The Shadow of God: An Atheist Podcast

James Preston
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A podcast devoted to long-form content exploring the nature of religion, life and the universe from an atheistic perspective.

  1. 4 HRS AGO

    Ep #14: An Introduction to the Cognitive Science of Religion

    Chapters: 0:00 Introduction: The Universality of Religious Beliefs 8:31 Case Study: Buddhism and Christianity 16:06 Can "Truth" Explain the Universality of Religious Beliefs?  22:30 Can "Culture" Explain the Universality of Religious Beliefs? 31:59 The Basics of Cognitive Science 38:37 The 6 Foundations of the Cognitive Science of Religion 41:52 1. The Epidemiology of Representations 56:41 2. The Hyperactive Agency Detection Device (HADD) 1:03:08 3. Animism and Anthropomorphism 1:15:44 4. Ritual Representations 1:32:15 5. Minimally Counter-Intuitive Ideas 1:49:41 6. Modes of Religiosity 2:00:50 Conclusion

    2h 2m

  2. 6D AGO

    Ep #13: Why Religious Explanations are Bad Explanations

    Discusses the features which an explanation must possess to be a "good" explanation, and whether or not religious explanations - whether or not they might be said to be "true" - could ever be counted as good explanations. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction: What makes a good explanation? 5:37 Is It Fair to Judge Religious Explanations Against Scientific Ones? 13:09 Dawes' Six Features of Good Explanations 15:36 1. Testability 38:13 2. Compatibility With Background Knowledge 47:48 3. Past Explanatory Success 55:39 4. Simplicity 1:31:47 5. Ontological Economy 1:46:10 6. Informativeness 2:10:53 Conclusion

    2h 12m

  3. 6D AGO

    Ep #12: What New Religious Movements Can Teach Us About the Origins of World Religions

    Explores the various sociological dynamics that are involved in the creation of "New Religious Movements" in the contemporary world, and what this might be able to teach us about the origins of the world's major religious traditions. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction: What Are NRMs? 3:49 What Studying NRMs can Teach us About the Origins of the World Religions 17:05 Why We Can't Trust Religious Traditions about Their Own Origins 29:25 Becker's 4 Types of Religion 33:00 Sectarian NRMs 46:43 Cultic NRMs 57:43 The Origins of Judaism 1:06:15 The Origins of Buddhism 1:22:42 The Origins of Christianity 1:30:02 The Origins of Islam 1:36:36 The Origins of the Chinese Religions 1:44:50 Why New Religions Emerge: The Erosion of Legitimacy 2:01:22 Charismatic Authority in NRMs 2:27:10 Charismatic Authority in the Origins of the World Religions 2:53:52 Why New Religions Perish or Survive: The Transfer of Authority

    3h 18m

  4. 6D AGO

    Ep #11: King Josiah and the Violent Origins of Monotheism

    Explores the reign of King Josiah of Judah (640-609 BCE) and the violent policies he enacted to spur the development of monotheism. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction: The Contemporary Relevance of Josiah 6:42 The Reliability of Our Sources 12:45 Who Was King Josiah? 19:03 The "Discovery" of Sacred Scripture 27:12 The Religious "Reforms" of Josiah 39:26 The Babylonian Exile 46:46 Josiah's Post-Exilic Legacy 1:04:15 Conclusion: Monotheism and Violence

    1h 9m

  5. APR 20

    Ep #10: Why God Doesn't Matter (Part 2: Divine Love)

    Explores the nature of divine love, and questions the extent to which God's love could be said to be of any genuine importance to human beings.

    3h 16m

  6. APR 16

    Ep #9: Why God Doesn't Matter (Part 1: Introduction)

    Introducing a new series of videos in which I explore a number of the putative benefits of God's existence, explaining why none of these are really of any importance to human beings. In this introduction to the series, I lay the groundwork for the conditions that must be met to say that the existence of God really "matters".

    49 min

  7. APR 15

    Ep #8: Why the Fine-Tuning Argument Fails

    Discusses the many philosophical challenges that the fine-tuning theory faces as a justification for God's existence.

    2h 8m

  8. APR 14

    Ep #7: Why A Priori Arguments for God's Existence Fail

    Discusses 7 general reasons why a priori arguments for the existence of God never succeed.

    1 hr
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A podcast devoted to long-form content exploring the nature of religion, life and the universe from an atheistic perspective.

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