Category Archives: Atheist Culture

Disembodied intelligence and the natural worldview

Roughly speaking, there are two ways of looking at the “big picture” of life, two basic worldviews—which we commonly call the natural and the supernatural. At first glance the difference seems clear. One says everything that exists is natural, the other … Continue reading

Posted in Atheology, Naturalism, Supernaturalism | 3 Comments

Billy Graham on Atheism

Atheism is often misunderstood by the religious—which is not surprising given how foreign disbelief is to the theistic outlook. A recent but typical example comes from longtime evangelist (and “spiritual advisor” to several U. S. Presidents) Billy Graham, Jr. Many … Continue reading

Posted in Atheist Culture, Atheology, Naturalism | 14 Comments

Fixing Classical Arguments

In my last post, I wrote about how the premises of classical deductive arguments could be construed as either statements of logical definition or of observed fact. I argued that philosophers often confound the two and, as a result, either … Continue reading

Posted in Faith & Reason, Meaning & Value, Naturalism | Comments Off on Fixing Classical Arguments

God and Other Minds

Theists like to point out that we can never prove that others (besides ourselves) have minds. The person sitting in the chair next to me may be carrying on quite a lively conversation—but how can I be sure there’s really … Continue reading

Posted in Faith & Reason, Naturalism, Theologians | 3 Comments

Atheism and Common Sense

Theists often think of atheists—especially new atheists—as people who take an extreme position by closing their eyes to the obvious existence of God. In fact, atheism is eyes wide open. The atheist turns off the tv show, stops the movie, … Continue reading

Posted in Naturalism, Non-Existence Arguments | 10 Comments

Spiritual or Religious?

“Do you consider yourself a spiritual man or a religious man?” “Well, I don’t like that dichotomy of matter and spirit very much, so you can say I consider myself a religious man.” [Interview with Wendell Berry by Thomas P. … Continue reading

Posted in Atheist Culture | Comments Off on Spiritual or Religious?

Let’s Make a Deal

I’m a fan of Michael Shermer, a prominent atheist and skeptic who writes a column on skepticism for Scientific American. But in an article entitled “How Randomness Rules Our World and Why We Cannot See It” he has fallen for … Continue reading

Posted in Naturalism | Comments Off on Let’s Make a Deal

Cosmological Arguments

The Cosmological Argument is perhaps the classic argument for the existence of a God. Thomas Aquinas included it in his famous Five Ways, although over the years his argument has been constantly refashioned. It lives on in several distinct versions. I bring … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews, Cosmological, Existence Arguments, Naturalism, Non-Existence Arguments | 3 Comments

Why atheism?

Why am I an atheist? Since atheism is still a somewhat unusual point of view, let me be candid about why I believe no God exists. Before proceeding, it is important to define God — otherwise no coherent discussion is … Continue reading

Posted in Articles Highlighted, Naturalism, Non-Existence Arguments | 13 Comments

IHEU corrects UN Human Rights Council

The International Humanist and Ethical Union monthly news email just came. Among their recent activities they have endorsed a letter sent by Diana Brown of the World Population Foundation to the U.N. Human Rights Council objecting to their resolution (also … Continue reading

Posted in Atheist Culture, Bush Wars, Civil Unliberties, State & Church | 1 Comment