On the Objective Meaningful Life Argument: A Response to Kirk Lougheed

Penner, Myron A.

doi:10.1017/s0012217317000968

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Anti-theism, the view that God's existence would make things worse, has received significant attention in the literature. So far, the Meaningful Life Argument for anti-theism has been the most discussed (e.g., Kahane, 2011;Lougheed, 2017Lougheed, , 2020Penner, 2015Penner, , 2018. This argument says, roughly, that certain individuals' life pursuits are so inextricably connected to their not being a God that were God to exist their lives would lose meaning or be significantly less meaningful than they would be otherwise.…”

Section: Anti-theismmentioning

confidence: 99%

The axiology of theism: Problems and prospects

Lougheed

2022

Philosophy Compass

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Roughly put, the axiology of theism asks whether God's existence would be good, bad, or neutral. Thus far the literature has focused on comparing theism as represented by 'Western monotheism' to atheism as represented by 'metaphysical naturalism'. Furthermore, the comparison has focused on comparing the actual world to a nearby epistemically possible world. I begin by surveying the literature comparing the value of such worlds before turning to explore a recent view offered by Klaas J. Kraay which expands the comparison between theism and atheism to include all of modal space (2021). Global, wide modal space pro-theism is the view that the entirety of modal space containing every possible world is better on theism than on atheism. One reason for holding this view is that God's existence logically entails that there is no gratuitous evil in every single possible world. I object that one potential downside of this view is that theists now have to explain how God's existence is compatible with all of the evil throughout modal space instead of just the evil in our own world. I conclude by pointing to a number of ways the current literature could be expanded, including adding different worldviews to the comparison class.

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Section: Anti-theismmentioning

confidence: 99%

The axiology of theism: Problems and prospects

Lougheed

2022

Philosophy Compass

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“…147 Kahane (2011) first introduced an argument along these lines, to which he appears highly sympathetic. For discussion, see Kraay and Dragos (2013); Penner (2015); Lougheed (2017); Penner (2018); and Lougheed (2020b, chapter 2). 148 Lougheed (2020b, chapter 3) discusses the fictional case of Sally, who requires privacy for her life to be meaningful.…”

Section: Loss Of Meaningmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Axiology of Theism

Kraay

2021

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Theism is the view that God exists; naturalism is the view that there are no supernatural beings, processes, mechanisms, or forces. This Element explores whether things are better, worse, or neither on theism relative to naturalism. It introduces readers to the central philosophical issues that bear on this question, and it distinguishes a wide range of ways it can be answered. It critically examines four views, three of which hold (in various ways) that things are better on theism than on naturalism, and one of which holds just the opposite.

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“…Chapter 2 explains the Meaningful Life Argument, which is first gestured at by Kahane (2011), and subsequently developed, though ultimately rejected, by Myron A. Penner (2015Penner ( , 2018. This argument aims to support the position that, for certain individuals, the world would be better if God didn't exist since if God did exist their lives would be meaningless.…”

Section: Chapter Summariesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Axiological Status of Theism and Other Worldviews

Lougheed

2020

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Palgrave Frontiers in Philosophy of Religion is a long overdue series which will provide a unique platform for the advancement of research in this area. Each book in the series aims to progress a debate in the philosophy of religion by (i) offering a novel argument to establish a strikingly original thesis, or (ii) approaching an ongoing dispute from a radically new point of view. Each title in the series contributes to this aim by utilising recent developments in empirical sciences or cutting-edge research in foundational areas of philosophy (such as metaphysics, epistemology and ethics).

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On the Objective Meaningful Life Argument: A Response to Kirk Lougheed

Cited by 9 publications

References 9 publications

The axiology of theism: Problems and prospects

The axiology of theism: Problems and prospects

The Axiology of Theism

The Axiological Status of Theism and Other Worldviews

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