Cardinal Bellarmine really nails it . . .

At the Inquisition of Galileo.

The Theological Trampoline

"I often liken reading high-quality theological writing to watching a skilled trampolinist. The latter begins at rest at the center of the trampoline. Then, before one's eyes, she goes through an increasingly complex set of manoeuvers, rising to the spectacular and leaving one filled with wonder that a fellow human can do such wonderful things. And then, at the end, she comes to rest on the trampoline, exactly where she started." 

~ Islernet

The Incoherence of Believing in Something (but you aren't quite sure what).

Richard G Swinburne

In the opening lines of Swinburne's introduction to his book "The Coherence of Theism" he states that by a theist he understands a man who believes there "is something like a person without a body (i.e. a spirit) who is eternal, free, able to do anything, is perfectly good, is the proper object of human worship and obedience, the creator and sustainer of the universe."

This immediately begs the question of what, if anything, is "like a person without a body". This question-begging is only compounded by the additional qualifications that follow in the statement. 

A few lines down Swinburne also reveals his conclusion that "the question of coherence of belief that there is a god cannot be separated from the question of its truth".

So the void Swinburne opens up at the beginning of the introduction is later revealed to be bottomless at its end.

His book is 324 pages long. That's "Philosophy of Religion" for you. 

Crucifixion nonsense

A long but very rewarding debate.

Peter Millican on the KCA

Peter Millican is Gilbert Ryle Fellow and Professor of Philosophy at Hertford College, University of Oxford. His primary interests include the philosophy of David Hume, philosophy of religion, philosophy of language, epistemology, and moral philosophy.

(Interesting side-note
In 2008 and 2009 some Republican commentators advanced claims that US President Barack Obama's autobiography, Dreams from My Father was written or ghost-written by Bill Ayers. In a series of articles in American Thinker and WorldNetDaily, author Jack Cashill claimed that his own analysis of the book showed Ayers' writing style, and backed this up citing analyses by American researchers using Millican's Signature software. In late October 2008, shortly before the US Presidential election, US Congressman Chris Cannon and his brother-in-law attempted to hire Millican to prove Ayers' authorship using computer analysis. Millican refused after they would not assure him in advance that his results would be published regardless of the outcome.After some analysis Millican later criticized the claim, saying variously that he had "found no evidence for Cashill's ghostwriting hypothesis", that it was "unlikely"and that he felt "totally confident that it is false".)

WLC - Artful Dodger

Awkward questions for Theists - No.3

How do theists cope with the idea that they will never NOT exist?

Awkward questions for Theists - No.1

Awkward questions for Theists - No.2

Still no news of God . .

 "One by one religious conceptions have been placed in the crucible of science, and thus far, nothing but dross has been found. A new world has been discovered by the microscope; everywhere has been found the infinite; in every direction man has investigated and explored and nowhere, in earth or stars, has been found the footstep of any being superior to or independent of nature. Nowhere has been discovered the slightest evidence of any interference from without.

These are the sublime truths that enabled man to throw off the yoke of superstition. These are the splendid facts that snatched the scepter of authority from the hands of priests."

A quote by Robert Ingersoll in 1872. . . Before Einstein, the electron microscope, the Hubble telescope and the Large Hadron Collider. . . .

Simple Faith

A History of God (Part 1)

Dawkins talks to Mehdi Hasan

A decalogue for the 21st Century

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS - GREATLY MISSED

The Origin of the New Testament

William Lane Craig's cock-up

Women

"Here and now, everywhere, those with eyes to see can see for themselves that religion has for thousands of years perpetuated the oppression of half our species. Half of the great minds our peoples have produced have lived and died unknown and forgotten, their educations neglected, their lives spent doing laundry and other menial tasks for men — their merits unrecognized and buried under lies promulgated by religion, in cultures soaked in the destructive myths of faith which codify misogyny and give it a godly blessing.

Isn’t that reason enough to tear down the cathedrals — that with this one far-reaching, difficult change to our cultures, we double human potential?"~ P Z Myers

A neat summary of Christian theology

So Christians, which bit exactly has he got wrong?

Challenge to William Lane Craig

Is William Lane Craig, the leading US Christian apologist, dishonest with the facts? John W Loftus, Craig's one-time pupil challenges him to answer three questions. Read complete article here:- http://debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com/2012/02/is-william-lane-craig-dishonest-with.html

Debunking the Kalam Cosmological argument of William Lane Craig

Nice video.

Catholicism . . .

"Catholicism, that stodgy humbug and haven of horrible old men who think they’ve found love in the rape of children, that citadel of cowards who retreat from reality to find meaning in the dust and lies of antique theology." ~ P Z Myers

To Xmas and beyond . . .

The piercing insight of Bertrand Russell.

Graphics by Byron Hudson