Posted on 09/07/2007 12:53:40 PM PDT by SirLinksalot
For your perusal : Former foremost atheist, Philosopher, Antony Flew's latest book -- "There IS a God : How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind".
Antony Flew was one of the world's most prominent atheist who wrote many books trying to debunk the notion of the existence of God.
He has debated many Christian thinkers like Gary Habermas and William Lane Craig on the issue in the past and was considered a champion of atheism.
Among his most famous books promoting atheism are :
* Hume's Philosophy of Belief (1961)
* Logic And Language (1961) editor
* God and Philosophy (1966)
* Logic & Language (Second Series) (1966) editor * Evolutionary Ethics (1967)
* Darwinian Evolution (1984)
* God, Freedom and Immortality: A Critical Analysis. (1984)
* The Presumption of Atheism (1984)
* God: A Critical Inquiry (1986)
* Does God Exist?: A Believer and an Atheist Debate (1991) with Terry L. Miethe
* Does God Exist: The Craig-Flew Debate (2003) with William Lane Craig
However, after re-thinking the issue for a long time, Flew announced that he has come to believe in God, three years ago (2004).
Antony Flew, has now authored a book with HarperCollins (There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind, October 23, 2007), his co-author being Roy Varghese, author of the Intelligent Design friendly book : WONDER OF THE WORLD: A JOURNEY FROM MODERN SCIENCE INTO THE MIND OF GOD
Charles H. Townes - Nobel Prize winner and inventor of the laser, has actually endoresed Varghese's book as : "...a sensitive, profound and clear discussion of the important issues of our universe and our existence."
This is how the Publisher describes Flew's latest book :
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For the first time, this book will present a detailed and fascinating account of Flew's riveting decision to revoke his previous beliefs and argue for the existence of God. Ever since Flew's announcement, there has been great debate among atheists and believers alike about what exactly this "conversion" means. There Is a God will finally put this debate to rest.
This is a story of a brilliant mind and reasoned thinker, and where his lifelong intellectual pursuit eventually led him: belief in God as designer.
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This book is sure to be a facinating read for the open-minded.
And He has very few people He can call His trusted friends...
This same guy wrote a book very similar to this one year ago.
There might be a “cure” after all, lol!
Ping...
“You believe that there is one God: you do well. The devils
also believe, and tremble.” James 2:19
The thing that impresses me about Antony Flew is this — he isn’t the sort of person who REFUSES to be convinced when he realizes that he is wrong. In other words, being a top college professor never made him arrogant. He is willing to pursue the evidence wherever it leads.
If you saw his debates with Gary Habermas for instance, he was forceful in his views, but was totally lucid, kind and down to earth, never looking down at people even when they were not as highly educated as he is.
C.S. Lewis, one of the most prolific Christian writers, was also a staunch athiest at one time, but he was never a prolific athiest writer like Flew. I am going to get Flew’s “conversion” book, should be very inteesting reading.
Remember, if you really want it badly enough, the mother and child reunion is only emotion away.
Is that a new FR code word? I can't keep up. :^)
Do you know Paul Simon got that expression from a dish in a chinese restaurant?
“Know where the words came from on that? You would never have guessed. I was eating in a Chinese restaurant downtown. There was a dish called “Mother and Child Reunion.” It’s chicken and eggs. And I said, “Oh, I love that title. I gotta use that one.”
HABERMAS: Once you mentioned to me that your view might be called Deism. Do you think that would be a fair designation?FLEW: Yes, absolutely right. What Deists, such as the Mr. Jefferson who drafted the American Declaration of Independence, believed was that, while reason, mainly in the form of arguments to design, assures us that there is a God, there is no room either for any supernatural revelation of that God or for any transactions between that God and individual human beings.
Must’ve gotten an unfavorable diagnosis. /humor (sort of)
It’s easy to believe in God when you have nothing else left: the challenge is believing and living a Christian life when you’re healthy, successful and prosperous.
From Wikipedia: (In an article) Flew states that he has left his long-standing espousal of atheism by endorsing a deism of the sort that Thomas Jefferson advocated (”While reason, mainly in the form of arguments to design, assures us that there is a God, there is no room either for any supernatural revelation of that God or for any transactions between that God and individual human beings.”).
. . .
He’s reasoned himself to God in the abstract.
Lord, if it is your will, put your fire in Flew’s heart and make his understanding concrete. Say hello Lord.
My thoughts as well. Has the smell of a deathbed conversion...not that there is anything wrong with that!
HABERMAS: I agree that near death experiences do not evidence the doctrines of either heaven or hell. But do you think these evidential cases increase the possibility of some sort of an afterlife, again, given your theism?FLEW: I still hope and believe there’s no possibility of an afterlife.
I’d like to read this guy’s book. From the way you describe him, he seems like an interesting fellow. Your description of his intellectual curiosity leading to his change in thinking is the most interesting part. I just hope his “belief” is more than just the existential angst of an old man facing his own mortality.
The ego of man alone is enough impetus to believe in God I imagine, although perhaps that’s not enough in God’s eyes, lol.
Yup.
Here’s another one for ya.
The idea for popular song came from Popsicles,Icicles, a song of the sixties where the lyrics went...
Bright stars and guitars and
Drive-ins on Friday night
These are a few of the things we love
“Guitars and” was smoothed together in Icicles, Popsicles until it sounded like Guitarzan. A few years later, Ray made his recording.
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