Counter Apologetics

By Emerson GreenSociety & Culture Science Religion & Spirituality Philosophy Religion Nature

Counter Apologetics episodes

March 10, 2021 Debate: Is evil evidence against God? Emerson Green vs. Dr. Khaldoun Aziz Sweis
Here’s the audio from my recent debate hosted by Adherent Apologetics on the problem of evil. I argue that with respect to suffering, the world looks about as we’d expect it to look if god did not exist. Atheists can do a much better job explaining the kinds, degree, and distribution of suffering we observe in our world. Specifically, I appealed to three lines of evidence: The biological role of pain and pleasure, gratuitous suffering, and divine silence during tragedies.
(note – I accidentally said “When I was an atheist,” near the beginning when I meant to say, “When I first became an atheist.”)
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A few recent appearances on other channels:
Consciousness and Atheism with John Buck and Craig Reed TCR
Tjump and Emerson Green on Panpsychism – The Right to Reason Podcast
Deconversion and Atheism with The Non-Alchemist

https://linktr.ee/emersongreen
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Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
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Follow me on Twitter @waldenpod
1 hr 34 min
March 03, 2021 CA81 Skeptical Theism
We discuss several reasons to doubt skeptical theism, including Paul Draper’s objection, phenomenal conservatism, divine silence during tragedies, Pandora’s box, and moral paralysis.
linktr.ee/emersongreen
Subscribe to CA and Walden Pod on YouTube here
Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
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Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Additional music by ichika Nito and was used with permission.
Follow me on Twitter @waldenpod
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Ryan Stringer – Evil and Skeptical Theism (2012) [infidels.org]
Aron Lucas – The Argument from Cognitive Biases (2018) [infidels.org]
Jeffery Jay Lowder – In Defense of an Evidential Argument from Evil: A Reply to William Lane Craig (2016) [infidels.org]
Starving Child and Vulture – Kevin Carter (1993) [Time]
Thomas Nagel – Problem of Evil [NYRB]
Schopenhauer on the Sea Turtles [Goodreads]
Skeptical Theism [SEP]

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S = some facts about suffering
I = the hypothesis of indifference
T = the hypothesis of theism

(1) Pr(S/I) = quite high
(2) Pr(S/T) = quite low
(3) Therefore, Pr(S/I) > Pr(S/T)
(4) Therefore, S is evidence is that favors indifference over theism

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00:00-03:32 Evidential arguments from evil
03:33-06:38 The theological premise
06:39-08:59 Skeptical theism
09:00-13:32 Concrete examples of gratuitous suffering
13:33-15:31 Draper’s objection
15:32-17:28 Phenomenal conservatism
17:29-21:02 Moral unintelligibility
21:03-22:59 Divine silence during tragedies
23:00-30:25 Pandora’s box, reliable cognitive faculties, & moral paralysis
30:26-36:12 Conclusion
37 min
December 17, 2020 CA80 Secular Christianity with Philip Goff
Non-believing Christian Philip Goff joins us to discuss religious fictionalism, literalism, religious language, Jordan Peterson, the resurrection, the spread of Christianity, the transcendent, and Christianity without theism.
After the interview, I try to work through my thoughts on secular Christianity. I reflect on antitheism, fundamentalism, and what replaces religion after the death of god.
Philip is a philosopher who teaches at Durham University. He is the author of Galileo’s Error and Consciousness and Fundamental Reality. He’s published more than forty academic papers, and his writing has appeared in many newspapers and magazines, including The Guardian and The Times Literary Supplement.
You can follow Goff on Twitter @Philip_Goff and Emerson @waldenpod
Galileo’s Error: Foundations for a New Science of Consciousness – Goff [Amazon]
Consciousness and Fundamental Reality – Goff [Amazon]
Robin Le Poidevin on Religious Fictionalism [PDF]
Ozymandias Ramses II on New Atheism [YouTube]
Sean Carroll’s Speech (begins at 1:23:13) [YouTube]
philipgoffphilosophy.com
Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
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Support the show at patreon.com/counter
Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter @waldenpod
Music by Whalers. Additional music by ichika Nito. Both were used with permission.
1 hr 53 min
December 01, 2020 CA79 Paul Draper’s Case for Naturalism
In his 1997 debate with William Lane Craig, Paul Draper considers seven lines of evidence and asks if they are more expected on theism or on naturalism. He argues that the meager moral fruits of theism, mind-brain dependence, evolution, the biological role of pain and pleasure, tragedies, divine silence during tragedies, and religious confusion are not what we would expect to find if theism were true. The world looks about as one would expect it to look if god did not exist.
Christians and atheists are both capable of accounting for what we observe. Certainty is not on the table. So what are we to do? According to Draper, we should ask: Is this fact likely given naturalism? Or is it surprising given naturalism? Is that datum to be expected on theism? Or is it not exactly what we would expect? Then we should survey the total evidence and see which worldview fares better overall.
Draper vs. Craig – 1997 [YouTube]
J.J. Lowder’s Summary and Assessment of the Debate [Patheos]
Elephant Philosophy – Draper’s Case for Naturalism [YouTube]
Paul Draper [Infidels.org]
Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
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Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter @waldenpod
35 min
October 30, 2020 The Atheism & Mythos of H.P. Lovecraft
This Halloween, we’ll be discussing the life and work of the great horror author, H.P. Lovecraft.
Lovecraft’s atheism 00:00 – 07:38
Biographical details 07:39 – 12:50
Lovecraft’s reanimation and influence on culture 12:51 – 18:02
Lovecraft and the unknown 18:03 – 20:22
Forbidden knowledge and a New Dark Age 20:23 – 26:14
Fast zombies 26:15 – 27:27
More on the Lovecraftian mythos 27:28 – 29:13
Lovecraft’s writing style 29:14 – 38:54
Lovecraft’s racism 38:55 – 43:19
The Old Church Lady and art 43:20 – 45:46
Horror and its critics 45:47 – 48:20
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FREE LOVECRAFT AUDIOBOOKS

Dagon
The Rats in the Walls

The Shadow Out Of Time

The Shadow Over Innsmouth
At the Mountains of Madness
The Call of Cthulhu
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MORE LOVECRAFT PODCASTS
Chapo Trap House on Lovecraft [YouTube]

Lovecraft Literary Podcast [HP Podcraft]
Patton Oswalt [HP Podcraft]
Patton Oswalt with Chapo Trap House [Patreon]
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READINGS ABOUT LOVECRAFT
hplovecraft.com
Emma Stefansky – Primer on the works of HP Lovecraft [Polygon]

HP Lovecraft’s 125th Birthday [The Atlantic]

Nnedi Okorafor – Lovecraft Award [blogspot]

Criticism of Lovecraft’s Writing Style [The Guardian]
Criticism/Praise for Lovecraft [The Guardian]

The Philosophy of Horror – Noel Carroll [PhilPapers]
Against Religion – HP Lovecraft [Amazon]

The Portable Atheist – Christopher Hitchens [Amazon]
Complete List of Lovecraft’s Short Stories [hplovecraft]

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Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Subscribe to CA and Walden Pod on YouTube
Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
Rate the show on iTunes
Support on Patreon
Dark Lofi (outro music) [YouTube]
Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Follow on Twitter @waldenpod
My Top 25 Horror Movies [Letterboxd]
Check out my review of Hereditary, the most overrated horror film in cinematic history, over on Walden Pod.
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54 min
October 23, 2020 Bonus: The EA Show – Interview with Emerson Green
This is the audio from my appearance on The Empathetic Atheist YouTube show. Justin & Andy ask me what I take to be the best argument against god and what I take to be the worst argument for god. I apologize for the audio (as well as the video) quality. I don’t know how to properly stream and my internet is terrible!
The EA Show – Interview with Emerson Green: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f59q8x1yqSY
55 min
October 19, 2020 Livestream – Atheist Zoomers (09/09/20) [Patron Feed]
For access to the full livestream, subscribe to the patron feed at patreon.com/counter. You’ll also get access to bonus episodes and early releases of new podcasts in addition to monthly livestreams. In this segment of the livestream, I speculate as to why atheism has doubled among zoomers. Barna – Gen Z: https://www.barna.com/research/atheism-doubles-among-generation-z/ Twitter @waldenpod
16 min
September 21, 2020 CA78 Young Earth Creationism & the Distant Starlight Problem
Young earth creationists believe that the earth, humankind, and the universe are approximately six-thousand years old. Scientifically, this is a fringe view, not taken seriously by anyone outside religious circles. However, the majority of Christians in the United States are young earthers.
Today, we discuss one particular problem for young earth cosmologies: the distant starlight problem. We can see stars that are millions and millions of light years away. If it’s true that the universe is only a few thousand years old, then why can we see stars more than a few thousand light years away?
40% of Americans Believe in Creationism [Gallup]
William Lane Craig on young earth creationism [YouTube]
Ken Ham on young earth creationism [YouTube]
Light-In-Transit and Anisotropic Synchrony Convention – Jason Lisle [AiG]
Jason Lisle – The Speed of Light and the ASC [YouTube]
The One-Way Speed of Light [YouTube]
Conventionality of Simultaneity [Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy]
Starlight and Time – Russell Humphreys [GoogleBooks]
William Lane Craig on the Kalam & Theories of Time [YouTube]
Kalam & the A Theory – Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology (pgs. 183-184) [PDF]
PBS – How we know the universe is ancient [YouTube]
PBS – How we know the earth is ancient [YouTube]
The Age of the Universe – Sixty Symbols [YouTube]
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Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
Rate the show on iTunes here
Support on Patreon here
Subscribe to CA and Walden Pod on YouTube here
Additional music by ichika Nito and was used with permission.
Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter @waldenpod
50 min
August 30, 2020 Livestream – Free Will, New Atheists, and Revisionist Christian History (08/18/20) [Patron Feed]
This is from the patron livestream (the full stream and video link are available on patreon). My internet connection was a bit choppy, so there are brief moments that appear to have been cut out when things were buffering. Bonus episodes and monthly livestreams can be accessed by supporting the podcast over at patreon.com/counter
32 min
July 24, 2020 CA77 Since Matter First Writhed: The Mystery of Abiogenesis
Abiogenesis is the process by which life arises from non-living matter. Though life’s origin is an open question, abiogenesis research is a thriving interdisciplinary enterprise. In spite of this, many apologists have argued that it’s unlikely we will ever have a scientific explanation of abiogenesis. Abiogenesis is so improbable on naturalism, they say, that we should be open to supernatural explanations. I argue that abiogenesis is not improbable on naturalism, and also attempt to unravel the numerous errors creationists make when discussing the origins of life.
Astrobiologist Stuart Bartlett on What “Life” Means [Mindscape Podcast]
Astrobiology at NASA – Defining and Detecting Life [NASA]
Darwin’s Warm Little Pond Revisited: From Molecules to the Origin of Life – Hartmut Follmann & Carol Brownson [PubMed]
Michael Russell on Alkaline Hydrothermal Vents [JPL]
Clay may have been birthplace of life on Earth [ScienceDaily]
Michael Russell on Emergent Structures in Nature [YouTube]
Meteorites Reveal Another Way to Make Life’s Components [NASA]
The Origins of Life [GreatCourses]
The Elemental Ingredients of Life are Common [wiki]
Jackson Wheat – A Few Ideas in Abiogenesis Research [YouTube]
The Replicators (Chp. 2 of The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins) [text]
Why Abiogenesis is Impossible – Creation Research Society Quarterly [PDF]
Intelligent Design, Abiogenesis, and Learning from History: A Reply to Stephen Meyer – Dennis R. Venema [PDF]
Peanut Butter – The Atheist’s Worst Nightmare [YouTube]
Subscribe to CA and Walden Pod on YouTube here
Transcripts available at emersongreenblog.wordpress.com
Contact me at [email protected] or on Facebook
Listen to our sister show, Walden Pod here
Rate the show on iTunes here
Support on Patreon here
@waldenpod
“We left the last hint of polar land behind us, and thanked heaven that we were clear of a haunted, accursed realm where life and death, space and time, have made black and blasphemous alliances in the unknown epochs since matter first writhed and swam on the planet’s scarce-cooled crust.”
— H.P. Lovecraft, At the Mountains of Madness
35 min

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Counter Apologetics

Counter Apologetics episodes

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