Uncertainty (Miles K. Donahue)

In this second installment of my interaction with questions and comments, I continue the debate over whether God would be just as fine-tuned as the universe that theists claim God is necessary to explain. I still think this objection to the fine-tuning argument fails, but at least I understand the other side of the argument now! For the YouTube version of this episode, click here.

In my first ever interview for the show, I discuss and debate the fine-tuning argument with philosopher Neil Manson, a professor at the University of Mississippi. We discuss several lesser examined issues with the fine-tuning argument: how we could ever know what kind of universe God would likely create, theistic versus naturalistic multiverses, and whether, in the end, fine-tuning gives us any reason to think that God exists. For an online repository of Neil Manson's publications, click here.

Dr. Richard Carrier and I discuss his article, 'Ten Ways the World Would be Different if God Existed,' Carrier's case that we can turn ten theistic arguments on their head and use them to prove atheism. We naively thought we had time for all ten, but in 1.5 hours, we only discussed three - still, we had a substantive, spirited debate about the merits of theism and naturalism that I hope you'll enjoy. To read Dr. Carrier's article, click here. To read Sinhababu's article, 'Electrons in Love', click here.

Dr. Afshordi is an astrophysicist at the University of Waterloo, specializing in cosmology, quantum gravity, and the physics of gravity. We discuss dark matter, dark energy, quantum gravity, the fine-tuning of the universe, and the multiverse. If you like my work and want to support me as I explore lots of cool things with lots of cool people, do please consider donatinghere. To pre-order Dr. Afshordi's book, Battle of the Big Bang, clickhere. For more on Dr. Afshordi and his research, check out his websitehere.

Dan Linford, philosopher of physics at Old Dominion University, joins me to discuss the Malament-Manchak theorem and its implications for debates about the origin of the universe, the limitations confronting cosmology, what it means to say that space and time "emerge" from a non-spatiotemporal structure, and much else besides. To support my exploration of science and philosophy with leading experts, consider donating here.

To access Dan's publications, click here.

Phil Halper joins me to discuss his forthcoming book, Battle of the Big Bang: New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins, and whether William Lane Craig misrepresents the empirical evidence for a beginning of the universe.

If you enjoy what I do and want to continue seeing interesting people on the channel, super pretty please consider donating, click here.

To pre-order Phil's book, click here. To watch Phil's first appearance on the Majesty of Reason critiquing Dr. Craig, click here. To view Phil's second appearance on the Majesty of Reason replying to Dr. Craig's response, click here.

To watch Phil's documentary critiquing the kalam cosmological argument, click here. To view Phil's reply to Craig's response, click here.

Dr. Luke Barnes joins me to discuss whether empirical evidence indicates that the universe began to exist, and how theism and naturalism fare as explanations for the fine-tuning of the universe for intelligent life. To purchase Barnes' book-length discussion of the fine-tuning argument, click here. To read Barnes' article on the fine-tuning argument, click here.

This video, titled with tongue in cheek, did not result from an 'official' survey of any kind. Instead, I asked my YouTube subscribers what they thought were the strongest objections to the fine-tuning argument. I discuss those objections in this video. Maybe they're the best ones, maybe not - but they are worth taking seriously, and they are ones that I have thought about myself for some time: (1) so what?, (2) normalizability, (3) principle of indifference, and (4) scientific anti-realism. I trust my discussion will prove helpful in thinking through these issues.

Dr. Max Baker-Hytch, tutor in philosophy at Oxford, joins me to discuss his recent published research on near-death experiences (NDEs) and their evidential significance, whether they provide reason to believe in an afterlife, and the strengths and weaknesses of natural explanations for these remarkable phenomena. To access Max's publication on NDEs, click ⁠here⁠. A compendium of Max's publications, click ⁠here⁠.

Hans Halvorson, professor of philosophy at Princeton, joins me to discuss the relationship between God and science, science and philosophy, and the role that philosophy has to play in our world today.

Dr. Barry Loewer, professor of philosophy at Rutgers University, joins me to discuss the merits of scientific anti-realism, the view, roughly, that our best scientific theories do not attempt to capture the truth about the world. We also talk about the relationship between science and philosophy. It's good stuff. To support my efforts to explore interesting topics with interesting people, consider donating here. For a list of Dr. Loewer's publications, click here.

Dr. Randal Rauser joins me once again, this time to discuss the tradition Christian doctrine of eternal conscious torment (ECT), and his objections to this view. We also discuss issues arising for alternatives to ECT, like annihilationism and universalism, ending with three objections to the doctrine of Heaven. For more of Randal's work, check out his blog here.

Dr. Randal Rauser lays out the case against attempts to defend a literal interpretation of the biblical passages surrounding the slaughter of the Canaanites. We discuss the purported moral difference between slaughter and driving a people group from their homes, hyperbole in the Ancient Near East, and what a Christian is to do if they believe that a literal reading of the Canaanite conquest narratives cannot be correct. To read William Lane Craig's defense of the slaughter of the Canaanites, click here. To access Dr. Rouser's book, click here.

James Fodor, author and YouTuber, joins me to debate the case for and against Christianity. To access James's YouTube channel, click here. To support my efforts at having interesting conversations with interesting people, click here.

Joe Schmid joins me to discuss the best arguments for God's existence, and the best arguments against. We explored several nuances of the cosmological argument (for God) and the argument from gratuitous animal suffering (against God). To access Joe's YouTube channel, Majesty of Reason, click here. To see a list of Joe's publications, click here.

Dr. Tim Maudlin, professor of philosophy at NYU, joins me to discuss the difference between quantum and classical mechanics, that various "interpretations" of quantum mechanics, why Sean Carroll is wrong to suppose that the many-worlds interpretation is better than all the rest, what Einstein's theories of special and general relativity tell us about the nature of time, and how philosophy and science relate.

On September 24th, I (virtually) attended and spoke at my first professional philosophy conference, "Christian Philosophy Facing Naturalism," held at Ignatianum University in Cracow, Poland. My talk was titled, "Theistic Multiverses and the Fine-Tuning Argument." My aim was to examine philosopher Michael Rota's contention that even if a multiverse exists, we should still infer that a cosmic designer was responsible for the fine-tuning of the universe. I ultimately reject Rota's case for this provocative conclusion.

Dr. Graham Oppy, professor of philosophy at Monash University and author of the wide-ranging exploring of arguments for God's existence Arguing about Gods published by Cambridge University Press, joins me to discuss the relationship between science and religion, morality and God's existence, the future of philosophy of religion, and what the point of philosophy is in the first place. For more information about Oppy and a list of his publications, click here.

Alex Malpass, former lecturer in philosophy at the University of Bristol become software engineer, joins me to debate the kalam cosmological argument: the argument that because the universe began to exist, there must be a Creator that brought it into being. Malpass is one of the most articulate and careful critics of this line of thought, so it was a pleasure to discuss it with him. To access Alex's paper discussing the 'successive addition argument' against an infinite past, 'All the Time in the World,' click here. For a list of Alex's publications, click here. For Alex's blog with loads of good philosophical content, click here.

Rabbis Elie Feder and Aaron Zimmer, cohosts of the 'Physics to God' podcast, join me to discuss their project in showing how physics provides strong evidence for the existence of God. We discuss several aspects of the fine-tuning argument - whether a deeper law of physics can remove fine-tuning, the Achilles' heel of the multiverse, and whether God is a simple or complex hypothesis. To access Aaron and Elie's website, click here. To access the Physics to God podcast, click here.

In the inaugural episode for the newest segment of the podcast, Questions & Comments, I add some thoughts on a recent back-and-forth I had with a commentor about whether God would have to be just as fine-tuned as the universe that He is called upon to explain - and if so, does that mean that theism is a bad explanation of the fine-tuning of the universe for intelligent life?

Perry Hendricks, author of the recently published book Skeptical Theism, joins me to discuss one of the main theistic strategies for responding to the problem of evil, the problem of reconciling the evil and suffering in the world with the existence of an all-loving God. After outlining that response, Perry and I go through the four strongest objections to it: divine deception, Climenhaga's conundrum, equiprobability, and radical insensitivity. To access Perry's book-length treatment of skeptical theism, click here. To access the article from Brian what's-his-name, click here.

Dr. Richard Carrier, author of 'On The Historicity of Jesus: Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt', returns to the podcast to discuss his problems with the proffered historical case for the resurrection of Jesus, focusing on William Lane Craig. To access Richard Carrier's blog, clickhere. To support the podcast (pretty please), clickhere.

I discuss a new kind of fine-tuning argument for God's existence with Dr. Robin Collins, professor of philosophy at Messiah University, one centered on the remarkable ability of human beings to discover the universe around us. Were the constants of physics altered in the smallest way, our capacity to understand the universe, our very ability to do science in the first place, would be remarkable diminished, if not irradicated entirely. Why, then, do the laws of physics take on these delicately balanced values that allow us to discover scientific truths? With Collins as my interlocutor, I take the chance to press objections that Neil Manson raised in our previous interview - philosophy in real time! For more information about Robin, as well as a list of his publications, click here.