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Philosophy of Religion (Spring 2016)

INSTRUCTOR:  Jeff Tolly

CONTACT: jtolly@nd.edu

OFFICE HOURS: @ AuBonPan in the Hesburgh Library, Mondays 1:30PM-2:30PM; Wednesdays 1:30PM-3:30PM; or by appointment

TEXT:  Philosophy of Religion: An Anthology (7 th edition), Edited by Louis P. Pojman and Michael Rea

       -additional selected papers to be made available online on the class website

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SCHEDULE

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1/13: Introduction

  • Validity and Arguments 101

  • Introduction to the Problem of Evil

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1/18: The Problem of Evil (part 1)

  • Excerpts from J.L. Mackie -- "Evil and Omnipotence"

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1/20: The Problem of Evil (part 2)

  • Excerpts from Alvin Plantinga -- "The Free Will Defense"

  • Excerpts from John Hick -- "Evil and Soul Making"

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1/25: The Problem of Evil (part 3)

  • Fyodor Dostoevsky -- "Rebellion"

  • Excerpts from William Rowe -- "The Problem of Evil and Some Varieties of Atheism"

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1/27: The Problem of Evil (part 4)

  • Laura Ekstrom -- "Suffering as Religious Experience"

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2/1: Fine Tuning (part 1)

  • Robin Collins -- "A Scientific Argument for God's Existence"

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2/3: Fine Tuning (part 2)

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2/8: Against a theistic basis for morality

  • Peter Singer -- video: "Ethics without Religion" up to 41:00

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2/10: For a theistic basis for morality

  • George Mavrodes -- "The Queerness of Morality"

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2/15:  Can faith be rational?

  • Lara Buchak -- "Can it be Rational to have Faith?"

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2/17: Does one need arguments to have rational theistic belief?

  • Michael Bergmann -- "Rational Religious Belief Without Arguments"

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2/22: Rationality and religious belief wrap-up

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2/24: Hell:  What is it, and is it justified? (part 1)

  • Ted Sider -- "Hell and Vagueness"

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2/29: Hell: What is it, and is it justified? (part 2)

  • Excerpts from C.S. Lewis -- The Great Divorce

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3/2: Hell wrap-up

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3/5-3/13:  Spring Break

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3/14:  What is faith? (part 1)

  • Excerpts from Daniel Howard-Snyder -- "Propositional Faith: What It Is and What It Is Not"

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3/16: What is faith? (part 2)

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3/21: God exists inside of time 

  • Excerpts from Stephen T. Davis -- Logic and the Nature of God

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3/23: God exists outside of time

  • Hugh J. McCann -- "The God Beyond Time"

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3/25-3/28:  Easter Break

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3/30:  Omniscience rules out human freedom

  • Excerpts from Nelson Pike -- "Divine Omniscience and Voluntary Action"

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4/4: Omniscience is consistent with human freedom

  • Excerpts from Alvin Plantinga -- God, Freedom and Evil

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4/6: Does God have freedom? (part 1)

  • Excerpts from William Rowe -- "Can God be Free?"

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4/11: Does God have freedom? (part 2)

  • Edward Wierenga -- "The Freedom of God"

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4/13: Hindu Metaphysics

  • Excerpts from Sushanta Sen -- "The Vedic-Upanisadic Concept of Brahman (The Highest God)"

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4/18: Emptiness and Buddhist Ethics

  • Excerpts from Christopher Ives -- "Emptiness: Soteriology and Ethics in Mahayana Buddhism"

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4/20: Testimony and Miracles (part 1)

  • Excerpts from David Hume -- An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding

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4/25: Testimony and Miracles (part 2)

  • Peter van Inwagen -- "Of 'Of Miracles'"

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4/27: Closing discussion and paper writing workshop

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5/2: Final paper presentation conference

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