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Is evil evidence against the existence of God? Does divine hiddenness provide an evidential problem for theism? Is our evolutionary history evidence that God doesn't exist? Skeptical theism is the view that humans are cognitively limited in important ways that prevent us from providing affirmative answers to these evidential questions. In this book-the first monograph published on skeptical theism-Perry Hendricks gives careful, novel, and compelling arguments in favor of skeptical theism and provides a comprehensive defense of it, addressing all major objections to skeptical theism on offer. The implications of skeptical theism are teased out: it undermines the most prominent arguments for atheism on offer, which significantly lowers the epistemic status of atheism.
List of contents
1. Introduction.- 2. Axiological Skeptical Theism Proved.- 3. Deontological Skeptical Theism Proved.- 4. Skeptical Theism and The Problems of Evil.- 5. Skeptical Theism and Other Arguments for Atheism.- 6. Skeptical Theism Defeated?.- 7. Faithful Skeptical Theism.- 8. Theodicy and Natural Theology.- 9. Commonsense Problems of Evil.
About the author
Perry Hendricks is an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris. He has published numerous articles in such journals as: Analysis, American Philosophical Quarterly, Ergo, The Journal of the American Philosophical Association, and Pacific Philosophical Quarterly.
Summary
Is evil evidence against the existence of God? Does divine hiddenness provide an evidential problem for theism? Is our evolutionary history evidence that God doesn’t exist? Skeptical theism is the view that humans are cognitively limited in important ways that prevent us from providing affirmative answers to these evidential questions. In this book—the first monograph published on skeptical theism—Perry Hendricks gives careful, novel, and compelling arguments in favor of skeptical theism and provides a comprehensive defense of it, addressing all major objections to skeptical theism on offer. The implications of skeptical theism are teased out: it undermines the most prominent arguments for atheism on offer, which significantly lowers the epistemic status of atheism.
Additional text
“The book is well-organized, with each chapter having a clear thesis and aim. The chapters fit together and build to create a systematic defense of skeptical theism. As a result, the work is best engaged as a whole … . Hendricks’ style includes a number of jokes and rhetorical flourishes. Given the subject matter, some might find them inappropriate, while others may appreciate the attempts at levity. Skeptical Theism contains several useful and novel discussions.” (Timothy Perrine, International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, July 17, 2024)
“I found this book to be an invaluable resource for understanding the potential of ChatGPT and Bard, including how to leverage them for practical applications. Recommended for anyone who is interested in the future of business and wants to learn how to leverage the power of LLMs to achieve their goals.” (Ashish Seth, Computing Reviews, July 10, 2024)
Report
"The book is well-organized, with each chapter having a clear thesis and aim. The chapters fit together and build to create a systematic defense of skeptical theism. As a result, the work is best engaged as a whole ... . Hendricks' style includes a number of jokes and rhetorical flourishes. Given the subject matter, some might find them inappropriate, while others may appreciate the attempts at levity. Skeptical Theism contains several useful and novel discussions." (Timothy Perrine, International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, July 17, 2024)
"I found this book to be an invaluable resource for understanding the potential of ChatGPT and Bard, including how to leverage them for practical applications. Recommended for anyone who is interested in the future of business and wants to learn how to leverage the power of LLMs to achieve their goals." (Ashish Seth, Computing Reviews, July 10, 2024)
