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William Lane Craig

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William Lane Craig
Born (1949-08-23) August 23, 1949 (age 75)
Peoria, Illinois, US
EducationWheaton College (B.A. 1971)
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
(M.A. 1974; M.A. 1975)
University of Birmingham (Ph.D. 1977)
University of Munich (D.Theol. 1984)
Notable workReasonable Faith (1994)
Spouse Jan Craig ​(m. 1972)
EraContemporary philosophy
RegionWestern philosophy
SchoolAnalytic philosophy
Institutions
Doctoral advisor
Other academic advisorsNorman Geisler
Main interests
Notable ideasKalam Cosmological Argument
Websitereasonablefaith.org

William Lane Craig (born August 23, 1949) is an American analytic philosopher and Christian theologian. He holds faculty positions at Talbot School of Theology (Biola University) and Houston Baptist University.

Biography

Born August 23, 1949, in Peoria, Illinois, Craig is the second of three children born to Mallory and Doris Craig. His father's work with the T. P. & W. railroad took the family to Keokuk, Iowa, until his transfer to the home office in East Peoria in 1960. While a student at East Peoria Community High School (1963–1967), Craig was a debater and public speaker, being named his senior year to the all-state debate team and winning the state championship in oratory. In September 1965, his junior year, he converted to Christianity, and after graduating from high school, attended Wheaton College, majoring in communications. Craig graduated in 1971 and the following year married his wife Jan, whom he met on the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ. In 2014, he was named alumnus of the year by Wheaton.

In 1973 Craig entered the program in philosophy of religion at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School north of Chicago, where he studied under Norman Geisler. In 1975 Craig commenced doctoral studies in philosophy at the University of Birmingham, England, writing on the Cosmological Argument under the direction of John Hick. He was awarded a doctorate in 1977. Out of this study came his first book, The Kalam Cosmological Argument (1979), a defense of the argument made by his teacher at Trinity, Stuard Hackett. Craig was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship in 1978 from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to pursue research on the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus under the direction of Wolfhart Pannenberg at the Ludwig-Maximillians-Universität München in Germany. His studies in Munich under Pannenberg's supervision led to a second doctorate, this one in theology, awarded in 1984 with the publication of his doctoral thesis, The Historical Argument for the Resurrection of Jesus During the Deist Controversy (1985).

Career

Craig joined the faculty of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in 1980, where he taught philosophy of religion for the next seven years. In 1982 Craig received an invitation to debate Kai Nielsen at the University of Calgary, Canada, on the question of God's existence, and has since then debated many philosophers, scientists, and biblical scholars

After a one-year stint at Westmont College on the outskirts of Santa Barbara, Craig moved in 1987 with his wife and two young children back to Europe, where he pursued research for the next seven years as a visiting scholar at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Louvain) in Belgium. Out of that period of research issued seven books, among them God, Time, and Eternity (2001). In 1994, Craig joined the Department of Philosophy and Ethics at Talbot School of Theology in suburban Los Angeles as a Research Professor of Philosophy, a position he currently holds, and he went on to become a Professor of Philosophy at Houston Baptist University in 2014. In 2016, Craig was named Alumnus of the Year by Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. In 2017, Biola created a permanent faculty position and endowed chair, the William Lane Craig Endowed Chair in Philosophy, in honor of Craig's academic contributions.

Craig served as president of the Philosophy of Time Society from 1999 to 2006. He helped found the Evangelical Philosophical Society and served as its president from 1996 to 2005.

Religious affiliation

Craig attends a Southern Baptist Church, although he has stated that "denomination" of church is not of paramount importance to him and that he himself is ordained in a different domination.

Apologetics

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Kalam Cosmological Argument

See also: Kalam Cosmological Argument

Craig has worked extensively on a version of the Cosmological Argument called the Kalam Cosmological Argument. While the Kalam has a venerable history in medieval Islamic philosophy, Craig updated the argument to interact with contemporary scientific and philosophical developments. The philosopher Quentin Smith states: "a count of the articles in the philosophy journals shows that more articles have been published about Craig's defence of the Kalam argument than have been published about any other philosopher's contemporary formulation of an argument for God's existence."

Divine omniscience

Craig is a proponent of Molinism, supporting middle knowledge and also applying it to a wide range of theological issues, such as divine providence and predestination, biblical inspiration, perseverance of the saints, Christian particularism, and the problem of evil.

Divine eternity

In The Tensed Theory of Time (2000) Craig examines arguments for and against a tensed understanding of time, commonly called the A-Theory of time. In The Tenseless Theory of Time (2000), Craig conducts a similar review of arguments for a tenseless construct or B-Theory of time.

Resurrection of Jesus

Craig's two volumes The Historical Argument for the Resurrection of Jesus (1985) and Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus (3rd ed., 2002) are said by the Christian reviewers Gary Habermas and Christopher Price to be among the most thorough investigations of the event of Jesus' resurrection.

Other views

Craig is a critic of metaphysical naturalism, New Atheism, and prosperity theology, as well as a defender of Reformed epistemology. He also states that being a confessing Christian is not compatible with practicing homosexuality. Craig maintains that the theory of evolution is compatible with Christianity. Craig has an agnostic position on the creation account. He is a fellow of the Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture and was a fellow of the International Society for Complexity, Information, and Design.

As a divine command theorist, Craig believes God had the moral right to command the killing of the Canaanites if they refused to leave their land, as depicted in the Book of Deuteronomy. This has led to some controversy. The prominent atheist Richard Dawkins has repeatedly refused to debate Craig, and has given what he calls Craig's defense of genocide as one of his reasons.

Craig has also proposed an Apollinarian Christology in which the divine logos stands in for the human soul of Christ and completes his human nature.

Reception

According to Nathan Schneider, " professional philosophers know about him only vaguely, but in the field of philosophy of religion, books and articles are among the most cited". Sam Harris has described Craig as "the one Christian apologist who seems to have put the fear of God into many of my fellow atheists."

Some scholars, such as Wes Morriston of the University of Colorado Boulder, have challenged some of Craig's views, such as the Kalam Cosmological argument, the foundation of God for morality, the alleged genocide of the Canaanites, as well as Craig's views on actual infinites, his fine-tuning argument, and his arguments for the resurrection of Jesus.

Selected publications

See also

References

  1. Craig & Carroll 2016, p. 102.
  2. ^ Schneider, Nathan (July 1, 2013). "The New Theist: How William Lane Craig Became Christian Philosophy's Boldest Apostle". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Washington. Retrieved January 22, 2018.
  3. ^ Craig, William Lane (August 23, 2011). "Dr. Craig's Favorite Philosopher, Debate, and Books". Reasonable Faith (podcast). Interviewed by Harris, Kevin. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  4. Alvarez 2013, p. 238.
  5. Roach, David (September 8, 2014). "Theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg Dies". Baptist Press. Southern Baptist Convention. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  6. Schneider, Nathan (1 July 2013). "The New Theist". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 11 June 2019. The result is a person ... who cannot only hold his own against fellow analytic philosophers...
  7. Creel 2014, p. 205.
  8. "William Lane Craig" 2007.
  9. ^ Craig, William Lane. "Curriculum Vitae". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on June 1, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  10. Craig, William Lane. "Debating". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  11. ^ Robinson & Baggett 2016, p. 211.
  12. "Records and History – Original Oratory". Illinois High School Association. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
  13. ^ "William Lane Craig". La Mirada, California: Biola University. Archived from the original on August 14, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  14. "William Lane Craig and Sean McDowell". Fervr. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  15. Robinson & Baggett 2016, p. 212.
  16. Schneider, Nathan (July 12, 2013). "7 Habits of a Highly Effective Philosopher". Killing the Buddha. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  17. ^ "Dr. William Lane Craig Named Alumnus of the Year". Wheaton, Illinois: Wheaton College. May 7, 2014. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  18. Robinson & Baggett 2016, pp. 211–212.
  19. Craig, William Lane. "Double Doctorates". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  20. ^ "William Lane Craig". calvin.edu. Calvin College. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  21. Robinson & Baggett 2016, p. 211; "William Lane Craig" 2007.
  22. Craig, William Lane (April 28, 2013). "Creation and Evolution (Part 2)". Defenders Podcast. Reasonable Faith. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  23. "The historical argument for the Resurrection of Jesus during the Deist controversy". WorldCat. Online Computer Library Center. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  24. Stafforini, Pablo (August 18, 2016). "William Lane Craig: A Complete List of Debates". Pablo's Miscellany. Pablo Stafforini. Archived from the original on June 11, 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^
  26. Trinity International University (July 22, 2016). "William Lane Craig Named TEDS Alumnus of the Year". Buffalo Grove Countryside. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  27. Wu, Joanna (Spring 2017). "William Lane Craig Named in Biola's First Endowed Chair". Biola Magazine. La Mirada, California: Biola University. p. 15. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  28. ^ Robinson & Baggett 2016, p. 213.
  29. William Lane Craig, Choosing a Church, reasonablefaith.org, USA, May 16, 2016
  30. Cowan & Spiegel 2009, pp. 268–269; Jackson 2014, p. 19; Peterson et al. 2013, pp. 86–89; Reichenbach 2017; Williams 2013, p. 89.
  31. "Who's Who: Modern Authors: William Lane Craig (Entry 2)". Philosophy of Religion.info. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  32. Smith 2007, p. 183.
  33. Craig, William Lane (April 19, 2010). "Molinism vs. Calvinism". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on June 25, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  34. Craig, William Lane. "Molinism and Divine Election". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  35. Craig, William Lane. "A Molinist Perspective on Biblical Inspiration". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  36. Craig 1991. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFCraig1991 (help)
  37. Craig, William Lane. "Middle Knowledge and Christian Particularism". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  38. Craig, William Lane (June 7, 2015). "Molinism and the Problem of Evil". Reasonable Faith (podcast). Interviewed by Harris, Kevin. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  39. Craig, William Lane (2000). The Tensed Theory of Time: A Critical Examination. ISBN 978-0792366348.
  40. Craig, William Lane (2000). The Tenseless Theory of Time: A Critical Examination. ISBN 978-0792366355.
  41. Craig 2001a.
  42. Habermas 1988.
  43. Price, Christopher (2005). "Review of The Son Rises: The Historical Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus by William L. Craig". Christian Colligation of Apologetics Debate Research & Evangelism. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  44. Craig, William Lane. "The Resurrection of Jesus". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  45. Craig & Moreland 2000.
  46. Copan & Craig 2009.
  47. Craig, William Lane (March 28, 2010). "Lightning Strikes Again". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on May 22, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  48. "Religious Epistemology MP3 Audio by William Lane Craig". Apologetics 315. December 30, 2008. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  49. Craig 2003, pp. 129–144.
  50. Zaimov, Stoyan (April 9, 2013). "Christian Apologist Says Church 'Losing Battle' Against Hate Label for Homosexuality Stance". The Christian Post. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  51. Craig, William Lane. "A Christian Perspective on Homosexuality". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on December 6, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  52. Craig, William Lane (May 19, 2008). "Christian Homosexuals?". Reasonable Faith. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  53. Stewart 2007.
  54. Craig, William Lane (February 20, 2012). "Evolutionary Theory and Theism". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on October 2, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  55. Craig, William Lane (2009). "William Lane Craig's View on Creation and Evolution". YouTube. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  56. "Doctrine of Creation". Reasonable Faith. Archived from the original on December 18, 2015. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  57. "William Lane Craig". Discovery Institute. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  58. "Society Fellows". International Society for Complexity, Information, and Design. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2011. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; October 19, 2011 suggested (help)
  59. Copan & Flannagan 2014, pp. 81–82; Howson 2011, p. 11.
  60. Craig, William Lane (August 8, 2011). "The 'Slaughter' of the Canaanites Re-visited". Reasonable Faith. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  61. Dawkins, Richard (October 20, 2011). "Why I Refuse to Debate with William Lane Craig". The Guardian. London. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  62. Came, Daniel (October 22, 2011). "Richard Dawkins's Refusal to Debate Is Cynical and Anti-Intellectualist". The Guardian. London. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  63. Moreland & Craig 2003, p. 608.
  64. Morriston 2013.
  65. Morriston 2012.
  66. Morriston 2009.
  67. Morriston 2018.
  68. Jantzen 2014.
  69. Law 2011.
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Bibliography

Alvarez, Daniel R. (2013). "A Critique of Wolfhart Pannenberg's Scientific Theology". Theology and Science. 11 (3): 224–250. doi:10.1080/14746700.2013.809950. ISSN 1474-6719. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Båve, Arvid (2009). "A Deflationary Theory of Reference". Synthese. 169 (1): 51–73. doi:10.1007/s11229-008-9336-4. ISSN 1573-0964. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Copan, Paul; Craig, William Lane, eds. (2009). Contending with Christianity's Critics: Answering New Atheists & Other Objectors. Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Academic. ISBN 978-0-8054-4936-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Copan, Paul; Flannagan, Matthew (2014). Did God Really Command Genocide? Coming to Terms with the Justice of God. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books. ISBN 978-0-8010-1622-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Cowan, Steven B.; Spiegel, James S. (2009). The Love of Wisdom: A Christian Introduction to Philosophy. Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Academic. ISBN 978-0-8054-4770-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

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