New Baby, New Argument for God

Some updates

Some updates:

Angus Flynn was born right at home at 3:49 pm on October 25th. Mom and baby are both doing great, thanks be to God.

I also just received news that my article The Millerian Cosmological Argument: Arguing to God Without PSR, has been accepted for publication by Nova et Vetera.¹ I’ll let everyone know once the publication is available; for now, here is the abstract:

Abstract: We present and defend a Thomistic cosmological argument that runs independently of the principle of sufficient reason, sidestepping perhaps two of the most recurrent objections to cosmological reasoning: (a) the possibility of brute facts (i.e., that not everything needs an adequate explanation of its existence) and (b) the accusation of the composition fallacy. Drawing upon the work of Barry Miller, we show that any contingent entity like Thumper the rabbit, upon metaphysical analysis, is either a contradictory structure and therefore an impossible existent or else points towards an extrinsic cause for the unity of its really distinct metaphysical parts (namely, its essence and its existence). This conclusion enables the inference that only an uncaused cause with no really distinct metaphysical parts can ultimately produce anything with really distinct metaphysical parts. We then suggest it is not implausible that this entity is God.

Finally, here’s my take on Van Halen’s Eruption! As many of you know, I recently joined a Van Halen tribute project in the Milwaukee area (because, naturally, it makes perfect sense to do this with six kids, a business to run, and a PhD in the works ; ). Things are coming along nicely—we’re already about halfway through the setlist—but, dang, this stuff is tough to play!

1. Many of you may recall that this argument was originally featured in my book The Best Argument for God but was ultimately cut for various reasons. This turned out for the best, as it allowed me to further develop the argument—especially through my collaboration with Enric Gel, my co-author. I believe it makes a real contribution to cosmological reasoning and offers a genuine demonstration for God, given Aquinas’s constituent ontology. More to come!