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To Judge or not to Judge?: Part One

August 25th, 2025 Comments Off on To Judge or not to Judge?: Part One

Below is part one of a sermon I presented at Crossroads Presbyterian Church in Pokeno. “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 “Why do you look at […]

Tags: Judging · Sermon on the Mount · Sermons

Thinking Matters Talk: Does Morality Need God? Part Three:

September 8th, 2022 3 Comments

This year the New Zealand apologetics organization Thinking Matters ran a “Confident Christianity Conference” in Auckland. I was asked to speak at this conference on the topic. Does Morality Need God? Below is a slightly streamlined version of the talk I gave. This brings me to my second contention: If God exists, a divine command theory […]

Tags: Anything goes Objection · Arbitrariness Objection · Divine Command Theory · Euthyphro Dilemma · God and Morality · Graham Oppy · Nathan L King · Plato

Thinking Matters Talk: Does Morality Need God? Part Two:

August 29th, 2022 Comments Off on Thinking Matters Talk: Does Morality Need God? Part Two:

This year the New Zealand apologetics organization Thinking Matters ran a “Confident Christianity Conference” in Auckland. I was asked to speak at this conference on the topic. Does Morality Need God? Below is a slightly streamlined version of the talk I gave. I outlined four assumptions about the kind of requirements morality imposes upon us. These […]

Tags: Bruce Russell · Dualism of Practical Reason · Henry Sidgwick · Stephen Layman · Walter Sinnott-Armstrong

Thinking Matters Talk: Does Morality Need God? Part One

August 24th, 2022 Comments Off on Thinking Matters Talk: Does Morality Need God? Part One

This year the New Zealand apologetics organization Thinking Matters, ran a “Confident Christianity Conference” in Auckland. I was asked to speak at this conference on the topic. Does Morality Need God? Below is a slightly streamlined version of the talk I gave. “If God does not exist, then everything is permissible.” These words from Ivan […]

Tags: Divine Command Theory · God and Morality · John Stuart Mill · Peter Singer · Robert Adams

Evil, limited, and Indifferent deities: The Horrendous Deeds Objection Redivivus?

November 22nd, 2021 2 Comments

www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3zSoGqKdEk

Last week, I was scheduled to present the above paper at the Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Philosophical Society at Fort Worth, Texas. Unfortunately, Auckland’s lockdown prevented this, and the paper had to be cancelled due to the logistics involved. I did, however, pre-record the talk, so it is available below: Abstract: A common objection […]

Tags: Divine Command Theory · Horrendous Deeds Objection · Jason Thibodeau

Published: “The Psychopath Objection to Divine Command Theory: Another Reply to Erik Wielenberg”

October 4th, 2021 2 Comments

My paper, “The Psychopath Objection to Divine Command Theory: Another Reply to Erik Wielenberg” has now been published by The European Journal for Philosophy of Religion here. The abstract is as follows: Recently, Erik Wielenberg has developed a novel objection to divine command metaethics (DCM). The objection is that DCM “has the implausible implication that psychopaths […]

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Matthew Flannagan on Amazon

Did God Really Command Genocide? Coming to Terms with the Justice of God
Authors: Paul Copan, Matthew Flannagan

A common objection to belief in the God of the Bible is that a good, kind, and loving deity would never command the wholesale slaughter of nations. In the tradition of his popular Is God a Moral Monster?, Paul Copan teams up with Matthew Flannagan to tackle some of the most confusing and uncomfortable passages of Scripture. Together they help the Christian and nonbeliever alike understand the biblical, theological, philosophical, and ethical implications of Old Testament warfare passages.

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True Reason: Confronting the Irrationality of the New Atheism Eds: Tom Gilson, Carson Weitnauer

Today's New Atheists proclaim themselves our culture's party of reason. It is a claim they cannot sustain. Reason is the New Atheists' weakness, not their strength and in fact, the Christian faith is a far better place to look for True Reason. Making their case accessible to the first-time inquirer as well as the serious student, this top-flight team of writers presents a sound defense and a strong introduction to the true reason uniquely found in Christianity.

Feat. William Lane Craig, Sean McDowell, John DePoe, Chuck Edwards, Peter Grice, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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In Defense of the Bible: A Comprehensive Apologetic for the Authority of Scripture
Eds: Steven B Cowan and Terry L Wilder

The book begins by examining foundational philosophical approaches to the Bible as well as the methodological challenges those philosophies create for interpreting the Bible. It then addresses textual and historical challenges and how to deal with them. Finally it looks at ethical, scientific, and theological challenges demonstrating the Bible's moral integrity in relationship to contemporary moral emphases.

Feat. R Douglas Geivett, William A Dembski, Mary Jo Sharp, Darrell L Bock, Paul Copan, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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Virtues in Action: New Essays in Applied Virtue Ethics
Ed: Michael W Austin

Many philosophers have considered the strengths and weaknesses of a virtue-centered approach to moral theory. Much less attention has been given to how such an approach bears on issues in applied ethics. The essays in this volume apply a virtue-centered perspective to a variety of contemporary moral issues.

Feat. Michael W Austin, Robert K Garcia, Nathan L King, Gregory Bassham, Nancy E Snow, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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Holy War in the Bible: Christian Morality and an Old Testament Problem
Eds: Heath A Thomas, Jeremy Evans & Paul Copan

The challenge of a seemingly genocidal God who commands ruthless warfare has bewildered Bible readers for generations. A range of expert contributors engage in a multidisciplinary approach that considers this issue from a variety of perspectives: biblical, ethical, philosophical and theological.

Feat. David Lamb, Paul Copan, Murray Rae, Heath Thomas, Stephen B Chapman, Douglas S Earl, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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Come Let Us Reason: New Essays in Christian Apologetics
Eds: William Lane Craig & Paul Copan

The nineteen essays here raise classical philosophical questions in fresh ways, address contemporary challenges for the church, and will deepen the thinking of the next generation of apologists. Packed with dynamic topical discussions and informed by the latest scholarship.

Feat. J P Moreland, William Lane Craig, Gary R Habermas, Craig Keener, Paul Copan, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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True Reason: Christian Responses to the Challenge of Atheism Eds: Tom Gilson, Carson Weitnauer

While New Atheists like Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and others proclaim loudly their rationality, clear thinking, and incontrovertible scientific arguments, others are beginning to wonder how genuinely rational they are. Have they proved anything? Have they argued convincingly? Have they pinpointed any real challenges to the credibility of Christian faith?

Feat. William Lane Craig, Sean McDowell, John DePoe, Chuck Edwards, Peter Grice, Matthew Flannagan, et al.

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Entries Tagged as 'Uncategorized'

To Judge or not to Judge?: Part One

August 25th, 2025 Comments Off on To Judge or not to Judge?: Part One