Associated Canadian Theological Schools Instructor: Paul Chamberlain, Ph.D. Summer, 2018 3 credit hours E-mail: paul.chamberlain@twu.ca Phone: 604-888-7511 (3806) Course Dates: 30 April to 3 August Class days: 1 May to 4 May Class Times: 8.30 am to 1.30 pm Paul Chamberlain has taught at Trinity Western University since 1990. During part of that time He has also been involved with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries. His primary areas of teaching are Christian Apologetics, Ethics, Philosophy of Religion and Political Philosophy. He is the author of four books and a number of articles on social and apologetic issues. He currently serves as professor of Apologetics and Ethics at ACTS and is Director of the Institute for Christian Apologetics at ACTS. I. Course Description One of the most long-standing problems for Christian Theism is the problem of evil. This course will be an examination of this problem and will entail two major steps. First we will seek to understand the nature of the challenge to Christianity that is represented by this problem in both its logical and probabilistic forms. Secondly, we will examine the kinds of responses that are offered to it. Our underlying goal through this entire process will be to increase our effectiveness in presenting the message of Christianity in a manner that is compelling, accurate, and credible for the sake of both Christians and non-christians. II. Objectives The purpose of this course is to: 1. Provide students with a deep understanding of the problem of evil in its various forms, 2. Demonstrate the necessity of finding and communicating responses to this obstacle to the faith of others, 3. Expose students to a number of the key defenses and theodicies which have been developed by Christian thinkers, 4. Encourage and strengthen the faith of Christian students through this process, particularly those who are struggling with some personal evil or suffering themselves, 5. Help students develop the ability to defend Christian truth claims in the face of the problem of evil.
Summer, 2012 Page 2 III. Course Textbooks Required Texts Chamberlain, Paul. Why People Don t Believe: Confronting Seven Challenges to Christianity. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2011). Copan, Paul. Is God a Moral Monster? (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2011). Howard-Snyder, Daniel, ed. The Evidential Argument from Evil (Bloomington: Indiana UP, 2008) Meister, Chad and Dew, James K. (editors). God And The Problem of Evil: Five Views. (Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2017). Lewis, C. S. The Problem of Pain. (New York: Macmillan, 1940). Recommended for further reading: Adams, Marilyn McCord. Christ and Horrors: The Coherence of Christology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006). Adams, Marilyn McCord. Horrendous Evils and the Goodness of God (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1999). Adams, Marilyn McCord, & Adams, Robert Merrihew. eds. The Problem of Evil (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991). Beckwith, Francis J., Craig, William Lane, Moreland, J. P. eds. To Everyone an Answer: A Case for the Christian Worldview (Downers Grove: Intervarsity press, 2004). Bergmann, Michael, Murray, Michael J., Rea, Michael C. Divine Evil?: The Moral Character of the God of Abraham (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010). Blomberg, Craig. Can We Still Believe The Bible?: An Evangelical Engagement with Contemporary Questions. Craig, William Lane. Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics, Third ed. (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008). Evans, C. Stephen. Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics and Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2002). Hick, John. Evil and the God of Love (New York: St. Martin s Press, 2010). Howard-Snyder, Daniel. Nature Red in Tooth and Claw: Theism and the Problem of Animal Suffering (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). Moreland, J.P. & Craig, William Lane. Philosophical Foundations for a Christian
Summer, 2012 Page 3 Worldview (Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2003). Rowe, William L., ed. God and the Problem of Evil (Malden, Massachusettes: Wiley-Blackwell, 2001). Stackhouse, John G., Jr. Can God Be Trusted: Faith and the Challenge of Evil (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998). Swinburne, Richard. Providence and the Problem of Evil (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998). Swinburne, Richard. The Existence of God, 2 nd ed., (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004). (esp. chapters 10-11). Course Lecture & Reading Schedule May 1 Logical and Evidential Problem of Evil Howard-Snyder (pages TBA) (evidential argument Howard-Snyder) Howard-Snyder (pages TBA) (evidential argument & atheism William Rowe May 2 Divine Omnipotence & Goodness and the Problem of Evil Lewis, chpt 2 (Divine omnipotence) Lewis, chpt 3 (Divine goodness) May 3 Defenses & Theodicies Meister & Dew 1-9, 57-76, 99-127 Chamberlain, chpts 1-4 (Responding to the charge that religion, including Christianity is evil) Pike (course handout) (What does evil prove?) MAY 4 Evil & the God of the Old Testament Copan, chpts 3-4 (God s character) Copan, chpt 6 (principles for reading the OT)
Summer, 2012 Page 4 Copan, chpts 7-8 (questionable laws) Copan, chpts 10-11 (sexism) Copan, chpts 12-13 (slavery) Copan, chpts 15-16 (ethnic cleansing & indiscriminate killing) Copan, chpt 17 (ethnic cleansing & indiscriminate killing) Note: All text book readings not included in the above schedule are to be read by students throughout the course and completed by the final course date, August 3, 2018. Students are encouraged to develop their own weekly reading schedule and pace themselves in a manageable fashion. Course Assignments Research Essay Develop a research question based on the problem of evil. Draft a research paper addressing the question using some of the sources above as well as others. Be sure to include a statement of the challenge to Christianity from the presence of evil along with strong arguments in its favor, a clear thesis stating what you plan to argue in your essay, the strongest arguments you can find for your case, and a fair and accurate portrayal of the objection you are addressing. The paper may be written either in formal research style, or as a dialogue between two fictional characters. Either paper should include non-christian and Christian sources and should convincingly portray both sides of the argument. Please be advised that your research for the essay must include interaction with Christian sources as well as non-christian ones which are unsympathetic to your personal perspective. This will provide first-hand knowledge of opposing perspectives and the rational given for them. It will also be indispensable in refining your own views and arguments. In your research into unsympathetic perspectives, be sure to include Internet sources along with other more traditional ways of research. The web sites of skeptic s societies, atheistic associations, humanist groups, etc., are especially helpful in this regard. These should be documented appropriately. Essay length: 16-20 pages (4,000 5,000 words) Value: 600% Due Date: July 2, 2018 In-class Seminar Presentations These are not intended to be prepared or even begun before the course begins. They will be prepared during the course and due at various times throughout the course as agreed upon at the first class session.
Summer, 2012 Page 5 Each student will lead the class in one seminar on an assigned reading. Each seminar presentation will consist of: A basic summary of the author s most important ideas, Your assessment of and response to them. For example, hi-light points of agreement and disagreement with the author, draw out assumptions you find the author making, and give apologetic responses to them. Then respond to questions from your colleagues and professor. Your presentations should be approximately half summary and half assessment. You will prepare a 5-6 page written document, in polished form, which you will read from and distribute to the class at the beginning of your presentation. Value: 40% Grading Scale Letter Grade Percentage Grade Point A+ 97-100 4.30 A 93-96 4.00 A- 90-92 3.70 B+ 87-89 3.30 B 83-86 3.00 B- 80-82 2.70 C+ 77-79 2.30 C 73-76 2.00 C- 70-72 1.70 F Below 70 0.00 Supplement: Important Academic Notes from ACTS Web Support Student Portal https://students.twu.ca All students at TWU have a TWUPass username and password. This is determined at the time of an online application or can be managed through the computing services help desk or the link on
Summer, 2012 Page 6 the student portal. Your student email account is also available through this student portal and is vital for communication about grades, account statements, lost passwords, sign-up instructions, etc. If you do not know your account or password, there is a link at the login area called I forgot my password. When you click on that link, you will be walked through the process of retrieving your account information. Campus Closure In the event of deteriorating weather conditions overnight or other emergency situations, every effort will be made to communicate information regarding the cancellation of classes to the radio stations CKNW (980 AM), CKWX (1130 AM), MAX (850 AM), PRAISE (106.5 FM) and KARI (550 AM) by 6:30 a.m., and an announcement will be placed on the University's switchboard as well as on the website http://www.twu.ca/conditions/. The first announcement regarding a closure will cover the period up to 1:00 p.m. only. If classes are to be cancelled beyond 1:00 p.m., this decision will be announced by the same means before 11:00 a.m. that day. Students and faculty should assume that all night classes will continue to operate. If the emergency continues into the evening, students and faculty may check for a closure notice on the University's switchboard and website after 3:00 p.m. that day. Paper Formatting Students are encouraged strongly to use RefWorks (available through the library home page www.twu.ca/library) as their bibliographical manager and as a tool for formatting bibliographies. They will need to be aware of the need to clean up most bibliographies generated by this program. Students are encouraged to view the documents on the following websites for format samples: http://faculty.ucc.edu/egh-damerow/turabian.htm or www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/. Note that in RefWorks the available formatting styles are those of Turabian (Notes), 6th edition, and APA American Psychological Association, 5th edition. Counselling students are expected to purchase the APA Publications Manual. More information found at the following website. http://www.apastyle.org/pubmanual.html. CANIL students can locate this on the CANIL intranet, under the student side. A hard copy is given to incoming students in the fall. Please check with your professor to see which one he/she recommends you use!! Research Ethics Please note that all research projects involving human participants undertaken by members of the TWU university community (including projects done by ACTS students to satisfy course or degree requirements) MUST be approved by the Trinity Western University Research Ethics Board. Information and forms may be found at http://www.twu.ca/academics/research/ethics/ Those needing additional clarification may contact Dr. Bruce Guenther. Please allow at least three (3) weeks from the date of submission for a review of the application. Academic Integrity and Avoiding Plagiarism at TWU
Summer, 2012 Page 7 As Christian scholars pursuing higher education, academic integrity is a core value of the entire TWU community. Students are invited into this scholarly culture and required to abide by the principles of sound academic scholarship at TWU. This includes, but is not limited to, avoiding all forms of plagiarism and cheating in scholarly work. TWU has a strict policy on plagiarism (see academic calendar 2008-09, pp. 37-38). Further details on this subject are contained in the ACTS Student Handbook in section 4.12. The handbook is available online on the ACTS webpage (www.acts.twu.ca) at the following link: www.acts.twu.ca/handbook.html. Learning what constitutes plagiarism and avoiding it is the student's responsibility. An excellent resource describing plagiarism and how to avoid it has been prepared by TWU Librarian William Badke and is freely available for download (PPT file) or used as flash (self running) tutorials of varying lengths from: http://www.acts.twu.ca/lbr/plagiarism.ppt ; http://www.acts.twu.ca/lbr/plagiarism.swf (14 minute flash tutorial) http://www.acts.twu.ca/lbr/plagiarism_short.swf (8 minute flash tutorial) Equity of Access It is the responsibility of a student with a learning disability to inform the ACTS Director of Student Life of that fact before the beginning of a course so that necessary arrangements may be made to facilitate the student s learning experience. We are unable to accommodate any student who informs the Director of Student Life of a disability after the beginning of class.