian Theological Research Fellowship (Off Site)

One of the better theistic sites promoting the Moral Argument, the CTRF is a Christian research organization purporting to “promote and sustain fellowship and truth-seeking (fides quaerens intellectum) in theological reflection upon the Christian faith, within the mainstream of the Christian tradition.”  The Journal for Christian Theological Research is an organ of the CTRF.

Ontological Arguments:

The Ontological Argument from The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy at The University of Tennessee

One of the most fascinating arguments for the existence of an all-perfect God is the ontological argument. While there are several different versions of the argument, all purport to show that it is self-contradictory to deny that there exists a greatest possible being. Thus, on this general line of argument, it is a necessary truth that such a being exists–and this being is, of course, the God of traditional theism. This entry explains and evaluates classic and contemporary versions of the ontological argument.

Arguments from Incoherence [ Index ]

An atheological (i.e. argument for the nonexistence of a God) from the Atheism section of II’s Modern Library. Also known as ‘incompatible-properties arguments,’ these arguments attempt to derive a contradiction in the concept of God.

Descartes’ Epistemology (19??) (Off Site) by Lex Newman

A comprehensive overview of Descartes’ approach to the theory of knowledge, including the cogito ergo sum argument. From the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

A Selected Bibliography on the Ontological Argument for the Existence of God (2000) (Off Site) by Raul Corazzon

Important references in German, French and Italian and the studies published after 1995.

Pascal’s Wager:

Pascal’s Wager (1998) (Off Site) by Alan Hájek

A thorough treatment of Blaise Pascal’s argument(s) “for believing, or for at least taking steps to believe, in God.” From the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Transcendental Argument:

Argument from Physical Minds [ Index ]

An atheological (i.e. argument for the nonexistence of a God) from the Atheism section of II’s Modern Library. The physical dependence of minds upon the brain is evidence for atheism.

Other Theistic Arguments:

Christian Apologetics and Apologists [ Index ]

An index of articles on Christian Apologists, including William Lane Craig, William Dembski, and many others, from the Christianity section of II’s Modern Library.

Select Christian Apologetics Web Sites [ Index ]

Though not intended to be comprehensive, this list of Christian apologetics web sites does include many of the best apologetics sites on the Web. From these initial sites, interested readers will be able to find links to practically all of the other Christian apologetics sites on the web. From the Christianity section of II’s Modern Library.

Comprehensive Bibliography on Skeptical Thought in the Ancient World (1999) [ Index ] by Richard Carrier

A huge bibliography of material pertaining to skeptical thought in the ancient Greek and Roman world. Also included are sections on modern scientific studies of belief and doubt, as well as some medieval and renaissance references, but the bulk of material relates to the ancient period.

Index of Objections [to belief in a God] (Off Site) [ Index ]

This index provides point-by-point rebuttals (from a Christian apologist’s viewpoint) to most of the common objections against belief in God. From the A Christian Thinktank site.