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Index

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2023

Rik Peels
Rik Peels
Affiliation:
Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam

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Life without God
An Outsider's Look at Atheism
 , pp. 195 - 200
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

Index

a se, God as being, 151
Abraham, 37, 41, 187
academia, 9, 58, 61, 135–143
ad hocness, 169–171
adventure, 21–23, 47, 173, 190
aesthetics, 48, 155
agnosticism, 5–6, 48, 149, 175–177, 180, 183
Alexander, Scott, 10–11
Ali, Ayaan Hirsi, 23–24, 30
allegiance, 187
Alpha Centurion, 111–112
Alston, William, 25, 52, 90, 178
anthropology, 56, 83, 167, 185
Antony, Louise, 21–22, 109
apatheism, 9
apologetics, 139
a priori objection against belief in God, 115
argument
atheistic, 117–173
from consciousness, 14, 90, 95
cosmological, 14, 90, 95, 175
from divine hiddenness, 102, 165–169, 174
epistemic, 118–120
from fine-tuning, 14, 90, 95, 134, 172, 175
God-of-the-gaps, 130–135
from inefficiency, 145–147
from miracles, 14, 175
moral, 14, 90, 95, 118–120, 172, 175
ontological, 14, 175
from scale, 152–157
theistic, 4, 134
Astarte, 106
asymmetry between religious belief and atheism, 98–99, 112–114
atheism
arguments for, 11, 17, 20, 101, 110, 117–174
based on testimony, 109–111
motivations for, 17–49, 91
negative, 7
positive, 5, 7, 13
practical, 6
presumption of, 89–91, 99, 102, 115, 174
atheos, 105
Atkins, Peter, 61, 72
Augustine, 27, 29, 104, 122–123
autism, 48–49
Baal, 104, 106
Bach, Johann Sebastian, 102, 162
Baker-Hytch, Max, 32
belief
basic, 91, 97, 107, 109, 115, 125
by fiat, 178
commonsense, 18, 66, 73–75, 87, 88
control of, 180
influence on, 178–180, 182–183, 187
memory, 74, 87, 92, 94, 97
metaphysical, 74, 87
moral, 66–68
nonbasic, 91
properly basic, 91–92, 94–97, 104
religious, 4, 33, 67, 98, 100, 111, 136, 138, 139, 160, 170
Bering, Jesse, 67, 98
Bible, 9, 36, 39, 42, 126–129, 155–156, 161, 164, 168, 188
bigfoot, 100, 112–113
biodiversity, 62, 147, 184
BioLogos Institute, 133–134
biology, 27, 56, 59–60, 65, 79, 83, 146, 184–185
Blackford, Russell, 110
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich, 27, 29, 132–133
Boudry, Maarten, 16, 34
Boyle’s law, 109, 110
brain system
analytic, 138–139
intuitive, 138–139
Bruno, Giordano, 156
Buddhism, 8, 186
Calvin, John, 90, 94, 154–155
caricature, 35–38
Carroll, Sean, 152–153
Catechism of the Catholic Church, 188–189
causal connection between belief and world, 97–98
certainty, 76, 79, 81, 82, 84
choosing to believe, 53, 177–178, 182, 187
Christianity, 14, 27, 36, 43–47, 86, 102, 129, 147, 154–157, 165, 170, 172
Clark, Thomas, 34, 57–58
Clifford, William, 33
cognitive framework, 50–51, 86–87
cognitive science of religion, 4, 68, 138–139
Collins, Francis, 27, 29, 134, 142
common sense, 18, 55, 57, 64–66, 76, 88
knowledge from, 75, 84
science as based on, 73–75
condition
necessary, 78, 80, 123
sufficient, 80
consciousness, 19, 82, 126, 132, 150, 176, 183
contingency, 112, 151, 190
Copernicus, Nicolaus, 27, 156
cosmic fine-tuning, 126, 132
cosmos, 65, 100–102, 129, 154, 156, 171, 190
Coulson, Charles, 133
counterintuitiveness, 64–66
COVID-19, 63, 91, 92, 129, 178
Craig, William Lane, 1, 25
creation, 93, 146, 151, 153–157
humans as the jewel of, 153–154
creationism, 129–131, 147
Crick, Francis, 59–60
Crusade, 40
Darwin, Charles, 6, 59, 151, 159, 160
Darwinism, 159–160, 162–163
Dawkins, Richard, 3, 12, 23, 41–42, 50–51, 59, 83, 104, 125–128, 131, 145–148
de Botton, Alain, 119–120
de facto, 103
de re, 103
de Ridder, Jeroen, 58, 71, 107
debunking argument, 13, 57, 66–70
defeater, 92–95, 112, 113
rebutting, 70, 92
undercutting, 70, 92–93
Dennett, Daniel, 3, 13, 50, 60, 151, 158–159
design, 1, 56, 57, 111, 145–146, 151, 160
determinism, 86
disagreement, 63–64
distantionism, 52–55, 86
divine hiddenness, 102, 116, 165–170, 173, 189
doctrine, 3, 4, 8, 11, 83, 105
dogmatism, 24, 33, 82, 106
Dostoyevsky, Fyodor, 27, 88, 158
The Brothers Karamazov, 158
doxastic involuntarism, 178
Draper, Paul, 100, 159–160
Drummond, Henry, 130
dualism, 79–80, 82
Dupré, John, 88
Ecklund, Elaine Howard, 136
education, 137, 139–141, 185
efficiency, 145–148
Endō, Shūsaku, 88
epistemology, 25, 91–93, 103, 113
Europe, 26, 91, 136, 137, 140
Everitt, Nicholas, 19–20, 153, 155
evidence, 28, 33, 37, 38, 46, 87, 92, 114–115, 148, 176, 178, 179, 188
against God’s existence, 163
for atheism, 6, 174
of design, 160
for the existence of exotic beings, 113
in favor of Christianity, 14
for God’s existence, 1, 14, 53, 54, 133, 167, 175, 183
nonargumentative, 54
from personal suffering, 32
evidentialism, 51–52, 86
evolutionary explanation, 68, 69, 184
evolutionary theory, 37, 61, 62, 77, 83, 86, 146, 185
ex nihilo, 132
experience
lack of, 116
mystical, 93, 103, 134, 176
experiment, scientific, 69–70, 121–122, 124
extraterrestrial life, 115
extremism, 82, 83
fairies, 112
faith
as a gift, 189
maturity of, 117, 124, 134
nature of, 38, 190
religious, 36–37, 106, 118, 122, 127, 130, 143–144, 174, 189
family resemblance, 78–81
fanaticism, 83
Farias, Miguel, 24
father issues, 49
Flew, Antony, 25, 89, 113
flounder, 145
folk stupidity, 82
free will, 56, 57, 60, 69–70, 82, 87, 162–163
fundamentalism, 35, 76–80, 83, 117
Christian, 12, 147
scientific, 80–83
fundamentals, 77
Galilei, Galileo, 27, 156
Garber, Daniel, 53
geocentricism, 157
Gervais, Will, 138
ghosts, 139
God
absence of, 100–107
as creator, 7, 106, 122, 124, 145–151
efficiency of, 145–148
existence of, 3, 45, 63, 102–103, 108, 112, 115, 124, 185, 190
faith in, 18, 143–144, 117, 118, 120, 144, 187–190
of the gaps, 130–135
intentions of, 129, 146–148, 150, 155, 156, 164, 165, 171–172
knowledge of, 75, 84, 89–90, 123
presence of, 46, 103, 109, 133, 167
relationship with, 51, 143, 166–168, 173, 183
as a spirit, 101, 109
of the weak, 43–44, 160–161
Gray, Asa, 27, 160
Gray, John, 3, 5, 35, 125
Grayling, A. C., 4, 105, 170
Great Pumpkin, 112, 186
hagiography, 29
hamartiology, 11
Harris, John, 114
Harris, Sam, 3, 7, 11, 13, 50, 60, 89, 113, 128, 130, 145–147
Harrison, Peter, 26, 129
harshness of life, 100–101
heliocentrism, 156
henotheism, 106
hero, 27–30
Higgs boson, 62
Hinduism, 18, 78, 85, 107, 186
hinge proposition, 18–19
Hinn, Benny, 164
Hitchens, Christopher, 3, 15, 40, 50, 118–119
Hobrink, Ben, 129
Holland, Aaron, 89, 113
hope, 20, 22, 37, 47, 80, 84, 123, 165, 187
Human Genome Project, 29, 142
humanities, 55, 56, 75–76, 88, 171
Hume, David, 151, 158
Huxley, Thomas, 6
Hyperactive Agency Detection Device (HADD), 67, 98
hypothesis, 51, 54, 124–126, 143, 153
Ichneumonidae, 160
illusion, 1, 23, 28, 70, 82, 85, 183
image of God, 49, 106, 117, 124, 160–165, 169, 172–173
imago Dei, 26, 85, 154
imperialism, scientific, 88
incomprehensibility of God, 171, 180
independence, intellectual, 21–27
induction, 96
infallibility
of holy scriptures, 79, 84
of science, 84
infinity, 103–104, 181
intellectual authority, 21, 22
intelligence, 22, 137, 142, 151
analytic, 137–139
creative, 138
cultural, 138
emotional, 138
practical, 138
social, 138
intelligent design, 81, 131–132, 146
introspection, 60, 74, 94, 96–97
intuition, 18, 75, 95, 101, 116, 125, 127, 138
metaphysical, 87
moral, 37, 42, 55, 88
irrationality, 64, 95, 112, 118, 119, 174
Islam, 7, 9, 18, 20, 81, 84, 96, 101, 106, 107, 112, 124, 127, 149, 174, 184, 186
Jephthah, 41–42
Jesus Christ, 17, 39, 43–44, 46, 51, 128, 143, 161, 171, 188
Job, 43, 161, 164–165
Judaism, 7, 18, 43, 78, 85, 86, 96, 101, 106, 112, 124, 127, 149, 184, 186
kalam cosmological argument, 172
Keysar, Ariela, 13
Küng, Hans, 157
laboratory, 122
Laden, Anthony Simon, 22–23
Ladyman, James, 60
Lamentations, 43, 161
Libet, Benjamin, 69–70
life, existence of, 152–153
literalism, 36, 79, 84, 127, 154
liturgy, 52, 54, 55, 134, 162, 180
logical positivism, 25, 72, 120
Louis, Ard, viii
Luther, Martin, 24, 189
MacIntyre, Alasdair, 25
Mackie, John L., 51–52, 89, 114
macrolevel, 65, 66
Malick, Terrence, 163
The Tree of Life, 163
Manicheism, 79, 82
Marsden, George, 77
Martin, Michael, 89, 113
mass, 54, 182
material object, 66, 85, 124, 150
materialism, 86
matter, uselessness of, 152–153
memory, 65, 73, 96, 179
mesolevel, 65–66
Metaxas, Eric, 14, 29
microlevel, 65, 66
Midgley, Mary, 73
miracle, 58, 67, 126, 171
Mizrahi, Moti, 75–76
modernity, 77, 79, 81–82
morality, 21, 28, 36, 60, 61, 82, 87, 126–127, 177, 183
Mother Teresa, 169
Nagel, Thomas, 20, 188
narrative, 13–14, 43, 45, 76, 79–80, 82
naturalism, 4, 34, 86, 97, 126, 185
Navarro-Rivera, Juhem, 13
neuroscience, 60, 84
New Atheism, 3–4, 11–13, 125, 148, 158
Nietzsche, Friedrich, 10, 28, 165–166
Norenzaya, Ara, 138
North America, 26, 140
Nouwen, Henri, 44–45, 161
omnipresence, 108, 109
onus of proof, 89, 114
Orthodox Church, 86
Paas, Stefan, 135
Pascal, Blaise, 27, 29, 53
wager of, 53–54, 180–183
Paul, 25
Peels-de Waal, Marjolijn, ix
peer pressure, 48, 141
perception, 65, 73, 94, 103
fact, 1
object, 1
perfect-being theology, 168, 172
person, 66
of faith, 84, 142–144, 180, 189
God as a, 150, 168, 172
supernatural, 7
Philipse, Herman, 16, 104, 105, 171
philosophy of religion, 14, 25, 89, 139, 175
philosophy of science, 120
physicalism, 86–87
Pigliucci, Massimo, 34, 60
plaice, 145
Plantinga, Alvin, 25, 29, 52, 90, 94
polytheism, 85, 105, 106, 186
poor, 43–45, 161, 162
possession, 43–45, 53, 182
prayer, 2, 18, 52, 67, 93, 141, 143, 165, 170, 180
efficacy of, 120–124
intercessory, 120–122
Proba, 122
problem of divine hiddenness, 94, 165–169, 189
problem of evil, 94, 157–165
Protestantism, 24, 86
Provine, William, 56–57
Quine, W. V. O., 96
Qur’an, 39, 79, 84
racism, 11, 12
Rea, Michael, 168
reactionary movement, 79, 81
reasons to seek God
intellectual, 184–186
moral, 183–184
pragmatic, 180–183
reductio ad absurdum, 112
reductionism, 61, 84, 86
Reformation, 189
Reformed epistemology, 52, 89–90, 93–94
relationship, 46–47, 51, 119, 143, 166–168, 173, 183
religion, Abrahamic, 7, 37, 120
repugnance
aesthetic, 48
moral, 38–43
revelation, 7, 75, 83, 85, 127–130, 134, 188
ritual, 53, 54, 80, 119, 120, 180
Roman Catholicism, 24, 40, 85, 86
Rosenberg, Alex, 28–29, 61, 62, 65, 135
Russell, Bertrand, 28, 37, 39–40, 148
Russell’s teapot, 148–150
Russia, 178
Sagan, Carl, 13, 82
Schellenberg, Jon, 20, 166, 189
Schlick, Moritz, 72, 120
Schüklenk, Udo, 110
science, 62–70, 73–76, 83–86
application of, 63
foundation of, 73–75, 88
principles of, 74–75
success of, 62–63, 82
scientism, 55–59, 61–62, 68, 70–73, 75–77, 80–82, 87
bold, 60–61, 70, 73, 75
fundamental argument against, 73–75
modest, 59–60, 68, 70, 75, 87
Scriven, Michael, 89, 113
Second World War, 29
secularity, 140–141
self-referential incoherence, 70–72
sensus divinitatis, 52, 94, 103, 104
sexism, 11, 12
Shapiro, Steward, 30–31
Shermer, Michael, 14, 34, 131–132, 152
Simpson, G. G., 59
skepticism, 33–35, 168
science, 81, 82
Smart, J. J. C., 58
Smart, Ninian, 77
social justice, 11, 12
Socrates, 72
soteriology, 11, 167
species, 57, 145–147
spirit, 139
status, 43–45, 163
Stenmark, Mikael, 10, 71
STEP, 121–122, 124
Street, Sharon, 67
Stump, Eleonore, 25, 32
suffering, 17, 30–32, 43, 47, 90, 100–101, 146, 157–165, 167, 176, 190
supernatural power, 139
suspension of judgment, 5, 115, 175–177
Swaab, Dick, 60
Swinburne, Richard, 25, 27, 94–95
systematic theology, 109, 139, 171
terrorism, 82, 83
testimony, 18, 26, 109–111, 134, 175
theism, 20, 38, 51, 66
as a hypothesis, 125
meaninglessness of, 120
negative, 5
presumption of, 99, 113–116
Thomas Aquinas, 29, 90, 94, 123
Tillich, Paul, 149
Tooley, Michael, 89, 113
tradition, 4, 27, 29, 36, 38, 43, 68, 82, 84, 106, 123, 127, 132, 134, 149, 180, 186, 189
trauma, 30–33, 136
troll, 112
trust, 33, 42, 45, 47, 63, 84, 110, 111, 138, 143, 173, 187–188
truth, 2–3, 24, 33, 57, 58, 62, 63, 98, 107, 118, 148, 166, 176–177, 184–185, 187, 189
a priori, 71
analytic, 72
moral, 67, 68, 116, 172
scientific, 83, 129
uncertainty, 79, 81–84
unicorn, 112, 186
universe
age of, 151, 152
size of, 152, 153
unreasonableness, 118
Van Eyghen, Hans, 68
van Inwagen, Peter, 25
van Woudenberg, René, 73–74, 107
verification criterion, 72
Vermeer, Johannes, 54
vestigia Dei, 104
vice, 33
intellectual, 33–35, 179
virtue, 33, 123
intellectual, 33, 179
supernatural, 188
von Bingen, Hildegard, 162
witch, 40
Wittgenstein, Ludwig, 18–19, 78–79, 120
Wolpert, Lewis, 1–3, 64–65
Wolterstorff, Nicholas, 25, 52, 55, 90
Woolf, Virginia, 88
worldview, 4, 7, 8, 32, 135, 140–141, 150, 170, 187
yeti, 1, 112
Zagzebski, Linda, 33
Zeus, 7, 8, 104, 106
Zuckerman, Miron, 137, 142

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  • Index
  • Rik Peels, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam
  • Book: Life without God
  • Online publication: 11 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009297790.009
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  • Index
  • Rik Peels, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam
  • Book: Life without God
  • Online publication: 11 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009297790.009
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  • Index
  • Rik Peels, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam
  • Book: Life without God
  • Online publication: 11 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009297790.009
Available formats
×