Religious actions speak louder than words::exposure to credibilityenhancing displays predicts theism

One of the central aims of the cognitive science of religion (CSR) is to explain why supernatural agent beliefs are so widespread. A related but distinct aim is to explain why some individuals hold supernatural agent beliefs but others do not. Here, we aim to provide an initial test of the power of exposure to what Henrich calls “credibility enhancing displays” (or “CREDs”) in determining whether or not an individual holds explicit supernatural agent beliefs. We present evidence from two studies of Americans suggesting that exposure to CREDs, as measured by a scale we developed and validated, predicts current theism vs. non-theism, certainty of God’s existence/non-existence, and religiosity while controlling for overall religious socialization. These results are among the first to empirically support the theorized significance of CREDs for the acquisition of supernatural agent beliefs.

Krishna consciousness discourse - modern secularism versus traditional theism

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Skeptical theism and moral skepticism : a reply to Almeida and Oppy

Skeptical theists purport to undermine evidential arguments from evil by appealing to the fact that our knowledge of goods, evils, and their interconnections is significantly limited. Michael J. Almeida and Graham Oppy have recently argued that skeptical theism is unacceptable because it results in a form of moral skepticism which rejects inferences that play an important role in our ordinary moral reasoning. In this reply to Almeida and Oppy's argument we offer some reasons for thinking that skeptical theism need not lead to any such objectionable form of moral skepticism.

Is theism capable of accounting for any natural evil at all?

Received wisdom has it that a plausible explanation or theodicy for Gods permission of at least some instances of natural evil is not beyond the reach of the theist. In this paper I challenge this assumption, arguing instead that theism fails to account for any instance, kind, quantity, or distribution of natural evil found in the world. My case will be structured around a specific but not idiosyncratic conception of natural evil as well as an examination of three prominent theodicies for natural evil. In contrast, however, to much contemporary discussion, my assessment of these theodicies will be grounded in the prior conviction that a successful theodicy for moral evil is available.

Molinism, Open Theism, and Moral Luck

It is sometimes thought that the choice between Molinism and open theism involves a trade-off in values: Molinism asserts that God has providential power but allows God indirectly to manipulate that in virtue of which human beings are to be judged; while open theism grants human beings more power over that in virtue of which they are tp be judged, but at the price of giving up providence. I argue here that this picture is misconstrued---that Molinism gives human agents more power over that in virtue of which they may be judged than does open theism. Since open theism confines the possible avenues for evaluating agents to their behavior in the actual world, open theism is incompatible with any solution to the problem of moral luck which appeals to counterfactual behavior, and so (I argue) is impugned by the problem,. Molinists, by contrast, have a promising solution to that problem.

Essays on the philosophy of theism /

Spine title: The philosophy of theism.

The solving of the world-riddle : or the rational grounds of theism. (The metaphysics of the subject clarified, and in a nutshell) /

"Revised and reprinted from the Watchman-examiner."

Theism and humanism, being the Gifford lectures delivered at the University of Glasgow, 1914,

Mode of access: Internet.

Theism : the witness of reason and nature to an all-wise and beneficent creator /

Half-title: Burnett treatise. Second prize. 1854.

Theism; a survey of the paths that lead to God, chiefly in the light of the history of philosophy,

Mode of access: Internet.

Christian theism; a brief and popular survey of the evidence upon which it rests and the objections urged against it considered and refuted.

Mode of access: Internet.

Sermons of theism, atheism, and the popular theology.

Mode of access: Internet.

Theism /

"Lectures delivered in Glasgow, St. Andrews, and Edinburgh."--Prefatory note.

Philosophy of theism.

Mode of access: Internet.