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First Things, on Plantinga’s surprising Templeton win

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From William Doino, Jr. at First Things:

To appreciate his achievement, one should start by noting what Plantinga had to overcome. As Heather Templeton Dill said, announcing this year’s prize:

When Dr. Plantinga began his career in the late 1950’s, most academic philosophers deliberately rejected religiously informed philosophy. But early on, Dr. Plantinga defended a variety of arguments for the existence of God, marking the beginning of his efforts to put theistic belief back on the philosophical agenda.

Plantinga’s first important work, God and Other Minds, re-examined the classic arguments for and against God. It concluded that belief in the existence of God was rational, just as belief in other minds is. Arguments for the existence of other minds cannot be proven with certitude, yet most everyone accepts them as a given fact. Similarly, a religious believer’s personal encounter with the divine authorizes belief in a divine mind and creator—even if such a being cannot be strictly inferred from the secular world. Though these arguments sound simple, Plantinga worked them out with great intricacy and depth, and his book moved many skeptical minds toward belief.More.

Of course, that will have no impact on naturalists, people who think our brains were shaped for fitness, not for truth. But, as they themselves constantly lament, they are not a majority.

See also: Jerry Coyne miffed at Alvin Plantinga’s Templeton win

and

Christian philosopher Alvin Plantinga wins Templeton Prize “an American scholar whose rigorous writings over a half century have made theism – the belief in a divine reality or god – a serious option within academic philosophy”

Comments
A well-deserved honor for a great man. Not surprised by a/mat Jerry Coyne's response.Truth Will Set You Free
June 8, 2017
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Dr Plantinga, well done, across a distinguished career. KFkairosfocus
June 6, 2017
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