Should We Be Skeptical About Needing a First Cause?

NOTE: Today we kick off an occasional series of exchanges between Catholic theologian Dr. Michael Augros, author of Who Designed the Designer?: A Rediscovered Path to God's Existence (Ignatius Press, 2015), and various email interlocutors. We'll start with the first email question today and Friday we'll share Dr. Augros' response. Enjoy!     Hello Dr. Augros, I am a devout Catholic who recently purchased your book, Who Designed the Designer? I just finished the first chapter... Read More

Is God Too Complex To Be The Creator?

Richard Dawkins believes that if the universe began to exist—it was caused by nothing. In a debate with Cardinal George Pell in 2012 he asserted: "Of course it's counterintuitive that you can get something from nothing! Of course common sense doesn't allow you get something from nothing! That's why it's interesting. It's got to be interesting in order to give rise to the universe at all!" He was right about at least two things: to get something from nothing is both counterintuitive and... Read More

The Mystery of God (Sample + DVD Giveaway!)

Atheism is on the rise. Skeptical thinkers like Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Sam Harris vigorously attack belief in God as irrational or, even worse, dangerous. The so-called New Atheism has attracted millions of young people thanks to bestselling books such as The God Delusion and God Is Not Great. In The Mystery of God, a new six-part film series and study program, Strange Notions contributor Bishop Robert Barron responds to this trend by teaching into the rich intellectual... Read More

Mother Nature is One Unreliable Lady

Conservation International has sponsored a series of videos that have become YouTube sensations, garnering millions of views. They feature famous actors—Harrison Ford, Kevin Spacey, Robert Redford, and others—voicing different aspects of the natural world, from the ocean, to the rain forest, to redwood trees. The most striking is the one that presents Mother Nature herself, given voice by Julia Roberts. They all have more or less the same message, namely, that nature finally doesn’t... Read More

Answering the 5 Objections to Proving God’s Existence

On Monday, I put forward five common objections regarding attempts to prove God's existence. Today, I'll respond to each of them. Objection 1: “Proof in general is impossible, since we must trust our brains.” Like A.J. Ayer’s principle of verification, this idea self-destructs. Can we trust this reasoning, which leads the objector to think that we must first run our brains through a thorough certification process before we can trust our own reasoning? If so, we can reason in a... Read More

5 Objections to Proving God’s Existence

Today, I put forward five common objections regarding attempts to prove God's existence. The first three typically come from skeptics and the last two from believers. Though I don't agree with these objections, I've tried to articulate them fairly and as strongly as possible. On Wednesday, I will share a follow-up article responding to each of them. Objection 1: “Proof in general is impossible, since we must trust our brains.” All our knowledge depends on trusting our senses and... Read More

What is the Evidential Argument from Evil?

Editor's Note: There has been rising interest in the "problem of evil" in our comment boxes, and many atheist commenters requested a stronger engagement with the so-called "evidential" version of that argument. So on Wednesday we featured a defense of the "evidential" version from atheist Brian Green Adams. Today, Catholic author Trent Horn offers a critique.   Once my wife and I attended a baseball game where our home team was ahead by eight runs in the top of the ninth inning.... Read More

Why the Problem of Evil Makes God Unlikely

Editor's Note: There has been rising interest in the "problem of evil" in our comment boxes, and many atheist commenters requested a stronger engagement with the so-called "evidential" version of that argument. So today, atheist commenter Brian Green Adams offers a defense of that version. On Friday, Catholic writer Trent Horn will offer a critique.   Among the most popular reasons cited for atheism is the “Problem of Evil”. Like most positive atheist arguments it is not a complete... Read More

Is a Proof Bad If It Fails to Convince Everyone?

Some atheists will object to arguments for God by observing, "If a particular proof for God is so strong, why doesn't it convince everyone?" This objection is perhaps the most prevalent, and the cheapest one to make, yet a complete answer to it involves several components and is also interesting in its own right. This objector presents the theist with a dilemma: either I must pretend to be a supergenius like none the world has ever seen, presenting new and amazing arguments for God’s... Read More

Why the Ultimate Cause of Everything in Existence Must be God

(NOTE: This it the third of a three part series on Bernard Lonergan's philosophical proof for God. Be sure to read the first part and second part.) V. The One Unrestrictedly Intelligible Uncaused Reality is an “Unrestricted Act of Thinking” We will now explain Lonergan’s contention that unrestricted intelligibility can only occur through an unrestricted idea, which in turn can only occur through an unrestricted act of thinking. As noted above, the one uncaused reality that exists... Read More

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